Sanctuary

She strode into the classroom, disheartened that the only open seat was her usual one. She slid into the plastic chair, arranging her notebook and keeping her eyes trained downward. No matter how hard she tried to act more confident, she couldn't prepare herself to face Shane. Her stomach clenched, reminding her of the way she used to feel. It had been a long time since she'd had that feeling.

He was occupied. Leaning forward, saying something over Shae's shoulder. She couldn't possibly predict what he would say. Was he surprised? Was he going to act like it didn't happen? Did he think she liked him as more than a friend? Was he even going to talk to her? Could he see the hickies on her neck?Would he make fun of her? Did he even remember? How many people had he told? God, he had probably spread so many rumors. Probably made her look like the slutty new girl. Or maybe not. It wasn't like she had actually done anything.

She had no idea. So much for making friends in Ethics.

"Oh, hey," he said slyly, leaning back in his chair. She could feel him looking at her. She lifted her head slightly, trying her hardest to make steady eye contact. He had a smirk plastered on his face, his profile just as handsome as always.

"Hey," she said, flashing a quick smile and facing forward again. He scooted his chair in, leaning closer to her.

He brushed his left hand against her right one. "You know," he said, his voice dropping to a near whisper. "That make-up isn't fooling anyone."

"Fuck you," she laughed jokingly, relief flooding her entire body. Okay, so he remembered. And seemed okay with it.

"You wish, DeMarco." She stared open-mouthed at him for a minute, momentarily taken aback by his audacity.

"Wish what?" Danielle asked, turning around.

"Nothing. Taryn was just telling me all about her crazy weekend and how hard it was for her to hide her hickies this morning." She slapped his shoulder, scoffing.

"More action than you got," she retaliated, slightly pleased by their little inside joke. "Tell me, how's your XBox doing? You probably spent a lot of time together this weekend." She patted his hand demeaningly. Danielle and Shae laughed, looking at Shane expectantly to see what he would say next. He leaned back in his chair, his eyes shining as he looked at Taryn curiously. He opened his mouth to say something but was cut off by the professor.

"Maybe next time?" she said sweetly, flashing him a childlike grin. He shook his head and straightened out his chair as she turned away from him, fighting the urge to smile to herself.

***

A week later, she met her friends in town for lunch. As the semester got underway, each found themselves burdened by coursework and often couldn't meet up outside of class. At Hallie's suggestion, they had chosen a new place in town to try out.

"So Kyle's totally being secretive about our plans this weekend," Audrey was saying after the group had ordered food. Kyle, Taryn had heard, was a guy that Audrey was sort of on and off with. Currently on, but subject to change at a moment's notice. Audrey was spontaneous, Taryn was coming to learn. She never quite did what others thought she would.

"He'll probably pick you up and take you somewhere nice in town. Maybe a movie and dinner," Hallie said with a smile. "He strikes me as the classy type."

"I hope so. I think that'll be my first official date...ever," Audrey gushed. She glared at Parker as he playfully rolled his eyes at her swooning.

"You definitely have to tell me all about it. I'm a sucker for that kind of thing now that Ben left." Ben, Hallie's ex-boyfriend, had apparently dated her for most of the year before. She described him as near perfect...except when he decided to move across the country and call things off.

"You're going home this weekend, right?" Maggie said to Hallie. Hallie nodded. She was heading home to see her parents and little sister, and she had been incredibly excited all week. Taryn ignored the guilt in her stomach. She didn't want to go home. Not unless she absolutely had to.

To be honest, Taryn hadn't even thought about the upcoming weekend. It would be the first she would be on campus without Hallie. She'd probably end up spending the entirety of it with the group of people around the table in front of her. She supposed she preferred it that way. It wasn't like she wanted to be alone anymore.

"Ugh, I have so much work to do this weekend, it's not even funny," Jocelyn groaned, burying her face in her hands. Her dark hair was pulled back into a messy bun, loose pieces falling into her face. "So begins long days spent in the library."

"I'm with you," Matt said. "My professors are taking this semester a little too seriously for my liking." Taryn began to think that everyone she knew was feeling that way. It was weird, considering they weren't even upperclassmen yet. Perhaps Brighton had just decided to crack down on the curriculum.

"I mean, it is college," Parker joked. "What the hell are you here to do, if not study?"

"Look who's talking, asshole," Matt laughed. "You've never stepped foot in the library."

"He would if Theresa were there," Maggie interjected with a wink. The rest of the group looked inquisitively over at her. "She told me you two hooked up...?"

Taryn glanced over at Parker. He bowed his head, his face turning a light shade of red. It was so cute to see him all worked up over this girl. It was sweet. He was like a little puppy dog, excited at the mere mention of her name.

"I...I mean...We...It...It wasn't supposed to happen," he stammered quickly. He looked relieved as the server stopped by, if for only a minute to distribute everyone's food. "She and I were both wasted. We ran into each other on the way out, and...yeah." He dug into his cheeseburger, suddenly ravenous.

The girls shook their heads at him while Matt patted his shoulder. "Good for you, dude."

"You know, she's not as crazy as everyone thinks," Parker said, looking hopefully at Matt.

"Well, let's not go THAT far..." he replied, holding his hands up and shrugging. The table laughed, earning a pout from Parker.

"She wants to meet up this weekend," Parker rambled. "Maybe I can bring her back to the dorms and you guys can get to know her!" Matt pursed his lips, and Taryn could tell he was trying his very hardest to keep his mouth shut and just be supportive. "Maybe it won't even be that bad!"

"Regardless, this entire weekend's just going to suck," Maggie mumbled, taking a bite of her caesar wrap.

Taryn supposed this was bound to happen eventually. Her time at Brighton so far had been amazing, far exceeding her expectations. She knew it was only a matter of time before reality caught up to her and she had to do things she didn't necessarily want to. If she were smart, she would've agreed right then and there to spend the weekend in the library with Jocelyn and Matt. But if she were being honest, she wasn't so sure she wanted to be smart quite yet.