Page 2 of Scandal

Cameron looks smacked by my words. He blinks a few times. Then he just smiles in response to my warning. What the actual fuck is wrong with this guy?

He takes a deep breath, and I brace myself for more word vomit. “My dad always calls me a chameleon because I can make friends with anybody. Plus, I love learning new things. So don’t worry. You won’t scare me away. I once had this friend who even went to jail for a while. And you’re a student here, so you can’t be as bad as that even…” he pauses to laugh.Again, so wrong.“Anyway, not saying you’re the type to go to jail, of course. And maybe you need a friend like me who can put up with anything, because you seem to be down about something. Hey, should we get a pizza? I’m starving.”

There’s no time to tell the kid to fuck off because a guy appears in our doorway. He’s a big jock like me, but I don’t recognize him from the gym. Maybe he plays football. The players have their own better, private gym. “Hey, Cam, your dad said to stop by and introduce myself. I’m Zack Browning.” The guy pauses as his eyes land on me. “Xander Briggs?” he questions, a brow raising with concern. Maybe he’s shocked to see me in the inclusive dorms. Not that I give a damn what anyone thinks of me.

“Yeah. Have we met?” I grit out in a clipped tone.

Zack’s eyes narrow. “No, but mygirlfriendHaley knows you.”

Shit. Haley? The girl from the top of the pyramid. The girl whose supposed best friend was all too happy to fuck her over for a viral video. All at my suggestion...

Cameron is bound to find out one way or another that I’m a total slime puppy, but for some reason, the thought of him knowing bugs me.

“Cam, let’s take a walk, huh?” Zack suggests, and Cam shrugs, blissfully unaware of my reputation, which I’m sure won’t be the case for much longer. When they leave, I shut the door. Not interested in having any randoms stop by, thinking I’m the friendly type.

Swallow it down.That’s my only option. Live with my mistakes. That’s what Joy says. If I’m going to change, I need to own up to my past and grow from it. No hiding. No lying. Already wrote an apology to Jordan this summer. Even though she was happy to let Haley fall. Anyway, the letter was part of the conditions from Dean Runkin when he let me stay. Honestly, if I wasn’t so good at coding, the school would have kicked me out after Jordan’s father’s complaint came in. Guess she’s started feeling a little guilty that Haley has been in a coma. But Whitmore is happy to keep me, or rather, to keep the intellectual property rights to the code I write for them.

I pull out my clothes and shove them into the drawers. There’s no rhyme or reason to the order. Underwear, jeans, T-shirts… never saw the point in separating them. Just grab some shit and go.

Such a difference from my new roomie. I can image Cam cringing at my organization choices. Good thing he’s not here to see it. I look over at his little cart with the clear drawers that’s complete with labels: Office Supplies, Utensils and Plates, Bathroom.

Jesus. We couldn’t be a worse match. I just hope I can resist the urge to fuck with him. He’s perfect prey. So trusting. So open.Damn.I’m such a fuck for even thinking that.

Nayla’s face appears in the cracked door, just as I’m starting to spiral deeper into my self-loathing. She steps inside and tilts her head, her twin puff-ball pigtails bouncing slightly with the effort. “Well, this looks cozy. You know you can put sheets on your bed. Stay a while.”

“No use getting too comfortable,” I grunt, and stand up to hug Nayla close to me. It’s been a long summer away from her. We’ve been best friends since we were five, and she knows how to keep me in line. So, needless to say, she is one of the few women immune to my charms. Thank fuck for that.

She assesses the decorated half of my room, eyebrows shooting up her forehead at the sight and I know what she’s thinking. Where my side is as bare as a prison cell, which suits someone like me, Cameron’s looks like a unicorn vomited all over it. It’s quite the juxtaposition.

Nayla chuckles. “So, who’s the roomy?”

“Some kid named Cameron. He’s a goody-two-shoes that talks too much. Pretty though,” I mutter those last words absently, and Nayla gives me a suspicious look.

“You know, your celibacy pledge extends to guys too.”

“Very funny,” I groan. “I didn’t take a celibacy pledge so much as swear off women. And I’m not gay or anything, so you don’t have to worry. Besides, I didn’t mean pretty as a compliment.”

“Sure, you didn’t. Pretty is ugly, up is down, and farts smell like roses. Got it. Let’s get something to eat because your side of the room is fucking depressing.”

“And yours is so much better?” I challenge her for no good reason, because I know hers has always been better. Nayla has taste. And parents who give a shit, even if they don’t have much. So, she has the dorm comforts that I swear I don’t give a fuck about.

When she pinches my bare arm just above the elbow, I switch the subject. “Who’syournew roommate?”

She gives me a warning look, before answering, “Name’s Bertha. She’s a real troll. Got green skin and warts and everything.”

“Hilarious. Listen, I’ve made it seventy-one days without trying to fuck with anyone. I’m practically healed.”

“To be fair though, you were under the watchful eye of the Sunnybrook system.”

She waits for my retort, but it doesn’t come. Joy warned me of the same thing. That things would be harder when I got back to college. There would be situations that tempt me to act out. “Just keep me on speed dial, okay? No judgement. I need you around.”

Poor Nayla. She doesn’t need me like I need her. If anything, I’m holding her back in life. But I’m not going to tell her as much. She’s the only person who gives a shit about me. I know, poor orphan boy. Listen to me, I sound like a total ass. Enough self-loathing, time to fill that empty hole inside me with some food.

Cameron

My new roommate is drop-dead-gorgeous. Seems a little skinny for his clothes though, like maybe he lost some weight. His face is like a model, with hollow cheeks and a jutting jaw. He’s got a fat upper lip and a perfect square nose. And those eyes. They are orange-brown. I didn’t even know that color existed. It takes me a second to recover from the assault on my hormones.

Then my word vomit starts immediately. But I don’t have time to make too big a fool of myself, because a football player my dad sicced on me is currently showing me around campus.

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