Eevie
Elena was laying in bed staring up at her ceiling. Her eyes were open, and her feet were restless. Shifting to find a better position, she faced Alexa, who was sitting on her bed, propped up against the wall reading a book. She didn't seem to remember the fighting.
My spell had worked. Everyone woke up in a daze and a little confused about waking up on the ground, but they didn't remember the demon or the fighting. Our covers were all still safe. My ankle still hurt, but it was getting better by the hour. And it would be completely healed in a couple days.
However traumatic the demon possession might have been, Elena wasn't worrying about that. In fact, it was the furthest thing from her mind. She was replaying what had happened in Noel's dorm room after Nori and I had switched with our human hosts and made the two of them make out together.
I had thought it such a good idea at the time. Now, I realized I didn't actually know as much as I thought I did. I wanted Elena to be more confident with herself and what she wanted. She was fierce and amazing and deserved every happiness. Mainly because I knew being close to me would cause her a lot of pain in the future, no matter how much I tried to protect her.
Do you want to talk about what's bothering you? I finally asked, unable to take the silence.
Letting out a deep breath, Elena shook her head, I feel guilty.
For what? I asked, though I already knew her answer.
What I said to Noel. I know I hurt his feelings. I do really really like him, and I would like to be his girlfriend. Eventually. It's just too soon, I think. I want more time to be sure it's what we both want. We only just got here. What if he only asked me out because he hasn't had a chance to meet anyone else that would be better for him?
So you said no to dating him to give him the opportunity to see if any of the girls he meets in his classes strike his fancy more than you? I asked incredulously?
Yes... No... I don't know. I just want him to be sure of his feelings. I don't want him to date me and then regret it later that he didn't experience college as a single guy, you know? she replied.
No. I shook my head.I live in the here and now. If it feels right at this moment, that's what you should act on. He can experience college exactly as he wants to. What right do you have to tell him how to live his life? I felt as though I was being a little too harsh, but it had to be said.
But I want to experience college first and see what my workload is. I'm premed. I won't have much time for a social life if I have to clean up after some demon's mess. What if I date Noel but I don't have time to actually be with him?
Then I think he'd understand. Noel's a big kid. He doesn't need you with him every second of the day, and he strikes me as the person that would just want to be around you. Studying in the library together seems like the kind of thing he would like.
But what kind of a relationship is that really?
A normal, functioning one. I was getting frustrated. Look, it seems to me all you are doing is making excuses. It's been pretty clear the last couple days how well you two would actually do together if you give yourselves a shot. You can't not be with someone because you're afraid of what would happen if you break up. Then you'd never be with anyone ever. That's not how it works. Sometimes you have to take risks- take chances and hope they'll work out for the best.
I was thinking of Nori when I said this. I had been hesitant in the beginning. I mean, I had to be careful now who I was seen with. And I was keeping my real identity from him. But I also realized I knew nothing about his family, which isn't really important to the point I was making to myself.
Nori and I work well together. We were quite the team today. I was happy that he had kissed me. I could still feel his lips against mine if I closed my eyes and thought back to it. It was definitely the highlight of my entire day. Trying to fix Noel and Elena's nonexistent relationship was definitely the worst part. I'd gladly fight the bull once again.
I'm not saying go and date him tomorrow. You obviously need to think about this more. Give yourself a couple days and see if you still feel the same or if you would feel brave enough to tell him how you feel. Noel already put himself out there. The ball's in your court. You're going to have to make the first move next time.
Elena sighed heavily. I just hope things aren't going to be awkward between us now. When they had gotten Alexa and Sam and Austin up and back to the dorms, Noel and Elena were pleasant, but the easy banter between them was gone, which Alexa promptly questioned upon getting back into the dorm room.
Things are only as awkward as you make them, I told her.
Elena
I didn't sleep well that night, and when I woke up to my alarm early the next morning, I pulled my covers over my head and rolled over after turning the alarm off. Alexa had a mid morning class, so she never had to worry about getting up early. I would probably have fallen back asleep if Eevie hadn't started talking to me, keeping me awake.
Grumbling to myself, I quickly pulled on an outfit and went to the bathroom to brush my teeth and do my hair. I may have still been tired, but I was dressing for success. Dress as good as you want to feel, my grandma always told me. And I wanted to feel about a billion times better than I currently did.
After I was finished getting ready, I grabbed my bookbag and shoved my textbooks, notebooks, and folders into my bag. I had three biology classes in a row before I had a break for lunch and to get back to the dorm to get ready for one more class in the afternoon before my day was over.
After much deliberation, I sent a quick text to Noel wishing him good luck on his first day of school. I was hoping that if I acted like nothing had changed between us, we would be able to fall back into how we were before we kissed.
Just thinking of the kiss made me blush slightly. I had enjoyed it a little too much, but there wasn't much I could do about it now. A part of me felt like I had made a mistake rejecting him, but a part of me wanted to wait and see. I would call grandma after classes and see what she said. Not that Eevie's advice wasn't good. She was a little harsh, the kind of harsh I had needed to hear, but Grandma would make me feel better.
In my classes, I took diligent notes. Since it was the first day, the classes weren't too hard. Just going over the syllabus and starting on the first chapters of my text book. Eevie had a lot of commentary as she was really interested in learning. I felt bad that she couldn't be her own person and be in these classes. I felt like she'd enjoy it more than I did.
When my third biology class was over, I started heading to the cafeteria. I hadn't texted Noel about meeting up, but I was thinking about doing just that. But after I got my food and looked for a place to sit, I saw him sitting by the window by himself. My heart hurt that he hadn't replied to my text nor asked me to lunch.
Go sit with him. You don't have to acknowledge what happened yesterday, but if he sees you sitting by yourself, it won't look very good. Just go be yourself.Eevie ordered.
Taking a deep breath and steeling myself, I did as she asked and made my way back to Noel. Smiling, I rounded the table. "Is this seat taken?" I asked, gesturing to the chair directly across from him.
Startled, Noel shook his head, "N-no. All yours."
"How were your morning classes?" I asked as I sat down and got myself situated.
"First day is always pretty easy, I think," he replied nonchalantly.
"Do you have many classes left today?"
"I have a couple. You?"
"Just the one."
We filled our lunch time with idle chit chat. Talking about classes, our roommates, demons, Nori and Eevie, but at the same time, it felt like we talked about nothing at all. I had to leave for my last class, so I said my goodbyes with promises to get together later.
