One such ridiculous event that required my attendance was the “Assemblage of Comradery,” an absolutely fake and meaningless dinner gathering between the two schools to pretend that the two elite institutions didn’t despise each other and to pose for a picture for the local press that would convince the public all was well between the warring colleges.
I started trying to get out of it as soon as I heard it was announced, but there was no budging with the Dean on this one. He was a complete traditional stickler and relished in any chance he could get to make the school look good in front of Lineage. Therefore, everyone was required to attend, except for Julian. Since he had already graduated, he couldn’t come at all.
“At least there’ll be plenty of cocktails,” he said as he tried to cheer me up about having to go. “They even had a wine fountain brought in last year.”
“I’m going to need a wine fountain in order to stomach having to look at Michael on our campus grounds,” I said.
“Adam will be there too, I’m sure,” he said.
Was that a touch of jealousy I heard in Julian’s voice?
There was no particular dress requirement for the event, so I just put on a black skirt that had pockets where I could keep both my phone and Michael’s, and a gray blouse with an open back. I tied my hair up in a sloppy ponytail out of pure spite. I couldn't believe I had to even go to the stupid event. For dramatic effect, I ran one thin layer of mascara over my lashes.
“There, done,” I announced to Julian, who was sitting on my bed watching me as if he were my own private audience.
“You know you look beautiful without any makeup on anyways,” he said.
“You have to say that,” I called from the bathroom. “You’re my best friend.”
“I don’t have to say it,” Julian said quietly. “I mean it.”
When I got ready to leave my room, Julian gave me a hug and reminded me that he’d be waiting for me here once the event was over so we could hang out and I could tell him about how tedious and awful the dinner had been.
“Be careful,” he said as he kissed the top of my forehead. “And don’t do—”
“Yes, yes, I know…don't do anything stupid.”
I rushed out the door, ready to get this over with and get back to my room so that Julian and I could continue guessing possible passcodes as we waited for the opportunity to have Michael’s phone hacked.
When I got down to the dining hall, there were already a ton of people there. It was uncomfortably strange to see Lineage students and faculty mix with our own. There was a long table set at the head of the room where all the administrators and essential board members from both schools were seated. I saw Michael’s mother there too, and that “dark” part of me that Julian had called-out the other day reared its head. I started to wish that Michael’s mom had been the one to die instead of my own.
When I turned my head to look around the room, I saw Adam walking toward me.
“Hey,” he said as he lifted my hand and kissed the top of my fingers.
“Aren’t we supposed to be enemies?” I asked. I very much still considered him my enemy, not only because he was at Lineage, but also because he was withholding information about my mother’s death. However, I also couldn’t deny the tingle that shivered up my spine when his lips connected with my skin.
“Not tonight,” he answered. “Tonight is the one night of the year that we can act like friends, and everyone will just think we were pretending for the sake of this publicity stunt.”
“What if I actually am only pretending,” I said.
He grinned. “Well then, I guess it doesn’t matter either way, then does it?”
We both sat down at one of the tables together, and a server came over to fill our wine glasses. I still didn’t see this glorious wine fountain Julian spoke of, and in that moment I found myself wishing to be bathing in one.
“How are you coming along with the phone?” he asked.
I had just put the glass to my lips and started to take a sip, nearly spitting it out at the mention.
“You know that I took the phone?” I asked.
“Of course, I do. It would have been a little too obvious for me to just hand it over to you, and I’m not sure how much I trust your friend yet.”
“Who, Julian?”
Adam nodded.
I snickered. “Well, rest assured that feeling is mutual. He doesn’t trust you at all, either.”
“Were you able to get into it?” he asked.
I shook my head and smiled at someone across the table. “No, I have not yet. You don’t happen to know the passcode by any chance, do you?”
“Nah, Michael and I are not that close.”
Again, I wondered about their relationship with each other.
Adam lifted his wine glass toward mine and tilted it so that we could clink the glasses together. “Cheers.”
I mocked his movements. “What are we toasting to?”
“I don’t know, maybe to starting to trust each other a little bit.”
I didn’t really want to toast to that. Luckily, he didn’t get the chance to clink his glass against mine anyway. Michael sat down next to me and threw an arm over my shoulder, prompting me to drop my glass and for Adam to stand up from the table.
“Oh, sit down,” Michael taunted. “It’s not like I’m stealing your woman. She hates you almost as much as she hates me.”
“Doubtful,” I said as I tried to mop up the spilled wine on the table with my napkin.
