Chapter 14

chapter fourteen

Zara

"Nothing's Gonna Hurt You Baby"— Cigarettes After Sex

I t takes less than twenty-four hours after moving into Harper's dorm for my brother to show up at her door. I guess he really didn't believe me when I said that I would pack all of my stuff and leave. Because I did, and even though I'm sleeping on Harper's lumpy, slightly smelly old couch for the foreseeable future, it's still better than dealing with Oliver on the daily.

I don't regret my decision in the least, even though he's standing here looking like a kicked puppy.

Crossing my arms over my chest, I pop a brow. "What are you doing here?"

"I… came to apologize. To you. Not to him," he says with a sheepish expression.

My eyes roll as I reach for the door and curve my palm around the handle. "You're off to a great start, Oliver. Truly."

"Fuck. I'm sorry, Zara. Okay? I'm sorry for not respecting your boundaries and for suffocating you."

I say nothing, waiting for him to continue down the long list of things he should apologize for. This is the first major fight we've ever gotten in, but a simple sorry isn't going to change anything. The only thing that's going to fix this is for him to actually listen to what I've been trying to say and for him to respect my boundaries and my life.

I've said it until I'm blue in the face, and I'm not wasting my breath on another conversation when he doesn't seem really interested in changing his behavior.

Oliver drags a hand down his face exasperatedly, heaving a sigh. He honestly looks… ragged. "I'm really sorry. It's just you're my baby sister, Zar. I know you're only one year younger than me, but I feel like I need to look out for you and make sure you don't find yourself in any bullshit. I know I'm overprotective, I really do, but it's just because I worry about you."

I only start to feel slightly bad when I see the sincerity on his face, but it's still not enough to overshadow the shitshow from the last few months.

I'm just empathetic, and I hate this ridiculous rift between us. I'm angry and frustrated, but more than anything, I'm hurt that he so blatantly disregarded my feelings and boundaries.

"Look, I appreciate that, Oliver, I do, but this has to stop, okay? Whatever issue you have with Davis, please let it go. It's not just hurting you, but it's hurting him too. And all of this? It's hurting me . I really don't want to permanently move to the dorms with Harp, but I will, Oliver. I really will if that's what it takes to make you back off. Please just trust me to make my own decisions. You act like I'm an out-of-control idiot who can't be trusted. Just because I'm younger doesn't mean I'm less capable of making good choices."

He doesn't immediately respond, just stares out past me to something behind me before he finally drags his gaze back to mine. "Okay. I understand, and I promise, I'll stop. I really mean it, Zara. I hear you. But can you just stop hiding shit from me? I felt blindsided by it last night."

"Then stop making me have to hide things."

"Okay. I won't. But Zar, just because you're into him, it doesn't mean that I'm going to apologize and become best friends with the guy."

I shrug. "Fine. I didn't ask you to be. I'm just asking that you let me live my life and that you respect any and all boundaries that I lay down. You're not responsible for my actions, Oliver, and you can't control me by forcing me into something that I don't want. Davis and I are officially a couple now, and if you still want to be a part of my life, then you'll be civil and stop putting me in the middle of something that has nothing to do with me."

Oliver doesn't look happy about the fact that Davis and I are officially dating, but guess what?

It's not his decision, and he gets no opinion on what I do with my love life.

Ever. Again.

"Just give me a little time to come around to it, Zar. I promise I'll back off and respect your boundaries and choices." He pauses, unshed tears shining in his green eyes. "You're my baby sister, and you're my best friend, and I know I've been a real asshole the last few months, but I just feel like you're slipping away from me and growing up and leaving me behind."

My shoulders fall when I sigh, blowing out a pent-up breath and shaking my head. Oliver's been an asshole, and my trust in him isn't what it once was, but he's still my brother.

He's still my best friend. Even if I want to throttle him. He's still the guy who spent most of his middle school years with his nails painted because he let me practice on him. He's the guy who learned how to braid my hair so he could do it himself because I would cry when we brushed out the tangles.

"I love you, Ollie," I say as I throw my arms around his neck and hold him tightly to me. "And I'm not going anywhere. Life is just… changing. I'm growing and evolving, but one thing that never will change is that you'll always be my big brother. I just need you to respect me… That's it, okay?"

His arms slide around my waist at some point, hugging me back, and we stay like that for a few beats, neither of us wanting to end the moment. I feel lighter after the last few months of tension and frustration being the only conversations we've shared.

"So we're good?" he asks when he pulls back and quickly swipes at a tear that's fallen onto his cheek. He'd never actually admit that he just cried over our relationship, but he soooo did.

And now, I'm never going to let him live it down.

What are little sisters for if it isn't driving their older brother nuts?

"Not to kick you out, and I'm so glad that you came here and we talked everything over, but Davis is supposed to be here any minute, and I'd like to avoid any awkwardness."

Oliver nods begrudgingly. "I understand. If you need me, no matter what, I'll be here, Zar. Night or day. I'll come get you from a bar, from a frat party. Don't ever forget that. Will you please think about moving back home? "

"Okay, I will, I promise. Love you, Ollie," I whisper as I put my head on his chest once again, wrapping my arms around his surly shoulders.

"Love you too, Zar."

A few minutes later, he's gone, leaving me staring out at the empty hallway, partially in shock and feeling a sliver of r elief. As prideful as Oliver is, I didn't expect him to be the one to apologize, so I'm really surprised that he did.

I'm glad that we attempted to patch things up between us, but the true test will be if Oliver actually changes these things, not just says them.

Words are nothing without actions.

After I close the door, I walk back into Harper's dorm, which is more like a closet with a bed. There are clothes littering nearly every surface, and yet when I scoured through them in search of something to wear for my first official date with Davis tonight, I found absolutely nothing.

Everything's too pink and girly, definitely not my style, but I did find a vintage-looking band T-shirt shoved in the very back of her dresser, so I went with it.

And actually… it looks so fucking fire.

It's long enough to fall to my thighs, so I paired it with some fishnets and the only pair of shoes I grabbed before coming to stay here, my old checkered Vans that have music notes I doodled on the soles with a permanent marker.

I even curled my hair and put on Davis's favorite shade of lipstick. The combination of all of that has me feeling confident and not at all nervous.

Sure, it's our first " official " date, but we've been secretly seeing each other for several weeks now, and let's be honest, we've done more stuff together than some couples do in a lifetime, so I'm comfortable around him.

A few minutes later, there's a light knock at the door, and when I open it and see him standing on the other side, a flurry of butterflies erupts in my stomach.

It'll never get old. That feeling. It always feels like the first night we met.

"Hi," he murmurs as his eyes drag down my body. "Damn, baby, you look hot as fuck. Big night?"

Smirking, I do a little spin, showing off the outfit with a shrug. "Oh, you know, just going on a date with this guy."

He smirks, pulling his hand from his jeans pockets and reaching for me. His big palm splays along my waist and hauls me forward into his hard, muscled front.

That will also never get old.

My boyfriend is actually the hottest man alive. No question.

"Might wanna tell him I can fight, then, Trouble." His breath fans against my lips.

I rise on my toes and murmur against his mouth, "Mmmm. We'll see how the night goes first."

"Brat."

He captures my lips as his arm tightens around my waist, holding me close to him. I swear I can feel his heart racing alongside mine. When his hand slides to my ass and the kiss starts to turn heated, he stops, pulling back abruptly.

"Fuck, we need to go before we never leave this dorm. Something tells me that Harper wouldn't want me fucking you on every surface of her room."

"Yeah, probably not. There's always later though." I wink. I turn back inside, grabbing my small purse from the top of the desk, and turn back toward him. "Well, let's go, Loverboy. I've got a date to get to."

True to his word, Davis takes me to Magnolia's for our first official date. It's the perfect choice, and I've convinced myself that he might be perfect too.

Like the last time he brought me here, we're sitting on the hood of his truck in the parking lot, listening to an old playlist. Only this time… he's mine.

And I'm his.

"Oh my god, this is my favorite song. Dance with me?" I ask, jumping up from the hood and holding my hand out toward him. "Nothing's Going to Hurt You Baby" plays through the speakers as he slides his hand in mine.

He pulls me against him and laces our fingers together before lifting my hand to his mouth and pressing a kiss to the back of it.

It's so sweet I nearly melt at his feet in a puddle.

We sway to the slow, sensual beat, our eyes locked. One of my favorite songs has new meaning, and I love it.

"Feels kind of full circle, doesn't it?"

I nod. "It does. Who knew that bidding on you in an auction would lead to… this."

"That was a shit ton of money," he teases.

"Yeah." I shrug. "I think it was worth it though. It got us here, didn't it?"

Lowering his lips to mine, he says, "Yeah, Trouble. It did. And I'm so fucking glad you're mine."