The bacon sizzles on my plate like a rattle snake trying to break out of a condom. I'm still not used to being awake this early, but here I am, slouched at our kitchen table while my nine-year-old little brother, Chris, meticulously separates his scrambled eggs from his toast like they've had some kind of breakfast food falling out.
"Thank you so much, Evelyn," I say, stifling a yawn, "but you really don't have to cook for me. You're Chris's nanny, not mine."
Evelyn flips her neat blonde ponytail over her shoulder as she wipes her hands on a dish towel. The morning light from the window catches her profile in a way that makes her look older than her twenty-two years.
"But we're friends, aren't we?" She smiles, that same smile I've seen since I was fourteen and she first started watching Chris. "Plus, it's your second week at Salem State. I wanted to make sure you were well-fed."
"He eats like a bird at school," Chris pipes up, his mouth half-full of toast. "I bet he just has chips for lunch."
"Bro, don't expose me like that," I groan, ruffling his hair. He ducks away, but not before I notice the grin spreading across his face.
Evelyn sets a glass of orange juice next to my plate with a little more force than necessary. "Seth Miller, please tell me you're eating proper meals."
"Define 'proper,'" I hedge, shoveling another forkful of eggs into my mouth to avoid further questioning.
Evelyn sighs that specific sigh she reserves just for me. "I can pack you lunches too, you know. It wouldn't be any trouble."
"You already do enough," I say, feeling that familiar twinge of discomfort. Evelyn's always doing this, extending herself beyond what we pay her for. I've known her my whole life, but I hate the thought of taking advantage of her time like this.
Chris looks up from his perfectly segregated breakfast with that mischievous gleam in his eyes. "Seth just wants to get to school early so he can see those girls he likes."
I nearly choke on my orange juice.
'You little shit.'
Evelyn's eyebrows shoot up. "Lilly and Rose go to Salem State?" Her voice has that carefully neutral tone she uses when she's trying not to sound interested.
"Yup," Chris nods enthusiastically, suddenly the authority on my love life. "I heard him talking about it last night with his friends on Discord. He was all 'Oh my god, guys, I saw Rose in the library today and nearly died.'" His impression of me is painfully high-pitched.
I feel heat creeping up my neck. "Dude, were you eavesdropping on me?"
Chris shrugs, unbothered by this accusation of privacy invasion. "Your door was open."
"It was not," I mutter, but there's no point arguing with him.
"Look, Evelyn," I say with a sigh, setting down my fork. "It's not my fault I fell in love with the twins in high school, alright? They just happened to pick the same college as me."
Evelyn's lips press into a thin line. "Aren't you coming off like a stalker, though? Following them to college?"
"Fuck no…" I start, then catch Chris giving me his best disapproving nine-year-old glare. "I mean, heck no. I don't do anything creepy to them. I just occasionally... notice them if they happen to cross my line of vision, that's all."
"Uh-huh." Evelyn turns back to the sink, her shoulders tense. "And I'm sure it's pure coincidence you applied to the same school."
"It's a fine school!" I protest. "And it's close to home, so I can still live with this little gremlin." I reach over to poke Chris in the ribs, making him giggle and squirm away.
"Whatever you say," Evelyn murmurs, scrubbing a pan with more vigor than necessary.
I glance at the clock on the microwave and nearly choke on my last bite of bacon. "Shoot, I've gotta get going though." I push back from the table and stand up, grabbing my backpack from the floor.
As I'm shoving my phone in my pocket, I hesitate. "Hey, do you need any help with Chris today? I don't have any evening classes."
Evelyn gives me a look that's half exasperation, half something softer I can't quite read. It's the same look she's been giving me since we were kids.
Sometimes I forget how we ended up like this, Evelyn practically living at our house, raising my brother while I've been busy just trying to be a normal teenager. Mom's never around, always working those 80-hour weeks at the firm since she's the only parent we have left. Dad's car accident happened just weeks after Chris was born, and suddenly our whole world shifted.
"Seth, no," Evelyn says firmly, bringing me back to the present. "It's literally my job to watch Chris. Your mother pays me well to do it." She tucks a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. "You don't have to worry about him."
"Good," I joke, slinging my backpack over one shoulder, "because I hate worrying about my little brother."
Chris looks up from his meticulously organized breakfast plate with a smirk. "Is that why you tuck me in at night and check under my bed for monsters?"
"Relax, dude. That was one time, and you were having nightmares."
Before I can make my escape, Chris jumps up from his chair and barrels into me, wrapping his arms around my waist in a tight hug.
"Bye, Seth," he says, his voice muffled against my hoodie.
I ruffle his hair and give him a quick squeeze back. "Later, little dude."
Evelyn watches us with that soft expression she gets sometimes, the one that makes me feel weird in my stomach. "Drive safe," she calls as I head for the door.
"Always do!" I lie cheerfully, waving goodbye to both of them before heading out to my beat-up Honda Civic.
The drive to Salem State has me practically vibrating with anticipation. My first class today is Chemistry Lab, which wouldn't normally get me this amped, except for one crucial detail, both Lilly and Rose are in it. Yeah, I might have scrolled through their Instagram stories a few too many times to figure out their schedules. And maybe I did switch my lab section last minute when I spotted Rose posting about her Monday morning lab partner woes.
But that's not stalking. That's... strategic course planning.
I pull into the commuter lot, humming along to whatever pop song is playing on the radio. The twins have been living rent-free in my head since sophomore year of high school where it was love at first sight. They're as different as night and day, those two, but somehow equally intimidating and captivating.
My phone buzzes with a text from my buddy Marco: "Did you finish the pre-lab?"
Shit. The pre-lab.
I'm still staring at my phone, mentally calculating if I have time to bullshit my way through the assignment before class, when I step off the curb into the parking lot access road.
I don't even see the car coming. Just hear the screech of brakes and feel something solid slam into my side.
It's not like in the movies where everything goes slow motion. One second I'm walking, the next I'm airborne, and then my head cracks against the pavement with a sickening thud.
The world spins in nauseating circles. A guy's face appears above me, his features blurring in and out of focus. He's saying something, but his voice sounds like it's coming through water.
"Oh shit, dude! Are you okay? I barely tapped you, I was only going like ten miles an hour! Don't move, I'm calling an ambulance!"
I try to tell him I'm fine, but my mouth isn't working right. My vision narrows to a pinpoint, and then everything goes black.
*****
I blink my eyes open, consciousness slamming back into me like a freight train. My head's throbbing, but the parking lot's stopped spinning at least.
"...Hello? Yes, I need an ambulance at Salem State, near the north parking lot. A student was just hit by…"
Wait, that's not a guy's voice.
I push myself up on my elbows, squinting through the bright morning sunlight. The person standing over me is definitely not a dude. She's tall with short-cropped hair and wearing a denim jacket, but her features are unmistakably feminine, sharp jawline, full lips, delicate eyebrows currently knitted together in concern.
"Don't call 911," I croak, my voice sounding like I gargled with gravel. "I'm fine."
She lowers her phone slightly, eyes wide with worry. "Are you sure? You hit your head pretty hard."
I reach up and gingerly touch the back of my skull, expecting to find blood or at least a massive goose egg, but there's nothing—just my regular messy hair.
"Yeah, I'm totally fine. Don't worry about it." I bring myself to my feet, wobbling slightly. The world tilts for a second before settling back into place.
She hovers near me, one hand outstretched like she's ready to catch me if I fall. "I'm so sorry. I was running late for class and wasn't paying enough attention. Are you positive you don't need medical attention?"
"Nah, I'm good. Just a little... disoriented." I dust off my jeans.
"At least let me give you my number. You know, in case you develop symptoms later." She's already pulling out her phone again.
"Really, it's cool. I've got a hard head." I tap my skull and immediately regret it when pain flares behind my eyes. "Besides, I'm late for chem lab."
The girl bites her lip and nods. "Alright, if you're sure. Be careful, though."
I give her a quick thumbs-up and hustle toward Meier Hall, trying to ignore the throbbing in my skull. By the time I reach the chemistry lab, I'm just barely on time and slightly out of breath. I push open the door, expecting the usual mix of sleepy-eyed students, but freeze in the doorway.
'Wait, what?'
The lab is packed with women. Not just a few more than usual, it's literally all women. I scan the room twice, but there's not another guy in sight. Did I walk into the wrong class?
'Where's Gabe?'
I double-check the room number on my phone. Nope, this is definitely my chem lab. Weird. I guess the other guys must have transferred out after the first week.
I slide into an empty seat near the back, feeling weirdly self-conscious as I unpack my notebook. A few curious glances come my way, but most of the students are busy setting up their lab stations. I scan the room for Rose and Lilly, but their usual spots are empty.
Just as Professor Harmon starts calling names, the door bursts open and two auburn-haired girls rush in. My heart does that stupid little flip it always does when I see them.
'God, I'm such a simp.'
"Sorry we're late," Rose says, not sounding sorry at all.
But instead of heading to their usual seats, they both make a beeline straight for me.
"Seth!" Lilly says, her normally composed face creased with worry. "Are you okay? We just saw what happened outside in the parking lot."
Rose leans in close, way closer than she's ever been before, and peers at my face. "That hit looked nasty. Did you black out?"
I'm so stunned I can barely form words. In four years of high school, I think I exchanged maybe two full sentences with either of them. Now they're both hovering over me, looking genuinely concerned, and I'm pretty sure Rose just touched my shoulder.
"Ladies," Professor Harmon's exasperated voice cuts through my daze. She sighs, adjusting her glasses with a tired expression. "Please stop flirting with the only male student in this class. You're going to make him uncomfortable."
Rose's hand presses harder on my shoulder as she leans closer, bringing her chest directly into my line of sight. I swallow hard, suddenly very aware of how close she is and how huge her tits are.
"We're not flirting," Rose snaps back, her voice sharp enough to cut glass. "He just got hit by a car in the parking lot. We're making sure he's okay."
I'm barely processing their exchange because I'm too busy trying to will away the most embarrassing physical reaction of my life. I shift uncomfortably in my seat, trying to adjust without being obvious, but it's too late.
Lilly's sharp eyes flick downward, and her eyebrows shoot up.
"Seth," Lilly says, her voice dropping to a curious whisper that somehow carries more weight than a shout, "did you just get aroused because Rose touched you?"
My mouth opens and closes like a fish gasping for water. The way she's asking, with genuine scientific curiosity in her eyes, makes it even worse, like my body's reaction is some rare biological phenomenon she's never witnessed before.
"I… That's not…" I stammer, but there's nowhere to hide. My face is burning so hot I think I genuinely might self-immolate on accident.
Rose's eyes drift down to my lap, and her expression shifts from concern to something very weird. There's a hungry look there, predatory almost, as her lips curl into a smile that's equal parts delighted and dangerous.
"Oh my god, he did," she whispers, not taking her eyes off me.
'Lord, please let me burst into flames.'
"For God's sake, sit down!" Professor Harmon snaps, saving me from having to form a coherent response. "We have a lab to complete."