Single post in Sleight of Heart -- [COMPLETED]

But it is the truth. And if she doesn’t want to hear that answer… “Scenes like this inspire me to keep drawing.” Her blue eyes return to me, and when they do, it’s almost as if I can feel the energy behind them. “You’re an art major?” I nod, realizing I hadn’t told the group my major, but there’s no reason to give her the full details. I’m not here to make friends, especially with some blue-eyed blonde who’s barking up the stalker tree with a smile that is the definition of “innocence.” It takes a little effort, but I divert my attention long enough to say, “I’m gonna go now.” “Go where?” she asks without missing a beat. I couldn’t even get two steps away from her. “Will you show me your room next?” Hell no. I don’t know where this confidence comes from—or the interest in me, for that matter—but the last thing I want is her knowing where I’ll be bedding down. “If you must know, I want to see if I can find the buildings my classes are in while the campus is still slow.” As soon as the words leave my lips, I wonder if lying would be worth the effort to keep certain annoyances away throughout the semester. Marilyn stares back with this sudden look of clarity brushed across her face. “That would be a smart thing to do. Mind if I tag along? I promise I’ll be perfect company.” Doubt it, but I don’t really want to leg it alone. “Do you have a campus map?” Her brow crinkles, and her nose scrunches up but only for a moment. That moment is long enough for me to glimpse something that didn’t feel annoying. If it were possible, her eyes brightened. “I think I left it on my bed. I’ll grab it and meet you back in the lobby.” She doesn’t even wait for my response before turning on her heels and running back to the roof entrance. No one could claim Ms. Marilyn lacked energy. Sense? Maybe. But as she clamors downstairs, I can’t help but wonder how she managed to sneak up on me like that. She’s clearly not stealthy, nor is she trying to be. But beyond that, I was empowered at a young age with a heightened awareness of the world around me. The slightest disturbance in the air should have alerted me to her approach, especially considering how quickly she managed to catch up with me. Why in the world did that not happen? I decide not to bury that mystery too deep. Since I was about to traverse the new campus with her, perhaps I’ll get a chance to uncover the truth about her. Wasting no time, I head downstairs and to my room. Fortunately, Darryl hadn’t ensnared some poor female and trapped her in his—our—lair yet. I hope he will have the forethought to alert me before I accidentally barge into one of his conquests already in progress. The sudden imagery sends a shudder down my spine before my focus returns to searching for my own map amongst a clutter of freshman crap sprawled across my bed. It takes about half a minute to find the thing folded up in a book of guidelines I shall never read because of the book’s sheer thickness. I hope they don’t really expect a student to actually waste time on that. My schedule is much easier to pick up. I had already separated it from the rest of the junk and set it on the desk designated to “my side” of the room so it wouldn’t get lost easily.