Chapter Sixteen

The first day back brought with it a feeling of familiarity. Gone were the fears and anxieties from the first day and in their place there was both a happiness and an eagerness for the returning freshmen as they prepped to end their first year in college with either top marks and having made their first steps towards their futures, or with enough memories and stories of highs and lows to write a book about.

These two ambitions were had by both Eddy and Double D respectively, while Ed floated around somewhere between the two in his own void where going with the flow was the best strategy because, after all, swimming against the current was a dumb idea.

The trio had settled back into their dorms the day before along with their enemies turned allies the three Kanker Sisters. The day was coming to an end and the sun was setting after Eddy's last class. He walked alone down the paved paths from the business center to his dorm. Snow coated the ground and the tops of the trees that ran along the sides of the path were bare. A few winter birds eyed him as he passed from their perches on the branches with his hands in the pockets of his sweater and his breath visible in the cold air.

Eddy was ready to be back in his dorm, where he could voice his complaints about the upcoming assignments and workload to his two best friends. The heating was also a notable bonus to the young man who refused to shiver because he was too prideful to show any weakness, even to the birds. He hated birds.

"Watch out!" a familiar voice called out from behind him and on instinct, Eddy sidestepped out of the way without breaking his stride. Lee, clad in activewear that didn't go unnoticed by the young man, jogged past him and stopped a few feet ahead. Panting as she reached into the joined pocket of her hoodie to retrieve a water bottle which she proceeded to drink from in greedy bursts.

"Heya, Legs." he said as he walked over to join her, "What's shakin'?" Eddy always thought he was so cool with his antiquated slang and style. He was lucky Lee thought it was more cute than misogynistic.

When she finished with the water bottle, she stuffed it back into her pocket and breathed in heavy gasps. Damn was she out of shape. But when she thought about it, was she ever in shape? "Trying to get some running in." she wheezed out, "All these microwavables and vendin' machine snacks are startin' ta catch up with me."

Eddy took the opportunity to ogle her up and down, it wasn't often that he was given the free pass to do so, and he wasn't going to let it fly by. "You must be seeing things because you look great." he commented.

She knew he meant it, and if his thorough inspection said anything it was that he liked what he saw. Still Lee, and for that matter, her sisters, always feared they'd gain their mother's weight and that wasn't something any of them wanted. Not yet anyway. Instead of giving him any sort of dignified answer or relenting this personal insecurity, Lee opted to do a bit of teasing. It was Kanker nature after all. "Well maybe I'm not the only one that should be worryin' about it." she grinned, before poking him in his stomach and giggling to herself.

He glared at her and swatted her finger away, "You gonna be back at the dorm anytime soon?" he asked.

"Sure, just gotta do another lap."

"Good. Let's hang out or something."

She smiled. She liked this. Eddy was being more of the boy she liked and less of the asshole she hated. But still, business always came before pleasure, and if she wanted to keep up with her 4.0 GPA she'd need to keep her nose to the grindstone and away from Eddy. At least when it was important to. "We'll see." she winked as she resumed her jog. After all, she could always multitask.

"What's the deal with the two of you anyway?" Marie asked from Lee's bed in her and May's dorm.

Lee, the sister in question, sat at her desk and organized her schoolwork from that day. A few of her classes dived headfirst into the work while only a handful had stuck to the tradition of handing out a syllabus on the first day and calling it there.

"He took me out a few times, but he's still gotta long way to go." Lee shrugged. Both Marie and May were leveling accusations about her sudden, though not unexpected, relationship with Eddy. Like all good, gossip loving sisters, they were in her business.

"Oh, don't act like you don't like it!" Marie grinned.

"For real, Lee. It's your man we're talking about." May chimed in from her own bed where she lay scrolling on her phone.

"Why do I gotta be the talk of the town? Whadda about you two girls? May you've been real buddy, buddy with Ed, and don't get me started on you Marie. A romantic rendezvous in Double D's house, alone, on Christmas Eve? C'mon." she deflected.

If she was being honest, she did appreciate Eddy's attention. It may not have been the type of romance that filled discount book racks in department stores, but it was comfortable for both of them. Besides, Eddy was being more of a gentleman now than ever and was keeping his hands to himself. Not his eyes of course, but she knew to pick her battles.

He had bought her a salad from a nearby place, and they shared their dinner together after her jog. It seemed he had listened to as least some of her words. The salad was evidence of that. But the massive double decker, bacon cheeseburger, and fries he got himself told her he took her comment about his weight in stride. But then again, he had asked her about jogging together sometime.

"Hey me and Ed are just friends!" May defended with narrowed eyes.

"And don't you worry about what me and my Oven Mitt do behind closed doors. A lady never kisses and tells!"

Lee could only venture a single response that seemed both appropriate and worthy of the conversation she was having, "Pfffft!" she spat out, "You two are really somethin' else, ya know that? Prolly just jealous I'm gettin' some and you too aren't."

The two pillows collided with both the back and side of her head one after the other. She couldn't say they caught her off guard, but had she been paying more attention she might have been able to avoid the blows. She slammed her notebook shut and jumped to her feet as she retrieved a pillow with each hand before glaring at her opponents.

"It is so on." she growled as a sadistic smile spread across her face.

After all, it was only Kanker nature.