Page 30 of Only ever you-Ana & Byron
Chapter fourteen
Chapter 14
Ana
The car was packed. The last of the boxes was finally wedged in, boot closed with a soft thunk.
"You are going to crush my mugs, Papa", Ana complained as he tried to sit on the boot to get it closed.
Her mum kept dabbing her eyes, pretending she had something in her eye. But it didn't last because she was bawling by the time Ana got in. Her dad stood beside her, arms folded, watching Ana with a mixture of pride and melancholy behind his eyes.
"Call me once you get there,tesoro," he said, ruffling her hair like she was still ten. "If someone gets too clever, remember the dropkick I showed you. Practice. Then call me and I'll drive down and beat him senseless. Just say the word."
Ana smiled, her throat tight.
They had already driven up together earlier in the week to see the campus. Her hostel accommodation was small, but they had an ensuite which she shared with another girl. As she had immediately introduced herself because her parents had the same idea, "Fion. Like Fiona but with more flair."
Fion was a riot. Barely five feet tall, dyed lavender curls, and all the chaotic energy of a theatre major who drank Red Bull for hydration. Ana thought that probably accounted for the energy and tried to tell her that energy drinks were not good for her. She was studying Fine Art, wanted to be an actress-slash-activist-slash-creative-icon. Ana liked her instantly.
"I'm taking you to a party tonight," Fion declared, after Ana finally finished unpacking her laptop and books. "And tomorrow, we're going to the Freshers Fair. You can't live like a librarian on day one."
Ana had laughed. "I'm not changing. I just unpacked all my stuff!"
Fion looked her up and down-jeans, white tee, plain sneakers-and made a disgusted noise.
"You're a tragic level one NPC. We need sparkle to make you an MVP."
She dove into her wardrobe and emerged with a glittering green slip dress so short Ana was fairly sure her dignity would fall out with one wrong move.
"This is a top. What about covering my bottom?" Ana said flatly.
"That's the point. It’s a peekaboo dress," replied Fion.
But it did fit. Just barely. And as Ana stared at herself in the mirror, something bold stirred.
At the party, under pulsing lights, she looked across the crowded dance floor only to lock eyes with a blond boy who looked like he belonged on a Greek beach. His light brown eyes had been watching her.
Her heart stuttered.
She looked away but not before she smiled.
A small trickle of regret curled through her ribs, mingling with anger for what might've been. For what would never be. Byron, how could you do this?
Byron would always be her first heartbreak.
But not her last.
***
Week 2
"You always have ink on your fingers," Harvey said.
Ana glanced up from her notebook, startled.
The boy in front of her was tall, with fair, neat brown curls and a dimple on his left cheek. His smile was warm, and his blue eyes were clever.
"Do I know you?" she asked.
