Life starts in college... Part 2 of 3

         “So, what’s up?” She asked, looking at me. “Jacob problems?” I looked at Katie questioningly, and she shrugged.

         “I texted her and told her you were asking me for advice about Jacob, and she said she’d come up and help out,” Katie said, and I nodded in understanding. I relayed the whole story again, making sure to include all the detail I could think of. Maybe the two of them could come up with some explanation as to why Jacob had chosen tonight that I couldn’t see.

         “Well, I think he just did it without thinking,” Jaime said, and Katie agreed.

         “Yeah, my best guess is that he just took advantage of the situation. You two were on his bed together, and he just decided to try something out,” she said with a shrug. “I wouldn’t freak out too much. I mean, everybody knows how attractive Jacob is, and any girl on campus would die to be in your situation right now. What’s the problem with having a little fun?” I rolled my eyes and sighed; they just didn’t get it. I didn’t want to risk our friendship, just so we could have a little fun; how did I make them understand that?

         “You guys just don’t get it. I don’t want to risk our friendship to just to ‘have a little fun.’ I’m afraid it’ll completely ruin everything we have. What if things go horribly wrong and we end up not even on speaking terms? I love you two to death, you know that, but I don’t think I could live with not talking to Jake; it would ruin our whole little group,” I said, trying to put into words what I meant. Katie shook her head, and Jaime took my hands in both of hers, looking me right in the eyes.

         “That is the wrong point of view to have right now. You’re in college; life’s about having a little fun right now! You can’t use all the things that could go wrong as an excuse not to jump in with both feet, or you’ll never do anything!” She stopped for a second, and Katie jumped in.

         “You and Jacob were made for each other- just embrace that fact and go with your gut feeling! I know deep down inside you want Jacob,” she said with a wink. “Now’s your chance! He’s ready to be whatever you want him to be- so let your emotions lead on this one, girl.”

Were they right? Was going with my gut instinct a good idea? I had no idea… I needed to think about this.

         “Okay, maybe you’re right. I need to think about it; I’m going to go to bed, so I’ll see you guys tomorrow, okay? We can go to lunch like we usually do,” I said, standing up and heading back to my room after saying goodnight to them both.

         As I sat in bed, staring at the ceiling, I tried to think about the situation rationally. Any girl in their right mind would gladly get with Jacob, especially if he was making all the moves. He was definitely attractive; with his black hair that stood up on end, his amazing personality and ability to make anybody laugh, and his beautiful face AND body, he was surely the catch of the campus. Could this be a step up for our relationship, or was it going to destroy us all together? There was no way of knowing, and I decided that I was going to just go with the flow, and let Jacob decide where the relationship was going to go. Considering the moves he had subconsciously (or maybe consciously, who really knew?) made tonight, I was pretty sure where he wanted to go from here, and, while I wasn’t a hundred percent sure I was ready to go there, I was willing to try if he was.

         The next day was Saturday, which is the day when people don’t even get out of bed until noon, but I was up at eight o’clock. I grabbed a bowl of cereal in my room, trying to be as quiet as possible since Amanda was still sleeping, and then I changed into gym clothes and headed downstairs. Nobody was on campus- it felt like a ghost town. I headed over to the gym and worked out for an hour or two, letting the physical activity clear my mind of all worries and stresses, and then I went back to my dorm and took a shower, changing into my college t-shirt and jeans. Today was the day to go to all the games, and it was perfect weather to do so. Then I headed over to the dining hall at twelve thirty to meet everybody for lunch (or I guess it was breakfast for some of them). They were all there, and Jacob gave me a smile that made my heart skip a beat. I smiled back and walked next to him, sitting down with him after we’d gotten our food.

It was an enjoyable lunch time, just like it always was with my group of friends, and after lunch we headed over to the field hockey game to watch. I soon realized that I’d made a mistake in thinking jeans would be enough to keep me warm. Everybody else seemed to be dressed for warm weather- coats and jeans and even a few hats were all I could see in the crowd as we tried to find seats together.

         Three-quarters of the way through the game, I was on the verge of shivering. Every time the wind would blow I’d try to hide behind Andrew so he blocked the wind for me, but it never worked. Finally Jacob offered me his hoodie, which I gladly accepted. It was two or three sizes too big for me, so it went almost all the way down to my knees, but it was so warm and soft! Everybody laughed as they watched me marvel in the warmth.

         “It’s new- I just bought it the other day at the bookstore, so it’s still really soft,” Jacob said, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and rubbing to try and get me warmer faster. I nodded, smiling and getting as close to him as I could.

         “Yeah, it’s really warm; smells good, too,” I said, throwing him a small smile as I pulled the hood up over my hair.

         We stayed nice and close for the rest of the game, and when it was over, we planned on heading across the street to the guys’ soccer game, which was starting in half an hour. As we walked out of the stadium after the field hockey game ended, Jacob was walking pretty close to me. Without really thinking about it, I reached down and slide my hand into his, intertwining our fingers and squeezing just a little. I didn’t look over, trying to make it seem very nonchalant, but I saw him look at me out of the corner of my eye, a huge smile on his face.

         We sat right near the fencing around the edge of the bleachers at the soccer game, and Jacob was on the end, with me next to him and Katie on my other side. As he sat down he turned and put one leg on the other side of the bench so he was facing me. I hesitated for a split second, and then he caught my gaze, so I took a deep breath and sat down, leaning into his chest. He was so warm that I couldn’t possibly regret my decision.

         The soccer game was really close, but in the end we won by two points. It was an exciting game, since the teams were so evenly matched, and everyone’s cheeks were rosy and our voices were hoarse by the time it was over. We slowly walked back toward campus and decided to go get something to eat at one of the dining halls before the football game started at six. We headed over and hung out for like an hour, eating our food and talking about the game. I was sitting next to Jake (of course) and after he was done eating he sat back, slinging his arm around the back of my chair so that his fingers were just brushing my shoulder. It felt nice, his fingers just barely touching me, almost effortless, and definitely comforting. I offered to give him his sweatshirt back since we were so close to our dorm- I could just go get one of mine- but he said he was okay, so without any further arguing I let the subject go; it was too comfortable to just give up.

         The football game started right before the sun started to set, when it was still pretty bright out, and it wasn’t all that interesting of a game. Our team wasn’t very good, but the other team was a hundred times worse, so we ended up winning thirteen to zero.

         We were all exhausted from yelling and jumping around at the game, so despite Josh and Andrew’s complaining, we stayed in for the night, choosing to go over to Jacob’s dorm and watch a movie. Josh actually ended up going out with some other guys on the floor, so it was just me, Jacob, Andrew, Adam, Cal, Katie, Jaime, and Sean in Jacob’s room. Jaime had brought a bunch of chick flicks, so the guys agreed to watch one. A bunch of us squished onto Jacob’s bed, and then everybody else squished onto Josh’s bed, both of which were in prime positions to see the TV. We started the movie, turning off the lights, and everybody got quiet.

         About halfway through the movie, Jacob let his chin rest on my shoulder so that he was right next to my neck, his cheek almost touching me. I could feel his breath as he exhaled on my shoulder, and it actually gave me goosebumps. I tried to focus on the movie, but his breathing was so distracting that I barely knew what was going on. I could feel his chest behind me and the rise and fall of his breathing, and even, very faintly, his heart beat. He had his arms on his knees, so he wasn’t actually holding me there or anything, just kind of wrapping around me where I sat. It felt very, very comfortable, and I realized that what Katie had said last night was true; Jacob and I were meant for each other, even so much that we fit together like two pieces of a puzzle, both physically and mentally.

         All too soon, the movie credits started scrolling across the screen and Jacob leaned back, reaching for the light switch. Sean and Katie next to us were completely intertwined, so much so that I couldn’t even tell whose legs and arms were whose. Adam and Andrew were just sitting on one side of Josh’s bed, and on the other side, Jaime was right up behind Cal, her arms around him and her face buried into his face.

         “Those lights are so bright,” Jaime moaned as Jacob flipped the switch and settled back onto the bed. I smiled, agreeing as I squinted my own eyes against the harsh lights in the room. I felt Jacob’s hand on the small of my back tracing little patterns on top of my t-shirt, and I almost shivered visibly, only barely refraining at the last second. I leaned back and he moved his hand to the side of the bed, much to my relief and yet displeasure at the same time.

         “So, I think we should go to the beach tomorrow and Monday. We’ve got Monday off, so we could all pitch a little in and buy two cheap rooms and stay the night!” Katie said out of the blue, and I looked around for a second, then nodded my head in agreement. We decided that we’d all meet at Katie and Jacob’s cars, which were parked right next to each other coincidentally, at around 9 so that we could spend the whole day on the beach and the boardwalk, and then we could stay in Cal’s small beach house that his parents owned.

“Okay, well now I should probably get back to my room and pack and get some sleep,” Jaime said, and Cal slide off the bed, offering her his hand as she got down. They both said goodnight and then headed out of their rooms to say goodnight to each other a bit more privately. Everyone else followed suit, and soon it was just Jacob and I in his room. I looked around, slightly confused; hadn’t someone else just been in here? We were still sitting like we had been all night, and Jacob started to snuggle with me again, this time placing his lips ever so lightly into the crook in my neck, right where my neck met my shoulder. I actually did shiver this time, and he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me closer.

         “Are you cold? I can turn the ac down if you’re going to stay here much longer,” he murmured, his voice very rough and husky from all the screaming we’d done. I shook my head, smiling as I glanced back at him.

         “No, I am very, very comfortable right now. Probably too comfortable, but I’m not going anywhere yet, so whatever,” I said with a small laugh, and Jake chuckled behind me; I could feel his chest rumble just a little bit as he did, and it was a pleasant feeling.

         “Jake?” I was half asleep now, basking in the comfort of his arms, and I really didn’t want move. “Jake, I’ve got to get back to my room… I’m so tired, I feel like I could very well pass out right here on your bed.” I started to move, but he just tightened his arms around me and I quickly gave up, sinking right back down into his embrace and closing my eyes.

         “Don’t worry about it,” he mumbled as he too drifted off to sleep. “My alarm’s set for 7, so you’ll have time to get a shower and change before we leave tomorrow. Just stay here with me for a little longer.” I took a deep breath, giving myself over to sleep as Jake’s arms around me started to loosen and his breathing started to get heavier and slower.

         I woke up with a start to the sound of music blaring, and I looked at the clock blearily- it was 7 a.m... Wait a second… a.m. as in morning? I was still lying in Jacob’s bed, where I’d fallen asleep last night. Ugh. I felt almost like I was hung over- my head was throbbing, my body was all ache-y, the lights seemed very, very bright in my eyes, even though it was just Jacob and Josh’s two alarm clocks, and every little noise seemed to be magnified tenfold. I sat up, pushing myself away from Jacob’s chest, and I rubbed my eyes, glancing over at Jacob as he woke up, too. I reached over him and turned the alarm clock off and then sat back, sighing heavily.

         “Morning,” Jake said, rubbing his eyes and glancing at the clock. “You fall asleep in here last night?” I nodded, and he just acknowledged me- he didn’t really seem to care. Josh had heard the alarm, too, and he was stretching his arms and rubbing his eyes, and then he glanced over at Jacob and I, and his eyes popped open.

         “Did you spend the night here last night?” He squinted at me, trying to figure out when I had gotten here or if I’d been here the whole time, and I had to laugh at his facial expression. He scowled and laid his head back down on the pillow, closing his eyes.

         “Yeah, I guess I fell asleep after we were done watching the movie,” I said, smiling as I remembered our cuddling and Jacob’s pleads to stay with him. “Hey, did someone tell you that we’re going to The beach today? We’re leaving at nine, and we’re going to stay at Cal’s beach house for the night, so bring a few things to change into.” He just nodded where he was, not opening his eyes or mouth, but that was good enough for me. Jake would make sure he got up and came with us. I turned back to Jacob, giving him a smile and a kiss on the cheek.

         “I need to go take a shower and change and pack, so I’ll meet you out in the hallway at nine and we can walk over,” I said as I got down from his lofted bed. “I’ll talk to you in a little while.” I waved a goodbye as I headed out the door, grabbing my room key and phone that I had brought with me last night. Amanda wasn’t in the room; I’m not sure if she just never came back last night or if she’d gone out somewhere already. I took a shower and then went back to my room and picked out a bathing suit, knowing full well that the water and air was too cold to actually go in the water, but wanting to wear one anyways. I put on a longsleeve shirt and jeans over top of it and pulled out a few outfits for if we went out tonight, a pair of pajamas and another change of clothes for tomorrow. I threw it all into a bag and grabbed sunscreen- which I wouldn’t need- an umbrella, a beach chair and my book. Once I was all packed and had checked that I had everything I needed, it was almost nine o’clock, so I went out into the hallway to look for Jacob and Josh. I pushed open their door, and just Josh was in there, getting together his clothes and stuff.

         “Hey, Josh,” I said with a wave, going over to sit on Jacob’s lounge chair while I waited for both of them to get ready, and he gave me a smirk. “What’s that for?” He turned to me, eyebrows raised so high I swear they were above his hair line, and I just laughed.

         “It was completely innocent and you know it,” I said, pointing a figure at him teasingly. “We didn’t do anything- I just fell asleep before I could actually get up, that’s all. No big deal,” I said, shrugging and trying to make it seem like no big deal, but he wasn’t buying it.

         “Yeah, right, no big deal my ass! You two have been, I don’t know, kind of flirting back and forth for the last few weeks, and it’s actually getting tiresome. Can you even imagine how much he talks about you, and how much I have to listen to him talk about you? There’s only so much he can say, and while it may be a lot, after a while he starts repeating facts and phrases… it gets very tiresome, trust me,” he said, shaking his head and turning back to his packing, leaving me red in the face and a little bit shocked.

         “Wait, what? He… he talks about me a lot? What does he say?” I tried to make it seem like I didn’t really care, but it came out in a very small, innocent voice that made me sound slightly scared. Without turning around, Josh answered me.

         “Well, I hear the word ‘beautiful’ about a thousand times a day, and different things, I don’t know… he likes that you longboard. When you first got it, he was raving about how good you looked on yours compared to all the guys that have them… I tried to tell him that’s because you were the only girl on campus who had one, but he wouldn’t listen. And he loves going to work out with you. Says it’s the best part of his day or week or whatever,” Josh said, going on and on about all the things he said about me. I only got redder and redder in the face as I listened, shocked by how many things Jacob told Josh.

         After a few minutes we could hear Jacob coming back from wherever he’d been, so Josh changed the subject, asking what I’d packed and what did I think he should bring. I gave him some tips about what he should and shouldn’t bring as Jacob walked in the door, and while I was looking at Josh, I saw, out of the corner of my eye, Jacob’s face break into a huge smile when he saw me sitting on the bed. Not that I hadn’t expected it, but it still made me so happy to see him smile like that.

         “Hey, Jake, where were you? We should probably get going soon… they’ll all be mad if we hold them up,” I said, laughing a little as I thought of how eager Jaime and Katie had looked when we had been talking about going to the beach last night.

         “Sorry, I was grabbing the rest of my laundry out of the dryer. Didn’t want it to sit there for another two days,” he said. “I’m ready to go, though, so once Josh gets all his shit into a bag, we can head out.” I nodded, hopping off the bed and making my way toward the door. Josh threw me a smile and a knowing look when Jacob had his back turned, and I smiled, blushing as I thought about all the things Josh had said. I quickly thought of something else so that Jake wouldn’t see me blushing, and he didn’t notice, thankfully.

         We finally got on the road, and we at the beach in less than half an hour. I hopped out of the car since I was closest to the door and ran around back to grab my bags out of the back. We decided to wait until later to get over to Cal’s beach house, so we were just leaving our packed bags in the car for now.

         There were barely more than a handful of people on the beach, and everyone was so spread out that it wasn’t an issue at all. We chose a spot where we could all spread out, and I quickly undressed and grabbed sunscreen, rubbing it into my arms and legs and stomach and everywhere else I could reach. Jacob just so happened to be the one closest to me who wasn’t doing anything when I finished, so I turned to him and held out the bottle of sunscreen.

         “Could you put this on my back? Make sure you move the straps and get everywhere- I don’t want to have any burn lines where my straps moved,” I said with a smile and he took the bottle with a returning smile. As he massaged the lotion into my back using both hands, I had to close my eyes- his hands felt so nice as they slid over my back, almost as good as a real massage would feel.

         All too soon my back was covered in lotion and he handed me back the bottle. He didn’t want any on his back, since he claimed he didn’t burn, so I turned to Katie and Jaime and helped them with theirs.

         We all laid down for a little while, talking about this and that, and Adam had even brought speakers, so we had music playing. Then Andrew stood up, brushing sand off his chest and onto all of us.

         “Okay, who wants to get in the water? I’m starting to get pretty hot, myself,” he said, even though the temperature was only in the low seventies.

         “Are you seriously hot? I’m so comfortable right now,” I said, enjoying the warmth from the sun and the cold breeze. Jacob stood up next to Andrew.

         “I second that. Let’s get in the water,” he said, looking down at me.

         “Why are you looking at me? I’m not getting in with you.” Katie started to laugh, and I looked over at her. “What are you laughing at? What’s so funny?” I had my back turned to Jacob, so little did I know he was reaching down to pick me up. He grabbed me under my legs and my back, carrying me bridal style. I tried to get away, but his arms were so strong that I couldn’t even get loose at all. I guess I was wiggling too much, so he threw me over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes and held me by my knees.

         “Jake, put me down! I bet that water’s freezing!” I tried in vain to convince him, and then I could see water around his feet. He hoisted me back over his shoulder so he was holding me out in front of him again, and he walked out until he was almost waist-deep in water. He gave me a smile that, even though I hated him at the moment, still made my heart stutter, and then he dropped me into the freezing cold water.

         I went all the way under and then my butt bumped the sandy bottom, so I quickly got my feet underneath me and stood up. Jacob was already running back toward the towels, and I scowled teasingly and then started running after him. Of course, at that moment, the sun decided to hide behind a huge cloud, and the wind picked up, instantly giving me goosebumps. He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist, trying to dry off as he watched me come closer, dripping wet.

         “You should probably take that towel off if you don’t want it to get wet,” I said, warning him, and he quickly dropped it, getting down into a running stance. I ran at him, jumping over my towel and his balled up one, and he dodged right at the last moment. Just as quickly I turned, and I got my hands around his chest before he could pull away, giving him a nice, tight, wet hug.

         “Ohhh, karma,” Cal said, shaking his head and laughing and Jacob winced knowingly as my cold, wet skin came into contact with his warm dry skin.

         Soon, though, I was shivering, since the sun was still behind the very large, slow moving cloud that was taking up most of the sky. I grabbed my towel, wrapping it around my shoulders and sitting on the sand, burrowing my toes under it to keep them warm. It didn’t work- that wind was cutting right through me and I continued to shiver.

         “Emma, are you shivering? I’m sorry- the water didn’t feel that cold,” Jake said with concern and a hint of amusement in his eyes as he scooted closer and put his arms around me, blocking some of the wind.

         “It really wasn’t- the wind chose the wrong time to pick up, and the sun chose the wrong time to disappear, that’s all. I’ll warm up once it comes back,” I said with a shrug, curling in on myself and turning into Jacob’s warm side. He laughed a little, his arms tightening around me and making me smile.

         We sat around talking for a few more minutes, and then off in the distance, I heard thunder.

         “Was that thunder I heard? Did anybody else hear that?” Nobody else seemed to have heard it, so I figured it was just my imagination. A few minutes later, though, everybody was going to regret ignoring my claim.

         “Was that a rain drop?” Jaime held her hand up to the sky, glancing up at the darkening clouds. A raindrop hit me right on the cheek, and I looked up too.

         “I think it was,” I said, and then I actually jumped as a thunder clap rolled through and a bolt of lightning hit the water off shore. “I would say that we should head back to the cars- it’s definitely going to start pouring in a minute. Those clouds are looking ominous.” Everybody agreed, so we started grabbing our belongs and picking up our trash. As I threw my towel into my bag I felt another rain drop, and decided to just leave all my clothes and things in the bag- I was already wet, so a little rain wouldn’t matter. I picked up my flip flops and followed everybody else, squinting my eyes a little as the wind blew sand into my face.

         We had made it to the edge of the boardwalk that lead back to our car, and suddenly the sky opened up and let loose a torrential downpour of rain that had everyone on the boardwalk running for the stores and for cover. We all made it into one of the stores along the edge of the boardwalk, but we had all gotten thoroughly soaked, and the rain was freezing. The wind was picking up now to a point where even going to the back of the store didn’t help- it was coming straight into the store, from off shore storm that had just opened up over us. We all stood in a huddle in a far corner of the store behind a few racks of clothes, trying in vain to keep warm. There were a few other small groups scattered around the store, and everyone was soaked to the bone and trying to keep out of the wind and keep warm.

         The rain finally died down a little bit, so we decided to try and make it the two blocks to our cars, which were parked back a street away from the boardwalk. We sprinted all the way there and tumbled into the cars, closing the doors and pulling out towels to dry off and get warmer. Jacob started his car up, turning the heat all the way. I continued to shiver in the passenger seat, pulling my knees up to my chest and my towel close around me. I reached for Jake’s hand, playing with his fingers that were just as cold as mine, but comforting. I gave him a smile and squeezed his hand a little, and he smiled back, rubbing small circles on the back of my hand with his thumb, giving me goosebumps that had nothing to do with being cold.

         “So, should we call Cal and tell him we’re ready to go to his beach house? It could stop raining later, and then we could go out or something, but right now I just want a hot shower,” I said, a shiver running down my spine as I thought of Cal’s hot tub- that sounded amazing right now.

         We all grabbed our things from the trunk, running into the house and picking out our rooms. Katie, Jaime, and I put our bags into one of the bigger rooms that had a futon and a big king-sized bed.

         We spent the afternoon taking showers and getting in the hot tub, just hanging around the house getting warm and comfortable. Around three or four, before we decided what to eat for dinner, somebody decided to put in a movie. So we all got comfortable on the couch, and I ended up leaning on Jake’s chest, one hand on his knee and the other playing with his fingers as we held hands. His arm was around my shoulder, holding me gently in place, and I was very comfortable. The movie wasn’t very interesting, and at some point I closed my eyes, letting my mind wander and my body relax.

         “Emma,” I heard a voice whisper softly in my ear, and a warm hand touched my cheek, making me smile. “Morning, sleepy head, pizza’s here if you want some.” Jake was right in my ear, so close I could feel the moisture and heat from his breath.

         “Mmm, thanks for waking me. Yeah, I’ll get up in a second- don’t let them eat it all before I get there,” I said quietly, rubbing my eyes and blinking to get the sleep out of them. Jake was leaning over the edge of the couch right above me, and he smiled radiantly when we made eye contact, making me smile in return as my stomach flipped upside down.

         I got up and had a piece of pizza, eating it as I sat on the back of the couch since there weren’t that many chairs in the house.

         “So what are we doing now? It’s not very sunny out, so it’s not like we could go back out to the beach,” I said, glancing outside through the window- it was still pretty cloudy and dark, and the waves were huge as they crashed onto the shore. Andrew looked too, and his eyes lit up.

         “Why don’t we go surfing? I’ve missed getting to go out and ride actual waves… those are HUGE!” He jumped up, suddenly excited, and everybody else just looked apprehensively out the window at the waves, thinking that he was absolutely crazy.

         “I’m sure renting boards wouldn’t be that tough- they aren’t usually too expensive. Anybody else know how to surf?” He looked around and laughed as he realized how worried the rest of us were. “That’s alright,” he said with a shrug. “I can teach you if you want, or I can just go out by myself, that’s fine too.” He started toward the door, and I decided to follow him, glancing back over my shoulder at everybody else. Katie seemed torn, Jaime was definitely not coming, and all the rest of the guys looked pretty willing. Everybody followed us outside, and once we’d found a rental place, we got two boards, one for Andrew and then one for whoever wanted to go out with him and learn. Jacob offered to go out with him first, so he got suited up in the wetsuit the rental place had provided and followed him out into the waves, holding the surfboard above his head so it didn’t get caught in the waves.