The Academy

by Quinn Anderson

  “Damn, there goes my plan to burst into the dean’s office wearing a rainbow flag as a cape.”

  Sebastian crinkled his nose in a way Nick hated to admit was cute. “Yeah, maybe don’t do that. But otherwise, there’s nothing to be anxious about.”

  “What makes you think I’m anxious? Or that I have any reason to be?”

  The smirk was back. “You can pretend all you want, but we had a moment yesterday. I felt something between us. I’d like to feel it again, if you’re so inclined.”

  “That’s bold talk considering you know nothing about me. What if I were some meat-headed straight guy who freaked on you for making a move?”

  “I’m not new. I was reasonably certain you were into men before I approached you, and if you’d complained to someone, I’d have said it was a misunderstanding, and they’d have made me go to confession. No big deal.”

  Nick studied Sebastian, unsure of how to respond. Now that he’d dropped the shy act, it was clear why Sebastian was allegedly so popular. He was daring and intelligent, and the whole rebellious, flirt-with-danger thing had major appeal. He had the potential to be attractive to Nick both inside and out.

  But something about him was grating, like sandpaper. Part of it was his attitude. A little rebelliousness could be fun, but Sebastian talked like he thought he could do whatever he wanted to people because Mom and Dad were important. That sort of snobby entitlement set Nick’s teeth on edge.

  There was something else too. Sebastian’s disingenuousness. It wasn’t just that he’d put on an act; it was how quickly he’d dropped it, like he hadn’t thought Nick would notice his sudden change in demeanor.

  If he thinks I’m falling for this, he’s going to be disappointed. I’m not gonna play his game.

  “I have to get to class.” Nick closed his sketchbook and shoved it into his bag. Standing up, he shouldered it and gathered his trash.

  Sebastian blinked at him. “So soon?”

  “I stayed here longer than I’d planned, thanks to you.” Nick looked around for a trash can and spotted one. Naturally, it was next to the students who were still not-so-subtly spying on them. He started toward it.

  Sebastian fell into step beside him without missing a beat. “Skip class.”

  Nick stopped short. “What?”

  “It’s the second day. The professor’s going to go over the syllabus and then let you out early. Skip class and hang out with me. I’m enjoying our conversation.” His lips curved up into a smile that was charming, wicked, and oh-so-sexy. There were probably people who’d had dreams about that smile, who’d been utterly undone by it.

  Nick was not one of them. “I’m not skipping on my second day.”

  “If it sweetens the deal at all, I might let you kiss me.”

  Nick’s cheeks filled with hot blood. “What makes you think I—” He stopped short. I can’t pretend I’m not attracted to him. I’m not that good of a liar.

  Sebastian’s expression took on a hint of smugness that suggested he knew what Nick was thinking. “Come on. It’ll be fun. There’s a room in the auditorium that’s always empty this time of day. We can get out of this heat and get to know each other.”

  Nick got the distinct impression that Sebastian meant that in the biblical sense.

  Nick’s eyes strayed to a bead of sweat that had formed on Sebastian’s brow. As he watched, it kissed its way down his cheek. Nick was struck by the almost irresistible urge to brush it away with a finger. Sebastian’s skin looked soft, unlike his sharp bone structure. What would it be like to touch it?

  You’re not going to find out. It’s your first week at an unfamiliar college that happens to be your last shot. You can’t start slacking off, especially to hang out with some boy you don’t trust.

  Nick shook his head. “I’m going to class. I’m here on a scholarship. I don’t want to give anyone a reason to suspect I’m not taking my education seriously.”

  Sebastian cocked his head to the side. “I guess they have you on a pretty tight leash, huh?”

  “Even if I didn’t have to keep my grades up, I still wouldn’t go with you. Unlike some people, I’m thankful to be here. College is expensive, but private school is worse, and this is a top-ranked university. Being here is a luxury that most people can’t afford.”

  “Christ, you sound like one of their brochures.” Sebastian put palms up in a defensive gesture. “Sorry, Dad. Didn’t mean to pluck a nerve. I was teasing you, I promise.”

  “Uh-huh. Weren’t you the valedictorian at your last school? You can’t act like grades don’t matter to you.”

  This seemed to please Sebastian. “Heard about that, did you? I guess some rumors are rooted in truth.”

  Damn, I gotta play my cards a little more carefully. I keep giving myself away.

  “Well, if I can’t convince you to skip, I suppose I’ll just have to be patient.” Sebastian turned around. After a few steps, he looked over his shoulder and flashed another smirk. “I’m so glad we had this talk. I feel like I know you much better now.”

  Nick watched him go, wondering why that innocent statement sounded so suggestive.

  As he left Nick, Sebastian realized that his heart was racing. He could practically feel Nick’s eyes on his back, boring straight down to the bone. Sebastian kept his posture straight and his pace slow, as if he were content to stroll away. In reality, his brain was screeching at him to put some distance between them.

  Holy shit, Nick was interesting. And a little intimidating. Sebastian wasn’t used to feeling outmatched, but Nick had seen right through him almost from the moment he’d approached. It was thrilling in every sense of the word.

  Nick was as handsome as Sebastian remembered too. Golden and warm like a day at the beach, right down to his ocean-blue eyes. Sebastian had approached him expecting to flirt and maybe land a steamy afternoon make-out session, winning the bet in the process. He’d get Nick to kiss him, and then Sebastian would report his victory to Dante and Theo. They’d all move on with their lives.

  But the second Nick had locked eyes with Sebastian, it’d been game over. It was like Nick could read his thoughts. Sebastian’s whole sweet, I’m-nervous-around-you routine had fallen flat.

  He’d been prepared for that possibility—acting was Theo’s thing, not his—but he hadn’t expected to experience an odd urge to tell Nick the truth. Every time he’d opened his mouth, it’d jumped to the tip of his tongue. By the end of their conversation, Sebastian had found himself being more or less straight with Nick. That was something he hadn’t done with a guy in a long time.

  It was refreshing, and bemusing.

  Not only that, but Nick had proven to be both clever and no-nonsense, traits that Sebastian was immensely attracted to. Nick seemed to have some unfortunate puritanical ideas about sex that would need to be removed, but most college kids lost those by the end of their four years regardless.

  Grass crunched beneath his feet as he walked aimlessly. A smell he could only describe as “summer” filled his nose. It got him thinking about spending breaks at home, and how painful those often were for reasons he didn’t care to think about right now. Or ever. He could have imagined it, but in Nick’s cagey eyes and guarded responses, he thought he’d sensed something. Something familiar. Why was Nick so resistant to him? And why had Nick transferred schools? Questions, questions.

  Sebastian supposed it didn’t matter. Once the bet was over, they’d likely never speak again.

  Though things certainly had gotten a hell of a lot more interesting. Sebastian wasn’t ashamed to admit he’d figured this all wrong. He’d walked up expecting an easy seduction and instead had gotten one of the more fascinating exchanges he’d had with someone in . . . possibly ever.

  A couple of facts stood out to him. One, Nickolas Steele was sharp. Knife sharp. Two, Sebastian’s charms appeared to have little effect on him, though that wasn’t going to stop Sebastian from trying. And three, this bet was not going to be as easy to win as he’d
assumed.

  Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he composed a quick text as he tramped off toward the class he’d intended to skip, mind whirring with possibilities.

  Theo twirled a pen between his long fingers, eyes unfocused as he gazed at the stern painting of a saint on the library wall. They were the go-to decoration on campus. Anytime there was a blank bit of wall that needed filling, they slapped a dead pious guy onto it. Theo found them macabre, yet strangely arresting.

  “Staring off into space again?”

  The voice drew Theo’s attention to the squishy couch next to him, where Dante was currently sprawled with a textbook open in his lap.

  “Staring off into face,” Theo replied. “Creepy saint face. I think his eyes are following me.”

  Dante snickered. “You’re not moving. His eyes can’t follow you if you don’t move.” He swung his legs off the couch and pushed himself into a sitting position, his arm muscles flexing.

  Theo swallowed his drool. “Good point.” He slumped back in his winged armchair and surveyed the books spread out on the table. “It’s only the second day of class. Why do we have to study?”

  “Because it takes lots of braining to make the grades good.” Dante tossed a scribbled-in notebook on top of the pile as if he were throwing a log onto a fire. “For my evening class, I have to read the first six chapters of the text beforehand. Guess how many I’ve read.”

  “Zero?”

  Dante looked affronted. “What do you take me for? Some kind of shiftless flâneur? I’ve read one and a quarter.”

  “Oh, that’s much better.” Theo’s phone vibrated in his pocket. He pulled it out and tapped on the text he’d received. “Seb messaged me.”

  Dante gasped and clapped his hands to his cheeks. “Oh my stars. He never does that! What’d he say?”

  “It’s about Nick.”

  At that, Dante’s mirth fell away, and he narrowed his eyes. “Oh? He didn’t win the bet already, did he? Because if so, I totally called—”

  “It’s not that.” Theo leaned closer and whispered. “Apparently, Seb ran into Nick, and they had an ‘interesting’ conversation.”

  “What’d they talk about?”

  “I dunno. I’m waiting for him to finish typing. When was the last time Seb admitted he was intrigued by a boy, though?”

  Dante tapped his chin. “You mean one he wasn’t trying to sleep with? Um, grade school, I think. He playground-married the principal’s son and got put in time-out.”

  “Exactly.” Theo’s phone buzzed again, and he checked the text. “He says Nick is going to be more of a challenge than he initially thought, and he’s looking forward to it. Does that strike you as odd?”

  Dante shrugged. “We’re having our second conversation about a boy we’ve never met, whom we’re supposed to kiss before our best friend can, all to win a battered plastic trophy with a decapitated doll glued to it. ‘Odd’ doesn’t live in the same state as this.”

  “Touché.”

  “Though, if you’re referring to Sebastian showing interest in a guy beyond sleeping with him, then yeah, that’s odd. You think he actually likes Nick? Because that would be exciting.”

  “I’m not sure. That’s kinda what I want to talk about. Remember the last time we made the bet?”

  “Yeah. We were seventeen. Young enough that we still thought that sort of thing was funny instead of gross and immature.”

  “It’s not funny, that’s for sure.” Theo pushed his laptop away and leaned on the polished surface of the table. “We did it because we were miserable.”

  Theo remembered that time well. They were all still living at home, trying to survive high school until they could get the fuck out. His father had decided drinking a fifth of whiskey a day was a full-time occupation, leaving his mother to work two jobs to support them. Theo had wanted to leave his expensive private high school and go to public, but Mom had forbidden it. That’d given him heaps of unmanageable guilt and anxiety.

  Dante’s issues were no better. His big brother had moved back home after losing his job. The same brother who’d never liked the fact that Dante was interested in men. Suddenly, Dante had started showing up to school with bruises and flimsy excuses.

  Then there was Sebastian. He was another story altogether.

  “Yeah, I suppose we were angstier than the average teens.” Dante stretched out on the couch again, on his side this time. He cupped his chin in a hand and batted his eyelashes at Theo. “Do we have to talk about Sebastian? I’m here with you, not him.”

  One look at those gorgeous brown eyes, and Theo almost relented. But he had a point to make, and for the sake of their friend, it needed to be made. “There’s something I want to run past you. I have a theory about our darling Seb.”

  Dante gestured with his pen. “Do tell, psych major.”

  “What was going on in Sebastian’s life around the time he conceived of the bet?”

  Dante furrowed his brow. “Um . . . same shit as with us, I think. He came out. Started dating boys. Got bullied. Why?”

  Theo glanced at the rows of books around them, checking for eavesdroppers. No one was paying attention to them. “The first time Seb suggested the bet to us was right after his parents started fighting. The next time, they’d separated. See the pattern?”

  Dante’s eyes widened. “Oh man, that was so long ago, I’d almost forgotten about that. Didn’t he think he might have to move if they split up?”

  “Yeah, but then his folks went to counseling, and he left for college. Not to go into full-blown psychology mode, but I think watching that go down gave him some warped ideas about love and relationships. Hence, the bet.”

  Dante scratched his chin. “I mean, that kinda explains why he wanted to do it back then, if he was rebelling against love or whatever. But why start it up again now?”

  Theo shook his head. “I think it’s because of his parents. I hate to be the one to tell you this, but he’s not talking. Seb’s folks are finally getting divorced, after years of making everyone in that household miserable.”

  Dante whistled. “Damn. I wondered about that. Seemed like no amount of couple’s therapy could fix those two. Poor Seb.”

  “He’s not taking it well. I can tell by his refusal to talk about it.”

  “Isn’t it a good thing, though? His parents were awful together.”

  “Yeah. I remember the last time he had me over before we moved for college. It was brutal. The place was empty, and Seb told me neither of them were ever home anymore. They were always away on ‘business.’ I got the feeling he’d pretty much raised himself our last few years of high school. This should be a step forward.”

  “But?”

  “I think the damage is done. They should have gotten divorced years ago instead of letting Seb watch their ugliness and nasty legal battles intensify with time.”

  “Agreed.” Dante nodded. “Well, if he’s lashing out, maybe we shouldn’t enable him. I get that he’s hurting, but taking it out on others isn’t healthy.”

  “See, that’s where I debate with myself. I think there’s a chance Nick could be good for Seb, in a backhanded sort of way.”

  “I don’t follow.”

  “It’s too early to say for sure, but I think Seb’s attraction to him is genuine, though he doesn’t seem to realize how much.”

  Dante chuckled mirthlessly. “He has a crush on Blondie, so naturally he wants to lie to his face. Sounds like a stellar plan. What do you think we should do? Save Sebastian from himself, or let him learn an important lesson?”

  “I’m not sure.” Theo looked up at the ceiling. “I don’t want to enable Seb, and I don’t want to watch him ruin things with a boy who has potential, but I also have this idea.”

  “I’m all ears.”

  “We go along with the bet. At first. For all intents and purposes, we make it look like we want to win.”

  Dante nodded. “I feel a change of heart coming on. Suddenly, I want that damn trophy. Viva
la Barbzilla.”

  “Exactly. You know how competitive Seb is. If we make him think we want to win, he’ll try even harder.”

  “Okay.” Dante frowned. “But how is that going to help anything?”

  “That brings me to the second part of my plan, but I want to know if you’re in before I share it with you.” Theo held out his hand, palm up. “For Sebby?”

  Dante didn’t hesitate. He slapped Theo five and then let his palm linger. His brown eyes seemed even darker than usual when he met Theo’s gaze. “For Sebby.”

  Theo’s heart pounded for more than one reason. He grinned. “All right. So, here’s what we do.”

  By Thursday, Nick had fallen into a routine. He woke up, went to class, drank too much coffee, and attempted to cultivate a social life, though it largely consisted of hanging out with Deen in their room. Wash, rinse, repeat.

  He hadn’t made any other friends so far, but he also hadn’t had much of a chance. Beyond the first day, classes had hit hard and fast. He was up to his neck in required reading, and his professors fired off information faster than he could type on his ancient leg-burning device. He’d started handwriting notes while he drafted a budget that would justify buying a new laptop.

  Angela and Minho said hi to him at the start of class every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, but when he failed to provide them with gossip—or show interest in what they told him—they stopped reaching out to him. So much for those burgeoning friendships.

  If he wanted to make friends, he was going to have to join a club. Or maybe get invited to one of the exclusive parties he’d heard so much about. One of Sebastian’s infamous parties.

  Sebastian had been absent from Nick’s life all week, and Nick couldn’t say if he was relieved or disappointed. Their second encounter had done little to clear up his confusion from the first, and while Sebastian had given him a peek at his real self by the end, there was still so much Nick didn’t know about him. Including how he could proposition Nick one minute and then disappear the next.

  Nick knew one thing, though: he could definitely throw Sebastian’s skinny ass farther than he trusted him.