One Night

by Allie Everhart

  "Go see Dylan," she calls after me. "He's just sitting at his house, waiting for you. Pining for you." I hear her laugh to herself.

  Shutting the door to my room, my mind goes back to when I was in here earlier, when Dylan walked in on me. What if we'd given in to what we wanted? Would it really change our relationship going forward? Of course it would. I'd be crazy to think it wouldn't. We can't go back to doing what we did that night. We need to be friends first. Hold off on the physical part of our relationship until later. Which means I can't see him.

  Kira was right. I do eat sprinkles when I miss a guy. I have no idea why. Whatever the reason, the fact that I want to eat that whole container of sprinkles right now shows how much I miss Dylan. But I can't see him. Seeing him would make it too tempting to do more than just kiss. So for now, I'll just wait for another letter.

  ***

  The next day, I go to two classes in the morning and one at noon, then I scarf down a quick lunch as I drive to the elementary school to read to Emily. I volunteer for a program for kids who are struggling in school. Emily is seven and still can't read more than a few words. Her mom works two jobs and doesn't have time to read to her and her dad took off a few years ago and never came back.

  Along with her teacher, I've been trying to help Emily learn to read but I'm not getting very far because she has a hard time focusing.

  "You have a boyfriend?" she asks when we're halfway through the book. She's smiling, her legs swinging back and forth as she sits in the tiny chair.

  I smile back at her. "You ask me this every time and the answer is always the same."

  She shrugs. "I know but someday you'll say yes."

  "Why do you care if I have a boyfriend?"

  She tilts her head. "Because you're pretty and you should have a boyfriend."

  I laugh a little and hold the book up. "Let's keep reading. Why don't you help me? What's this word?" I point to it.

  Turning to me, she says, "If you had a boyfriend, what would he look like?"

  "I wouldn't know until I met him."

  "But what do you think he'd look like?"

  I've lost her. She's distracted, and now I'll never get her interested in the book again, at least not today. Once she starts talking, she forgets all about the book. But I always stay and talk to her because I don't think she gets much attention at home.

  "He'd probably have dark hair, brown eyes, and be taller than me." As I say it, I realize I just described Dylan. Then again, that description fits a lot of guys, but I was thinking about Dylan when I said it.

  "Would he be a fireman?" she asks, her eyes wide.

  The story we read last week was about a fireman and his dog so I'm guessing that's where she got the fireman reference.

  "He probably wouldn't be a fireman. I don't know any firemen." Although imagining Dylan as a fireman is turning me on. Shit. I need to stop thinking about sexy fireman Dylan and focus on Emily. "Why don't we talk about something else?" I set the book down. "What'd you do last weekend?"

  "Watched TV," she says, bouncing on her chair as her feet continue to swing back and forth. "If you had a boyfriend, would he be nice?"

  "Well, I would hope so. Otherwise he wouldn't be my boyfriend."

  "My mom's had boyfriends that aren't nice."

  "Then she shouldn't date them. You should only date boys that are nice to you. Remember that, okay?"

  She nods and looks at me as though I hold all the answers to anything she'd ever want to know. She reminds me of Brittany when she was younger. She'd always ask me tons of questions and believe everything I said.

  "If a boy is nice," Emily says, "would he give you candy?"

  "Maybe, but that doesn't mean he's nice. Anyone could give you candy, even people who aren't your friends. Like on Valentine's Day, all the kids in your class give you candy even though not all of them are your friends."

  "Then how do you know if a boy is nice?"

  "If he treats you well. Like if he talks to you when you need someone to talk to. Or if he helps you when you need help. Or if he tells you a joke when you're feeling sad."

  "Then he's like a friend?" she asks.

  "Yep. Your boyfriend should also be your friend. That's how they got the word 'boyfriend'. He's a boy who's also your friend."

  Her eyes brighten. "I never thought about that."

  The teacher appears at the door. "Emily, it's time to go. Say goodbye to Amber."

  She hops off her chair and hugs me. "Bye, Amber."

  "Bye. Have a good day."

  She runs off. "Hope you get a boyfriend this week!"

  I laugh as I gather my stuff and put it in my backpack. A boyfriend this week? Not going to happen. Despite Dylan's labeling of our status as boyfriend and girlfriend, or beau and sweetheart, I'm not considering us that yet. It's too soon.

  Back at my apartment, I check my phone to make sure I didn't forget any meetings. It's easy to forget because I'm involved in a ton of campus activities and clubs, along with my volunteer jobs and my job at the restaurant. Adding the hospital job will make me even busier but it might lead to a job after graduation so I need to make it a priority.

  Today's my first day and I'm feeling both nervous and excited. I've had many jobs over the years but this one actually pertains to my major so I feel like it's my first real job. Like I'm finally embarking on my career.

  When I get there, Donna, my new boss, greets me as I come into her office. "Welcome to your first day," she says with a smile.

  "Thanks!" I smile back. "I'm looking forward to getting started."

  "Before you do anything," she says, "you'll need to get an ID badge and fill out some paperwork."

  "Okay. Where do I go for that?"

  "You'll go down one floor to Human Resources. I told them you're coming. They have the paperwork ready for you to sign."

  "Then I guess I'll head down there."

  "Wait," she says as I turn to leave. "The other intern will be here shortly. I'd like you two to go together. It'll give you a chance to get to know each other. You'll be working together a lot the next few weeks."

  "I thought I was the only other intern starting early."

  "You were, but then one of the other interns called and said he'd like to help out as well. He should be here any minute."

  He? So I'm working with a guy? For some reason, I thought all the interns would be girls.

  "There he is," Donna says, grinning at whoever's behind me.

  I turn and see Dylan there. Wait—what? Dylan? Dylan's the other intern?

  Donna goes around me and shakes his hand. "Welcome to your first day."

  "Thanks," he says, his eyes going from her to me. He's better able to hide his surprise. I'm staring at him with what I'm sure is a shocked and confused look on my face and he's simply smiling, like seeing me here is the most normal thing in the world.

  "Amber," he says, holding his hand out to me. "Good to see you again."

  "Yeah." I shake his hand. The hand that fits perfectly around mine.

  "You two know each other?" Donna asks.

  "We do." Dylan looks back at her. "One of my good friends dates Amber's roommate."

  "So you're just friends," she says, sounding relieved. "I thought you were going to say you were romantically involved, in which case this wouldn't work out. We don't allow people working in the same department to date. It's an HR rule, not mine, but I have to enforce it."

  "Of course," Dylan says in a businesslike tone. "So where do we start?"

  "I was just telling Amber that you need to go down to HR to fill out some paperback and get your ID badges."

  "Sounds good. Ready, Amber?"

  "Um, yeah. I'm ready." I follow him out the door and when we're in the hall, I whisper, "What are you doing here?"

  "Working. I'm an intern."

  I swat his arm. "Obviously, but why didn't you tell me?"

  "I just found out. You won't let me talk to you and I didn't have time to write a letter so this is t
he first chance I've had to tell you." He punches the button on the elevator and we stand outside it, waiting.

  "I never said you couldn't call me."

  "You didn't? I thought you did." He shrugs. "Well, anyway, I wouldn't have had time to call. I had to write a paper yesterday."

  "You could've told Austin. He would've told me." I keep my voice low because two doctors just walked up beside me.

  "I didn't talk to Austin yesterday. He was with Kira all day. Oh, but I did get your letter. It was much better than the last one." He turns to me and smiles. "So my eyes are beguiling? Interesting choice of words."

  The two doctors glance over at us and I step closer to Dylan and whisper, "Not here. Not now."

  The elevator doors open and Dylan and I get in, moving to the back to leave room for the two doctors. When the doors close, I feel Dylan's hand wrap around mine. I look up and see that gorgeous smile of his and those beguiling eyes. Why did I write that? It's so embarrassing. Maybe we should stop writing letters. I'm not sure I want all my innermost thoughts preserved on paper forever, or for as long as Dylan keeps my letters. I'm guessing he'll keep them for a long time. He seems like the sentimental type.

  The elevator doors open again and Dylan lets go of my hand as we move past the doctors and get off.

  "It's to the left," he says as I start to go right.

  "How do you know?" I ask.

  "I've been here before. My dad had heart problems a few years ago. He was in the hospital a lot."

  "What kind of heart problems?"

  "He had a heart attack. Ended up having to have surgery and then he had to have another surgery a year later."

  "Is he okay now?"

  "He seems to be. But if he wasn't, he wouldn't tell me. My parents try to keep that stuff hidden from my brother and me. They don't want us to worry." He stops and motions me into the large office. "This is it."

  We walk inside and a girl who looks like she just got out of college greets us. "Dylan and Amber?"

  "That's us." Dylan gives her his signature smile and she smiles back, in a flirtatious way.

  "Do I know you from somewhere?" she asks him.

  "I don't think so," he says.

  She keeps her eyes on him, then smiles even wider. "Vandyl! You're the lead singer, right?"

  He nods. "That's me."

  "You're working here now?" She's breathless, almost nervous, like she just met her teen idol.

  "Just as an intern," he says. "A few hours a week."

  "I can't believe we have a celebrity working here! Would you sign something for me?"

  "Sure." He glances at me, then back at her.

  Celebrity? He's not really a celebrity.

  She hurries behind one of the desks and grabs a notebook and a pen. "Make it out to Julie."

  He eyes her as he takes the pen. "Is that you?"

  "What? Oh, um, yeah. Sorry. I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Julie Swanson. I handle all the new hires."

  Dylan signs the notebook and hands it back to her with the pen.

  She remains there, staring at Dylan, so I say, "We should probably get the paperwork done."

  She snaps out of it. "Yes. Right this way."

  She takes us to a small room where we have our photos taken for our ID badges. Then she takes us to another small room with a table and chairs. She hands us each a folder with the hospital name and logo on it.

  "Just read over everything and if you have questions, let me know," she says. "Otherwise just fill out the forms and bring them to me when you're done."

  She leaves, shutting the door behind her.

  "Looks like you have a fan." I try to hide my jealousy as I take a seat at the table. Maybe it's too soon in our relationship to be jealous but seeing that girl flirt with Dylan really got to me.

  "Do I?" he asks, sitting right next to me.

  "Well, yeah, didn't you see how she was acting? She was practically drooling."

  "I meant you." He scoots his chair closer to mine. "Are you a fan?"

  I turn and see his face right in front of me. Those deep brown eyes. Those full lips.

  "Um, yeah, I guess, although I haven't really heard you play." My heart's pounding being this close to him.

  "I wasn't talking about the band. I meant, are you a fan of this?" He kisses me before I can stop him, not that I'd stop him. I couldn't even if I tried. I'm addicted to his kisses so pulling away from him right now is pretty much impossible. So I wait for him to pull away, which he does after a few seconds.

  "You can't do that here," I tell him.

  "Why not?" He turns back to his paperwork and picks up a pen.

  "You heard Donna. She said we can't date. It's against the rules."

  "So we'll be discreet." He scans the first sheet of paper, jots down his initials at the bottom, then flips to the next page.

  I pick up the pen and look down at the stack of papers. "I told you not to kiss me."

  "Unless we're in public. Which we are."

  "We're not in public. We're in a room by ourselves."

  "With people just outside the door. By definition, that means we're in public."

  "That's not what it means. Other people have to be here in order for it to be public."

  "I disagree." He sets his pen down, turns my face to his and kisses me. It's a bold, aggressive move and completely turns me on. "You know." He kisses me again. "I wasn't really looking forward to this internship, but now? I have a feeling I'm going to like it." He smiles and goes back to his paperwork.

  How is he being so calm about this? I'm a nervous wreck. If we got caught, we could both get fired. And yet I find that kind of thrilling. Just like that night we met. I did something totally unlike me, totally unexpected. And it was thrilling. A rush. A feeling I craved to feel again.

  So is that why I like Dylan so much? Does he bring out the bad girl in me? Or is it just him making me feel this way? Or us, whenever we're together? I don't know, but it's a feeling I can't get enough of.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Dylan

  After we fill out the paperwork and get our IDs, Amber and I leave the HR office and go back upstairs. She's been quiet ever since I kissed her, but I don't think she's mad at me for doing it. She was a willing participant in the kiss. I think she's just shocked that I'm here and afraid we'll get caught if I kiss her again.

  But I'll definitely be kissing her again. I can't help myself. It's just what happens when I'm around her. And now, it sounds like I'll be around her a lot more.

  Seeing her today made my freaking day. Not only does having her here mean this internship won't suck as much as I thought it would, but it also means I'll have an excuse to spend time with her at least a few times a week, maybe even every day.

  I can't believe she's working here. Out of all the places in Chicago we could've interned at, we both end up here. The universe just keeps finding ways to bring us together and I couldn't be more thankful for that. There's just something about this girl that makes me want to be around her. Writing letters isn't enough. I need to see her. Be with her.

  "This is where you'll sit when you're here," Donna says, pointing to two small desks that face each other, each set up with a computer and phone. "You'll share these with our part-timers who work mornings so if you notice someone else's things in the desk, just leave them there."

  Amber and I take our seats. I gaze into her eyes and a smile creeps up her cheeks before she averts her eyes back to Donna.

  "Is there a password for the computer?" Amber asks.

  "Yes," Donna says. "But you'll need to create a new one just for yourself. The instructions are in the drawer. Once you log in, you'll find a spreadsheet with all of the vendors who have donated items for the silent auction. I need you two to split up the list and confirm with each vendor that they're still willing to donate that item. Since you only have a couple hours left here today, that should take up your time until you leave. If you have questions, just let me know."

  "Got
it," I tell her. "Thanks."

  Once she's gone, I wake up my computer screen and set my password. Amber does the same, then we look across the desks at each other. It's going to be hard to work with her right across from me. I'll want to keep staring at her because she's gorgeous, and watching her trying to hide that smile that keeps sliding up her cheeks is both funny and sweet. She's doing all she can to remain professional and pretend we're just acquaintances, but so far her attempts aren't working too well.

  "Do you want the first half of the list or the last?" Amber asks.

  "I'll take the last." I scroll down the screen and find the first number. Before I pick up the phone I lean back in my chair and stretch, my legs extending under the desk until they brush against hers.

  "Stop it," she whispers.

  "What?" I ask innocently. "I'm just stretching. I went running this morning and my legs are tightening up."

  "You run?"

  "A few times a week. Do you?"

  "I used to but I don't anymore. I try to go to the gym on campus but I'm usually too busy to make it there."

  When we had coffee yesterday, Amber told me about all the stuff she's involved in. Clubs, activities, volunteer work. I don't know when she has time to sleep.

  "Maybe you should cut back on some of your activities," I say.

  "Maybe, although I wouldn't know what to do if I had free time."

  "Spend it with me?"

  "Shh," she says, glancing around to see if anyone heard. She picks up the phone. "We need to get these calls made."

  We both start calling people on our lists. Two hours later, I've only reached half the business owners.

  "So I guess I'll see you later," Amber says, putting on her coat. It's a little after five and two of the full-time workers have already left. Donna is still in her office with the door closed but she came out a few minutes ago, telling us we could leave and finish the list later this week.

  "I'll walk you out." I pull on my jacket as we leave the office.

  "So when are you working again?" Amber asks.

  "Wednesday afternoon. How about you?"

  "Same." She stops briefly and moves to the side to let a guy in a wheelchair go by. I stop as well, then we continue walking.