1Author's note: I'm not sure how dorms are set up in the States, but in Canada we have this type of dorm where you have your own room but share a bathroom with one other person instead of the whole floor. This is the type of dorm that I've placed Grace in.
"Grace, you'll be home in two weeks. It'll be fine."
"Jeez, Geek. Here I thought you'd be happy to know that I want you here. That's the last time I ever say that one." She was glad that, over the phone, he could not see her longing expression.
"That's not what I mean."
"Oh? What did you mean?"
"Don't get defensive. I'm just saying that we've gone weeks without seeing each other, and it was fine." Luke paused a moment before saying, "Did something happen?"
"Nothing happened, okay? I just don't want to have to wait. You're only an hour and a half away. It wouldn't be hard for you to drive up and see me."
"You never wanted me to come up before. Why now?"
"You know what? Never mind." Grace bit her lip, a million words bubbling but none were the right ones. "I have to go. There's a meeting tonight that I want to go to."
"Okay. I'll talk to you tomorrow."
"Yeah yeah."
"I love you."
"I love you too, Geek. Adios." Grace switched off the phone and threw it on her bed.
College life was fine, most of the time. But she still wished Luke could be here with her. It was her own fault really. She had told him not to come down. She didn't want to be that couple-on-campus that made everyone else either uncomfortable or jealous.
Grace saw enough of them to know. And she was definitely jealous of them.
Sometimes, Grace had to admit that she didn't like being so emotional. Sure, she could hide it from everyone all she wanted, but at the end of the day, when she was alone, she couldn't deny that she longed for the comfort of her boyfriend's arms.
Shaking herself from the miserable feeling that was growing inside of her, she got up from her bed. Her dorm room was messy, but she didn't feel like cleaning it up. It wasn't like Alice would complain. She had a room of her own; only their bathroom was shared.
Grace shrugged on her jacket and wrapped a scarf around her neck. The cold weather was coming and thoughts of the holidays were already gripping everyone, including Grace.
She walked through the campus, her shoulders hunched against the cold. There was an anarchists' meeting that night, but as she got closer to the house it was at, she decided against it. Talking about what was wrong with the world and how they were going to boycott everything didn't appeal to her at the moment.
Instead, she turned around and walked back towards her dorm. As she passed by the Quad, she noticed a Christmas tree was up. Even though she was Jewish, she could always appreciate the beauty of the tree. The multicoloured lights were on and she sat on a nearby bench to admire it. Grace soon got lost in thought and when she came back to the present, a light snowfall had begun.
As Grace got up from the bench, she found her body to be a bit stiff from the cold. She raised her hand to run it though her hair and found that her blond locks were full of snow. Her hand was drenched though and she rubbed the water on her jeans.
The snow kept falling as she walked and Grace felt happy. The first snowfall always lifted her spirit. She wasn't sure why. Maybe it was knowing that school was going to be done soon, or that the holidays were on their way, or maybe it was just the change of what had become routine. Grace was definitely not the type of girl that liked to be in a routine. Change was exciting, new, and sometimes unpredictable.
Just as she was coming up to the cafeteria, she saw a couple holding hands. The boy stopped walking, and pulled the girl to him before kissing her. They looked so happy; it was like a cliché from a movie. Grace had the urge to punch the scene. Or maybe cry. Since neither sounded like a good option, she walked away.
Her dorm building came into view and Grace hurried her steps. She shivered and thoughts of a warm shower popped into her mind. She fished her keys out of her coat pocket and opened the outside door. Grace dragged herself up the stairs, her shower just calling to her. She hoped dearly that Alice wasn't using their bathroom.
Grace unlocked the door to her room and went inside, leaning against the wall once she closed the door. She had to admit she loved being on her own because when she was having a bad day; she didn't have to come home to her parents' house where it would just keep getting worse. The only sound she could hear was the thump of someone playing music on her floor.
A dribble of cold water ran down her neck and Grace jumped; the snow in her hair was melting.
Shedding her clothes, Grace grabbed her towel and went into the bathroom. As she turned the knobs, water sprayed out from the shower head and Grace stepped beneath the stream. Already her body began warming up and she simply stayed under the water for a while before washing up.
Suddenly she heard the other door open, the one leading to Alice's room, open.
"Occupied!" Grace yelled out. Couldn't Alice hear the water running?
"Oops, sorry Grace!" She heard the door close and Grace relaxed again. One of the reasons she was glad to share the bathroom with only one person was that, if someone walked in, she at least knew who it was. But really, they should have locks on these doors, she thought.
Turning off the water, she opened the curtain and got out. Her towel was hanging on a hook on the door and Grace wrapped it around her body. She stepped out of the bathroom into the narrow part of her room where her sink and closet were before turning the corner where her bed, dressers and desk were. She was just about to take off her towel when she saw something in her room that made her jump.
"LUKE!?" Grace's eyes went wide, and her arms automatically moved to tighten her towel. She didn't need it falling off at this moment in time.
"Oh, uh… Hey Grace." Luke's cheeks burnt red. "Surprise?"
"You have about two minutes to explain yourself before I kick your butt."
"You might want to put on some clothes before you do that. But I'm here to see you."
It was Grace's turn to blush. "What? Can't stand having me this naked so close to you?" she said, teasing.
"If you want me to continue speaking coherently, it might help."
Grace noticed that his eyes were looking everywhere but at her. She suddenly understood. "Right. Well then, as fun as that might be, I can see your dilemma." She brushed past him, noting that he inhaled sharply, and rummaged around in her pyjama drawer. She also quickly shoved her hand into her underwear drawer and dashed back towards the bathroom. At least around the corner, he wouldn't be able to see her.
She changed quickly and proceeded to use her towel to dry her hair.
Grace returned to Luke, who was now sitting on the chair at her desk. He looked up and said "Are those my boxer shorts?" before she could even begin to speak.
"Yeah, I stole them from you last time I was over." She paused a moment before saying, "So, you're here to surprise me."
"Yeah."
"Even though I told you not to."
"Didn't seem that way on the phone tonight."
Grace was at a loss. It scared her a little at how well Luke could tell what she really meant behind her snide remarks. How unfair. Before Grace could even come up with something to say, Luke got up and took Grace in his arms.
"I've missed you. A lot. And when I could hear it in your voice tonight about how much you really missed me, well, I decided to come down and see you. Like you said, it's only an hour and a half's drive."
"For a boy geek, you've sure gotten to understand girl talk."
"Well, it's a science really. Behaviour analysis. It has to do with…"
"Luke, I don't want to hear it." Grace leaned up and kissed him. "We spend enough time talking on the phone because we can't be together physically. Now that we're here together, we don't need to talk all that much, now do we?"
"No, I guess not. I can see the logic in your…" Again, Grace cut him off with a kiss. But this time, she didn't let up so quickly.
They kissed for a while, making their way to her bed. Finally, Grace pulled away. "By the way, how did you get in my room?"
Luke smiled sheepishly. "Well, first, I found someone to open the door for me outside, then once inside, I found your room. I knocked, but there was no answer. So I went knocking on your neighbour's door. At first, she didn't catch on to who I was. But when I said I was your boyfriend, she suddenly smiled and said she thought I looked familiar. She told me she had seen a picture of us in your room. Then she let me go through the bathroom."
"You mean you just walked through while I was in the shower?"
The grin got bigger. "Yeah, well, I wanted to surprise you and well, it seemed like a good idea. Plus your neighbour just made it seem like she opened the door by accident."
Grace wanted to be angry, but found that she couldn't be. Sure, she would have a talking with Alice at some later time. But for now, Grace felt the sides of her lips tugged and she soon found herself smiling as well. "Sneaky. But don't let me catch you sneaking through my bathroom ever again."
The End.