Chapter 9

I'd decided against calling Kendall immediately when I got back on campus. I didn't want to act too familiar before my impending availability came about. I just hoped she wouldn't see through my 'mourning' act when it happened. She was pretty damn perceptive.

The first class of the new term was our non-pre-med class, 'Western Civilization.' I went early to claim two seats for us in the center of the second row, but was pleasantly surprised to find her already there, sitting in 'our' usual lecture hall location.

She was wearing the same orange UT sweatshirt she'd worn when we were grading papers in Chattanooga. Was it a subtle but calculated reminder of our pleasant afternoon together? Dare to dream...

As I approached she smiled warmly, and my smile back was just as genuine as I dropped into the seat next to her.

"Hey, thanks for saving me a seat," I said, gesturing around us. So far there were only a few dozen people in the hall that had capacity for a couple hundred. Not exactly a brilliant attempt at humor...

She gave me a light tap on the arm in mock rapprochement.

"You're welcome."

I sighed contentedly and interlocked my fingers behind my head.

Her eyes narrowed as she looked at me more closely.

"What?" I asked.

"Oh, nothing. You look ... different somehow."

Well that didn't take long, I thought. 'Thirty seconds and she senses something's changed since I saw her just a few days ago. I tried to look innocent.

"I'm fine."

"Randy, you look better than fine. You look like ... I don't know." She shrugged. "More relaxed or something?"

"I do?"

She rolled her eyes at me, her expression becoming affectionately stern. "Come on, tough guy, spill it."

I swallowed a grin and tried to look mysterious.

She snorted. "You think you can fool me? I know what it looks like, you know."

"Like what looks like?"

"You must have had some incredible sex on New Year's Eve, didn't you?"

She laughed out loud at my startled expression.

"I'll take that as a yes."

"Geez, Kendall!"

"What?"

Just then we heard the sounds of people settling into the seats immediately behind us.

"Hey, handsome." I knew that voice...

My head snapped around. Sitting behind us, with big friendly smiles on their faces, were Wes, Hayley, and Cynthia.

"Hi, guys," I said, replying to the group of them though I knew it had been Hayley that had spoken. She rarely paid me any attention, so her flirty greeting didn't exactly resonate with me.

Kendall turned to look behind us as well. Wes smiled a crocodile smile as he looked pointedly at Kendall and back to me, raising an eyebrow.

"Kendall, let me introduce you to my roommate, Wes; and this is Hayley and Cynthia."

"Pleased to meet you," Kendall said.

"How did all three of you wind up in this class?" I asked, trying not to sound accusatory.

"Funny you should ask," Wes replied. "We were talking about how to fill a slot on our schedules, and I mentioned that you were taking this one. It seemed like a good fit, and here we are."

"How did you know I was taking this class?"

"I saw the 'add / drop' slip on your desk," he replied, with no hint of apology for having snooped into my stuff.

I was immediately suspicious. Wes had no clue about his path through college. The idea that these three had a discussion, scholarly or otherwise about course selection, was incongruous.

"This'll be better than that architecture class you dropped, for sure," Wes said.

Hayley spoke up, looking to Kendall. "Did you do the last minute switch too?"