brite-full-story

He shook his head and turned
up the music, trying to wall off
the unanticipated distraction of
Naomi. “Stay focused, K. This is the
wrong time to get hung up. You’re
leaving soon anyways.” He tried
pulling himself back to reality but
found himself wanting to know her.
Really know her.
Naomi couldn’t help but feel proud
of herself for keeping it together.
She dug into her chapters taking
notes and creating flash cards.
Engulfed in her reading, she was
oblivious to Konstantin who had
been glancing at her on and off
ever since she arrived. Every once
in a while, she would look out
the window and wonder what her
friends were up to. Not once did she
notice how flustered he was.
Konstantin finally removed his
headphones and went to the
restroom for a quick break. Maybe
he just needed to stretch his legs. He
couldn’t seem to get comfortable or
refocused on the task at hand ever
since she arrived.
Washing his hands, he looked at
himself in the mirror in frustration.
“What in the actual hell is your
problem?! She’s not even asking
to be looked at. Look at what she’s
wearing for crying out loud!” He
couldn’t help but laugh at how
ridiculous he was acting. “I guess
it has been a while,” he thought in
regards to the last girl he’d been
with.
He was a little perturbed that his
presence didn’t seem to have the
same effect on her. At least HE
looked nice. He was wearing a
pair of dark blue jeans with a long
sleeved grey shirt that showed off
his physique. He ran his fingers
through his hair and decided, what
the hell, he wanted to know what
this girl was about. She would
probably even welcome a break.
Konstantin walked around the
other side of the table and sat in the
seat directly across from Naomi.
He pulled the chair in and crossed
his arms across his chest (in his
comfortable defense position) and
asked, “So why aren’t you at the
party tonight?”
Naomi, startled, knocked her
glasses off and looked up at him
in surprise. Konstantin quickly
reached across to hand them to
her. She was looking him right
in the eyes again. He felt like she
had access to every secret, every
success, failure and unspoken word.
It scared him but it also made him
feel like he was home. He didn’t
want to lose her focus so he began
cleaning her glasses with the inside
of his shirt. He grinned at the look
on her face.
“Excuse me? Sorry, you don’t have
to do that. I just cleaned them before
I came here tonight.” She reached
over waiting for him to hand her
glasses over. When he looked at
her, she noticed a hint of hurt in
his eyes. “Thank you, I appreciate
the gesture,” she said quickly, not
wanting to seem unappreciative.
“Sure thing. So what are you doing
here tonight?” Konstantin was
enthralled with this woman. She
seemed independent and strong
but fragile at the same time. He was
curious as to what was going on
behind those eyes. He could usually
read people well, but couldn’t seem
to get a hold of what this girl was
about. He looked over her face.
Light, soft and the pinkest lips he’d
ever seen. Her eyes were a contrast
to her skin. Dark, thick lashes
framed her mysterious brown eyes.
She literally took his breath away.
“Oh….well, I missed half my class
yesterday and can’t afford to fall
behind. Not that I can’t afford it
in the sense that I’m doing poorly,
I just…. Well, I don’t want to slack
off. Not that I’m a slacker….” she
was flailing. Any ounce of control
she had over the conversation had
gone out the window along with
her dignity. “Sorry, I’m obviously
tired,” she smiled timidly, trying to
regain composure.
She didn’t even know why she was
flustered; it’s not like she liked him.
At all. She didn’t even know him
and what she did know so far, she
wasn’t exactly impressed. He was
the exact kind of guy she typically
stayed away from.
“I’m Konstantin Price.” He extended
his hand to shake hers.
“Naomi Brite,” she replied. When
he took Naomi’s hand, she instantly
felt safe, at home. She looked up at
him and quickly pulled her hand
away.
Her hand was soft and warm in his.
He found himself wondering if the
rest of her would feel the same. He
flashed her his most charming smile
and was relieved when she smiled
back before quickly withdrawing
her hand.
“I’m nearly finished here for the
night, would you want to get a
coffee?” he asked. Not ready to
leave her alone. He saw a pink flush
wash over her cheeks and enjoyed
having that effect on her.
“I still have quite a bit of reading
to catch up on, but thank you,” she
replied only being half honest.
She had about two chapters more
to read and realistically could catch
up on them in the morning. She
wasn’t thrilled with the thoughts
and feelings she had when they’d
shaken hands. She’d heard of his
reputation and knew that if she
wanted to keep her self-respect, he
would be the last guy she should
get involved with.
“Oh. Sure. Right. No worries,”
Konstantin felt rejected. Not
something he was used to feeling.
“Well, have a good night.”
He retreated and began packing his
bag to leave. He was more pissed
at how disappointed he felt that
she didn’t want to be around him.
Feeling embarrassed, he decided
she was a lost cause and decided to
head back to the dorm.
“Thank you, you too,” Naomi
hesitated feeling like she had