Chapter 7

7

KOVI

Tanner agreed, via text, to meet at the library tonight. That’s a good thing, right? He seemed distressed earlier, and I wanted to ease his troubles. For a moment, I thought he was checking me out, but that must have been my imagination. Sure, we flirted at the party, but now that he knows I’m the dryad who hurt him, he can’t possibly be into me. We’re simply friends starting over with a clean slate.

Did that stop me from changing outfits after class, triple checking my ass in the mirror, and dousing myself in cologne? No―I’m still a horny college student, after all.

The library, like the rest of campus, consists of a gothic exterior, but houses modern fixtures inside. I don’t even know how ghosts and zombies maintain the Wi-Fi, but I’ve never had internet issues. I head straight for the second floor because Mummy Mocha is already closed. Each hall is well-lit with chandeliers equipped with fluorescent lights. Past the aisles of bookshelves and wooden tables are several study rooms. I lay claim to one with a whiteboard and markers, all pristinely clean since barely anyone is studying this first Friday of the semester.

In fact, no one is studying right now. Tanner and I will be alone in the tiny room. I don’t know if I want to cheer or cry.

I text Tanner letting him know my location. After ten minutes of quietly reading about oil spills, I hear footsteps down the corridor.

He walks in, huffing like he ran. “Sorry. Got lost, this place is like a maze.”

I snicker. “No worries. Please, have a seat.”

He settles in and we both take out our respective notebooks. Now that he’s here, my nerves creep up. I’m sure I’m mature enough to not spontaneously shift―at least I think I am. I gulp and tap my pen on the table.

“So…” he says, seeming as nervous as me.

“Um, before we start, I just want to say…” Spit it out, Kovi. “I’m sorry. For hurting you as a kid. I thought I’d clear the air, so it was important for me to address the elephant in the room.”

Tanner studies me and I bite my lip. “I didn’t realize you were an elephant shifter.”

It takes a long five seconds before the joke registers in my brain. Tanner and I crack up, and my shoulders relax. “Okay, okay,” I raise my hands. “That was a good joke.”

“Dude, it’s fine. It was a million years ago.” He looks down at his books. “I’m so desperate for help that I’d take assistance from the devil himself.” Tanner eyes me curiously. “Shit, is the devil a student here?”

“No, he’s a guidance counselor.”

Tanner’s eyes bug out, and I can’t hold back my laugh for more than a second.

“Ha! You got me!” After a few moments, our laughter dies down. “But seriously, we can just move past it.”

I nod. “Glad.”

“I barely remember you as a kid, anyway.” He leafs through the pages of his textbook, and my breath hitches. “Consider it forgotten. We’re classmates, and I need all the friends I can get. So, if you don’t mind hanging out with me, I’d love your help in passing this class.”

The air of finality in his words causes an ache in my bones. I wanted his forgiveness, but hearing him friend-zone me is like disappointment shears pruning my branches. He barely remembers our kiss?

I shake my head. “Let’s get to it, Tanner.” I smile at him before looking down at my work. I’m too busy to date someone, least of all a human I hurt once, so this is a good thing. Now I just need my heart to catch up.

We spend the next hour quietly reviewing environmental sci concepts from the syllabus. He asks me simple questions about different plant anatomies and various ecosystems, and I’m more than happy to answer. The joy in his green eyes sparks admiration in my soul. Tanner seems to genuinely care about the subject matter. A knowledgeable, hard-working man is a commendable one. It doesn’t hurt that he’s easy on the eyes.

At one point, I look up from my notes to catch him biting his lip as he highlights a page. His hand is tantalizingly close to mine on the table. I wonder what the freckles on his wrist feel like? My pulse pounds as arousal courses through me. I recall Blake’s comment about me sporting wood, and I frown. So I like spending time with him, so what? I can control my erections, and my literal wood form―I have to.

It’s late by the time we finish studying. Tanner seems so pumped to understand the syllabus and the first few chapters, and he keeps thanking me. His gratitude humbles me and renders my cheeks warm. We’re riding the high of a good study session, so I ask him if he wants late night eats at the dining hall. He agrees since he forgot about dinner, too. I almost squeal at the prospect of a dinner date with him―I mean, dinner hangout . Platonically.

After getting food, we snag a corner table far from anyone else. I dip my french frights into ketchup and quirk an eyebrow at him as he stares at his plate. “What’s in a wicked sandwich?” he asks.

He picks up the item in question and opens the buns.

“Bread, lettuce, and the blood of witches,” I reply. Tanner’s eyes bug out, and I snigger. “You keep falling for that. You’re too easy, Tanner.”

“Not cool,” he says, chortling through a pout.

“It is pretty funny, you gotta admit.”

“You’re busting my balls because I’m human.”

“That’s the Creelin way.”

We both laugh and continue to eat. I explain to him that most of our food is identical to human food. He chuckles at my explanations, and I find I enjoy the sound of his happiness. He’s so much like the kid in my memories, but all grown up and sexy now. Our friendship appears to be evergreen, never dying, only changing.

When we finish eating, he follows me as I throw away my tray near the exit.

“So, how come I never saw you around the park as a kid?” he asks.

Oh. Time to bring back the elephant in the room. “Well, uh…as you know, I was homeschooled.”

“I remember. My dad thought you were a figment of my imagination. I don’t know if you being a monster made you more or less believable.”

We both laugh. “Right…”

He steps outside and holds the door for me. I’m not sure where he’s going but I want to follow him. “I was gone for a while. Getting hurt would do that.”

I cringe. “Again, I am so―”

He waves his hand. “No, we’ve moved past that, Kovi, I just…” We stroll and I wait for him to finish his thought. “Months later, I went back to Independence Park. You were never there.”

I freeze in my tracks. In all my years of wondering what Tan’s life would be, I never thought he’d want to see me again. I figured he would despise and fear monsters. But instead, he… “You looked for me?”

He shrugs with his hand in his pockets. Even in the darkness, I can tell he’s blushing. “I um…I guess? You were my friend, or whatever…” He mumbles and scratches his eyebrow. My heart does somersaults. It takes everything in me not to reach out and touch his face. “I thought a witch cursed you or something.”

My smile falls. “Oh.” So he thought I was a victim, too.

He quickly adds, “What I mean is…” He rubs his neck and looks away. “I didn’t understand what happened for a long time. And I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

I nod and try to take it all in. The past twelve years have been leading up to this conversation, so it’s a momentous occasion. “Well…”

“And clearly you’re fine.” Tanner waves his hand at me. “Better than fine. You grew up to be this big, smart, manly dryad shifter.” He grins and my cheeks burn.

“You grew up to be great, too,” I murmur. We’re silent for a moment, letting our words float between us. It’s just me, Tanner, and the night sky. All these years later, Tanner and I still share our own little world.

“Well, the jury’s still out on whether or not I can pass my classes.” We both snicker and he hoists up his backpack. “But thanks for the study sesh, Kovi. This is my dorm.” He points his thumb behind him toward Poe Hall.

“No problem,” I reply. “Um, I could do this again sometime.”

He nods. “I think I’d like that. Goodnight, Kovi.” I swear I can hear him grinning before he takes off in the night.

I smile as I make my way back to Karloff Hall. Tanner wants to be my friend. Just like all those years ago, an inexplicable bond is fortifying between us. But I can’t jump the gun on this. Whatever we become, I need to be patient; with enough time, the tallest trees can grow from even the smallest of saplings.