Chapter 7 - Orientation day

Jewel POV 

I woke up excited, yesterday's thing with Mike was buried down in my head. I decided that today nothing and nobody will stop me from having fun. I am resilient and unstoppable. 

I wanted to look good, effortless but also available and sexy. So I decided to jump into the shower, and after properly cleaning and drying my body and hair, I wore a torn skinny jeans with an off-the-shoulder neon pink top. I wore some sneakers and tied my hair in a messy bun. My makeup was natural, but never skipped my wet lip gloss. 

I took my purse and car keys. It was time to get this show started. I decided to skip breakfast and stop at a nearby coffee shop to purchase a Vanilla Chai Latte . I have never been a coffee person, that department is owned by my mom and Joy, but I do enjoy a good tea. 

I stopped at a little coffee shop that looked cozy and the smell of fresh baked goods and coffee poured out of the place. “The Little Bean” read the sign in the front. I smiled at the name because my dad called us ´little beans´ when mom was pregnant with us. I miss them so much, and I am hoping to get news about their arrival anytime soon. 

I placed my order and walked toward a table near the window. The whole area was hustling and buzzing with people walking, mostly students. I was super excited and happy to start this new chapter in my life. 

“Hey, Jewel. Right?” a voice sounded and I looked up. I smiled when I saw the girl from yesterday´s run. 

“Hey, Camila…” I greeted and she smiled. She is older than me, maybe two years, and she looks like a nice person. 

“Are you ready for introduction day? For newcomers is a must-attend kind of event.” She said and I nodded. 

“Yes, can't wait, but I can't handle it with an empty stomach.” I pointed at my croissant and tea. “You know your priorities. First food, then boys.” I joked and she laughed.  

“Yes, that is the right order of things.” She laughed and then excused herself with a “Well, see you around.”  

I waved and continued with my things. I took my cell phone out and checked my messages. I smiled when I noticed I had several unread messages, it was a relief that the world I left hadn't forgotten about me. 

First Joshua's message: “Hey Tweedle Dee. How are you doing? How's everything going? Did they discover how much of a dork you are? Please don't show that up too early… LOL,” I laughed, he is such a dork. I decided to quickly reply: “Doing good… getting by. Of course, they will never notice that I am a dork, that spot is reserved for you in our family. Love ya, bro.” 

Then I read a message for Scotty: “Hey Jewel-Boo, hope everything goes well. I am heading to Cali. I will be out of reach during my trip, but I will call you as soon as I land there. Miss U.” Dear Lord, I miss him so much, maybe I should really consider giving it a try. So I decided to leave him a message. “Hey Scotty-Doo, miss you too. Hope you have a safe trip to Cali. Please call, I miss listening to your voice.”  I sighed, I do miss him, and inevitably Mike´s face popped into my head. 

I read a message from dad, and another from mom. I quickly answered moms and then I wrote to dad: “Not cool that you left a spare key with Mike. You owe me the locksmith´s fee.” I know my dad, he had good intentions, but that backfired big time.

I was about to spend some time checking my social media when I completely got interrupted. “Hey gorgeous, is this seat taken?” 

The guy talking to me was handsome, and I looked around and there were empty tables. Why in the world is he asking for a seat right in front of me? I decided to entertain this complete stranger, after all, my main goal is to make new friends.

“Nop, you can take the chair…” I answered him and he pouted and placed his hands over his heart in a hurtful mock. 

“You are hurting me, gorgeous. I was asking because I wanted to seat with you, not because I needed a chair. If you look around, there are plenty of those available at the moment. Not one as lucky as the chair I want to sit on right now.” He winked, openly flirting. I can totally tell he is a flirt.

I smiled at him. “Well please, if you want to join my table…” I motioned for him to sit at the chair across from mine, and extended my hand I said. “Hi, I am Jewel Cox.” 

“That name suits you, you are a jewel. I am Derek Smith.” I shook his hand and he sat down. “So are you going to Harvard?” He asked and I quickly replied in a snarky way “I thought it wasn't that obvious.” He laughed. 

“I am about to graduate from Business School, what major are you attending?” He asked and I smiled. He is an older guy, meaning there is the possibility of not only meeting new people on campus but meeting some older ones. 

I raised my hand,  “Well, future Engineer.”. I laughed at his expression, he looked surprised. “Yeap, guilty as charged. I am a nerd.” I laughed and he followed suit. 

“Interesting, smart, and beautiful…. “ He smiled and winked at me. It was awkward to have someone openly complimenting me. 

Suddenly Camila walked by and looked our way. “Hey Derek, weren't you supposed to be with your ´wingman´?” she air quoted, and Derek laughed. 

“Yeap, so if you are heading his way, tell him that his services will no longer be required. I have to show Miss Jewel around.” He answered Camila and her eyes snapped open. Clearly, they are friends, and their hidden body language spoke volumes. 

“Well, then… Take care of my girl here…” Camila said and winked my way. “You know, she is also a runner, maybe something good is rubbing on you from my future husband.” She said to Derek. 

“Maybe, but definitely, I´ve got better taste,” Derek said and his eyes locked with mine, making me feel self-conscious. As soon as our gazes parted away, Camila waved at us, and she left. 

“I guess you know her?” I asked, wondering how close Camila and Derek are to each other. They seemed like old friends but not close enough, but then, her fiance is his friend. 

“Yeah, Cami and I are childhood friends. We are from Boston, and our families are close to each other. Then she met my best friend, and they hit it off. Now they are planning to marry each other, leaving me alone in this world.” He joked and I laughed. 

“Oh poor you” I mocked him, finishing my drink. We engaged in some other meaningless chatter and as far as I could tell, he is a good guy. On the plus side, he is handsome as hell, tall with a well-built body. His baby blue eyes are amazing and when he smiles, two little dimples appear on his handsome face. 

“Well, I have to go to orientation,” I said raising from my chair. He quickly stood up and smiled at me. “Well, I can show you around, if you allow me.” He offered me his arm. It was kind of him to try to show me around, but honestly deep in my gut, I felt like prey. I decided to take his offer, only up until I have to attend a special meeting at my building. 

“Sure, that will be nice, but in about two more hours I have a meeting,” I said politely and he nodded. 

“Plenty of time to get to know you better.” He winked and some faint alarm bells appeared, something about his choice of words and the way he said it made it feel s****l.

We walked down while talking about the nightlife, the good bars, the nice local restaurants, and such. He also showed me the library, the study areas, the cool places, and more. He was funny and he knew a lot of people. Most guys greeted him and then spared a glance at me with a knowing look. I can tell that he is a player, he is smooth and maybe everyone is looking at me as his next victim. I will entertain this until the meeting and get on with my life, there is no harm in that. right?

He was talking and when my phone rang, the screen lit up, and my smile showed immediately. I am feeling out of place with Derek, getting a bit tired of all the looks. So I took the opportunity to shake him off. Derek stopped talking and without thinking it twice, I picked up the call. 

“Hey, Babe…” I answered the phone, and on the other side of the line, my brother immediately understood.

“If you need to put me on speaker, or we can video call…” he said and I smiled wider. That is why I love him to pieces, he is the smartest 17-year-old guy I know. 

“Oh, babe, no there is no need for that…” I said loudly, and then continued “But later if you want me to, I can show you around on a video call.” I said with a sweet voice. 

“So you just ran into a player, and want to shake him off,” Josh said in a low voice. While I answered, “Yeap, pretty much it, babe.” My brother laughed. 

“Poor bastard, he has no idea.” He mumbled and I laughed. “Ok, babe... I have to go to my meeting. Talk to you soon. Miss you.” I said in a sweet voice and we hung up the call. 

As soon as I finished, I could see Derek's face. It was not one of anger, as I expected, it was more an expression of a challenge. I think my little stunt could backfire soon enough. 

“So, beautiful, now that we got rid of the nuisance, can we continue?” He said seductively, and his expression churned my insides. Every passing minute he is turning into a predator in my eyes, and I need to flee.

“Actually Derek, I need to head out to my building for a very important meeting,” I said and his eyes showed me that he was not buying it. I had to think about something quick, so I said “Also I need to do some paperwork for my scholarship… but we can talk later.” I said innocently, and he smirked. 

“Sure, gorgeous…just give me your phone.” He said, and I extended my hand for him to place his cell phone on it. “Sure… Let me call my number from your phone. Later you can save it.” I confidently said and he unlocked his device. I called my cell phone and hung up. He could tell it was the real number when my phone rang.  

He smiled at my action, obviously happy with the outcome of this situation. “Well, now I really have to go,” I said and without wasting time, I walked toward my building. Wow, that was weird. I thought and shook the feeling away. Fortunately, I have a function on my phone to block a caller, and I intend to use it.

I walked into the auditorium and saw huge groups of guys and a small group of girls. Engineering usually has more guys than girls, and it showed. I walked slowly, regretting my choice of neon pink at the moment when a girl among the group waved. 

“Hey over here…” she said and I quickly made my way toward her. I closed my distance from the group and all the girls made way for me to fit in the circle. “Yeap, another one saved!” the girl said and I laughed. 

“Is that so obvious?” All of the girls laughed. “Hi, I am Jewel.” I decided to introduce myself. Everybody smiled at me. 

“I am Samantha.” my rescuer said and then pointed at each one of the girls she introduced them to. “Here is Carla, Joyce, and Beth” 

While waiting we rescued a couple more girls. We sat down together and decided to exchange our phones, also we decided to continue together exploring the rest of the university. Overall today was a good day. 

Derek POV 

I was heading toward Mike´s place, to go and look for my new flavor of the year. When I spotted the most beautiful girl I have ever seen. She was wearing a neon pink top, blonde hair, blue eyes, nice size breasts, and thin. Her face looked just like a porcelain doll. 

I was going to pick my man to go hunting but on my way, I stumbled with what I was looking for, so I decided to take a little detour. Her name is Jewel, and she is smart, funny, and beautiful. Surprisingly we ran into Cami, and they knew each other, she said they met while running. And without saying much, I gave Cami a message to Mike, subtly letting him now that I found my next prey.  

I decided to take her around until an asshole called her. I guess she has a boyfriend, but that has never stopped me, it actually makes it better.

She headed toward a meeting, but she gave me her phone. As soon as I was out of her eye reach, I saved it, because soon she would be falling head over heels for me. 

Mike POV 

I was laying on my couch checking my texts. I was actually anxious to see if Jewel contacted me. She must be having a hard time, alone and in an unknown place. I wanted to stay away from her, but then I also wanted to be near her. I can´t get a hold of my emotions, and I hated it.

Cami stayed over, and she decided to go for her usual run. She texted me that she would be stopping by the coffee shop. I was waiting for Mike to come by, but he never came. Maybe he decided to change his ways, or maybe he is just late, taking his time dismissing his currently bed warmer.

Half an hour later, Cami showed up, saying that Mike got his next victim. Cami said that she was a pretty girl, she looked cute on her neon pink top and according to Cami, she was a ´good one´ that unfortunately was falling for Derek´s trap. I felt sorry for the girl, Derek is a player, and enjoys the whole chasing and conquering game, but as soon as the girls fall for him, he stomps all over their hearts.    

Since Derek was on a mission, and I was no longer required, I decided to stay at my place cuddling with Cami. Something about being with Cami in my arms, made me miss Jewel. We watched a couple of movies and then Cami had to leave for her place. Something about a girl's night out with her friends. It was my perfect opportunity to go by myself to the gym, and maybe if I get lucky, run into Jewel. 

As soon as I stepped outside my building, I checked to see if she was entering her building, but I had no luck. But then while walking toward the gym down the street, I spotted a girl wearing a bright pink neon top. It is a fashion color, but not many girls would wear something that eye catchy to orientation. I immediately got curious to find out Derek´s next conquest. 

The girls was talking to bunch of girls. They were exchanging phones and information, all of them seemed new around, so definitely girs making friends during orientation. I stood there waiting for the neon pink girl to turn around, and when the girl turned around, my blood froze. Jewel.