I got back to the dorms on Sunday night and decided to sneak in, not wanting to be bombarded by twenty questions. My brilliant plan had been disrupted though as Shay was in the lounge, waiting for me.

She leapt up when she saw me attempting to sneak through the door and rushed over with a large grin plastered on her face. Oli was sitting with Hannah and he looked so relieved to see me.

"Look who decided to come home." Shay waggled her eyebrows.

A door opened and I saw Ashley walk out. He leaned against the frame, smirking at me. This was probably going to be unpleasant. Hannah seemed to be the only person not turning everything into a sexual innuendo.

"How was your weekend, Kota?" She asked.

"Yeah, how was your weekend?" Shay giggled.

"I-it was fun." I blurted out, and Shay cackled.

"Fun, eh?" She smirked.

This was so humiliating. I went and sat down, wanting the ground to open up and swallow me. I hoped Oli was going to treat me the same as Hannah, but he seemed to be enjoying Shay's teasing.

"You know Shay's not going to leave you alone, so what happened?" Oli asked.

"Damn right, I will be on you like stink on a skunk." Shay smirked.

I rolled my eyes and seated myself on a chair nearby and all eyes were on me. I proceeded to tell them what had happened minus all the awkward stuff and the naughty stuff. I wasn't like Shay, sharing details like that was not like me.

"So, you stayed round his?" Shay pouted. "And nothing happened?"

My face hurt from blushing and Shay was quick to cotton on to my discomfort.

"Oh my god! You had sex, didn't you?" She shrieked, loudly.

Hannah nearly choked on her drink and Oli turned to stare at her. Ashley chuckled and pressed a finger to his lips, prompting her to stop yelling.

"N-no, we didn't do that stuff. W-we did other stuff," I mumbled, and she gushed.

I really wanted the ground to open up and swallow me again. Why wasn't the ground doing what I wanted? Eventually, I rushed to my room and tried to compose myself. Someone tapped the door and I was surprised to see Shay walking in. She was quieter now and smiled gently.

"Sorry for freaking out. I'm just really happy for you." She sighed.

"I know you are. I'm happy too." I murmured.

She advanced and pulled me into a tight hug. I hugged back and she left me to study. For once, I didn't feel like studying and walked over to my phone. I had left it here the other night. I picked it up and noticed I had a text. I smiled when I saw Jake's name.

Miss you already. See you next week, babe ;) xxx


*****************

The next couple of weeks ebbed by and we were into the first week of March. I had seen Jake several times. Most of those times we were with my friends. I didn't get many chances to be alone with him. I missed that.

It was a peaceful Friday afternoon and I had finally finished lectures. Bret and I were strolling down the hallway, heading towards the exit.

"I don't think he murdered anyone. You just have to look at the facts." Bret said.

He had been watching Making a Murderer on Netflix. I hadn't even caught up yet and I wasn't sure I wanted to. I didn't really like stuff with murder in it. We strolled by a group of girls and someone nudged my shoulder, roughly.

My books fell from my arms and crashed to the floor. Bret paused and helped me scoop them up. We straightened up and I noticed Ariana was standing in front of me. She was smirking and I realised she was the one that had knocked my shoulder.

"Go away, Ariana." Bret snapped.

"Shut up, emo," She retorted, turning her glare onto me. "You're so gross. What does he see in you."

I wasn't sure what to say. I had never been in such a situation. Instead I gnawed my lip, trying to think of a way to diffuse the rising tension.

"L-leave Bret alone." I said, shakily. She laughed and so did her friends.

"Oh my god, you are so pathetic and snobbish. Well, I got the last laugh. Jake never liked you. He and I have slept together multiple times and will continue to do so." She grinned, and stalked away.

I stayed rooted to the spot for a minute or two. My heart was beating madly. The only thing that made me wake up was Bret's hand on my arm.

"Ignore her. She's full of shit." He reassured me.

A really scared and insecure part of me was convinced that my own boyfriend really did hate me. That he would rather be with Ariana because she was pretty and confident. Bret seemed to sense my change in mood.

"You need to speak to Jake." He said. He was right.

"Jake's at work." I murmured.

"What time does he finish?" Bret asked.

"Five." I whispered.

I got a cup of tea with Bret and we sat in the Starbucks down the street. He drummed his fingers on the table.

"I don't think he'd cheat on you." He said, firmly.

My head snapped up at his confident words. Sure, Bret had been around when Jake and I were together. He was part of my group of friends.

"But she said-"

"Forget what she said. She's a liar. She can't stand for anyone to be happy."

I sipped my drink and nodded, not fully convinced. I glanced at Bret. He was staring at the clock on the wall. I frowned at him.

"I have to nip into town," He spoke. "You should come too."

I smiled at what he was trying to do. He didn't want me to avoid a situation. I knew I couldn't avoid Jake. I'd have to speak to him about this. I finished my drink and followed Bret to the underground station.

We got to Oxford Street about quarter to five and he made me walk to Masquerade Tattoo. We paused outside the shop and I turned to see what Bret was doing

"I'm not going in with you," He stated. "This is something that you need to talk about with him."

I bit my lip and nodded. Bret smiled and moved closer, hugging me briefly before letting me go. I walked up to the shop door and pushed it open. A young guy was at the desk. He had several facial piercings and he smiled when I entered.

"Hi, can I help you?" He asked, then took in my nervous disposition. "You ok?"

"Is Jake here?" I mumbled.

"Oh, you must Dakota," This guy knew me. My eyes widened a little. "Yeah, he's just finishing a tattoo. Wait here, I'll let him know you're here."

With that, he vanished into the back room and I could hear voices. The guy reappeared seconds later and came to sit on the plush couch with me.

"I'm Mike, by the way." He grinned.

"Oh right, well, you already know me," I fumbled for something to say. "Does Jake talk about me?"

Mike chuckled then, "Talk about you? Doesn't fucking stop talking about you."

I was alarmed by this and my mouth opened. I must have vaguely resembled a fish because Mike laughed.

"You look really shocked by that." He said.

"I just wasn't expecting it." I said, blushing.

Mike shrugged then. The sound of the tattoo machine halted and I heard voices. A guy walked out the back room. His arm was wrapped in cling film and Mike stood, rounding the desk.

They chatted and I stayed on the couch, watching. I peeked down the hallway and smiled when Jake walked out. He saw me and beckoned me over.

I glanced at Mike and the customer and made my way down the hall. I shrieked when he hugged me. All the worry was starting to disappear, but I still needed to speak to him. He pulled back, kissing me.

Someone cleared their throat and we parted. Mike was leaning against the door frame.

"Sorry to interrupt this touching moment, but I want to go home to my girlfriend." He chuckled.

Jake walked by and I heard the two of them bickering as they went to the front door. I followed when we left out the back. Mike left us and I was left alone with my boyfriend. It was now or never. He passed me a helmet and I accepted.

"W-we need to talk." I requested.

Jake paused and glanced at me, "Why, what's wrong?"

I looked away and he sighed before pulling me into a hug. I immediately melted against him. I felt so safe and I really didn't want the moment to end.

"Let's go to mine." He murmured.

I nodded and slipped on the helmet. The drive seemed to go really quick and when we got to Jake's I was a mess of nerves. The dogs greeted us and I was happy to see them.

We sat on the couch and for a moment, neither of us said a word.

"So, talk?" Jake said.

"I don't know how to talk about this sort of stuff. I'm scared you'll leave me plus Ariana said that-"

"Ariana?" He asked. I nodded. "What did she say to you?"

"She told me that I was pathetic and that you and her had slept together before and would continue doing so." I whispered.

"Look at me," He said, and I refused. I felt him inch closer, clasping my chin and forcing my eyes to meet his. "The only person I want is you. I don't give a fuck about her."

For some reason, I felt like an idiot and a few tears leaked from my eyes. Jake shifted closer and his arm went round my shoulders.

"S-sorry, I shouldn't have said anything." I murmured.

"I'm glad you spoke to me," He replied. "I know it's not easy to hear, but Ariana and I have slept together and that's it. It's part of my past, but that doesn't mean I'm proud of it."

"I'm sorry. I've never been in a relationship before and I don't know what I'm doing."

"I wasn't lying when I said I loved you the other night." He murmured.

I smiled and Jake leaned in, pressing his lips to mine. It was a very gentle kiss and I couldn't help but feel a little stupid for believing Ariana in the first place. Jake pulled away and grinned at me.

"So, I wasn't supposed to be seeing you till tomorrow," He chuckled. "You should stay round tonight."

"I have no change of clothes." I replied.

"You can borrow my clothes." He grinned again.

"And what about underwear?" I said.

"Not really necessary, is it?" He smirked.

I laughed and shoved his arm. He pouted and looked almost innocent. I shook my head and he seemed to realise that it wasn't working. Nothing about Jake was innocent.

"There's a Primark down the street." He shrugged.

"Fine, I'll stay."

The dogs seemed to sense a change in mood. Ernie rushed over and tried to clamber onto the couch, suceeding in situating himself between us. I laughed and the dog leaned in to lick my face. Trixie stayed on the floor, but kept jumping around, trying to get onto the couch too.

There were still some things I was curious about with Jake and I knew I'd have to get over the fact that he'd have ex's.

"So, were you and Ariana ever in a relationship?" I asked, balancing Ernie on my knee.

"Nope, we met up quite a few times, but we weren't together. Too high maintenence." He replied.

"And I'm not?" I whispered.

"You're much more laid back." He chuckled. Ernie crawled across my lap towards Jake.

I laughed when Jake hugged Ernie. It was adorable. I always got to see the side of him that no one else saw and that made me extremely happy. Trixie seized her chance and clambered onto my lap.

"Are we just going to pretend this talk never happened?" I tickled Trixie's fur.

"Not really. Just ignore Ariana though," Jake replied. "I chose to be with you and that's it."
I couldn't help but smile at that.

Notes