Chapter 6
A/N Reuniting
Thank you to those of you following and reviewing this story. I will be in my happy writing place for a few weeks so you should be getting a few more updates faster, depending how quickly I can get them written.
Winter was in full force when the students returned to the UVA campus in January for the spring semester.
Suzanne had only been back on campus since late the evening before, so she had not had a chance to catch up with Benjamin.
Benjamin came back to campus five days ago to get prepared for the next semester and to meet with Professor Taylor. He would be his TA for the semester and wanted to get a jump on his duties.
Benjamin was on his way to Timpson Hall when he happened to see a familiar face quickly walking down the sidewalk and entering the building.
He jogged up the sidewalk to catch her before she went into her classroom.
Suzanne was about to enter her classroom, when she heard her name called. She turned and saw Benjamin walking towards her. She immediately felt butterflies in her stomach and her face lit up.
Benjamin, seeing her big smile, returned the smile. He walked up to her and they were both kind of awkwardly fumbling with how to greet each other. Suzanne wanted him to hug her hello, but looked down at her feet so he would not see the longing in her face.
Benjamin wanted to hug her hello, but didn't want to appear as he was crowding her.
Benjamin asked, "How was your holiday? Did you enjoy your time with your family?"
She raised her eyes to him and said, "They were great and yes I enjoyed the time with them a lot. I got in some riding too and spent time walking around the farm. How was yours?"
"It was great, I spent some real quality time with my mom and my dad was not overbearing. I also put in some work at his company and he told me how proud he was of me with how much I was learning. I caught an error in a finance report that would have cost the company a bunch of money and he beamed with pride when he told my grandfather that I had caught the mistake," he said with a slight grin.
She smiled back and reached over and placed her hand on his arm. "That is wonderful Benjamin, I know it made you feel good he was proud of you."
"Yes, I was happy I could contribute and help save the company money. What is your schedule like today? Do you have time for lunch or coffee?" he asked.
"I only have two classes today and they are both this morning, so my afternoon is free. I would love to do something with you this afternoon," she said.
"Great, I have a meeting with Professor Taylor and then a class, so I will be free after noon. What would you like to do?" he asked, delighted she was willing to spend the afternoon with him. "We can meet up after your classes and decide."
"Sounds like a plan, I will meet you here since both of my classes are in this building until noon," she said, smiling at him.
"Ok, I will let you go to your class, see you at noon," he said. He stepped forward to give her a kiss on the cheek, but she turned her head so it landed on her lips. He pulled back from the kiss and smiled at her as he turned to walk away.
They met up at noon and decided on lunch in the student union. After lunch, due to the cold weather they decided to go to her study room in the library. They both wanted to get a jump on papers they would need to write in the coming weeks.
As the semester wore on, days turned into weeks and they spent part of everyday together. Going on dates, studying in the library and also spending time at each other's apartments.
They were not one for attending parties as they had gotten that out of their systems in their previous years, but would occasionally attend with their friends.
They both had a small social group and would spend time with them also. They would usually end up separating themselves from the group, choosing to spend time with each other.
Spring break was spent on campus for both since their classes were so demanding they wanted to stay ahead and chose to study together.
They were at his apartment sitting on the couch studying, when he looked up at her and said, "Do you want to do something tomorrow?"
"What do you have in mind?" she asked.
"I thought we could maybe go hiking up at Black Top Mountain. It is supposed to be warm tomorrow. There are some really nice trails up there," he told her.
"That sounds like an excellent idea, we could pack a picnic lunch and find a spot to enjoy that," she suggested.
"I know the perfect spot, there is an overlook that would be ideal. We can leave around eight and be at the overlook by 11 or so," he said.
She agreed and decided to call it a night and head back to her apartment. Benjamin drove her home and they spent some time at her front door, kissing and saying goodnight.
The next morning, he picked her up, surprising her with a coffee and a fresh baked muffin. They drove in silence both enjoying the beauty of the scenery around them. Once they arrived at the start of the trails, Benjamin took her hand in his and led her up the trail.
He had hiked these trails before and knew the exact place he wanted to take her to. They hiked for about two hours when they suddenly cleared the trees and she was overcome with the beauty before her.
They were on a flat rock outcropping that overlooked the valley below. She was standing with her back to Benjamin and he walked up and circled her waist with his arms.
"Benjamin, this is so beautiful, thank you for bringing me here," she said.
"It is beautiful, but not as beautiful as you," he said, turning her to look at him.
She ducked her head and blushed at his complement. "We should set out the food right here."
Working together, they soon had the blanket spread and were enjoying the food she had made for them. They finished up eating and packed all the remnants up. They both had brought a book to read and decided to just enjoy the day outside.
Benjamin leaned back against some flat rocks with her beside him. Suzanne kept glancing at him thinking he didn't see her. She decided she wanted to be closer to him so she scooted over until she was sitting between his legs, with her back against his chest.
He smiled at her and placed an arm around her waist, holding his book with the other. They stayed like that for a couple of hours and decided it was time to head back down the mountain.
They arrived back at her apartment and she invited him up for dinner. They worked together and made a delicious yet simple dinner. They ate and cleaned the kitchen together. Suzanne was constantly surprised when he insisted on helping her clean up. She could never remember a time her dad or brother helped her mother clean up after a meal.
"Thank you for helping to clean up," she told him. "Of course I will help, you should not be doing all the work. We all helped with the clean up in our house. My mom insisted that all chores be shared equally," he said.
"That is so refreshing, my dad and brother never helped," she said.
He didn't want to leave yet and she didn't want their night to end so they decided to sit on the couch and watch tv. He sat down and pulled her into his chest. The TV was soon forgotten as he pulled her into a deep kiss. One kiss led to two and they were into a heavy make out session. He knew he had to stop or this would lead to something they were not ready for yet.
He pulled back from her and rested their foreheads together. "As much as I would love nothing more for this to go further, we better stop," he said breathlessly.
She pulled back from him and said, "Yes we should probably call it a night." She stood up and led him to her door.
They kissed goodnight and he left with a feeling that he had never felt before. The drive to his apartment was a short one, but he spent the entire time trying to put that feeling into words. He laid in bed that night, thinking to himself that he was falling in love with her.
Across campus, Suzanne was laying in bed trying to get the butterflies in her stomach to settle down. She was feeling things she too had never felt before and decided that she was falling in love with him.
They both finally fell asleep very content in their feelings since they had both finally acknowledged them to themselves.
The end of the semester was fast approaching and both were really busy trying to stay on top of their studies. She was determined to maintain her GPA and class status due to graduation fast approaching. They still studied together and worked on their business class requirements together. Studying and writing papers took up most of their time and dates were put on the back burner for now.
They were sitting in their business class taking their final, the last for both of them. Once they were done, they decided to go out and celebrate her upcoming graduation.
"Benjamin, I really want you to meet my family. I haven't told them that we are dating, so if you do not want to I will understand," she told him at dinner.
"I would be honored to meet them. I will have to meet them eventually, so now is as good a time as any," he said with a smile.
"My parents are coming down also, my dad is giving a speech for the graduates of the business school. We could all get together and let everyone meet," he said.
"Ok, why don't we plan on Saturday after graduation," she suggested.
He agreed and they finished up dinner