Page 103 of I Don't Need Your Love

We pretty much walk in pairs. Me and Carly, Addie and Caleb, and Sophie and Raven.

I give Carly’s hand another squeeze. “Did you sleep well?”

She laughs. “No. After you left, Addie and I went to Sophie and Raven’s room and we, um, talked. About everything.”

I waggle my brows. “You mean about me, right?”

She playfully whacks me in the chest.

“Or maybe about my mind-blowing kisses?” I add.

She laughs again. “Anyway, we stayed up like really late. And then I couldn’t sleep because I was excited.”

I bend close to her ear. “Couldn’t sleep either because I was excited, too. And Felix was snoring as loud as an elephant.”

She giggles, the sound so pretty and musical it makes my heart soar. I can’t remember the last time I felt so happy and hopeful. And that’s all because of this wonderful person walking beside me.

“What?” she asks as I stare at her.

I push some hair away from her eyes. “Nothing, you’re just so beautiful and perfect.”

Her face scrunches into a frown. “Not true.”

“Yes.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

She playfully glares at me. I glare right back at her for a bit before dipping my head and pecking her lips. Smiling, she pulls me closer, her lips hovering over mine.

“Guys?”

We ignore her friends as we continue to gaze into each other’s eyes.

“Guys!”

We reluctantly look up and find Harrington a few feet away, talking to a group of freshmen outside the dining hall.

“Crap,” Carly mutters, pulling away from me.

Hmm. Looks like our principal is quite busy. I quickly yank Carly back to me, rub my nose with hers, then step back.

“You’re going to get us expelled,” she hisses.

I lift an innocent brow, giving her a wide grin. “What? I didn’t do anything. My nose was itchy.”

Sophie and Addie burst into giggles while Caleb and Raven smile. Carly tries to hide her own smile, but then she laughs, too.

“Let’s go inside before you really do get us kicked out.” She opens the door. I hold it open for her and the others. Some girls enter as well, each giving me flirty smiles. I ignore them and join Carly and the others at the buffet tables.

We grab as much food as we think we can eat before settling down at our table. I feel many, many, many pairs of eyes on me. I don’t need to look around to know that most, if not all, of the people in this room are staring, wondering why in the world I’m at the so-called loser table.

Carly must notice as well because she shifts in her seat, clearly uncomfortable. Giving her a warm smile, I reach for her hand over the table and clutch it, letting every single person in here know that I’m hers now. Totally and completely hers.

At once, whispers fill the room. But I pay no attention to any of it as I eat my food and talk to Carly and her friends.

“The Parker twins don’t look very happy,” Carly whispers to me a short while later.