Chapter Five: Attention

Song: Attention by Charlie Puth.

"Jose! It's great to see you. Come in," Ana said as she welcomed him inside her apartment.

Jose was the first person to befriend her when she arrived at WSU. They were both lost and lonely, but that was as far as their similarities went. Eventually, they discovered that our fathers were in the same army unit together. It was a small world indeed.

"I have great news!" He announced, his dark eyes twinkling.

"Don't tell me! -you've managed not to get kicked out for another week," she teased.

He scowled at her playfully. "The Portland Place Gallery is exhibiting my photos next month!"

Jose was studying engineering. He's the first in his family to go to college. But his real passion is photography.

"That's amazing! Congratulations!" She exclaimed, giving him a big hug.

"Let's celebrate!" Jose said, heading to the kitchen to open the bottle of champagne. "You will be my VIP at the gallery."

Whoa.

Ana bit her lip. Jose was too cute with his puppy-dog-eyes. He was all shoulders and muscles, tanned skin, and burning dark eyes. It was unfair of her to string him along. Perhaps she should level with him once and for all.

The cork made its loud pop, and Jose grinned at Ana.

"To us," he murmured, raising his glass."

Ana sipped her champagne while Jose watched her from the rim of his glass.

"Ana..."He began, giving her a look that said he was about to get serious. Suddenly, he bridged the distance between them until he breached her personal space. "Will you have dinner with me after the finals, just you and me?"

Ana's smile faded from her lips. He was so close she sniffed the scent of his aftershave.

Instinctively, she stepped back, erecting a wall around her heart. Her inner goddess shamed her, reminding her how easily she'd let Christian Grey knock down her walls.

"Wo-hoo! Champagne! Kate suddenly waltzed in, helping herself to a glass. "Oh...am I interrupting something?"

"No...not really," Ana chuckled nervously. "Guess what! The Portland Gallery is exhibiting Jose's work!"

"Congrats!" Kate shouted, raising her glass. "Life is treating you well, my friend!"

"Indeed," Jose peered at Ana. "All I need is for 'a certain someone' to accept to go on a dinner date with me, and I will be all set for life."

Ana's cheeks burned; she hated that he'd put her on the spot like that.

Kate's smile turned into a wide grin when she realized Jose was talking about Ana.

"Hey...guys, I really got to go back to studying," giving Kate a long, pointed look.

"Me too," Kate replied while sipping her champagne. "Tomorrow is my English final."

"All right, girls! I can take a hint. I'll leave you to your studies."

Thanks for stopping by, Jose!"

...

What are these?" Kate asked, pointing to a Post-it note hanging from the bathroom mirror. "They're all over the house!"

The words: I HATE CHRISTIAN GREY, were written in large block letters.

"Those are my daily affirmations," Ana replied. "I'm trying to program my subconscious for success."

"I thought affirmations were supposed to be positive."

"The basic principle is this: What you frequently repeat to yourself sticks."

"That's just nonsense. What you need is a good old-fashioned substitute."

"Like a substitute lover? I think I've read my share of cheesy romance novels by that title," Ana snorted.

...

Three days later.

The bar was loud and hectic, full of soon-to-be graduates about to get trashed.

Ana and her group sat merrily at a large round booth. Jose treated everyone to the first round of drinks. Everyone was having a great time when, suddenly, the atmosphere changed; a group of personnel in uniforms took their posts around the perimeter, making everyone turn and stare.

"It's gotta be a celebrity!" Kate exclaimed.

As if on cue, Christian Grey entered the bar alongside his fiancee. At once, the couple was ushered to a private table with enclosed glass walls.

What were the odds, Ana thought.

"Hey, they're pulling a Hotel California," Jose complained loudly. He waved his hands until he got people's attention. "You can't shut us down just because of a celebrity. We should be allowed to check out any time we like."

"Of course, you can leave any time," the manager announced loud enough for everyone to hear. "We're not admitting any new patrons for your security."

"Look who's staring," Kate nudged her, giggling.

Ana didn't have to look to know who she was referring to. She could feel HIS gaze boring into her while she pretended not to notice.

It gave her great satisfaction to know that he knew that she knew he would be at this party tonight.

He'd been going around and around searching while she went around, hoping she would be the one to win.

Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Christian exuding frustration as he stood from the table and tugged at his collar. Oh, how he hated being ignored.

Naturally, Ana faked surprise when he approached their table arm in arm with his fiancee.

By then, Kate had left their table with Levi, one of the people in their group and her usual photographer for the student newspaper.

"Hello, Anastasia," Christian greeted her coolly.

"Hi," Ana replied. "These are my friends Jose, Lindsay, and Mike."

Christian murmured a polite "nice to meet you" in an aloof manner. He then turned to Leila.

"Anastasia is the student I gave a ride to the other day."

"Nice meeting you," Leila said with a forced smile, her lashes gazing at her in barely disguised disdain, "Oh... really? Leila turned to glare at Ana, the full extent of her contempt partially hidden from Christian.

"Yes, it was very kind of him," Ana said to Leila politely.

"My Christian is quite charitable," Leila replied crisply. "He loves taking pity on hopeless causes. Don't you, dear?"

Christian gave Leila a sharp look.

"Oh, no. Miss Williams, please don't describe yourself that way," Ana said with feigned innocence.

The air became thick. Jose cleared his throat.

"Thanks for helping Ana," he said to Christian almost reluctantly, wrapping a possessive hand around Ana's shoulders.

"It was nothing," Christian muttered under his breath his dislike for Jose oozing through his pores.

Soon after, Christian and Leila returned to their see-thru cocoon, and Kate and Levi rejoined Ana's group in time for the second round of drinks.

...

The next time Ana and Christian made eye contact, she was pleasantly surprised to see how much he longed for her attention. He met her gaze fair and square, opening a window into his thoughts.

He was thinking about that kiss, yes!

The nerve of that man! How dare he look at her when he had the "MOST PERFECT" woman by his side?

You just want attention; you don't want my heart

Maybe you just hate the thought of me with someone new

Yeah, you just want attention, I knew from the start

You're just making sure I'm never getting over you.

"To the end of our exams and our new life in Seattle," Kate said, handing her a glass of champagne.

"What now, Ana?" Jose shouted over the noise, sliding closer to her. "After you settle down in Seattle... you'll be coming to my show...right?"

Ana drained the whole glass, very much aware of Christian watching her every move, shooting daggers at Jose, his mind quickly putting two and two together and making five hundred.

Focus, Ana, focus!

"Of course," Ana said, "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

Jose put his arm around her waist and pulled her close.

Her gaze naturally drifted toward Christian, catching a dangerous gleam in his eyes. She held his gaze, captivated.

Even in her drunken state, HE was still present in her heart and soul. It was hard to admit, but deep down, she didn't really want to banish her memories of him. Her treacherous little heart would rather revisit those memories whenever she damn pleased.

Oh, God. She was hopeless!

When Kate got up from their table to dance with Levi, Jose slid so close his thigh touched Ana's.

"It means a lot you'll be there, Ana," Jose whispered in her ear.

Ana giggled in response to the tickle of his breath in her ear.

Then, knowing that Christian was watching her, Ana impulsively pressed her lips against Jose's.

Their kiss was short and sweet. When it was over, a thunderstruck Jose gazed long and hard into her eyes.

And then, suddenly, his hand went under the table and slipped between her legs.

"Jose? What are you doing?"

"On, Ana, you know I like you."

Instead of pulling away, his hand lingered there.

"Hey!" She pushed her arms against his chest, indignant. "I'm not that kind of girl!" She rose to her feet unsteadily. "No ring, no sex, she declared her mantra loud enough for the entire state of Washington to hear.

While Ana stole a glance at a scowling Christian, Jose was down to one knee next to their dining booth.

"Ana, will you marry me?" He said, revealing a small velvet box out of his pocket.

...

A/N:

Dear guest reviewer (June 25th):

RE: CG: a wayward husband.

MY RESPONSE:

I know it certainly seems that way. But not everything is what it seems. And not everything that seems is.

Dear readers:

Fear not! I'm not running out of songs any time soon. I got a 200-song playlist compiled for this story to see us through whenever inspiration fades.

Coming soon: songs by Adele, Beyonce, and Boys II Men.

For Bella:

Forever Young by Rod Stewart.

I Hope You Dance by Lee Ann Womack