Owen was ridiculously handsome. Simply by standing there, he drew a massive wave of attention.
Claire could already hear the passing students whispering.
"Oh my god, he's gorgeous. Is he a student here?"
"Definitely not. Look at that commanding aura. He's clearly a professional."
"How can you tell?"
"Isn't it obvious? College guys are so green. Only an older man exudes that kind of effortless, intoxicating charm!"
They were calling him a poisonous rose.
Claire heard all sorts of outrageously dramatic metaphors.
Dozens of people were eagerly speculating about his identity and who he was waiting for.
A striking man always sparked a frenzy of curiosity.
Claire furiously signaled for Owen to leave the area immediately.
Knowing how relentlessly nosy college girls could be, he wisely retreated.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Claire hauled her luggage back to her dorm.
Skye was already there, having roped a guy into carrying her bags.
Zara had also managed to get an admirer to haul her heavy suitcase up the stairs.
As the four girls reunited in the room, sheer exhaustion was painted across all their faces.
"Why do I feel like I've aged ten years?"
Zara touched her face in the mirror.
Despite frantically slathering on sunscreen, her skin was still two shades darker.
Skye had suffered the same fate, so she had no room to talk.
But Claire was a different story entirely.
She looked remarkably vibrant!
She had caught a little sun, but it was virtually unnoticeable.
Then there was Lex. She was tanner too, but it was hard to measure just how much.
Because she was already so naturally bronzed and devastatingly thin, she just looked like...
Zara felt guilty thinking it, but Lex looked incredibly impoverished and pitiful.
"Let's all get dinner tonight, my treat!"
Zara patted her designer bag. "And
don't worry about my wallet I
haven't spent
adime ina
it's practically begging to be
emptied!"
na
Claire hesitated. "I have to head back to my house. My brother is already here to pick me up."
It wasn't that she wanted to skip out, but Owen had driven all the way here.
He had mentioned the family had already prepared a massive feast, and it would be incredibly rude to ditch them.
"You're going home?" Zara looked visibly deflated.
But Skye's eyes lit up. "Claire, the food at your house must be incredible!"
Claire smiled. "How about this? You guys go out, and I'll bring back a bunch of takeout from my house for later!"
Zara paused. Seeing Claire head back made her feel a tiny pang of homesickness herself.
Lex, ever the straightforward one, chimed in. "I can't either. I'm grabbing food with my friends from high school."
Seriously?
Zara had only wanted to host the dinner to formally thank Lex.
If the guest of honor wasn't even going to be there, what was the point?
"Should we just push it to tomorrow?"
Skye suggested.
"Works for me. I think I'll just head home tonight too."
Skye slumped in instant despair. So she was the only one stuck with no plans.
She'd be eating entirely alone.
"Skye, why don't you just grab a quick snack to tide you over, wait for me to bring back the
stuff tonight? Content beet
FindNovel.net
Claire offered, noticing Skye's visible misery.
to.
Skye's face instantly lit up with a grin. "Claire, thank you! You are an absolute angel!"
"I was actually getting kind of homesick, but you completely saved my night!"
Seeing
eryone else leave for home
with friends while was left all by herself had genuinely triggered an emotional breakdown
She had fully planned on calling her mom to sob uncontrollably the second they all walked out the door.