4. Addison

Chapter four

Addison

" H ey, Gwen Stacey!" I cringed, my pen slipping and leaving a wonky line through my notes from the last half-hour. I looked up to find my colleague, a bubbly young researcher named Hannah, bounding up toward me. It had been three months since we moved here, and I'd started back up in the lab last month once the transfer had been finalized. It was a great university, but smaller than the previous one, so my Arachnology study was lumped into the Entomology department's lab. I still had my own office since I was considered a senior researcher, but my subjects were housed in the main lab, which meant interacting with my colleagues.

And no offense, but entomologists were weird.

I'd managed to scare or bore most of the researchers into leaving me alone, like I preferred. All except Hannah, who was hell bent on becoming best friends, despite my aloofness. I stood up, smiling wanly as she stopped exactly three feet away, rocking on the balls of her feet. At least she respected my need for space - which I'd explained was a specific case of mysophobia- I could tell she wanted to hug me, though. She was that kind of person.

"Hannah, how's your study going?" I asked politely, and she beamed at me, adjusting her bright blue glasses further up her nose. She studied praying mantis, which had a similar stigma about them, like black widows. That was probably why she was so eager to have me here. Our studies almost overlapped in some ways.

"So good! My babies are thriving," she gushed, and I smiled, unable to help myself. Her cheer was infectious. "Listen, a few of us are going for drinks after 5 p.m. Would you like to join?" I opened my mouth to politely decline, but she held up her hand to stop me. "Before you say no," she rushed out, "it's only a couple of people, and it's only at the campus bar, so it's barely out of your way," she beamed.

Fuck , I bit my lip, struggling to come up with an excuse this time. When nothing came to mind, I sighed, and she let out a little squeal. "Yes! Yes! Yes! I knew it, I knew you'd finally cave! Oh, my gosh, it'll be so much fun. I promise you don't have to stay long, just one drink and then you can go home."

"Sounds like fun," I smiled, cringing internally. I checked my phone. At least I still had an hour to finish up my work today. I grabbed my notebook off the table and Hannah bounded away, leaving me free to skulk back to my office. I shut the door behind me and rested my head against it for a moment. What was I going to do at home, anyway? Cain was off meeting a prospective client for drinks downtown tonight, so he wouldn't be home until late. Piper was… well, he'd been pretty lucid this morning when I'd left, so he was probably wandering around somewhere getting into trouble. I frowned and sent a text to Wyatt, letting him know I'd be home a little later today.

I didn't see him at all this morning, which was unusual for him. I was starting to worry about him. He had only had one booking in the last two months, despite setting up his website and advertising his services. He needed to work, and I could tell it was beginning to weigh on him a bit. I didn't get an answer, but I saw that he read the message, so at least someone knew where I was going after work. I'd text Austin, but he rarely had his phone on, so it wouldn't do much good, anyway.

For the next hour, I busied myself with entering my notes onto my laptop. Right at 5 p.m., there was an eager knock on my office door. Shoving my laptop into my bag and grabbing my jacket off the hook, I opened the door to find Hannah grinning on the other side. She immediately backed up to let me pass, and I smiled appreciatively, looking around us. "Oh, they're meeting us there. They left a little early to get a good table," Hannah explained.

"Oh, that was nice of them," I offered, shifting my bag up on my shoulder and heading to the door. I didn't know how to make small talk, usually I had no need for it. Thankfully, Hannah was an expert.

"We do this almost every week," she told me, leading me toward the campus bar. Although it wasn't technically on campus, it was right across the street, so everyone just called it the campus bar. It was already packed full of people, and I made sure that my sleeves were pulled down in case anyone brushed up against me. It was cold enough here that I could get away with turtleneck sweaters without looking out of place, so I'd stocked up on a few of them, hoping to avoid a repeat of the Peter situation.

I followed Hannah to a table of semi-familiar faces, leaving the end spot for me to sit in, while she took the seat next to… Vince? I smiled wanly as everyone looked at me, open shock on a few of their faces. "Everyone, you remember Addy, right? She just transferred here. She's our new Gwen Stacey," Hannah beamed, and I cringed at the embarrassing nickname. Someone had mentioned the Spider woman in front of her, meaning me, and she'd immediately latched on to that. I waved uncomfortably, feeling like a giant idiot. Everyone smiled at me for a moment before returning to their conversations, and I let out a quick breath now that I was no longer in the spotlight.

"Addy, beer?" Hannah asked, leaning over Vince to get my attention.

"Oh, uh… sure. Yes, thank you." I smiled, and she hopped up from the table, disappearing into the crowd. I should've just asked for water or something. I hadn't had beer in almost two months, not after a wicked bout of food poisoning had put me off even the smell of it. My stomach was still sensitive because of it. I swear at least once a day now I would get a wave of nausea and feel gross for a half-hour or more. I half-listened to the conversation closest to me, something about a scandal involving a professor and one of their T.A.'s. Hannah reappeared and set a bottle down in front of me, and I smiled at her again, mouthing a thank you. I held onto it like a lifeline, keeping my hand in my lap, picking invisible lint off my thigh.

"Addy, where did you transfer from again?" someone asked abruptly, and I glanced up in surprise, looking for whoever had asked. Everyone was staring at me now, and I felt my cheeks heat.

"Well, I was originally at NSU. I did my master's there," I replied, picking at the label on my beer. A few of them exchanged glances, and I knew what was coming next. Nerds loved gossip, especially when their subjects were boring insects.

"Oh my god, did you know the guy who killed himself?" one girl piped up, and Hannah frowned at her.

"Priya, that's not polite," she replied quickly, but everyone was still staring, so I sighed and nodded. The entire table erupted in titters.

"I heard his family vandalized the lab-"

"No, it wasn't his family, dumbass. It was the guy who killed him!"

"Why would someone kill him and make it look like a suicide, then trash his work?"

"Because he found something! And they wanted to cover it up!"

I let them argue theories as I held my beer, trying not to scream. No one knew the actual story except me and my guys. To the rest of the world, Peter went crazy with his obsession with me, and killed himself when he couldn't find me. Poor Pete…

"Guys, oh my god. This was a serious incident, and clearly it's upsetting for Addy!" Hannah interjected, hushing the entire table. Everyone stared at me again, and I fidgeted uncomfortably.

"It's alright, it's in the past," I replied quietly, and one guy at the far end of the table held out his phone, showing a news article on it.

"Holy shit, it was you, wasn't it? They said he was found in a colleague's house, in her bed." Fuck, of course . They'd omitted my name for privacy, but there was only one woman in that department, so it wasn't hard to figure out who it had been. See, this is why I didn't like to go out. I caught Hannah's eye, and she looked absolutely horrified on my behalf, her normally cheerful face twisted and drained of color.

I set my untouched beer on the table, pushing myself to stand. "I think I'll be heading home now. It's been a long day," I announced, shouldering my bag and giving Hannah a forced smile.

I could hear the conversation pick up as I walked toward the door, including Hannah's shrill voice snapping, "Trevor, you are such an insensitive jerk!" Stepping out of the bar, I took a deep, steadying breath. The sun went down earlier now, and even though it was too warm for snow, it was still cold enough to bite at my skin. I set my bag down to shrug on my coat, preparing for the walk home. At least I was only two blocks from the tattoo studio now, so it shouldn't take too long.

"Addy, wait!" a voice called out, and I turned, adjusting my bag. Hannah stopped short, rubbing her arms and shivering in the cool air. "I'm sorry, they are nasty gossips," she sighed. "I didn't know about any of that, I swear."

"I know, it's fine. People talk, it happens," I replied, shrugging. "I'll come again, once there's a fresh scandal for them to talk about." Hannah perked up a little at that, still looking at me nervously. Her gaze flitted over my shoulder and her eyes widened slightly, suddenly fearful. I turned sharply, catching movement out of the corner of my eye. Someone stepped out from under a nearby tree, stalking toward us slowly.

"Come back inside with me," Hannah murmured, taking a step closer to me. I cocked my head to the side, and the man mirrored my movements, making me smile.

"It's alright, I know him," I told her, holding out my hand. Austin approached slowly, his hood pulled low enough to obscure his eyes. He almost fooled me, partially because I didn't expected him here, and partially because he looked shockingly… different. I'd been so busy in the last few months, it hadn't really registered, but I swear, Austin had fucking grown somehow. He was definitely bulkier than he used to be, his wiry limbs replaced with defined muscles. He grabbed my hand and pulled me into his arms, leaning in to kiss me. Yeah, he had definitely gotten taller somehow. How the fuck was that even possible? Austin slipped his tongue past my parted lips, deepening the kiss, and I heard Hannah's sharp intake of breath, reminding me that I was in public right now.

I pulled away from Austin's mouth, my cheeks red, and I turned to Hannah quickly. She was staring at me, open-mouthed and shocked. "Sorry Hannah, this is Austin," I explained, grabbing his hand before he could stick it up my shirt. He smiled, his lip piercings glinting in the light from the bar.

"Oh, uh, hi!" She recovered quickly, still eyeing him uneasily.

"He does piercings in the studio, the one I live above," I explained, blushing as his arms curled around me, his chin resting on the top of my head. Hannah's smile brightened, and she tucked her hair back behind her ears, revealing nearly a half dozen piercings.

"Oh neat! I've been thinking about getting a Daith piercing, but there aren't many people nearby who will do them," she explained, and I was surprised when Austin let go of me and shifted over to Hannah, fast enough to startle her. He had no issues with personal space, and leaned down to look at her ear, ignoring her little squeak of panic.

"I do those," he rasped, stepping back. "They're tricky so most people avoid them, but I don't mind," he told her softly. Hannah looked at me for reassurance, and I nodded gently.

"I guess I'll have to make an appointment then," Hannah smiled, and Austin nodded, shifting back over to me. His hand slipped around my waist, tugging me into his chest.

"See you Monday, Hannah," I smiled, tugging on Austin's hand before he got too carried away out in the open. She smiled and bounded off back toward the bar, disappearing inside. As soon as she was gone, Austin grew bolder. His hand slid under my jacket, making me shiver as his cold skin brushed against mine.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, turning to face him. He didn't usually come to pick me up from work. In fact, he rarely stepped outside unless he was forced. Even after all the wounds had healed up, he still wouldn't leave the house, sometimes for days on end. "How did you find me?"

"Wyatt told me you were coming here, so I came to pick you up," he smiled, fangs glinting in the light. Those were definitely more defined now as well. What the hell was going on with my snaky guy?

"I'm glad you did," I smiled, and he leaned in for another kiss, his arms wrapping tightly around me, nearly lifting me off the ground. Warmth began to pool in my core, and I groaned as he pressed his hips into mine. "Austin, there are people all around us," I mumbled against his lips, and he hissed in frustration. I broke away from him reluctantly and tugged on his hand, leading him toward the main road. "Let's get home, then you can finish that thought, alright?" I smirked.

"Okay." He grinned, catching up and settling his arm over my shoulders. The walk was nice and short. You could practically see our building from campus. Austin took things very literally, so I barely had the key in the door before he was all over me once again, his hands slipping under my shirt and teasing my nipples through my bra. We tumbled inside and I quickly shut the door behind us as Austin tugged off my coat and dropped my bag on the floor. We were still on the studio level and Cain hated a mess at the front door, but Austin didn't seem to care much about that at the moment. He pulled me against him, grinding his erection into my ass, one hand slipping under the waistband of my slacks and running his fingers over the thin fabric of my panties.

"When will you let me pierce you?" Austin rasped, teasing my clit through the fabric. I arched back into him, pressing my hand against the wall for balance.

"My ears are already pierced," I replied, feeling his breath on my neck.

"I could pierce something else," he murmured, and pinched my nipple through my bra, making me whimper.

Footsteps sounded on the stairs, and I looked up to see Wyatt peering down at us. Even from here, I could see the dark circles under his eyes. Austin had just given me an idea. Maybe there was a way to cheer Wyatt up somewhat. "Hey Shades," I panted, Austin refusing to let up on his current goal. "Want to help Austin pierce my nipples?"