Did he actually ask me to close the door? I froze where I stood and turned around slowly. I made eye contact with him. I literally couldn't make the air fill my lungs. It felt like my throat was closing. I swallowed the lump in my throat and bowed my head. "Dean?" My arms were clutching my notebook tightly against my chest.

He gawked for a few moments then leaned back on his swivel chair. "I said close the door once you step out of my office."

When I looked over, he was smiling widely toward me with the grin that made me stutter. "O-okay, sure...of course," I mumbled, turning on my heel and making my way out of his office.

A dark low chuckle came from behind the door and I felt so embarrassed.

"I hate you, Reeve," I cursed under my breath.

A buzz in my pocket startled me. I fumbled for my buzzing phone and pulled it. I glanced down and found a message from my twin brother using an unknown number.

Hey Gats! Mik here. Listen, I will be gone for two weeks cause we're heading to New York. The band will do a front act at No Direction's concert! Isn't it great?

Shit. I immediately called the number. "Hello?" "Hey, sister! I guess you received my message." "Yes! And it isn't great at all! You've been gone

for a week and now you're going to extend it another two weeks. Are you crazy?" My breathing labored as rage started boiling inside of me.

"Gats, listen. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, okay. It's now or never. I have to go."

"What about your studies? What about Dad? What about Mom?" I yelled. The students who were still lingering in the hallway turned their heads to look at me as I walked to my next class.

"Agata, it can wait."

I turned to the corner into the restroom and locked myself inside one of its stalls.

"Mikael, I'm not going to tolerate you this time. I'm not going to forge another medical certificate for you and I'm not gonna lie to Dad anymore."

"Go ahead, tell him. For once I want to be true to myself!"

I was speechless for a second.

"Agata, please, I don't want to disappoint Dad, but I want to do what makes me happy."

I sat down on the toilet bowl and took a deep breath. "I-I'll see what I can do."

"Thanks, you're the best sister ever!"

"Psh, best my ass!" He chuckled on the other line. "Mik, let me inform you that our new dean is kind of strict. You may want to get your ass back here ASAP if you want to graduate."

"Nah, I know your charm will do the magic."

"Oh, you haven't met our new dean yet. He's not the kind who will fall for my charms. He is a villain disguised as a hero. He's the bane of my existence. Ugh! I hate his cruel taunts and his staggering arrogance. He is such—"

I was cut off by a knock on the door of the stall I was in.

"Sorry, someone's in here."

The knocking didn't stop. I gave out a harsh growl as I opened the door.

"I said someone's in here! What do you...want?" The words coming out of my mouth were fading.

I was met with two piercing blue eyes.

"Can you explain to me what you are doing inside the male restroom, Ms. Ferrero?"

I looked around and saw the male restroom sign hanging in front of the door. "Perhaps I should just..." I said meekly, massively embarrassed, quickly trying to get out. "...s-sorry Dean, I didn't notice. I was busy on the phone. What are you doing here?" I tried changing the subject and smiled fondly at him.

"I was making my rounds to make sure to be the bane of your existence with my cruel taunts and staggering arrogance," he said with a ton of sarcasm.

I swallowed and looked up at him for a moment, biting my lip in fear.

"Out!"

I almost jumped out of my skin. "Now!"

I quickly scrambled out of the restroom and ran to my next class, which, unfortunately, I already missed.

I seriously needed to get a light. I hung around on the rooftop to smoke a cigarette. I brought the cigarette to my lips, sighing as I realized I had no lighter.

"Excuse me?" I asked politely. "Do you have a light?"

The nerdy looking guy looked at my direction and I realized it was Tim Wilson, our running Cum Laude.

Keeping his eye on me, he reached into his pocket and produced what I needed.

"You smoke," I assessed, eyeing the cigarette in his hand.

His mouth opened, no words escaping for a second. "Well...not really. I'm just nervous, I guess." "Because..." He flicked the lighter as I leaned over, letting the tip of my cigarette meet the flame. "Is it because of Apple?"

He laughed, shaking his head.

I felt the familiar smoke calm my nerves as it washed over my mouth, leaving a bitter taste.

"How did you know?"

"I see the way you look at her."

"Really?" he sighed and fixed his glasses. "Am I being that creepy?"

I chuckled. "Nah, not in a creepy stalker kind of way, but I could tell it was beginning to make her feel uncomfortable."

"I don't want to make her feel uncomfortable." "Then try to blink every two seconds if you're looking at her," I said, cigarette dangling out of the side of my mouth. I took a long puff, he waved away the smoke and hacked out a few dramatic coughs.

"Thank you for the advice. Let's just keep it between the four corners of this rooftop."

"Cool," I agreed.

"I didn't know you smoke," he commented.

"It was more of a want than a need for the nicotine. I'm not a smoker, not really, but I wanted something to calm my nerves and distract me from everything."

"From Dean Gates?" "How did you know?"

"I see the way you look at him," he simply said, shrugging his shoulders before lighting up his stick.

"Really?" I let out a laugh before taking another puff. "We've never had this conversation before, have we?"

We both shared a good laugh. "Am I that being obvious?"

"Not really. Actually, it's not an entirely worked out theory, it's just a wild guess that you confirmed."

I shook my head, chuckling. "You are awfully impressive. Secrets. We all have them, don't we?"

"They say if you don't expose your secret, your secret will expose you."

I suddenly coughed from my own smoke.

***

Senior year had been quite a ride already and it had only been a few weeks. I was super excited for what was yet to come.

When it came to our new dean, so far, so cruel. He was strict and I found him rude.

For the record, he already recommended four seniors for academic dismissal, including Kyle, which was immediately approved by the president. He also suspended six juniors he caught vandalizing the university walls. So much for lowering the high level of attrition.

Looking toward the future, searching for a job is quite possibly the most daunting task one could have. The girls and I fell into this "talking about the future" conversation one day when we were huddled in our room. It could be quite stressful because I doubt myself, and felt like I'm the only person who has no idea what I'm doing next year.

I heard it all—unbelievable job offers my friends have landed. Tatiana was set to go to medical school with a research position. Raven planned on going straight to becoming a physician, and Apple was just planning on taking a year to travel the world.

"How about you?" Raven asked.

"I'm currently in the midst of applying for different opportunities, all of which I'm incredibly excited about. I know I'll find something I love," I replied. Half-truth, half lie.

It was really difficult hearing about people who had already figured out the next several years of their lives.

"I'm trying to keep a healthy distance away from the future and live in the present," I told them.

Suddenly, my phone frantically buzzed; it was almost 11:00 P.M. It was a call from my dad.

"Agata, your mom is in the hospital."

My mouth dropped open. I almost lost grip on my phone. "W-what hospital? What happened to her?" I asked, so rushed my words probably jumbled together. "I'm coming."

"Gats, what happened?" asked Tats.

"I need to go to St. Croix, my mom was rushed to the hospital," I told them with tears welling in my eyes. I grabbed my bag and made my way outside to wait for a taxi.

Fifteen minutes passed and one finally arrived, but with someone on board. The winds were blowing strong and the rain poured.

I had no umbrella, there were no cabs, and my mom was in the hospital. Could this night be any more depressing?

A heavily tinted car stopped right in front of me for a moment. I thought the driver would be generous enough to give me a lift, but my hopes turned into frustration when the car just passed by me.

I was surprised when the car halted a few yards away and drove back in reverse. The driver opened the passenger door and I walked over.

"Damn it, Agata! Get in!"

"Dean." I was startled but quickly got inside his car. I was drenched from the minutes that I stood under the pouring rain. I was literally shaking and the air-conditioning inside Reeve's car made me shiver even more.

"What in the hell are you doing in the rain?"

"My mom was rushed to the hospital. Please take me to St. Croix," I replied, shivering in response. I felt tears in my eyes but fought to hold them back.

He looked at me with a worried expression. He removed his coat and placed it on me.

"I believe this should count as one more debt owed, Agata. I'll collect on it soon enough," he stated and drove to the hospital.

____________________

A/N: Hi Arcangels! Thank you for patiently waiting! I've been uber busy lately. Glad I was able to squeeze writing this chapter. So there you have it! What do you think about this chapter? I hope you enjoyed reading. Leave a comment, I would love to hear your thoughts about it! Cheers- Ysa ;)