Caught In The Middle

A missed coffee

As Reese walked the halls of the business faculty building he was well aware of the fact that his eyes were constantly searching for Quinn Malley. After Friday’s outcome he hadn’t seen or heard from her and now it was after lunch he really wanted to be able to touch base with her and make sure she was still on board and double check she was okay after what Cory said.

It was quite obvious to him now that Quinn had suffered or was suffering from some sort of trauma, possibly from her childhood, she had said she was born in Boston but that didn’t mean much. It was the way she flinched, the way she was suddenly quiet or polite to dispel any confrontation with men.

He sighed and berated his own invasive thoughts as they pointed out the fact she would make a great sub…

He loved delving into that world but had never fully immersed, most girls got nervous when you wanted to tie them up and smack their ass and he never spent enough time with just one girl to build the trust for anything more serious than a bit of hair pulling, throat holding and making them beg for his c**k while on their knees.

He bumped into someone in the hall and snapped back to reality, looking around. He looked down to see a guy standing in the hall blocking his way as he stood with his mates all chatting right in the middle of the corridor. Being six foot four he was taller than most people and intimidating to boot.

“Sorry man.” The guy blurted out and quickly moved to the side. His mates all staring at him and Reese with apprehension, expecting the worst.

“Nah, my fault…I was miles away.” Reese flipped back then gave the guys an intense look. “But maybe next time don’t have your chat in the middle of the goddamned hallway!”

“Sorry…” They all lamented as Reese ran a hand through his hair sweeping it back from his eyes and looked ahead taking a step to continue on his way. He paused, his hand falling as he forgot how to breathe for a second.

There she was…

Standing in the hall and smiling at him brightly showing her teeth, her eyes sparkling with great amusement.

Wait? Is she laughing at me?

“Something amusing to you, Quinn?” He asked with a little light-hearted scowl as he walked up to her.

“Yeah…even though that was your fault and you admitted it you still had those guys terrified.”

Reese breathed out a little short laugh and licked his tongue out over his teeth.

Quinn’s eyes tracked his tongue, god he was so damn sexy. She had never known anyone ooze male sexuality like this guy did. It made her wonder just how much experience he had. She knew Cory and the footballers were known as the f**k boys on campus, no surprises there, but Reese was known as the Prince and girls scrambled to get in his bed, and even guys if the rumors of him being bisexual were true.

Quinn realized they were just staring at each other and dropped her gaze, coughing awkwardly. Reese grinned, enjoying the candid moment. “I’m glad I caught up with you, I wanted to grab a coffee or something?”

“Oh, I’m on my way to the library.” Quinn said, indicating a girl Reese hadn’t even noticed standing beside her. Reese looked at the girl a little surprised and saw her watching their exchange with a little faint blush on her cheeks. “Me and Tania have been paired for an assignment.”

“Oh, maybe later then…” Reese gave her a dashing smile.

Quinn chewed on her lip making Reese take pause.

“You want to say something, Quinn? Don’t be nervous, speak your mind.”

Quinn’s eyes seemed to brighten and dazzled him as she slow blinked. “You could come with us if you weren’t doing anything right now? We just need to do a quick outline, get a couple of books and then we’re done.”

Reese had to block his view of her adorable expression and covered his face with one hand. “You’re asking me to join you?” He peeked out from between his fingers. “With that cute look on your face…damn, how can I say no?”

Quinn pouted a little at him making fun of her, but her friend interrupted their outrageous flirting. “I’ve only got a quick twenty minutes, so…”

Reese took his phone out of his pocket and held it out to Quinn. “Tell you what…give me your Insta and you can let me know once you’re finished and meet me at the café ‘Artifice’.”

That was the café in the art faculty building that used the space to feature student’s winning artwork.

“Okay.” Quinn took his phone and added herself to his Insta then added him to hers.

“See ya later, babe.” Reese quipped and walked off. He wanted to bounce and had to concentrate so hard to not fist pump the air. She seemed like a completely different chick today and he wondered if Cory had been the reason for her light mood, because she didn’t look troubled to him.

Cory – that damn golden retriever!

.

Quinn followed Tania to the library and as they sat down Tania sat shoulder to shoulder, pressing in.

“Now spill, first Friday night and now you’re openly flirting with each other in the halls?” She gushed. “And can I just say you two were so freaking adorable…I had no idea he could be so damn cute.”

Quinn smiled. “Don’t make a fuss…its early days, I still know nothing about him, I’m just curious that’s all.”

Her phone chirped with a notification and she saw it was a message from Cory on Insta. This was the first time since she gave him it that he had messaged her.

- Hey, just wanted to check you were doing okay?

Tania looked over her shoulder and gasped. “You really do have Curry and Rice on the hook!”

“Shush, it’s not like that…Cory saw me upset about something earlier, he’s just checking up on me, it’s sweet.”

“Sweet…yeah, real sweet.” Tania teased in a whisper. “Means he’s sweet on you. I’m so jelly!”

Quinn gave a little awkward smile. If only she knew…

Quinn saw Mila and her waspish group come into the library. She deliberately sat at a table next to Quinn and Tania and gave Quinn a long facetious smile.

“I think your dress sense is awful.” Mila stated with a condescending smirk. “You really wouldn’t fit with us at all.”

Quinn gave a benign smile back, was this really the only thing her small brain could come up with to comment on? “Lucky I don’t give two flying f***s what you think, at least I don’t go around showing my bare ass cheeks to all and sundry every time a gentle breeze blows.”

Mila went red in the face. “That’s it, I’ve had enough of your f*****g smart ass comments back to me, freshman!”

“What’s the matter, not used to someone telling you like it is? I told you on day one to f**k off and leave me alone, but no…you all had to try and be the big miss popular cheerleaders and try and bully me, but because it didn’t work and every time you were left red-faced and embarrassed, now what? You going to step up your game?” Quinn stepped up and got into Mila’s face. “Bring it, b***h!”

“Argh!” Mila pulled a face and stepped back acting horrified. “She doesn’t even have the decency to cover up her ugly and wear makeup.” Her friends all cackled.

“I don’t need to…I have perfect skin.” Quinn boasted with a savagery that made on-lookers snicker. “I’m not hiding a whole bunch of nasty acne behind a wall of clay.”

Mila looked horrified as she palmed her cheeks. “I…I do not have acne, you b***h!” Mila grabbed Quinn by the arm.

Quinn tried to struggle free. “Get your filthy hands off me!”

Mila dug her nails in. “What if I don’t!?”

Quinn winced in pain then saw red. She slammed Mila into a wall of books with a hand around her throat. Mila looked stunned and struggled to get free as Quinn squeezed. The other girls started screaming for Quinn to let go, a couple ran off to find help as the whole library erupted into chaos.

“This is your last chance to leave me the hell alone!” Quinn yelled in Mila’s face.

“Hey, hey…no need to fight over me girls…” Cory came up and pulled Quinn’s hand away, looking at her with a little surprise to see her ferocity. “Easy, babe.”

Quinn flashed a terrifying look at him. “Keep your b***h on a f*****g leash if you can’t control her!”

“Hey!” Cory called out as Quinn stormed off.

He went to chase after her but Mila grabbed him tightly in an embrace and cried into his chest. “Oh my god, I’m so glad you came, I was so scared. She’s crazy!”

He looked down at her, annoyed. She was hindering him but as she looked up at him with her glassy blue eyes he saw the red marks around her neck, clearly Quinn had been really trying to hurt her.

He touched Mila’s neck with his fingertips. “s**t, are you okay?” He hated seeing any girl hurt.

“No! She tried to kill me!”

“Why would she do that, did you say something?”

“Why do you think I started it? She’s a horrible person, why can’t you see that?” She clung to him desperately.

Cory bit his tongue not wanting to escalate the situation any further but something was going to have to get sorted out soon.

.

Quinn made her way to her car, messaging Reese on the way to cancel their meet up. She wasn’t in the mood now and decided it was best to just go home for the day.

Her phone chirped with a message and she saw it was from Tania.

- I have several people’s videos showing Mila grabbed you first in case she takes it to the Dean. Hope you’re okay?

- I’m fine, but going home

- What about your coffee date with Rice?

- I’ve messaged him to cancel it. Talk later.

Just as Quinn closed her phone it chirped again. This time the message was Reese replying.

- What happened in the library, people are already talking about it?

Quinn grimaced at how fast the grapevine worked and didn’t want to talk about it. She was already not coping with her f****d up life, she didn’t need any of this on top of it all. Maybe this was a sign to not pursue anything with either Curry or Rice.

She reached her car and got in, breathing in a deep breath and relaxing inside the protective shell of steel, taking a moment before starting the engine and driving out.

Reese reached the parking lot in time to see Quinn’s car just leaving the toll gate and driving off up the road. He cursed and went to quickly grab his bike, intending to follow her like he had promised Cory he would.

.

As Quinn pulled her car up the shared driveway and into the garage of her townhouse Reese pulled up across the street and looked down the drive. Quinn’s place was the last of four two-story townhouses that were all joined together down the private drive connected by their garages with house two and three sharing a wall. It meant Quinn’s house had the most yard and her house altered from the floor plan of the other three slightly to make the most of having a back and side yard. Reese was surprised she was living in such a new build and so close to his own place, they lived practically around the corner from each other. He could even easily walk the distance…he was going to have to change his jogging route from now on to include this street.

He smirked to himself and drove off, heading home.

As he walked into his condo his phone rang.

“What’s up?” He asked seeing it was Cory.

“Did you see what happened today with Quinn and Mila?”

“No, should I have?”

“It’s all over the chat…hang on.”

Reese’s phone vibrated and he saw Cory had sent him a video, he watched it and then reconnected to Cory’s call, livid. “Sort that little b***h out.” He growled down the phone.

“Quinn had her by the throat, man…that was uncalled for. I know Mila grabbed her first but Quinn took it too far.”

“I’ll take it further, how about that? Why are you sticking up for a girl you f****d last semester?”

Cory sighed. “I’m not, I’m actually concerned Quinn could get in real trouble over this.”

“You think Mila will dare take this to the college?”

“Maybe, she was really upset and her neck’s gonna bruise.”

“f**k, okay…” Reese rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ll contact the Dean and sort it if she goes to him.”

“Cool, I didn’t get a chance to talk to Quinn…I think she’s gone home.”

“Yeah, she has.”

“Where are you?” Cory asked suddenly suspicious.

Reese chuckled. “At home…but I followed her to make sure she lived somewhere safe.”

“And?”

“She’s got a real nice place, better than mine and just around the corner.”

“You’re shitting me?”

“Nope.” Reese grinned to himself. “Oh and I have her Insta now too, she was going to meet me for coffee after the library so I should be really pissed Mila interfered with that.”

Cory huffed. “I should thank her then.”

Reese hung up and rubbed his forehead. “Fucker…”