10| A Compliment From a Cunningham!

"RISE and shine, Teddy!" Matteo called from downstairs. "I don't want to hear any bitching! Get your ass dressed and be down here in 10! We have a class to get to!"

I flipped over on my stomach and buried my head into my pillow, groaning loudly, but making the sound muffled enough so Matteo couldn't hear. The first day back to college and I was already dreading my schedule; Sitting in multiple classrooms back to back was going to exhaust the shit out of me.

Matteo and I both had economic theory to start off the day at 10, and then we went our separate ways, and I had business management. They were back to back 90-minute classes, and the good thing was that they were my only classes for the day. But still. The thought of sitting for 3 hours in 2 different business classes bored me to death.

I reluctantly stood up to shower and get dressed, which took me no longer than 5 minutes. When I got downstairs, Matteo was in the kitchen holding 2 to-go cups that I already knew were filled with coffee. He knew me as well as I knew myself, and that meant he knew how I liked my coffee: 2 packets of the pink sugar and a tiny splash of cinnamon creamer. There were dishes in the skin already scrubbed clean, but I knew that meant Matteo had been up for hours already. Maverick had his first class at 8 and knowing Matteo well enough, he had woken up early enough to have breakfast with him.

Matteo handed me one of the mugs and said, "We'll get muffins on the way." He walked to stand in front of me and grinned. "First day back, Mr. Prez."

"First day back," I repeated.

Matteo held up his fist. "Godspeed, Theo."

I grinned and bumped my knuckles with his, as was tradition. "Godspeed."

The walk to the business building was just over 20 minutes from the house, but thankfully the café was along the way. We stopped inside and grabbed 2 blueberry muffins before continuing our walk. All while Matteo talked to me about the current ranking of Syracuse's football team and the probability of them making it to the playoffs. He crushed numbers in his head like it was the easiest thing, and it still baffled me how much information he could hold inside of his mind. Matteo's mind was quite an interesting place to be.

"What are you going to do after your classes?" he asked once he finished playing with statistics.

I shrugged. "Who the hell knows? Maybe I'll find Ava and annoy her some more."

Matteo flicked the side of my head. "Yeah, you're really fucking good at annoying people," he said. "Speaking of Ava—"

"I know. I didn't mention her once yesterday because I know I can be tiresome. But that doesn't mean I'm giving up!" I exclaimed as we entered through the doors of the business school.

"Believe me, I know," Matteo said. "So, about Ava–"

I waved him off. "Come on, we don't need to talk about her right now. I know that I'll be on about it a lot more in the future, you know, once I actually see her again." We turned down another hallway and headed for our classroom.

"Yeah, Theo, I'm hearing everything you're saying. But I will warn you–"

As we turned yet another corner into a doorway, we both abruptly stopped at the entrance of the classroom.

And so did Ava.

"Oh," I said, understanding now why Matteo kept bringing her up.

"Oh, Theo the Third sees what I was talking about," Matteo said, moving to stand beside Ava and wrapping his arm around her shoulder. "Good morning, Ava."

"Morning, Matteo," Ava said and turning her attention to me, she said, "Theodore."

"Juliet," I said with a grin. "So I take it we're all going to have a blast together! I know I will, at least."

"Great," Ava muttered.

"Don't sound so excited," I said.

I winked and then walked into the classroom. I could practically feel the hesitation on Ava's part, but with Matteo's arm around her shoulder, he led her to the third row of the lecture hall where I sat down. Matteo sat beside me and Ava sat beside him, meaning Matteo was sandwiched in between us.

I twisted in my seat so I faced both Matteo and Ava. I was going to love every second of this.

"So, Ava," I said, and she looked over at me, "have you been thinking about me?"

"Oh boy," Matteo muttered.

Ava rolled her eyes. "Yes, Theo. All of my dreams are just filled with you. And don't even get me started on my endless thoughts about you and the secret talents I'm sure you have. Oh, and your hands, too."

I knew she was fucking with me, but she was doing a good job. And I wasn't complaining. Even though I knew she was joking, I didn't mind pretending that Ava could possibly actually be thinking of me.

"If only you knew just how talented I can be..." I drawled. "And my hands–"

Matteo glared at me and I shut up. "We are not talking about your talents or your hands or the correlation between the two," he said. "I'm sure Ava can agree with me."

"I agree," Ava said. "Actually, we could just not sit with Theo at all."

"You'll have so much more fun sitting by me, though! Ava, you would have so much more fun sitting right next to me."

Matteo elbowed my side. "Stop being a pain in her ass. No, a pain in my ass. Theo, you're an ass pain."

"I love you too," I said, blowing Matteo a kiss.

He groaned and sat back, arms crossed over his chest. "This is gonna be awkward as hell."

"Not awkward for me," I said, sending Ava a smile. "I have no problem being in a class with a Cunningham. Especially this particular Cunningham. In fact, I can't wait to work together."

"We won't be working together. As far as I can see, I'm only sitting next to Matteo. The curly haired dude to his right is invisible in my book," Ava said.

"Will I be invisible to you once you start to fall for me?"

Ava laughed. "Yes. You will still be invisible because I won't fall for you. And now, I'm going to prepare myself to pay attention in class."

Matteo let out a long, exasperated whistle and raised his eyebrows. Ava took out a notebook and I took out mine and then I looked at her, raising a challenging brow. She looked at me and rolled her eyes but didn't look away just yet.

Matteo's eyes darted between the two of us before he sighed loudly and said, "So. How bout that weather we're having?"

❥❥❥

After class, Ava hurriedly left the classroom with Matteo in tow. Matteo looked eager to leave and escape back to the fraternity house since he didn't have a class until later tonight. I, however, had another class and I knew Ava did, too. Unfortunately, her class seemed to be in a different building, and she was in a hurry.

Though no matter how fast Ava was walking, I ran to catch up with her as she left the building and made her way through the quad.

"Matteo was right. We are having wonderful weather," I said when I caught up to her and walked by her side.

"We're not doing this," she warned.

"Doing what?" I asked. "We're just walking together—"

"Not together."

"Okay, we're walking conveniently side by side," I corrected. "I don't think we're doing anything."

"I think you're doing something. Or you're trying to," she said. "I have to admit, you're flattering, Theo. I'm just not interested."

"But I do flatter you. And I can keep doing it. I can keep telling you that I'm not going to give up on this thing, and I'll also tell you that you look gorgeous when the sun hits your face like it is right now," I said.

Ava looked over at me, a half-smile on her face. But she looked away and continued walking. "You'll take any opportunity you get to flirt."

"Does it bother you? The flirting?"

"It doesn't bother me, but it's not going to lead anywhere. So the flirting really is a waste of your time."

"And what if I wasn't hitting on you? What if I stopped and then we just decided to be friends?" I asked.

"We can't be friends."

I ran in front of her and stopped, forcing her to stop walking as well. "Why not?"

Ava tilted her head. "We can't be friends, Theo," she said. "We can't be friends because I know that's not what you want."

"Do you know what I want?" I wasn't even sure what I really wanted at this point; Maybe I wanted to prove her wrong, maybe I wanted to seduce the shit out of her, or maybe this was just a big challenge.

She shook her head. "No. And I don't need to know what you want, I can only assume. Either way, it doesn't matter. I've told you that and I'll keep telling you that."

"We could be friends," I pressed on.

"Theo—"

"We could try," I said. "I know that you don't want to, but you're already friends with 2 of my friends. You should come over tonight."

"And why?"

"Come over tonight because we always celebrate after the first day of classes. Nothing crazy, and it's not a party. If you don't trust me, ask Skylar about it. She'll most likely be coming over since she's Maverick's sister," I explained. "You don't have to come, but you should."

She crossed her arms. "If I come, will you stop bothering me?"

I smirked. "I can't make any promises."

"I'm sure you're not a man who could ever make a promise," she muttered. Ava looked over at me and smiled, and I wanted to believe it was because I was winning her over. Or, perhaps on my way. "I have a class to get to, Theodore. I trust you can leave me alone."

"For now, Juliet. For now," I said. I stopped walking and turned to head back to the business school. But not before turning around and watching Ava walk away, not paying me any attention or sparing a second look.

But I knew she was thinking of me: Point Theo.

❥❥❥

After 2 back-to-back classes, I had a 3-hour break to grab lunch in the cafeteria and to get a head start on some of the homework I'd already been assigned. Then, I had a final class of the day (marketing) from 5:30 to 6.

I was tired but ready by the end of my final class to curl up in my bed with a book.

Unfortunately, when I walked into the apartment, Skylar and Maverick were there, dressed and ready to go. And seemingly waiting for me.

I furrowed my eyebrows as I slid my backpack off and set it gently in mine and Skylar's room before going out into the main living space and joining them.

"What's going on here?" I asked.

"We're waiting for you so we can go to Lambda Xi," Skylar said. "Theo the Third invited you, didn't he?"

I had completely forgotten. Truthfully, I'd forgotten about my interaction with Theo from this morning as a whole. Focusing on classes had taken all of my attention from Theo's invitation, as I'd been occupied with business classes and assignments and syllabuses and all of the wonderful shit that was going to lead me to a degree.

I was adamant on not getting distracted, but there was nothing wrong with hanging out with friends. Or, I considered Maverick and Skylar friends. Matteo was nice and friendly, and I was pretty sure I could take his word for it when he said he wanted to be friends. Theo, however...

Yeah. Like I said. Not happening.

I shrugged and followed Maverick and Skylar out of the apartment, not needing to change. The walk wasn't super long, but the weather was cool and cloudy. It was almost time for the sun to set, but the grey clouds in the sky overcast everything else, letting not a slip of light in. I hugged my jacket into my chest with my hands stuffed into my pockets as we walked.

The colder side of New York weather had always been my favorite. I could get by when it was warm and sunny, but knowing New York, even the summers weren't as excruciatingly hot as other climates. And now, with it being August, the weather usually stayed within 60 degrees to 85. It was blissful when the cool air hit first thing in the morning. I would open the window in the apartment if I was sure Skylar wouldn't mind.

The weather, the cool air that brushed the side of my face, reminded me of home. I wasn't quite homesick yet, but I could admit I missed my dad. Sometimes, I even missed Will.

Okay, most of the time I missed Will. But he continued texting me whenever he felt like saying something random or telling me some sort of information or gossip. It was hard to imagine that, with barely a full week of school down the hatchet, there could already be a shit ton of drama at Will's expense.

WILL: bitch vanessa says she's trying out for the musical this year and we haven't even figured out what it is yet

WILL: and she really THINKS she's gonna make it LMAO. she's trippin

I smiled and slid my phone back into my pocket right as we walked up to the house. It was weird to see the frat house so quiet, so desolate, after the other experiences I'd had here. No booming music, neon lights, or crowds of people screaming and waiting to get in. No overwhelming aroma of booze and teakwood. It looked like a regular house underneath the perpetual dark grey skies; It was a small 2-story brick house with a slanted roof, which I now knew kept Theo's room in the attic (how shameful that I knew where his room was) and the tilted roof that I'd found sanctuary on top of. Green bushes freshly gardened and shaped sat out in front of the brick porch that preceded the entrance to the house.

Maverick opened the door for us and as we walked in, Matteo was the first one we saw. He was in the kitchen sitting on top of the counter drinking a Root Beer.

"My people!" Matteo exclaimed. He jumped up from the counter and went to stand just behind Maverick, resting his chin on Maverick's shoulder. "Did you bring the goods?" he whispered.

Maverick pulled out a pack of what looked like cigarettes and slipped them into Matteo's hands discreetly, so I couldn't really tell if they were truly cigarettes or not. I didn't pay much attention as Matteo disappeared into the backyard.

That was when I felt hot air on the back of my neck and heard, "Cunningham."

I didn't flinch and instead spun around to face him and then backed up a good amount to create some distance. Skylar had gone outside behind Matteo and Maverick, where I could see a few of the other frat guys were including Richard and Chad.

"Is that what we're doing now? Last names?" I asked. "I don't know if I want to acknowledge your identity."

"Well, if you don't want to acknowledge my identity, then we can be friends," Theo said.

"Scratch that." I leaned back onto the counter. "But I'm willing to reconsider the friendship thing if you get me something to drink."

Theo grinned and walked past me into the kitchen, opening up the fridge. "You like Root Beer?"

I nodded and Theo grabbed two cans and brought me one. I muttered a thank you before opening up the can and drinking.

"So, have you reconsidered the friendship?" Theo asked.

I pretended to think about it and settled on an answer, "Yeah. It's still not happening."

Theo smiled and shook his head, sipping on his own can of Root Beer. I looked outside and could barely make out the small group of people. Matteo, however, was standing on the porch alone. A lit cigarette between his fingers lifted up to his mouth and he inhaled.

"Does Matteo—"

"Smoke?" Theo finished. "Yeah."

"I didn't think he seemed like the type to be addicted to smoking," I said, noting Matteo's almost always positive attitude and funny demeanor.

"Doesn't seem like it, I know. He's definitely the funniest dude I know. He's also the best," Theo said. "Matteo used to smoke in high school and he was really addicted, and to more than just cigarettes."

"You don't have to tell me. It's personal."

Theo looked at me and smiled. "I know. But you should know enough to understand. Matteo likes you. As a friend, of course. If you're gonna be his friend, it's important to know. Just in case."

I didn't like the sound of "just in case", but I didn't need to pry and ask for more details.

"When he came here, he'd already gotten over most of the other drugs he was into. He smokes, but only under Maverick's discretion. So, once a month, Maverick buys Matteo a pack and limits him to 1 to 3 a week. Most of the time these days, Matteo only goes through half of the pack for the month. He's better.

"But he relapsed once last year with more than just cigarettes. It was scary, as relapse can be sometimes. I mean, looking at him," Theo turned and we both looked outside towards Matteo, "he's usually pretty happy. He has his moments, though. So when he went through relapse last year, it was pretty scary considering I'd just met him."

"What happened when he relapsed?" I asked, curious to know despite how personal it was.

"Maverick knew how to handle it. He's a psych major and even though he's not actually a specialist when it comes to drug use, he knew how to handle it by doing a little research and by his own common sense," Theo explained. "That's why Mav's the one Matteo relies on the most. I was there for the relapse to help, but Mav is always the one Matteo asks for when things go to shit. I'm there for backup and really anyone who's friends with him is."

"So... Has he—"

"Relapsed recently?"

"How do you know what I'm going to say every time?" I asked.

Theo shrugged and sipped his root beer. "I just know things, Ava. Keep hanging around me and you'll see," he said and winked. "Anyway. Yes, he smokes. Don't let it be a reason to judge him."

"I'm not going to judge him," I said. "I would've never known that about him. He's so... nice."

"And a pain in my ass," Theo said with a grin. "I love that dude. You should, too."

"Well, if you insist."

Theo shook his head, still smiling. "Even if you can't be friends with me, or friends with benefits," he winked again, "you should like Matteo."

I smiled because I couldn't help it. Theo's smile was unfortunately contagious.

"I'll give you credit for being a good friend," I admitted.

"Ooh! A compliment from a Cunningham! It's my lucky day."

"It is your lucky day," I said, "and it's the only luck you'll be getting for awhile."

Theo raised his can in the air. "We'll see." He stood up and nodded towards the back door. "Come on. I know you're dying to get away from the Montgomery fool."

"I would say that you're right, but I don't want to give you anymore credit than I already have. I should keep your ego at bay."

"As long as you're around, Ava, I don't think I'm going to keep anything at bay."

❥❥❥

Hey bitches

Okay HERE IS A REAL CHAPTER 10!!! If you didn't know, the last chapter (titles Chapter 10|Love Potion) was totally an April Fools joke. SO EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED (EVERYTHING!!!!) didn't actually happen. (And to everyone who has read my other books, YOU KNOW I WOULD NEVER KILL TY OR PC!! NEVER EVER.)

Sorry to tease y'all first of all with Ava and Theo kissing. But come on. You know me. I would NEVER have them kiss so early on. I gotta make you W A I T for the romance to hit!!!

Anyway, here's the real chapter :)

Got some depth to Matteo's character, which is pretty important to his story arch... Y'all know I gotta focus on side characters, too.

But of course. We got our main people Ava and Theo... such a promising relationship to be created... To blossom...

I need to stop drinking coffee all day at work. I should drink more water.

Okay so stay hydrated, eat cookies (I'm making PB M&M cookies tonight homies), and read on.

Side note: Didn't the cookies in Spongebob always look so goddamn good...? Cause I always wanted to eat them. Shiiii