To this day he can still remember the way vanilla filled the small dorm room the first time he was alone with her. Her hair was soaked, she had a towel wrapped around her curvy body and it was the first time he paid attention to the way her chest flushed when she was mad. He would see her mad again, so damn mad, more times than he could count, but he would never, ever, forget the way she tried to be polite to him at first. For no reason at all. She didn't owe him anything, she still doesn't, and he can only hope to see her mad at him again and again, for the rest of his life. 

The first day of the Fall Semester is always the absolute best for people watching. So many fucking idiots running around like chickens with their heads cut off, so many girls dressed in their most favorite outfits in an attempt to gain attention from men. 

It's the same cycle every year at every college across the globe. Washington State University just happens to be where I'm condemned to attend. I like it enough, it's easy and my professors cut me a lot of slack. Despite my lack of giving an actual fuck, I'm pretty decent academically. If I "applied myself more" I could be even better, but I don't have time or energy to waste obsessing over grades or plans or anything that could be obsessed over.

Sitting in front of the Student Union is the prime location for the show. Watching all the parents in tears  has to be my favorite part. It's amusing to me because my mum couldn't seem to get rid of me quick enough and some of the parents here act like their damn arms are getting cut off when their children, adult children mind you, are off to college.

A woman with huge fake tits and bleached hair hugs her puny, plaid shirt wearing son and I'm full on grinning as he starts to cry into his mum's shoulder. Fucking pussy. His dad is standing back, away from the pathetic sight, checking his expensive watch, waiting for his son and wife to stop blubbering. 

I can't imagine how that would feel, having my parents obsess over me. My mum was always caring, as caring as she could be but I fought it. I wouldn't and still won't accept it. Not from her, not from anyone.

"Hey man," Nate sits down across from me at the picnic table and pulls a cigarette from his pocket. "What's the plan for the night?" He asks as his fingers strike over the lighter.

"I don't know, we're meeting Steph in her room." I shrug and pull my phone from my pocket to check the time.  

Nate annoys me into walking to Steph's dorm from the Student Union. It's not a far walk, ten minutes or so, but I'd much rather drive than push through the masses of eager pupils decked out in their college best.

By the time we reach the dorms Nate is going on about the party this weekend. It's always the same every single weekend. What's there to be excited about?

Everything is always the same for me. Same group of friends, same amount of sex, same parties, same old shit, different day.

"We should knock, remember how pissed she was last time?" Nate reminds me.

I laugh to myself. Yeah, I do remember that day. It was last semester and I walked into Steph's dorm room without knocking. I found her on her knees in front of some asshole. I call him an asshole because, well, because he was wearing flip flops. A man in flip flops is automatically an asshole. He was embarrassed and Steph was pissed, she threw just about every item she owns in the direction of my head.

It made my entire week to see her so horrified. To this day I give her shit about it.

"Yeah, I remember." I finally stop laughing when she yells for us to come inside.

A blonde guy in a cardigan is standing in the middle of Steph's room. It takes me a moment to notice a woman and younger girl with them. The woman is hot, my eyes take her body in, tall frame, long blonde hair, decent size tits.

"Hey, you Steph's roomie?" Nate says and I finally get a good look at the girl.

She's decent enough, pouty lips, long blonde hair. That's about all I can see because the chick is wearing clothes that are three times her size. I take in the way her skirt literally touches the floor and cringe inwardly. College is not going to be fun for this girl, I can tell that just by looking at her.

The girl is staring down at her feet, nervous as hell. What's wrong with her?

"Um.. yeah. My name is Tessa," she mumbles. Her voice is quiet, obnoxiously so.

"I'm Nate. Don't look so nervous, it throws people off." Nate responds with a smile  He's always the friendlier of us. I don't see the point in small talk, especially with this little mouse. She's staring at him wide eyed and he reaches out to touch her shoulder. "You'll love it here." He says to her. He's full of shit. She looks terrified as her eyes rake over the band posters hanging on the wall. 

Steph's roommate couldn't have been a worse match for her. She's quiet, timid, scared of the world apparently. She's lucky I'm feeling nice today, otherwise I would have made her even more uncomfortable.

"I'm ready guys," Steph says. She pushes her purse thing up onto her shoulder and walks toward the door. The blonde boy is staring at me and I glare in his direction. He must be the blonde girl's brother.

"See you around Tessa," Nate waves goodbye to the girl and I notice her staring at me. Her eyes move from my eyebrow ring to the loop in my lip and back and forth between both of my arms.

You've never seen tattoo sleeves? I want to ask her but I get the feeling her mum isn't as nice as the rack she sports, so I may as well behave. For now.

"You are getting a new dorm!" The woman shrieks the moment we step into the hallway. Steph bursts into laughter and Nate and I join in.

"I would get stuck with a freaking preacher's daughter for a roommate." Steph complains as we walk down the hall.

..

The next morning I don't feel like going to my first class so I head to Steph's room. She's probably still asleep but I'm bored and her dorm is closer to my next class than anyone else in the crew. I text her and tell her I'm on way but I don't wait for her reply. The hallway of the old building is nearly empty, only a few frantic stragglers rushing by with their arms full of books. 

I try to keep myself from falling asleep on Steph's shitty mattress so I flip through the basic cable channels. Just as some stuffy "Dr." is giving marriage advice to two idiots, the door opens and Steph's roommate rushes in. She's wrapped in a wet towel, her long, soaked hair is stuck to her face in an almost humorous way and her eyes are wide with surprise. I turn the TV off and stare at the girl. 

"Uhmm..Where is Steph?" She practically squeaks. She stares down at the floor, back to me, to the floor again. 

I smile at her embarrassment and stay silent. 

"Did you hear me? I asked you where Steph is," her voice is softer now, more polite. 

"I don't know," my smile grows. She's squirming and I suspect that with how hard she's gripping the edges of her towel, she will shred the material. I turn the TV back on and sit up. 

"Okay? Well could you like.. leave or something so I can get dressed?" She stutters. 

"Don't flatter yourself, it's not like I am going to look at you," I roll over and cover my face with my hands to humor her. She's awfully full of herself to think that I would sit and stare at her. Well, I probably would, especially given that the towel she's wearing is hugging her body in a damn nice way. I hear her shuffling around, the sound of a bra fastening and her breathing heavily. She's nervous still and I would love to see her face as she tries to put her clothes on as fast as she can. 

I would uncover my eyes just to annoy her but I'm in a decent mood. Plus, I'm only going to see this girl a few times so may as well keep it somewhat civil. 

"Are you done yet?" I roll my eyes under my hands. 

"Could you be any more disrespectful? I mean honestly, you're my room while I change and you have the nerve to be rude to me? I did nothing to you, what is your problem?" She yells. What the fuck? I hadn't expected such a smart ass mouth on such an innocent looking girl. 

As I continue to stare at Steph's pissed off roommate, I can't help but laugh. It feels odd laughing this way, this hard, but her expression is just fucking priceless. She's so pissed. The door opens and Steph bursts into the room dressed in last nights clothes. 

"Sorry, I'm late. I have a hell of a hangover," she whines. I roll my eyes again. Of course she has a hangover, when doesn't she. "Sorry Tess, I forgot to tell you Hardin would be coming by," she shrugs  her shoulders. Like she gives a fuck. 

"You're boyfriend is rude," the blond girl snaps. That does it for me and I laugh again. Steph looks at me, brow raised at how much I'm laughing, but I ignore her. 

"Hardin is not my boyfriend!" she laughs along with me. We've fucked around before, but never dated. I dont' date.

"What did you say to her?"Steph turns to me and puts her hands on her hips in a failed attempt to scold me. "Hardin has a.. a unique way of conversing" she explains. Conversing? I'm not attempting to talk to either of them. I shrug my shoulders and go back to finding some mindless shit to watch. 

"There is a party tonight, you should come with us, Tessa," I hear Steph say. Yeah right, like this chick is going to go to a party? I pull my lip ring between my teeth to stop from laughing again. I stare straight ahead at the TV. 

"Parties aren't really my thing. Plus I have to go to get some things for my side of the room."

"C'mon.. it's just one party! You're in college now, just one party won't hurt," Steph tries to convince her roommate. "How are you getting to the store, I thought you didn't have a car?"

"I don't even know anyone, besides I was going to Skype with Noah," she responds, I laugh again. She would want to Skype with someone instead of going to a party. "And I was going to take a bus to the store." Because going to a store is so much fun. I bet she shops at fucking Target, she seems like the type. 

"You do not want to take the bus on a Saturday! They're way too packed, Hardin can drop you on the way to his place.. right harry? And you'll know me at the party. Just come.. please?" I won't be dropping anyone off anywhere. 

"I don't know.. and no I don't want Hardin to drive me to the store," the obnoxious girl whines. I roll over and smile at the two of them, they are both annoying the shit out of me. 

"Oh no! I was really looking forward to hanging out with you," I say. "Come on Steph, you know this girl isn't going to show at the party." I take a moment to look at the way her white t-shirt is tighter across her chest and hips than anywhere else. She should dress this way instead of that long ass skirt she was wearing the other day. Her khaki shorts are still too long, but you can't win them all. 

"Actually, I'll come." Tessa says. That was her name? Yeah, it was. I hear shrieking and squealing and it's my cue to leave when the girls start hugging and shit. 

"Yay! We'll have so much fun!!' Steph promises the girl as I leave the room. 

I drive further onto to campus and sit through all of my classes for the day. After getting a text from Nate to meet him and Tristan Blind Bob's, I head that way. I turn the music up in my car and roll the window down. When I was a teen, I used to think people were fucking show offs when they blasted music from their car windows, but now I get it. Sometimes I just want to drown out the world around me and music and reading are the only things that do that for me.

When I need silence, the noise helps. 

"What took so long?" Tristan takes a bite from a hamburger, half the toppings fall onto the plate in front of him.

"Traffic was a bitch," I sit down next to Nate in the booth. Our usual server nods at me and moments later she appears at the table with a water. 

"Still sober, yeah?" Nate questions, taking a drink of his beer. 

"Yep. Still sober." I finish half the glass of water, trying not to think about the way an ice cold beer tastes on my tongue. 

"Good for you man. I know everyone gives you shit about it, but I think it's pretty fucking awesome the self control you have." Nate praises me and I shift awkwardly.

"Self control? I heard Molly screaming your name just last night." Tristan laughs, wiping a napkin across his chin. 

"Hey, I meant with drinking, not chicks." Nate laughs along and I'm thankful for the change in tone. It was getting too weird. 

Nate ends up convincing me to let him drive my car. He only had one beer and I don't feel like driving really, so I agree to let him if he drives me to pick up Steph and her roommate. 

"She's been blowing up my phone, says you won't answer her." Nate says as we pull out of the parking lot.

"I told her an hour ago that I would give them a ride." I roll my eyes. Steph can be really fucking annoying.

"I just told her wer'e on our way. I'm glad Tessa is coming with her." He says and rolls down the driver's side window. 

"Why?" 

"Because she seems nice and she could definitely get out more. Steph said she thinks her boyfriend was her only friend or something." He tells me.

"Boyfriend? You mean Mother Theresa has a boyfriend?" I scoff. The blond guy in the dorm maybe? They look like siblings, not boyfriend and girlfriend. 

"Yeah, he was there with her, that preppy dude." 

"Go figure," I laugh and turn up the music.

When we pull into the parking lot of Steph's dorm, my phone buzzes. It's Molly so I hit ignore. 

"Ladies." Nate greets the girls as they walk up to the car. Steph is dressed in a fishnet dress and her tag along is wearing what looks like a maroon sack. I don't get it. I saw the outline of her body in that towel, why does she wear this hideous shit?

"You do know that we are going to a party not a church right Theresa?" I say as she climbs into the car.

"Do not call me Theresa please. I prefer Tessa," I knew her name would be Theresa. I've read enough novels to put that together. I seem to have struck a cord with the snobby girl. 

"Sure thing Theresa," I taunt her. She huffs and rolls her eyes. 

"It's so big, how many people will be here?" Theresa asks. Doesn't the full lawn give that away? 

"A full house, hurry up," I tell her, shutting the car door. She just sits there, in shock I think, and I walk up the yard. 

(Author's note: For anyone reading this before After, that's fine, you'll just have Hardin's POV and maybe a few spoilers! I told my readers that I would make this book before After 2 was even finished so if you're confused, you can read After first! 

Also, I will be at Love N Vegas October 25-27 for my first signing!! I am so excited and so so happy for all of this! Also, (again) I'll be doing a lot of giveaways and contests through social media, some on Facebook, (I'll put the link in my bio on Wattpad, so if you pre-order the books, make sure you keep your recipet, (email or printed) love you all!!!