Danny bent his head low, squinting as he struggled to read the uniformly compact writing of a nervous student. The balancing equation stretched all the way across the page, coming up on the edge unexpectedly, the tiny numbers and letters squishing together in a lopsided effort not to stray to the next line.

He frowned, dropping the test to the gleaming polished surface of Garibaldi's desk, and pinched the bridge of his nose. He could feel a headache coming on, tension pulling tightly at the muscles at his temples. Closing his eyes, he leaned back, a sharp squeak coming from the leather padded chair.

It wasn't just the tests that had him frustrated and tightly coiled. Actually, it wasn't the tests at all. There was nothing unusual about the fastidious manner in which Garibaldi's students took their tests, hunched over their desks as they scribbled madly trying to finish before the minute hand reached around to twelve again. And the professor always underestimated how much time was needed to complete the long pages of convoluted chemistry questions. He'd seen a panic attack or three in the past couple years.

He was used to it by now. The real reason he could feel a pounding headache building behind his eyeballs, the tension in his shoulders growing with each passing minute, was Christina. He could admit that a cold sweat had broken out across his forehead when she'd charged through the students, sending the youthful academics scurrying with one twitch of a finely arched brow. Her icy stare had chilled far hardier souls than the ones standing between her and Danny.

And when she'd touched his arm, the rushing tide of memories had overwhelmed him, his voice sticking in his throat as though there were a wishbone caught in his windpipe. She was still beautiful, limpid eyes sparkling as she assessed him, skin pale and opaque like frosted glass shielding a bright light. The easy smile that she cast over him could only mean trouble. He'd felt his chest constrict in anticipation.

It had only taken him one semester to fall head over heels in love with her, fresh out of high school, no inkling of the responsibilities that would pull him away from his studies within a year. She'd been everything he wasn't, graceful, poised. She'd spoken elegantly, each word enunciated like she were reciting poetry, no trace of a regional accent anywhere in her clearly defined syllables.

She was not an island girl, the raw sensuality he'd always been drawn to was somehow absent, and in it's place resided an ethereal, almost untouchable beauty. She reminded him of the marble statues in the Acropolis, regally standoffish, and all the more alluring for it.

She was as cold as the marble statues too, watching him fall in love with her so quickly, keeping her own emotional distance. When he'd declared his love for her, saying the actual words no easy task for him, her eyes had widened in disbelief. "Danny, we're not even exclusive!"

He'd taken it as rejection, betrayal slicing through him like a hot knife through butter. Rage boiled up inside of him, the hurt somehow a culmination of every rejection he'd ever experienced. It would never have occurred to him that exclusivity needed to be stated, lines drawn in the sand. They'd never really been on the same wavelength, coming together in concert only behind closed doors and under heavy blankets.

She hadn't seen it though, the calm facade slipped down over his features so swiftly. Sure, they weren't exclusive. He'd stopped seeking her out shortly after that. The distance helped, and it was soon magnified by his return home to support his family in a trying time. But, when he came back, she was still there, laying her cool fingers on the back of his neck, coming up behind him and surprising him with a pinch.

Her persistent proximity and his driving need to just … be enough for someone pushed him back toward her with sickening regularity, falling into what she called a "friends with benefits" arrangement. Although, each time they had tumbled into the bed, he'd thought maybe it would be the time she realized she'd been wrong about him. His hands would curl unconsciously into fists as he'd listened to her gather her things and depart before dawn. Every time he told himself it would be the last, but it never was.

He'd sagged with relief when she'd told him she was going to some non traditional art school on the west coast, getting her bachelor's a full two years before him. His ears burned with shame at the memory of those last few nights, frantically making love to her like it would change things, an over eager little boy trying to prove himself.

He couldn't have told you what he'd thought that would accomplish. He'd shied away from the hope that she would suddenly declare him good enough, unpack her bags and settle in with him. The hot coals of humiliation raked over him every time she walked away unscathed, leaving him raw and more than a little bitter. Now he was able to see his motivation clearly, a base part of himself clinging to her simply because she didn't seem to want or need him at all.

He thought grimly of her last visit, sometime in the summer, a sweltering weekend spent sprawled on the cool hardwood of his bedroom floor. He'd felt pathetic all over again when she'd left without a word, hanging the dress she'd forgotten in the back of his closet. He knew she'd be back eventually.

What he hadn't anticipated was Mindy, her radiant smile beaming at him every time he turned around. For the first time in a really long time, he'd forgotten Christina, felt the warmth of true affection tingling around his heart when Mindy said his name. That feeling was utterly foreign to him, and it left an overexcited swarm of butterflies flapping in his stomach.

He'd been so stunned by Christina's sudden appearance in the lecture pit, that by the time his head had popped up, eyes searching desperately for Mindy, she was no where to be found. It left a distinct hollow feeling in the center of his chest, an unexpected sense of foreboding seeping into him.

Now, he wasn't worried about falling back into Christina's toxic orbit, he'd finally gotten away from the pull she exerted on him. Her eyes no longer seemed to hold infinite depths, and he was left wondering if maybe she had a circulatory problem, her hands cold as ever. The worry that swirled in his chest had an altogether different source. He was desperately afraid Christina's reappearance would screw things up with Mindy.

He'd been counting down the days until the end of the semester, a reservation at Chez Bleu ready and waiting in January, when they could finally stop this game of hide and seek. He knew this was hard for her, clouds casting shadows over her sunny countenance whenever they parted ways each day, and he felt a pinching sensation just under his sternum each time it happened. He knew it couldn't go on much longer like this.

Christina was aggressive, even more so whenever someone presented a challenge. She wasn't the type of woman to deliberately destroy his new relationship, but if he displayed marked disinterest without a concrete reason, she was certain to redouble her efforts.

Danny groaned, pushing back from the desk and making his way to Garibaldi's bookshelf. The funny little man had a miniature bar disguised as a geographically correct globe. Danny rested his hand on the top of it, his finger finding the little hinge that swung the thing open. There was just enough room inside for one crystal bottle of moderately expensive whiskey and two matching tumblers.

He carefully pulled out the bottle and poured himself two fingers. The liquid burned as it splashed against the back of his throat. Danny couldn't be sure, but he was pretty convinced there was very little difference between a hundred dollar bottle of Irish whiskey and the fifteen dollar gutrot he often drank. It all tasted awful going down, but always had pretty much the same effect.

Just as he set the finely etched crystal tumbler back on the shelf, a warm little fire pooling in his stomach, he felt it. The hauntingly familiar cool touch at his neck, two fingers being drawn across the skin, careful not to catch the hair at his nape.

He closed his eyes for a millisecond, wishing it was Mindy, yet knowing she'd never be this patient. Her lips would have already been eagerly trailing hot kisses down his neck, hands pulling at him.

Turning, he found Christina smiling at him slightly, eyes narrowed as she calculated her next move. He hadn't heard her come in, her silent movements reminiscent of a predatory cat, the look on her face doing nothing to qualify that impression.

Danny just stared, trying to figure out what had once been so mesmerizing about this woman, a little frown pulling at the corners of his mouth. Just as he suspected, his unwelcoming attitude only seemed to be a challenge, cold hands grasping the back of his neck as she pulled him to her lips.

His arms instinctively raised, hands resting on her shoulders. She took it as acquiescence and tried to deepen the kiss, stepping into his embrace. He pushed her away, ending the interaction with an audible smack as their lips parted.

"What the hell, Christina?"

She appeared confused for a moment, but quickly shrugged it off. "What, Danny, our usual greeting not to your liking?"

He could feel the heat in his face, cursing the alcohol just making its way through his veins. "No, I mean, yes, um… What are you doing here?"

Arching one eyebrow in response, she closed the space between them once again, this time smiling mischieviously. Her hand lit on his chest, sliding slowly downward as she spoke. "Same as always, Daniel."

Normally, the husky way she said his full name would have had him dragging her to the nearest flat surface, but currently it only inspired a mild revulsion in him.

Her eyes quickly traversed his body, narrowing as she tried to figure him out. "You practically bolted this morning, sweating like you have some sort of medical condition. Either something's up, or you're just exceptionally excited to see me."

He felt her hand slip down to his belt buckle, and opened his mouth to object, but another voice beat him to the punch.

"Yo, Castellano, I've got...:"

Peter stood in the doorway, frozen comically mid stride, eyes impossibly wide as he surveyed the scene before him. Danny saw the machinations of his roommate's brain, putting two and two together and then finally, after a kind of lengthy amount of time, coming up with four. Peter's eyes narrowed, nodding in an irritatingly all knowing way. "Interrupting something, am I?"

Danny awkwardly pushed Christina away, rounding the desk to put more space between them. He focused entirely on Peter, pointedly ignoring Christina in a way that implied Peter had very much been interrupting something. "What? No, Pete, not at all. Did you need something?"

Now that Danny thought about it, it was kind of odd for Pete to be here. In the two years they'd lived together, Danny could count the number of times Peter had sought him out on campus on one hand. The guilty look that crossed his friend's overly animated face confirmed Danny's suspicion.

"Pete?"

Peter started talking rapidly, edging slightly away from Danny. "So there's gonna be a rager at the house tonight, and by 'gonna' I kind of mean 'already is', and we sort of designated your bedroom for all beer related games, and my buddy Pubes took apart your bed to make room for the beer pong table, but he lost the screws, so I just wanted to give you a heads up and let you know you probably need to find somewhere else to sleep tonight."

"What! There's one rule! One! You and your idiot friends stay out of my bedroom."

Peter raised his hands in defense, looking over Danny's shoulder at Christina, silently pleading with her to intervene."It's not like you can't find somewhere else for one night right? I mean surely M-"

Danny cut him off, grabbing him by the shirt front. "Is there no respect for a man's privacy? This is anarchy!"

"Has anyone ever told you, you got a real flare for the dramatic?" Peter twisted out of his angry grasp, straightening his shirt indignantly. "Come on man, relax. You could, I don't know, maybe join in the revelry for once, instead of being such an uptight stuffed shirt." He gestured to Christina. "Maybe invite your lady friend to the festivities, see if she has any hot chicas who might want to come. Stop being such a wet blanket."

Danny's jaw clenched, the muscle ticking as he struggled not to deck the man standing in front of him. But then he felt it again, the cool fingers against his neck, this time sending an unpleasant shiver down his spine. She was at his shoulder, smiling at the idiot in the doorway.

"That sounds great, Pete. Get a few shots in Danny and he's an entirely different person. She leaned over kissing him on the cheek. "And I think we can find someplace to sleep tonight." Turning to Danny, she smiled like a cat who'd just lapped up an entire bowl of cream. "Sort this out with your friend. I'll be waiting at your car." And then she slipped gracefully from the room, leaving Danny fuming.

Peter stared at him strangely. "So that's how it is?"

This confusing statement drew Danny out of his ire somewhat. "How what is?"

Peter merely shook his head, leaning against the door jamb. "I respect your player status, aspire to it even, but... " He shifted uncomfortably. "Mindy's a nice girl, isn't she? I don't think-"

Danny cut him off. "Mind your own damn business, Prentice." He ushered Peter angrily from the office, locking it behind them silently. Danny quickly outpaced him, calling out over his shoulder. "You're gonna find those screws, and you're gonna get your friends the hell out of my house."


Mindy tugged anxiously at the hem of her cocktail dress. She wasn't one to shy away from short skirts, but she'd gone a bit overboard tonight. The tight black bandage dress hugged every single curve, stopping high on her thigh to expose an expanse of smooth brown skin. She'd eyed herself carefully in the mirror before finally letting Maggie drag her out of the room.

Her makeup was on point, the winged eyeliner like fierce war paint paired with her cherry red lipstick, hair falling in silken waves around her shoulders. She knew she looked crazy bangable hot, and yet there was still a tiny bit of insecurity lingering in the back of her mind. If she were the other woman, there was little she could do to compete against someone like the stunning blonde, especially if there was already a history there.

Lost in thought, she'd somehow drifted into a corner, reverting back the way she acted at parties in highschool, nothing but an artfully decorated wallflower. It was early yet, only nine, Danny nowhere to be seen, Maggie having ditched her almost as soon as they slipped through the door.

To be fair, Maggie had said she was going to do some recon, find out who the mystery blonde was without stirring up too much trouble, but Mindy hadn't seen in her in a good bit, three entire upbeat pop songs having played all the way through.

She sighed, leaning against the wall, head dropping back with an audible thud, about to give full rein to her worst thoughts. A hand at her elbow yanked her back to reality, eyelids flying open in surprise.

Mindy checked her enthusiasm upon seeing the downward turn of Maggie's mouth. "So, I couldn't find out anything. Pete isn't here, and apparently Andrew knows next to nothing about Danny or his love life. Apparently, Mr. Inappropriate TA is quite close mouthed about his personal life."

Mindy sighed, shaking her head. She suddenly felt very foolish. "Let's just go, Mags. This is idiotic." Her cheeks were slightly flushed with embarrassment as she shrugged off her friend's touch. "I should just ask him the next time I see him, it's not like-"

Her next words were drowned out by a racket at the front door, hooping and hollering like mad. It was some sort of chant, the sort of thing she would have been familiar with if she'd ever attended any of the frat parties Maggie had been invited too.

A group spilled through the front entrance, King Peter at it's helm, holding a tap over his head. "Keg is here!"

Mindy forgot her desire to leave, intent now on scanning the faces of each person who passed through the doorway, frowning at the number of already pre-gamed sorority girls slipping in between the guys. The constant flood of people slowed somewhat, trickling down to nothing, and Mindy let out a long sigh of relief.

There was always a chance Danny didn't know about this party. It didn't really seem like his scene anyway. A flash of him sitting alone at the desk in Garibaldi's office floated before her eyes, a sweet smile spreading across her face at the thought. How unfair that he got stuck with so much of the professor's work. Now that she thought about it, the older man was always fobbing stuff off on Danny, surely more than any other TA was expected to undertake.

A full strength wave of indignation swept over her, and she tossed her shoulders back, already formulating the strongly worded letter she was going to send to the Dean over Garibaldi clearly taking advantage of a student who desperately needed the position. She'd even taken three quick steps toward the door, when it swung open again, this time a pair of soft dark eyes staring at her in surprise.

She couldn't help the involuntary kick she felt when she saw him, her heart thumping a quick little double tap, lips curving upward unconsciously before she remembered her purpose here. When she did remember, it didn't help. For the briefest of moments there was an answering expression on his face, a softness around the eyes that even she hadn't seen all that often, but it was quickly masked as his eyebrows furrowed.

Danny was the first to speak. "What are you doing here?"

Mindy's opened her mouth to answer, squaring her shoulders to bolster her waning confidence, but the sound died on her vocal chords, withering away at the sight of a pair of ice blue eyes just over Danny's shoulder.

Mindy spun on her heel, no easy task in five inch Louboutins, scurrying across the crowded room. She picked the first door she found, slamming it behind her before leaning against it and squeezing her eyes shut.

She hadn't expected the hurt. It clawed at her chest, forcing the air out of her lungs, an invisible hand closing on her larynx. Tears only came when she caught her breath, the squeaking gasps sounding like a dying seagull.

"Um, are you alright?"

She nearly choked, drawing her shaking hands away from the cool surface of the door to cover her mouth. Peter was staring at her with a horrified expression on his face, paused in the middle of buttoning a clean shirt. She couldn't answer for fear of bursting into ugly sobs again, so she merely shook her head.

"Hey, uh, don't cry…"

A/N: Thanks for reading, sorry it took so long for an update. I'm really having a hard time sitting down and writing lately. I HATE leaving things unfinished though and I still have a clear idea where I want this to end up, so please bear with me. All your comments are very dear to me, and I love it when anyone takes the time to let me know what thank think.