Author's Notes: These next two chapters (maybe three) will be chronological and have to do with one another. It'll be obvious.
A Brief Lesson in Chemistry
chapter two: the invitation
Where are you? (sent 5:26 pm)
Just got to swim practice. (sent 5:29 pm)
Cassian sighed as he looked away from his phone. It felt like Jyn was always at swim practice whenever he tried to initiate communication between them that didn't involve her breaking into his dorm or suddenly appearing at his desk in class or at the library. But then he knew that it was the one thing that Jyn was dedicated to and she was good at it and enjoyed it, so he never faulted her for it either. He'd never seen her swim, but judging from what he'd seen of her body, she was probably good.
He furrowed his brow and squinted his eyes when that crossed his mind. Dangerous thought. He got rid of it as quickly as it came. His phone buzzed in his hand again. Assuming it was Kay, Cassian took his time to rifle through his backpack to make sure he had everything before looking at the text.
Meet me at the pool in two hours. (sent 5:31 pm)
Well, he could do that. It was a surprise, but he'd take it.
In the meantime, Cassian returned to his dorm to get a headstart on his homework for the weekend. He was going to need it if he actually went with this foolish plan. The first hour he spent studying and listening to acoustic music alone in his dorm, as Kay was still in class, but it wasn't long before his dormmate stumbled in. Kay was tall and incredibly lanky, like his body couldn't decide whether it wanted to be good at basketball or not. (He wasn't.) He was very smart, but that included a smart mouth. Kay was also Cassian's best friend, so he'd learned how to handle the other boy throughout the years.
"Oh, good," Kay sighed in relief as he shouldered his way inside the small dorm room, carrying what looked like thirty pounds of books from the library. "She's not here."
Cassian didn't even bother looking up from his highlighted textbook and notes. "She has a name, you know."
"One that isn't on our door," Kay pointed out, sniffing dramatically as he dropped the books on the bottom bunk, which was Cassian's. It had made sense to give Kay the top bunk with more space for him to stretch out. "I was beginning to think that she'd moved in here and it's small as it is."
"Yes, especially with your ego taking up almost half the space alone," Cassian replied dryly.
The response did nothing to affect Kay, who merely harrumphed as he began to transfer the books one-by-one to the top bunk. He liked to read in bed whereas Cassian preferred the desk. It worked out perfectly when both of them were in here trying to do homework. As Kay got situated, he hummed along with the music under his breath, familiar with Cassian's taste as much as his own, not noticing at first that Cassian was starting to finish up. They didn't have any plans to hang out, but Kay sometimes assumed it on Friday nights.
Finally, after he had clambered up on his bed, Kay looked down and saw what Cassian was doing. "You're leaving? But I just got here."
"Don't worry; I will be back soon." Cassian shoved the rest of his notes into his backpack and then slid it under the bed. He had learned how to consolidate space a very long time ago when he was a child. Honestly, the dorm was kind of spacious if he thought about it. "I will play Assassin's Creed and you can watch, okay?"
"I don't know how you do it," Kay said as he settled into his bed and picked up a particularly hefty book. He found the page he was looking for and then grabbed a pen. "I'm terrible at stealth games."
Cassian grinned. "You just do not have any patience."
"You must have an endless amount," Kay said, "if you're able to deal with Erso."
"Mmhm, you too, buddy," Cassian countered as he slipped into a thin jacket. He had gone to grab his favorite hoodie first until remembering that it was conveniently missing and had been since Jyn "popped in for a visit" three weeks ago. He slipped his keys into his pocket and made sure that the dorm keycard was in his wallet before walking out.
"Tell her I said hi and to learn how to knock!" Kay called out right before the door shut. Of course Cassian didn't have to say anything. There were very few reasons why Cassian would go out on a Friday evening without any pre-determined plans. Friday nights were his homework and gaming nights, so that he wasn't rushed on Sundays before classes. He broke that rule for very few reasons and even less people.
It was a little chilly from the fall breeze, but it wasn't too bad. The sun was mostly set, but other college kids were still running around, coming to and from night classes and extracurricular activities. Cassian wondered every now and then what it would be like to be one of those kids that was connected to college outside of classes and dorm life, but then he'd never been a club person. He liked going out with groups so he could blend in and talk with multiple people, but he preferred to do things on his own in the end. Kay said that he could be really popular if he wanted to be, but the problem was that Cassian didn't want to be popular.
The natatorium was only a fifteen minute walk from the dorms, which made it convenient for a lot of reasons. It was open until nine so that people outside of the swim and diving teams could take their turn doing laps or for the swim lessons that some of the lifeguards, all college students, taught on the side. The pools were mostly empty save for a few people, as practice had ended ten minutes ago, but somehow Cassian was able to recognize one lithe form cutting through the water like a knife.
Cassian had seen Jyn in a swimsuit before, but only in a few pictures that he'd managed to see on social media. She was one of the smaller swimmers on the team, but he imagined her gliding through the water like a bullet. Seeing her now made him realize that he had been right. She was small and thin, but toned muscle hid underneath the multiple layers of clothing that she typically wore. She wasn't going at full speed, doing a cooldown, but his eyes were locked onto the way her arms rhythmically rose and fell in the air and the subtle twists of her body. Before he knew it, he was hovering near the edge of the pool. Technically it had been over two hours.
Jyn must've somehow spotted him despite looking completely concentrated on her swimming as she slowed down and came to a stop upon reaching the wall. Floating effortlessly in the water, she slipped her goggles off and tossed them onto the ground at his feet. "You made it." She glanced up at him as she tugged off her swim cap and undid her hair. Taking a breath, she briefly bobbed underneath the water before bursting back up and lifting herself out of the pool with practiced ease.
"I have never been here before," Cassian noted as he peered around the pool, trying to look at anything but her. She was soaked, water dripping from her and sliding down her smooth skin, making her appear slick and tempting. Instead, he tried to look mildly curious, but mostly unaffected.
"Never?" Jyn asked as she walked towards the bleachers. He followed her, being careful not to step in the puddles that trailed behind her. "Not even to just relax?" He shook his head. She picked up a towel and began to rub at her hair in a half-hearted attempt to dry it. "You do know how to swim, right?"
"Of course," Cassian scoffed.
Jyn grinned. "Because I could teach you if you don't. I've got late night access here."
Late at night, alone with Jyn, with him in nothing but his swim trunks and her in a skintight bathing suit? That sounded like a recipe for disaster. He didn't even need Kay around to know that. Cassian shook his head again, trying to smile politely, but it came off as thin and tight instead. Jyn seemed to get the picture as she snorted and went back to toweling her hair. Difficult woman. He did not like the fact that she had such a good read on him.
"So what's up?" Jyn asked as she began to wrap another towel around her body. Cassian blinked, startled by the sudden switch in conversation. "Seemed like you wanted something when you texted me earlier."
"Oh. Right."
The text message. He'd asked her where she was and she had willingly invited him to meet her in what he considered her sanctioned area. Now that he was here though, with her standing in front of him, Cassian found that he wasn't quite sure what to say. He had kind of planned on asking her via text, but had gotten caught up in her inviting him here that he'd forgot and hadn't figured out how he wanted to do this. Jyn arched an eyebrow as she waited for him to continue. He wanted to propose the question delicately, seeing as how Jyn could be prickly for strange reasons, but instead did nothing of the sort.
"There is a party tomorrow and I wanted to see if you would like to come with me."
A brief silence fell between them, nothing but the sounds of two other swimmers making laps in the pool behind them as they stared at one another. Cassian refused to look anything but impassive, but he was cringing on the inside. That was...not how he'd wanted it to come out. If he tried to backtrack though, she would either tease him or think that he was teasing her. He had found on more than one painful occasion that she either did not take compliments well or didn't believe them. What had made her so suspicious?
"A party. With you."
"Well, not with me - I mean, with me, as in arriving together," Cassian attempted to explain. The attempt was poor at best. He was very good at talking with people - until suddenly he wasn't and tried to blast his way through any awkwardness. "Kay is coming too, but he is not very, well…"
"Much of a party person?" Jyn offered. That was one way of putting it. Cassian nodded his head. "To be honest, I didn't peg you, Cassian Andor, as the type of person to go to a party either."
Cassian shrugged his shoulders. "Han Solo is hosting it - off campus. You're right; it is not my thing, but it is a good place to meet and make connections with upperclassmen. And it sounds like it could be...fun."
Jyn laughed. "If it's being thrown by Solo, then it's going to be a little more than fun." Of course Solo's reputation would precede him. He was a senior who had gained notoriety by being able to smuggle alcohol back when he'd lived on campus. Rumor had it that he had thrown parties in the dorms that covered entire floors, but no one ever ratted him out if they got caught with alcohol by RAs, even if everyone knew that Solo was the one bringing it in. Now that he lived off campus, his parties were well-known and invites were sought after hard. "How'd you get an invite?"
"Leia Organa is in my Philosophy class," Cassian explained. "He has been hounding her to come to one of his parties and she finally agreed, but only if she could invite some of her friends too."
"You being one of the lucky ones," Jyn said in a wry tone. The way her lips twisted suggested something else besides humor, though he couldn't imagine what it was.
"And you, if you want to come," Cassian quickly added. "I am not very close to her, but she told me that I could invite anyone that would make things more comfortable."
Jyn's head tilted as she gazed at him, her eyes shining dangerously. He didn't look away from her, not even when she took a step closer to him. He couldn't tell if he was smelling the chlorine on her or from the air in the room, but she seemed quite close. "And I make things more comfortable for you?"
"Sometimes," Cassian admitted because right now he was very much not comfortable but it wasn't bad either. He just felt like squirming under the intensity of her gaze and proximity of her body. Were he another guy, perhaps someone more like Solo, he would've reached out to her, put his hand on her waist, and pulled her closer to him despite the wet towel. Maybe if he got rid of some of this tension, he'd be more comfortable. But instead, he stood stock still and looked down at her as a smile slowly spread across her face.
"Okay, I'll go with you," Jyn told him, "but on one condition."
Cassian eyed her warily. What sort of conditions could she come up with? Would she tell him that she got to pick what he wore? Or maybe she wanted him to pick her up, except that his car was a jalopy at best. He could think of a lot of ways that Jyn might torture him for her own amusement. He also knew that he'd agree no matter what. It was a matter of stubbornness.
"Bodhi gets to come too," Jyn said.
It took everything in Cassian not to sigh in relief, but he did visibly relax. "That's it? Sure, sure, Bodhi is cool."
In fact, he thought it was an even better idea that Bodhi came. It would make Kay feel better about Cassian inviting Jyn to the party without telling him, so he wouldn't feel like a third wheel (even though that was ridiculous and he had tried to explain it to Kay multiple times.) Also Bodhi had a natural calming effect on Jyn, so she probably wouldn't try to convince anyone to mud wrestle or something.
"So I'll see you tomorrow then?" Jyn asked as she started to gather her things. He nodded his head again, his mind already trying to work around the details. How they would get there, if they should bring their own stuff, what he should wear. "I can't wait to see what Captain Uptight Andor looks like drunk."
"I am not going to get drunk," Cassian protested, folding his arms across his chest.
Jyn smirked and leaned in, like she was going to kiss him on the cheek or something. "That's what you think now." And then she was walking to the locker room to shower, waving a hand at him.
Cassian practically scowled at her back as she disappeared around the corner. No way was he going to get drunk with Jyn around. Who knew what she would do? Probably take pictures and convince him to do ridiculous things that would embarrass the hell out of him later. He'd only been drunk a handful of times and he knew what he was like: dangerously courageous and willing to do anything that he was dared to do. But what was that about him being uptight? He wasn't uptight. Jyn was just teasing him again, knowing it'd get a rise out of him to make him want to prove her wrong.
(It unfortunately was working.)
This would be...interesting, Cassian told himself as he walked back to his dorm in the dark, a few streetlamps guiding his path. For the most part, he and Jyn hung out together outside of everything else. They didn't do things with other people, save for the few people in their group, like Kay and Bodhi, and even that was pushing it. This felt different, like he was taking a step in another direction, except he didn't really know where he was going.
But the moment Leia had told him that he could invite someone else, his first thought had been Jyn's challenging face and her hand reaching out to him. It had been very easy to make his decision, even if he felt unsure now.
