▪️O C T A V I A▪️

I sat and listened intently with a huge grin, while Emily gave me every single detail of her night with Ejikeme. Both our faces flushed as Emily's hand gesticulations left nothing to my already overactive imagination.

The experience itself was not romantic as one would envision losing their virginity. After all, it was two horny students living in the moment, which led to sex in a college dorm room. However, Emily was overjoyed, as evident by the large smile on her face. She would not have changed anything. The spontaneity of it all only added to her excitement. Ejikeme had known exactly what to do, making Emily's first time memorable.

"Sigh!" I groaned; a bit aroused. "Oh my God, Em, I'm so jealous! I'm so happy for you both. Did it hurt a lot?"

Shaking her head, Emily replied, "Not really. I guess it's true what they say about being active and playing sports. It burned a bit, but after a few moments, it was just amazing."

My grin widened as I reacted, "Finally, Em-Eji is in full effect!"

Soon after, it was my turn to give a summary of the events of my night. My fingers fidgeted with the hem of my shirt, and I bit my lip, hesitating for a moment before I began to recount what had happened.

Emily's eyes seemed to bulge while she listened, "I can't believe you almost punched Professor MacAllister in the face. I could imagine his look of surprise and probably horror!"

"It was a bit funny; I won't lie," I said then handed her my phone so she could scroll through my chat messages.

The skin of her cheeks reddened as she read the exchange of messages. "Wow! Did the two of you really stay up chatting until sunrise? This is so romantic! Alright, I partially forgive you for not telling me about the Brian incident." Emily said before hugging me tightly.

I chuckled, returning her embrace.

"At least you weren't alone after that horrible event. I felt so bad as I ran over here, thinking about you being all by yourself.!

"I'm fine, Em, I really am. I guess news travels fast around campus though, like damn!"

The thought that so many people knew what had happened to me made me a bit uneasy. Any illusions I may have had about Professor MacAllister and me being a thing slowly faded and I let out a deep sigh.

"So basically, even if I wanted to do anything with Graham, we couldn't since there are eyes everywhere," I mumbled.

"Not necessarily," Emily said. "I think it's more so because campus police were there. I didn't hear anything about you being escorted home by Professor MacAllister. Basically, once the police left, the students disappeared. When you two do become an item, just be sneaky about it, that's all."

"You mean if," I corrected. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves."

"I mean when!" Emily countered. "I am telling you, Vi, from those chat messages that I read, I can safely say I was right, that man definitely has a thing for you."

With another sigh, I lay back on my bed. "And I him, it would seem," I admitted, closing my eyes. "Why couldn't I just like some regular guy on campus, make life easy, but nooooo... I always have to take the difficult route."

Emily laughed as she snuggled next to me. "I'm curious to see how your trip with him tomorrow will go. Will you two be nervous and awkward, or will you simply continue where you both left off? So many possibilities!"

"Well, I'd like to think that we're two level-headed adults—ouch!" I winced as she hit me on the head with a pillow. "Always so violent!" I grumbled.

"Don't make me hit you again, Vi. Can you for once stop theorizing every emotion that you have?" Emily begged. "Just go with the flow for once in your life, please!"

Muttering, I replied, "Fine! I'll keep an open mind, but I'm not putting myself out there to be rejected."

"You won't be, everything will work out, you'll see," she reassured.

I appreciate your optimism, but you can't guarantee that," I said, my voice tinged with doubt.

Emily placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder, her eyes filled with unwavering confidence. "Trust me on this, Vi. You're amazing, and anyone would be lucky to get to know you. Besides, even if you decided to put yourself out there, what's the worst that could happen? Rejection stings for a moment, but it doesn't define you."

"I know it doesn't but this is all just so new to me, I'm so nervous."

"That's part of the process. But instead of thinking about if things go bad, why not think about what if things go well? What if this leads to something beautiful?"

I sighed, feeling the weight of my apprehension slowly being lifted by her words. "I suppose you have a point."

"Of course, I do!" Emily grinned, her enthusiasm infectious. "You may be the smarter one, but I have more experience with this sort of thing. So, let's approach this with a positive mindset. Besides, it's not as if you're going to jump the guy, it's just the two of you spending time together."

I nodded, "Okay, I'll try to keep an open mind and see where it takes me."

"That's the spirit!" Emily exclaimed, giving me an encouraging pat on the back. "Well, I'm going to head home and catch up on some sleep. I know you could probably do with some more rest as well. I'm really excited for your date tomorrow."

"It's not a date!" I griped as I went back under the covers.

As we parted ways, her words echoed in my mind, filling me with a sense of hope and anticipation. Maybe, just maybe, putting myself out there would not be so bad after all.

————— ▲ —————

Later that afternoon, around 5:30pm, my phone lit up with Professor MacAllister's name flashing across the screen. I had been sitting at my desk, doing some reading for next week's class, when the call came through.

I could not hide the smile that lit up my face even if I wanted to.

A warm, fluttery feeling spread through my chest. My stomach did a little flip, a mix of excitement and nervousness bubbling inside me. My face felt warm, and I bit my lip, trying to contain the surge of emotions that threatened to overwhelm me.

Picking up, I reclined in my chair and answered. "Hey," I said, my voice sounding a bit shy.

"Hey yourself," Graham's smooth voice replied.

I tried to calm my heart as it beat heavily in my chest throughout most of our conversation. We agreed that he would pick me up around 7am in front of my dorm building. It would take about two hours to drive to the historical site.

"I'll grab us some breakfast, is that okay?" he asked. "It's the least I can do since I'm taking you away from your cozy bed so early in the morning."

"I'd never say no to free food," I joked, my voice laced with a bit of eagerness. "As for taking me away from my bed, that's fine, I'm usually an early riser anyway. But since you're providing breakfast, how about I provide lunch and make us something?"

"You cook?!" Graham blurted out.

"Haha, yes, I cook. I'm from the Caribbean; it would be a crime not to know how. Besides, unlike most of the student population, I can't live off pre-made food, my stomach won't allow it."

His nervous laugh tickled my ear as he replied, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. It's just that most people your age don't really cook. I know I sure didn't when I was at university."

"I suppose, but I love to cook, so it's not really a problem for me to do so. I like to make people happy with my food," I said, a bit of pride evident in my voice.

"So, you're a great cook then?"

"I think so, but feel free to let me know your thoughts," I answered. "Is there anything in particular you'd like to eat tomorrow?"

There was a sudden silence on the other end of the line, causing me to sit up straight.

I waited a moment, then another, but still, no response came.

"Graham? Are you there?" I asked, a hint of concern creeping into my voice.

My mind raced, wondering where he went. Did he get distracted? Did the call drop? Or was he having second thoughts about our plans?

Just as I was about to call his name again, his voice came back, slightly flustered. "Er, sorry, Octavia. I was just... thinking about how nice it would be to try your cooking. Got a bit lost in thought."

I let out a small, relieved laugh. "Well, I hope I can live up to your daydreams," I teased, feeling my nerves settle a bit.

"I'm sure that you will," his nervous chuckle flowed over me.

"Well, I was asking if there was anything in particular you felt like eating tomorrow. Now who's the one not paying attention, hmm?" I teased him.

"You caught me red-handed. As for what to make tomorrow, surprise me..."

The way he said "surprise me" made my stomach flip. There was something in his tone, a mix of warmth and anticipation, that sent a shiver down my spine. I felt a rush of excitement and a bit of nervousness at the thought of impressing him.

"Alright, I'll come up with something," I said. "After all, we have a lot in common where our food preferences are concerned."

"Fair enough, I'll bring some drinks," Graham added.

"Sounds good, just be sure to bring lots of water. I like water."

"Noted. Please make sure to walk with a jacket this time, aye missy?" Graham teased. "I mean it, Octavia. The winds can bite, and it tends to get a bit nippy up on those hills, so layer up a bit."

"Fine!" I sighed, hating the idea of layering my clothes.

We continued to chat for a bit, fine-tuning the last details of our trip. I hung up with a smile, grabbed my purse, and ran to the grocery store around the corner to pick up a few supplies to make our lunch.

Coming back to the dorm, I headed to the shared kitchen, which I unsurprisingly had to myself, seeing as it was a Saturday night and most people were either dining out or getting ready to go out.

Smiling to myself, I began to prep some meals.

At first, I thought about making something Jamaican or Trinbagonian, but I figured that I did not want to seem like I was trying too hard to impress him. Instead, I chose to do something that he might be more familiar with.

I hummed to myself as I started on my salty fudge brownie recipe, whipping the batter up in no time. It was one of my favourite baked treats. I swayed my hips slightly as I did a little dance while putting the pan into the oven. After cleaning up my space a bit, I began working on the other recipes.

Of course, I had to throw in a little Caribbean flavour and decided on making a pineapple chow. I cut up some fresh pineapple in a bowl with some chopped garlic and fresh parsley. Then I added a pinch of black pepper and a squeeze of lime juice, and after mixing it all together, I placed it in a glass bowl with a sealed cover.

Next, I prepared some Green Goddess Sandwiches for us. These consisted of sourdough bread, avocado, sprouts, mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, and a slather of tasty aioli. Neatly wrapping the sandwiches individually, I placed them in a larger plastic container.

Once the brownies were finished, I packed everything up and left the dorm kitchen, leaving the delicious aroma of baked goodies in the air. Carrying all the containers to my dorm room, I placed everything in my small fridge, leaving the brownies on my desk to finish cooling off.

I inhaled deeply, my room now smelling of brownies, as I went about picking out an outfit for my trip with the Professor.

Taking my time, I rummaged through my closet, pushing aside various items until I found the perfect dark wash skinny jeans. After a moment's consideration, I pulled out a black turtleneck top that had a picture of Darth Vader with the words "Today is gonna be awesome!" inscribed on it.

I decided to wear a turtleneck to cover the ugly bruises that now marked the column of my throat. With a sigh, I took out my brown and black waterproof Merrell boots, just in case the walking trail was a bit muddy.

With a small grumble, I took out one last item of clothing.

"There, stupid jacket, happy?" I said to an invisible Graham as I continued to mumble about having to wear layers.

——————————

A/N: I don't really like layering for the winter either... 😅🙈