Eyes Unveiled

by Crystal Walton

  Maybe Austin wasn’t far off about me losing the battle for my sanity. I set the guitar in its case and pulled my book flush with the desk edge again.

  “Little help, here, Em,” my roommate called from the living room.

  Jaycee balanced three overflowing shopping bags in the air while propping open the front door with her foot. The sunglasses holding back her sun-kissed auburn bob slid down her forehead. Even in a simple pair of capris and a Kelly green baby tee, the girl looked like she’d just walked off a runway.

  I grabbed the door for her, nudged a thatched lampshade to the side, and peeked inside a bag full of frames and throw pillows. “Go a little overboard?”

  “Oh, c’mon. Two years we’ve been waiting to get an apartment, and this is what they give us?” She flicked a glare at the threadbare brown couch in the corner as she hauled her bags over to the scuffed-up coffee table.

  “Don’t you have a fiancé somewhere who’s supposed to help you carry all this stuff?”

  She curled her lips to one side. “Who do you think is bringing up the rest?”

  “The rest? What’d you do, buy out the entire IKEA home décor department?”

  Trevor filed in behind Jaycee with a train of bags extending down his arms. “Like you have to ask.” He dropped the evidence of her shopping spree onto the couch and hugged me to his side. His burly arm nearly squashed me in half. “And guess who gets to help her put it all up.” His goofy grin was seconds away from being even more obnoxious than his florescent orange sneakers.

  I reached for his sunglasses to block the glare, but he sidestepped around me in his famous basketball move, whisked Jaycee into his arms, and slid his sunglasses to the bottom of his nose. His brows bobbed into the chunks of blonde hair poking through the back of a ball cap pressed to his forehead. “Sure you don’t want to cancel on the others tonight?”

  Jaycee inched in close enough to kiss him. “Not a chance.” Flashing a too-cute-to-turn-down smile, she pecked Trevor on the lips and flittered down the hall. “Meet you out front in five minutes,” she called behind her. “I’m just going to change first.”

  Trevor winked at me. “Think I can get a full game in before she’s ready?”

  I returned his earlier remark. “Like you have to ask.”

  In our room, I flopped onto my half-made bed and watched Jaycee put herself together as though preparing for a dinner party. I couldn’t blame her for not fearing the mirror. Her reflection held beauty, promise, job offers already lined up, and a man who adored her. Of course she’d like what she saw.

  A heave of exasperation rebounded off the top of her suitcase and jarred me from my thoughts. “I know those DKNYs are in here somewhere.”

  I tried not to laugh. If she dug any deeper, she’d fall in. “Where you guys going tonight?”

  “Nuts and Jolts.”

  “Jae, I don’t think you need to wear heels to go to the local café.”

  Elbow-deep in an entire suitcase dedicated to her shoe collection, she barely batted a lash. “Okay, first of all, any occasion is a good excuse to wear cute shoes. And second of all, we might go out to the city afterward.” She pinned the sides of her hair behind her ears and spun around with two slingback pumps dangling on her fingers. “Mission accomplished.”

  “Prepared as usual.”

  “You know me.” Jaycee sat down and pressed her shoulder against mine. “So, you wanna tell me what you’re thinking about?”

  Like always, there was no point trying to hide anything from my best friend. I moved to my chair and picked at the corner of my internship list. “I was just thinking about being back. It’s our junior year, and—I don’t know—I feel like I’m running out of time.”

  “Out of time for what?”

  “Figuring out what I’m supposed to do with my life.” The whitewashed wall above Jaycee’s twin sized bed glared at me with the same barrenness I felt any time I tried to make more out of life than there was. I grabbed my pillow and buried it under my arms. “I feel like I’m searching for something that doesn’t exist. Do you think I’m crazy? Wait—don’t answer that.”

  Jaycee bit her lip and reeled in a giggle that had already provided the obvious answer to my question. “Maybe you shouldn’t think about it so much. Just focus on enjoying where you are right now.” She squeezed my hand on her way up. “Things have a way of working themselves out when we give them time.”

  Sometimes I swore she and Austin shared the same calendar of daily maxims.

  At her dresser, Jaycee held several pairs of earrings to her ears until she found the perfect match. “You’re coming with the rest of us to Nuts and Jolts, right?”

  The corners of a visibly loaded smile peeked above the top of her jewelry box. I knew that look. Whatever she was thinking, it couldn’t be good.

  “I should stay in.” I tapped my laptop. “Gotta make some headway on this portfolio.”

  Flexing her palms against her dresser, she lifted onto her toes and stared down the economics book on my desk. “Don’t be so stubborn. You can afford to spare a Friday night away from studying. It’ll be good for you.”

  The obstinate ring in her tone outplayed the steady rainfall beating onto the windowsill—the perfect accompaniment for an evening at home. I doubted I had the option.

  I curled the pages of my book toward the binding. “Who’s going?”

  “Just a handful of us. Trevor, Ashlea, Becky, A. J.—”

  “A. J.?” My chair shot upright, knocking my words and me forward. “As in, A. J. Bowers?”

  “Yeah. You’ve met him?”

  “Don’t need to. The girls in my aerobics class gave me a good enough idea.” They hadn’t stopped gushing over the new transfer student. All six feet of him. Sculptured, no less. If they thought he was that good-looking, chances were, he did too. I knew the type well. Interchangeable faces. Same disappointment. Same reminder of the way love had left me flat on my face. Dreams of ever after were simply that. Dreams. The kind to stay away from.

  Jaycee clipped her bangs back with a tiny barrette. “He might surprise you.”

  Right. I picked the lint off my shirt and stole a minute to iron out the edge in my voice. “When did you start hanging out with him?”

  She kept her focus glued to her work in front of the mirror. “Trevor met him over the summer. Been playing pickup games with him ever since.” Each brushstroke glided through her sleek chair. “You know Trev—never meets a stranger.”

  Yeah, just like I knew when she was trying to downplay.

  “A. J.’s a really nice guy,” she added. “I think you’re going to like him.”

  And there it was. “Jae . . .”

  She slinked around the corner of her dresser. “Relax. I’m not saying you have to marry the guy.”

  “Oh, well, that’s a shame. You know how eager I am to get married.” I slanted her a pointed glance in case she missed my sarcasm.

  “Hey, you’ll change your mind once you meet the right guy, but forget about all that for now. Just get to know him. You never know where it’ll lead.”

  Except I did.

  In perfect synchronization, Jaycee’s grin grew in direct proportion with my scowl. She hunched over my desk without recanting her optimism. “You could use a night out with your friends, Em. It’ll be fun. Please?”

  She made it impossible not to give in. “Fine. For you.”

  Jaycee tapped her fingertips together with enough excitement for us both as she flitted toward the bathroom for one of her warp-speed makeup rejuvenation sessions.

  Shaking my head, I scooted back far enough to give my clothes a quick appraisal. Something gave me the distinct feeling she wouldn’t approve of the T-shirt I’d dug out of my drawer after a quick post-aerobics shower.

  “Oh, and Em?” she called from down the hall. “You probably want to change.”

  Classic.

  I sifted through a row of hangers, grabbed a scoop neck shirt worthy of her fashion endorsement, then rum
maged through her elaborate jewelry collection for a pair of complementing earrings, and met her at the door.

  The earlier rainfall must’ve already wandered past the campus border. An iridescent layer of steam was the only residual left of the shower’s momentary collision with the overheated asphalt. Too bad it couldn’t evaporate my stress level with it. I crossed my arms to hide the neon warning sign still blinking inside me.

  “Fun, remember?” Jaycee whispered as we walked down the sidewalk toward the group waiting for us at the curb.

  Becky’s double French braids and pink framed glasses made her appear even younger than usual. Of course, standing next to Trevor didn’t help. Even in a clunky pair of heels, she barely reached the top of Trevor’s torso.

  She looped her arm around Ashlea’s, clanking their bracelets together. Ashlea’s long red curls spread over her poised shoulders as she swayed in place. I followed her gaping stare toward the only person in the circle I didn’t know and toward the source of my earlier—now justified—apprehension about the evening.

  A. J. had the kind of physique that could turn a plain, off-white, long-sleeved T-shirt and tattered jeans with a worn leather belt into an Abercrombie & Fitch ad. Complete with rich brown eyes matching the bits of gelled hair poking out from under a well-worn baseball cap flipped backward. And those dimples. Why not tattoo “Campus Charmer” on his forehead?

  There could’ve been a small chance he leaned more toward the sports fanatic type I expected from a friend of Trevor’s. He certainly had the build of a basketball player. Even the cotton shirt hanging over his defined upper body seemed to take notice of his visible athleticism.

  The second he met my gaze, I twisted toward Jaycee with fleeting hope that no one had noticed my initial perusal. Yeah, right. The telling look on Jaycee’s face sent heat rushing to my cheeks faster than the steam rising from the asphalt.

  “Should we all try to squeeze into one car?” Ashlea spun in a half-circle while taking a headcount.

  “I’ll drive.” A debonair smile danced above A. J.’s closely-shaven jaw line.

  Jaycee rolled onto the balls of her feet. Her looped necklace bounced against the cream cami underneath her jean jacket. “Em, why don’t you ride with A. J.? The rest of us can fit in Trev’s car. We’ll meet you two there. You know the way, right, A. J.?”

  Her convenient speed talking eliminated any opportunity for me to object.

  “I’ve been there a couple of times.” A. J. wrangled his keys from his pocket. “I can run to get my car and be back in two minutes to pick you up, Emma.”

  Jaycee’s already-beaming expression stretched far enough to leave permanent wrinkles behind.

  “I don’t mind walking,” I said before she could answer for me. If I kept moving, maybe the uneasiness spiraling in my stomach would dissipate.

  Wouldn’t be that lucky.

  An awkward silence lingered the moment Trevor’s Outlander gunned away from the curb. Thanks a lot, Jae.

  “Do you go to Nuts and Jolts often?” A. J. asked.

  The tread on my sneakers skidded against the sidewalk about as smoothly as my thoughts skidded into each other. “Not really. I’m not a big coffee drinker, but the shop’s atmosphere is cool, especially on Friday nights.”

  “Nothing beats live music.” He kept his face forward, but the shadow of a furtive grin fell on me. “My car is that Acura ZDX over there.” From the edge of the parking lot, he pointed out a shiny black sports car parked between a Corolla with its muffler duck taped on and a Ford pickup speckled with enough rust spots to make Mater from Cars blush.

  Was I supposed to be impressed? Sorry, but flaunting Mommy and Daddy’s wealth won’t score any points with me.

  He held my door open, his warm eyes offering the same unassuming gesture. Maybe he wasn’t trying to bait me with snobbery. I sank into the tan leather seat and tried to decide what to make of A. J. Bowers.

  He angled toward me right as he turned the key in the ignition, about to say something. Bass pulsated through the speakers. He reached for the controls, accidentally turned up the volume before turning it off altogether, and laughed. “How’s that for smooth? Sorry. I don’t usually have other people in the car with me.”

  His brief flicker of embarrassment disappeared in seconds, along with the college entrance behind us. He looked like he didn’t have a nervous bone in his body. With his Ray Bans on, chic profile, and carefree expression, he’d probably stick his hand out the window and wave-ride the wind any minute.

  “So,” he said, “what kind of music do you listen to?”

  Nothing like first-time-small-talk sessions.

  “Honestly? I listen to about every genre. I was sort of born into loving music.”

  “Do you play any instruments?”

  I stared at my lap, ran my fingers up and down my seatbelt. “I play the guitar a little, but I’m not very good.”

  “I bet you’re better than you’re admitting.” His luxury car’s smooth suspension had nothing on his voice.

  “What makes you so sure?” The question ended more in a snort than a question mark.

  “I’ve seen you around campus. Off by yourself, playing where no one can hear you.”

  My jaw dropped halfway open. Had people on campus actually been watching me? I thought I’d tucked myself in corners where no one would notice.

  “The way you glow when you play, you have to be enjoying it. So, it can’t be that bad, can it?”

  Heat swept up my neck. I wasn’t sure which mortified me more—the fact that those moments secluded on campus hadn’t been as private as I thought or that this guy, whom I hardly knew, felt incredibly comfortable telling me he’d been a part of the audience.

  “Wait a sec.” My shoulders arched. “You just asked me if I played, but you already knew.” Start talking, buddy.

  “Trevor warned me you were a little shy about it. I wanted to see how open you’d be with me.” He stole another glimpse across the car under the stoplight. “You blush easily. I’ll have to remember that.”

  The charm trailing his words fueled my growing debate over which type of guy he was. Ladies’ Man, up one point.

  “With all your time spent watching girls you don’t know across campus and trying to make them blush, do you ever actually study for classes, or is the whole academic scene kind of overrated for you?”

  He laughed. “Just because I’ve noticed one girl on campus doesn’t mean I’ve noticed any others.”

  Right. And Ladies’ Man takes the lead.

  The light from a crosswalk sign flashed in sync with his blinker’s steady ticking. “Sports medicine,” he said a few ticks later.

  “Excuse me?”

  “That’s what I do with most of my time. It’s a tough major. Worth it, though. I’m a decent athlete but not good enough to play pro ball. At least as a personal trainer, I’ll still get to be around the action.”

  Sports Fanatic, match point. He wasn’t making my debate any easier.

  “How about you?”

  The pavement passed outside my window in one continuous fill-in-the-blank line. “The only thing I was sure about when I completed my application was that I didn’t want to come to college undeclared. Too chicken. I’ve changed my major three times already. Finally decided business would be the best stepping-stone into the job market.”

  Or hoped, anyway. The idea of barely getting by on some dead-end job? No way. There had to be something more promising. Something with security. And I was determined to find it.

  “I doubt the job market is going to be a problem,” he said. “Not for someone like you. Trust me. A business degree will be one more great asset you’ve got going for you.”

  Personal trainer, huh? Maybe he could tack on being a life coach too.

  A sharp left-hand turn led us into the café’s lot and through rows of makeshift parking spaces. Each time the car bounced over a dip in the uneven gravel, my mouth opened a little wider. It hadn’t been nearly thi
s crowded the other times I’d been here.

  A. J. rolled up to the front door to let me out. He flipped in his side view mirrors, reversed into a gap between the dumpster and the curb, and slid out of the car window. Show-off. No wonder he and Trevor had hit it off so well.

  “You a stuntman on the side?”

  He pointed at his license plate as he jogged toward me.

  NVRHLDBK. I sounded it out, shook my head. “You really never hold back, do you?”

  He hopped over the curb and advanced toward me, edging in until I bent backward in search of something to keep me standing. “You only live once, Emma.” He grabbed the door handle behind me, whisked it open, and motioned for me to enter.

  Straightening my shoulders, I forced my diaphragm to expel the air trapped inside and speed-walked through the door. He wasn’t going to make this night very easy on me.

  The warmth of the small coffee shop fanned me with the inviting aroma of roasted coffee beans and homemade pastries.

  Jaycee waved from a table tucked in the middle of the shop just past a three-tiered bookshelf piled with an eclectic assortment of books and board games. She’d left two empty seats next to each other for A. J. and me. How convenient.

  My gaze locked onto hers with silent irritation until someone passed directly in front of me and broke my line of sight.

  I couldn’t mistake those eyes.

  Mere seconds. The moment couldn’t have lasted longer. Yet, I would’ve sworn it extended long enough for the entire café to empty except us. Then he was gone. Again.

  My Converse sneakers flexed in half as I lifted on my toes and craned my neck to follow the trail of his silhouette weaving away from me toward the stage. He was tonight’s performer?

  A. J. pressed his shoulder into mine. “I’d find you a step stool, but it’s kind of crowded in here.”

  I dropped back on my heels. He saw that? Great.

  He nudged me forward. “Musicians tend to have a celebrity complex anyway. Doubt he’d want to share your natural spotlight.”

  Oh brother. I fled toward the girls at our table, needing to counter the testosterone fumes taking over the coffee fragrance.