Page 100 of Heartland

She steps out of the tub, and I quickly rinse myself. When I shut off the water, she’s already gone. I grab a towel and hurry back to my room, where Chastity is donning her skirt.

“Hey, wait half a second,” I say as I drip water onto the wood floor. “Where are you going?”

“I should go home,” she says, securing her bra.

“No, you really shouldn’t,” I argue, crossing to my dresser. “It’s late. And cold.” I don’t want to take her back to the dorm right now, but it’s not just laziness on my part. I’d never send Chastity packing after what we just shared. Or anyone else for that matter. “Come on. Come to bed. I’ll give you a T-shirt. When’s your first class tomorrow?”

“Ten,” she says, licking her lips uncertainly.

“Perfect. Me too.” I pull a Shipley Farms T-shirt out of the drawer. “You can go if you want. But I’d rather you put this on and come to bed with me.”

“Okay,” she says after another beat. “I wasn’t sure you’d want me to stay.”

“OfcourseI want you to stay.” But this is the tricky stuff, isn’t it? This is why sleeping with good friends is scary. “Do you have something against cuddling?”

“I wouldn’t know.” She gives me a quick, nervous smile. “But I just assumed that you did.”

“Why? Vermont is a cold state. Cuddling is one of our top five winter sports. Come here.”

Just as before, she does exactly what I say. “Dylan.”

“Yeah?” I take her hips in hand and tug her against my chest.

“What does the textbook say about this part?”

“Well, you wrap your arms around each other like this.” I enfold her in a hug, and kiss her on the neck. Her hair is wet. She can’t go outside right now. That’s madness.

She hugs me back. “You know what I’m asking. With you and me, what comes after the sex? Tomorrow am I supposed to pretend it never happened? Just tell me the rules, and I’ll try to follow. You don’t date. I know this. So what the heck am I supposed to assume?”

Ah well. I guess we’re getting right to the heart of the tricky stuff, then. But I sure don’t mind her speaking up. It’s so much better than dancing around the question. “First things first. We’re still friends, right? That isn’t up for negotiation.”

“Agreed,” she says, squeezing me.

“I think…” I have to stop in the middle of the sentence, because I honestly don’t know what to make of all of this. “We’re friends with a lot of chemistry. I didn’t really see that coming. And I don’t think it’s going to go away too easily. So pretending it never happened is a bad strategy. We can’t be like those freaks from California who come to Moo U and then try to wear their flip-flops in the snow.”

She laughs against my chest. “Does that happen?”

“Yeah. You’ll see.” I hold her a little closer. “So we’re probably going to end up doing it again, don’t you think?”

“We will if I have anything to say about it.”

The candor startles me, and I laugh and kiss her forehead. “Okay. So we’re friends who get naked sometimes. Can we try being that?”

She tips her head back and looks up at me. “Yes, Dylan. We can try being that. Just promise me this—you won’t tell our families.”

“Okay?” I hadn’t gotten that far. “But why?”

“I don’t want to explain myself. And it’s none of their business.”

“That’s true,” I agree. I don’t really want to explain myself, either. Everyone is really protective of Chastity. I don’t need that lecture. “I can keep a secret.”

“Okay,” she says.

“But my balls are freezing off right now. So put on this T-shirt and let’s cuddle. I’ll find you a toothbrush if you want.”

Ten minutes later I blow out the candle and hop into the bed with Chastity. The party has quieted down, and the old house settles into its usual creaks and groans.

It’s peaceful here, with Chastity in my arms. I guess it should feel super strange. But it doesn’t really. “I’m sorry I made you feel weird about your scars. I just had no idea how bad it was.”