15 Chapter 15

On these types of days, the ones where the grass is greener and the sky has no clouds, people walked with their heads raised, and their smiles almost always tugging back at their dimples. It always fascinated me how crowds weaved into one another, how you could pass by so many strangers and not know a single thing about them. It fascinated me how before a certain time in the morning, the whole city was still, and then suddenly, it was packed with traffic.

This morning had been no different. I found myself in that late morning havoc wishing I had gotten through the front door that much quicker. I sat through the red lights enduring them while listening to my favourite musicians play their symphonies. Hardly did I ever listen to anything other than piano, cello, or violin music. Whether they ranged between Beethoven and Bach or just plain song covers. It was a type of music that you listened to and closed eyes, or just simply studied with and never got sick of.

It wasn't long before I got through the overflowing streets and turned into the campus parking lot to begin my day. After I got home from last night's dinner with Will's family, my sleep deprivation had gone through its peak. I had gone on to watch the sun come up through my slim window and sit between the clouds until my alarm blared on my bedside table hours later.

To say I was tired might have been a small understatement, but I ignored the bags under my eyes and put away my headphones so I could take a seat in the class.

For the most part, the day went well - the only exception being that someone's cell phone went off during one of the classes, and the professor became annoyed, (Which led to a separate lecture on cell phones) but besides that, it went quickly and I left the class earlier than usual.

A bit of walking later, I had found my brown-haired friend perched on one of the tables outside. His pen was clutched tightly between his fingers, scribbling things and flicking through pages of some kind of book. We shared a brief smile before we began catching him up on the work from this past week, and it wasn't until he complained about the workload that I laughed and almost threw my book at him.

"Come on, we have two more hours of class before we can go to the library." I giggled.

"Fine." He laughed and picked his things up, throwing his bag strap over his shoulder.

Luckily for us, when we arrived at the auditorium lobby it wasn't too full like every other day we were here. Usually, students were either going through the doors each in their own rush or taking their time a slowing everyone else behind them, down.

Will and I both turned the corner, now talking about the brief specifics of the law, and in that fragment of a second, I run into someone made of fine fabric and polished shoes. I blinked in confusion as a man in a tailored suit and dark brown hair, like mine, looked down at me, mirroring my mixed expression perfectly.

"Emma?" He spoke, his voice echoing through the large space.

"H-hi..." I was barely audible through my surprise. "What... what are you doing here?"

"I'm here on business. Actually, I was just about to leave." He narrowed his eyes on me then flicked them to Will who stood quietly beside me. "Is this a friend of yours?" He asked.

I looked over at my friend, who by now was trying to figure out who the man in front of us was, and how he knew me. However, by the way, he glanced at me anxiously, I knew he had yet to figure it out.

"Yes, this is William," I announce and keep my eyes fixed on him. "Will- this is my father, Sam."

There was a brief silence that lingered over the three of us as we waited for Will to say something. I could see that his face was forming words, yet none seemed to be coming out.

When he appeared to have found himself again, he cleared his throat and quickly stretched out a hand to greet my father.

"It's great to meet you, Mr Adams." He shook his hand firmly.

"Likewise," They shared a polite smile. "I should probably get going now. I'm sure you two were on your way to class anyways, I don't want to impose."

Looking at Will once more, he nodded and passed by us with a short goodbye. The doors to the outside of the building opened by a single pull, and then he was out of view, leaving Will to stare at me as I had just committed some kind of crime.

"I thought... you told me..." He hung between his own tangled web of questions. "When did you start speaking to your father again?"

I looked away at my feet. "Last week."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

Even though I couldn't see his face right at this moment, his voice was enough to tell me that he was disappointed and let down.

"I... I didn't think anyone would care about it." I mumbled. "I guess I didn't want you to think differently of me."

"Hey," Will spoke softly, which caused me to raise my head and look at him. "I care." He told me bluntly. "And I don't think any differently of you." He sighed, a new smile carved on his face. "However, I would have appreciated a heads up, now I look like an idiot in front of your father." I choked out a laugh with his joining seconds later.

"Thank you, Will."

"For what?" He grinned.

"For not being mad that I didn't tell you earlier."

He paused and looked at me.

"Just because you didn't tell me, it doesn't mean I should be mad, Emma. Everyone has their own time for certain things. I get it." His eyes crinkled with his smile. "I won't ever judge you, I hope you know that. And I also hope that you know I'm not going anywhere. You're stuck with me now, through thick and thin." His elbow nudged me softly in the arm and I let out a small giggle, returning his nudge playfully.

***

The two thick hours of the class seemed to go by a lot slower this time around. I wasn't sure if it was because I had other things clouding my mind, or if I just wanted to be home watching Ted Talks for the rest of the night without being disturbed.

Either way, my day was far from over since the library awaited our silent company, and the week had stacked up hours of work to go through today.

Stepping into the afternoon, there had yet to arrive the cold brisk winds that would turn away fall, and welcome a newer, finer winter. However, we didn't make it far on the way to the library when I stopped walking and felt around my rather flat bag.

"Are you okay?" Will stopped walking and waited for me to catch up.

I continued to rummage through my bag desperately hoping I didn't do what I thought I did.

I sighed and caved my shoulders. It wasn't often I forgot things. Usually, I made sure that I had everything with me before I left to go somewhere, like some kind of a mental checklist in my head. But now it seemed that ever since I began college, things were a lot different. This was my second time forgetting something – the first time being my bag at the café just a week ago.

"I forgot my textbook in class." I half groan half whine.

"Which one?" Will asked with a little laughter.

"Lyn's." I zipped my bag up again and fixed the straps over my shoulders so I could look at Will properly. "I need to go and get it."

"Do you have to? You could just borrow mine."

I shook my head with an appreciative smile. "I have special annotations that I made for you in there. It's all been highlighted and written on that textbook."

"Are you sure? I could go for you if you like." He offers me.

I shook my head again. "No, it's okay. I'll meet you at the library soon?"

"I'll bring the coffee." He grinned.

I began walking back to the large building at a quicker pace. If I was lucky, the classrooms would still be open and it wouldn't take too long before I could meet Will again. My fingers wrapped around the metal handle and pulled open the entrance, a long gush of air following in with me as I made my way through the hall.

A few students passed by me, now leaving the place. I was sure that by now I was the only one left in here, so I went over to the auditorium where my class had taken place and pulled on the handle. I closed my eyes and winced in annoyance when the door would not budge. I tried it a few more times praying that somehow it would come unstuck, but it didn't. I sighed and ran a hand over my face not knowing what to do.

"Can I help you, sweetheart?" A man called out from behind me.

I turn around hastily and meet a man who looked to be around his mature fifties. His ragged dark blue uniform lit up my face in a way I never thought a janitor could.

With my kindest smile, I told him what happened and asked him if he could help me, but he only shook his head from side to side and turned me away.

"I'm sorry darling, but I can't do that for you." He picked up his broom from the cart and began to sweep the floor while never removing his stare from mine.

"It will only take a moment, please." I tried him again, only to fail and receive a squinted, unpleasant ogle back.

"If I open that door for you, I'm going to need something in return..."

Now he stood closer to me, his eyes reaching for my chest and his tongue flicking over his lips. I took a step back from him and he took one forward without hesitation. He put down his broom and brushed the keys that dangled from his pocket.

"Please, I just need the key to the room."

A smile pushed through this man's wrinkled skin.

"You are all alone, sweetheart..." He came even closer. "No one will hear us..."

I swallowed a thick, hard lump in my throat and felt my stomach turn inside out. I had never in my life wanted to be somewhere else more than I did right now. I pulled farther back but he covered that ground with his own steps.

"W-what are you doing?" I stuttered in panic.

"Just a simple... tit-for-tat." He grinned, cornering me into the wall." You know how it goes... I let you go into the classroom, you give me just a few minutes of your time inside..."

"Go on then, touch her." A voice calls from behind. "I'm dying to know how long you'll last with that small dick of yours."

Immediately my eyes recognized the person behind the janitor. And never in my life would I have thought I'd be so relieved to see Aiden standing there with his perfectly tall figure and ignorant scowl.