The Special Girl Read online

  Just as Kylie predicted, there is a knock at the door, Izzy is on the other side. Kylie opens the door and Izzy bounds in looking apprehensive as she sees me eating the bagel in my pajamas. “What did Zack want?” she asks. Kylie leaves with the excuse that she needs to ask Maddie something. I look up at Izzy and ask her to have a seat. She sits on Kylie’s bed. “Listen Izzy, when you first started talking about Zack, you and the other girls always referred to him as tattoo guy, in jest,” I explain. “I had no idea that the guy you were talking about was the same guy I was dating back at home and had been still dating when I started school here,” I continue. Her eyes are bugging out of her head. “I had no clue he was even enrolled here. He never told me. We hadn’t spoken since October,” I finish.

  After a few moments of silence as Izzy is deep in thought, she looks up and speaks. “That still doesn’t explain why he was here or how he knew where you lived,” she demands. I am surprised at her anger. “He said he wanted to check up on me and see that I was alright. I don’t know how he found out where I lived. I guess the student directory,” I offer. She glares at the food in my hand. “And he brought you food?” she asks. “Ah yeah he did,” I say sheepishly as I set down the bagel on the wrapper. “Where is your current boyfriend Maura?” she asks scornfully. “Why doesn’t he come here and take care of you?” she booms. Just then Kylie and Maddie enter the room looking nervous. “Is everything alright in here?” Kylie asks. Izzy jumps up and stalks out mumbling, “Yeah fine.”

  Maddie walks off after her and Kylie shuts the door. “Did you tell her about you and Zack?” Kylie asks. “Yes, but she didn’t like it one bit!” I tell her. “She will get that we are old news and calm down,” I say hopefully. “Zack will set her straight,” I assume. “Are you two old news?” she asks. “His actions have been very caring for someone that doesn’t hold a candle for you anymore,” she says incredulously. “He doesn’t want me anymore, he has moved on obviously,” I point towards Izzy’s room. “Yes, but you assumed that he didn’t want to be with you because of your differences,” she points out. I nod my head in agreement. “Then why is he a college student dating a sorority girl? Sounds familiar huh?” she smiles.

  Izzy limits her interaction with me the next few weeks. Kylie is my lifeline as I navigate the campus on crutches. She eats every meal with me, helping me get my food and get to my table. She also helps me shower most days. It is embarrassing, but she has proven how good a friend she is to me. I already knew this, but know I am forever indebted to her. I don’t see Zack anymore. I can only assume Izzy voiced her dislike of his concern for me.

  I do however see Alex in the dining hall and around campus. He acts like I am invisible. His frat brothers, however, treat me like a queen. They are always coming to my aid in classes, helping me get to my seat, carrying my bag, even offering to carry me which I decline every time. Several have come to my room asking if I need anything. Kylie said Alex never told his frat that we broke up. But Kylie let it be known that I was done with him. This opened the flood gates for possible suitors.

  The Spring formal for my sorority is approaching and Kylie tells me she has invited Blake to be her date. I think she actually likes him. They have been spending time together this semester as they have three classes together. She also tells me hesitantly that Izzy is bringing Dalton Kelly. My eyes look up to meet hers, “What? Not Zack?” “No. Maddie told me that Izzy doesn’t really want to date Zack, she just wanted to mess around with him and then after she realized his connection to you…” She looks sadly at me. “She kept him around to prove she could have what you had.” “Sophie also told me Izzy asked Alex to go to the formal, but he was already going with Phoebe Taylor,” she adds. “What?” I ask angrily. “What is her problem?” I say irritably. “I think it is old-fashioned jealousy,” Kylie says. “Even Maddie is tired of her bullshit!”

  On the night of the formal, I offer to be a greeter and sit at a table by the door. My responsibilities include checking that those entering are invited guests. It’s a boring job, but at least I can stay in a seat all night. No dancing for me this time. I also forgo a date, which was approved by the sorority hierarchy due to my injury and duties at the dance. I wear a light pink slip dress and a ballet flat on my good foot. I park myself in the entrance to the event space a half hour prior to the start.

  In this position, I get to see what everyone is wearing and whom they brought as a date. Kylie texts me a few times to ask me if I saw what someone was wearing or to gossip about someone’s date. When Alex and Phoebe arrive, I greet her warmly and she reciprocates but he ignores me as usual. Whatever! He is a shmuck in my book. Most other guys give me big hellos and even wink when they arrive with their dates. Some ask whom I have brought as my date. They frown when I say I’m here alone. The guy that comes with Tammy, the sorority president, gives me a once over and winks. Tammy doesn’t catch this or their would-be hell to pay! The most awkward moment is when Maddie comes in with her date, Dalton. Dalton smiles wide at me and waves. He is a clean-cut, preppy, BMW driving frat boy. Quite the opposite of Zack. She speaks to me only as needed and then grabs his hand and pulls him inside.

  After a few hours, Tammy tells me I can leave my post if I want. I decide to hobble back to my dorm. The campus is dark and fairly deserted at this hour. I make my way towards my building. On my way I come across a group of people headed the other way. They aren’t anyone I recognize. I guess most of the people I know are at the formal. A guy whistles at me as I hop by in my skimpy slip dress and awkward crutches. I laugh as I imagine what a sight I must be. Then I hear my name. I look back around at the group and see Zack breaking through the crowd.

  “Hey where are you going? You shouldn’t be alone especially not at this hour!” he scolds. “I am going back to my dorm,” I tell him. He shouts to the group, “Go on, I’m going to walk her home.” A tall guy with a guitar strapped to his back and two girls on either arm answers, “Ok man, see ya later.” I recognize him as the cute guitar guy from the quad and as the guy that offered me, and Zack help that horrible day I got injured. One of the girls on his arm yells spitefully, “Zack, you know she’s sorority, right?” He looks at me and quietly answers, “Yup, I’m aware.”

  He looks a little sad and then asks if I want him to carry me. “Why does every guy ask me that?” I say. He flinches. I start to move again, and he walks slowly next to me. “Where are you coming from?” he asks curiously. “I was at my sorority formal,” I answer. His face squishes up in an annoyed expression and asks, “And where is your date?” I laugh at his outrage, “I went alone.” His brows raise in surprise. “But Izzy told me you date a frat guy and I’ve seen you two together.” I am annoyed at this disclosure. “She told you I was still seeing Alex?” I ask. “She didn’t tell me his name, but she said you were very involved with someone that was in a fraternity,” he answers glumly. I become instantly enraged at Izzy. “I wouldn’t go anywhere with Alex Stanton even if he were the last man alive!” I protest. “Did she tell you where she was going tonight?” I ask heatedly. “She’s at a sorority function,” he says drifting off as he realizes what is implied. He sighs. “Who was her date?” he questions solemnly. I immediately regret bringing this to his attention. The last thing I want to do is hurt Zack. “Dalton Kelly,” I say in almost a whisper.

  We don’t say much else until we arrive at my building. He insists on escorting me to my door. In the elevator he asks, “How much longer until the cast comes off?” “One more week,” I say gleefully. We exit the elevator, and he guides me with his hand on my lower back. I get tingles down my spine at his tender touch. We get to my door and he takes my keys and opens it for me. “Do you want to come in?” I ask. I feel bad sending him away, especially since I probably have upset him. “I probably shouldn’t,” he says. “Are you ok, or do you need help with anything before I leave?” he asks. “I’ll be alright. I get around much better now, thanks,” I say smiling. He gives me a small smile and then says, “Goodnight
Maura.” I say, “Goodnight Zack.” He hesitates a moment then adds, “Maura, you look beautiful tonight.” He gives me a little wave and leaves. I close the door and lean back on it. My heart is pounding!

  After I tell Kylie about my walk home and my conversation with Zack, she is as pissed as I was at Izzy. “That dirty rat!” she screeches. I burst into laughter. “She should date Alex,” Kylie says. “They are two of a kind!” she adds. Maddie comes in and asks what we are laughing at. “Nothing,” I say. “What’s up? Did you have fun last night?” I ask her. “Yeah it was great!” she says. “Hopefully, the next time, you will be mobile and can participate also!” she smiles. “But I did come over here to tell you something,” she says quietly motioning for us come closer to her. “Izzy just texted Zack and asked to meet him at their coffee spot. Only he turned her down. Get this!” she laughs. “He said he had a date and couldn’t do it!” she roars. “Serves her right!” Kylie adds laughing. I fake a laugh too but I’m wondering, who is his date with?

  Maddie and Kylie decide to go to the gym. I stay behind and decide to do some schoolwork. I get my books out and sit at my desk and dig in. An hour later I get a call from Zack. “Hi Maura, are you busy?” he asks over the phone. “Not really, I’m just doing some homework. My friends are at the gym and since I can’t really work out, I’m making use of my time,” I answer. “Do you want to take a break?” he asks. “Sure!” I answer a little too enthusiastically. I cringe at my response. “Can I come by and get you?” he asks with a smile in his voice. “Yes,” I answer but then think better of it. “How about I meet you some place. I would hate to have a run-in with Izzy when I’m with you,” I reason. “OK but I don’t like the thought of you navigating your way alone with those crutches.” I laugh at his concern and reassure him I have been getting around for almost five weeks like this now. He gives in and we agree to meet at the fountain outside the library in an hour because that is close to my dorm.

  I hurry up and get a shower and get dressed in a pair of capri jeans, a tank and a cardigan. I slip a canvas sneaker on my good foot. I leave my hair down in soft waves and apply light makeup. As I make my way to the fountain to meet Zack, I realize I am the date he told Izzy he had today. My stomach flips with excitement.

  When I arrive at the fountain a few minutes late, I notice Zack waiting with a concerned frown on his face. He notices me and I see a brilliant smile overtake his rugged, chiseled face. He has a few days of unshaven facial hair that adds to his sexy bravado. He is wearing a white t-shirt with fitted dark jeans and his signature boots. He jogs over to me and offers to help me like I am a cripple. He asks if I am hungry. I tell him I could eat, and he leads me towards the street. There is a car idling at the curb. He knocks on the window and says something to the driver. I realize he ordered an Uber ride to wherever he is taking me. He opens the back door and offers his hand to help me inside. He follows me into the back seat, stowing my crutches on the floor.

  We arrive at a small Italian restaurant about 10 minutes from campus. He helps me out of the car and into the restaurant. I get situated and we start to peruse the menus the hostess left with us. The waitress, about ten years older than us, comes over and is practically salivating over the sight of Zack. Oh boy here we go again. Waitresses just love this guy. After we order and she leaves the table, he shrugs at me and smiles while taking a sip of his water.

  I peer around the quaint little restaurant. “This place is great; how did you find it?” I ask. “My roommate Jason has brought me here a couple times when we needed to get away from campus. The food is delicious!” he offers. “Jason huh? Are you guys close?” I ask. “Yeah. I got lucky. He’s cool! We get along pretty well. You may know him. He plays his guitar on campus a lot, usually on the wall by the quad,” he explains. “Oh yeah, I saw him with you. I know who he is. Guitar Guy!” I laugh out. “Guitar Guy? Is that what you call him?” Zack chuckles. “Yeah. My friends and I have a habit of coming up with names like that for people we don’t know. Actually, he is known as Cute Guitar Guy,” I say laughing. “Wow! I will have to tell him that. He will definitely like that name!” Zack laughs. “When Izzy first noticed you, she called you Tattoo Guy because she noticed your arm tattoo,” I say smiling. “That contributed to me not knowing she was talking about you. Even after she actually met you, she still referred to you as Tattoo Guy.” I think to myself for a minute. I wonder if she saw his dragon tattoo also.

  Zack uses his index finger to tilt my chin up. He looks me in the eye, and it is as if he can read my mind. “I didn’t have sex with her Maura,” he admits. “I did like her, and I was trying to move on after you but all I kept encountering were girls that just want to hook-up. I want something more serious. I want what I thought we had,” he confesses. “I thought maybe she could be that for me but now I realize she is the same as the others, only worse. She led me to believe we were starting something, but she never considered me good enough for her friends,” he manages. “Just like you, I guess.”

  My mouth drops open. “What? Just like me?” I say shocked. “You stopped talking to me! You took some other girl to New York to meet your mother for Thanksgiving!” I continue trying to keep my voice down. “You thought I was too superficial and too dumb to want to be with anymore!” I sob. If I wasn’t on these stupid crutches, I would run out of this restaurant, but I can’t. I am trapped in this seat, two feet away from the man that broke my heart. He is speechless at my words. He just stares at me with an open mouth while I dab at my wet eyes with a napkin. Finally, he finds his voice.

  “Maura you are so wrong about all of that!” he says. “I never thought you of all people were dumb nor superficial! Well not after I got to know you, anyway,” he corrects. “And I was giving you space. I was unsure if you wanted to continue to see a construction worker/ community college student that was tattooed and drove a motorcycle. I already caused you to lose your high school friends. I thought you wanted to get rid of me, so you could do all the college and sorority things without a boyfriend at home! I honestly thought you were done with me! And I went to New York by myself for Thanksgiving, but I took Max, Benny and Aidan with me there for New Year’s Eve. And I saw you with that Alex guy in Times Square. You were kissing him and looking at him the way you used to look at me. I was already coming here for the Spring semester, but I planned to stay away from you and your new life. And I did, for a while anyway,” he gets out.

  I am stunned! I never knew most of that. He saw me and Alex in Times Square! He thought I was done with him! How did this all get so screwed up? The smitten waitress picks this moment to bring out our food. She places the plates in front of us and looks adoringly at Zack. “Anything else you need babe?” she asks. He dismisses her rather rudely. She huffs off and he doesn’t notice, or he doesn’t care. He continues to stare at me. “I am so confused Zack. None of what you just said is what I thought was going on. I thought I wasn’t what you wanted but you are saying, you felt the same way about me. Where do we go from here?” I ask nervously. He holds up a big forkful of pasta and says, “We eat!” He stuffs the pasta in his mouth and gives me a huge smile. I smile back and start to devour my meal as well.

  After dinner, he pays the bill and the Uber he ordered comes quickly. When we arrive on campus, he has us dropped off near his dorm. He brings me to the room he shares with Jason. He asks me to come up there to talk more. He says we will have privacy because Jason has plans. We make our way through the small lobby and up to his room. Along the way we encounter many people that cheerfully greet Zack. He seems to know almost everyone. It warms my heart to find he has made so many friends in the short time he has been here.

  We enter his room. It is much like the one I share with Kylie. Single beds, desks, chests and two closets. I smile at the thought of Zack and Jason fitting their tall frames into those single beds. He offers me a seat on his bed. I sit down and place my crutches on the floor. He sits next to me. “Thank you for the dinner. It was really good!” I say. “I’m g
lad you liked it,” he answers. He looks a bit more serious and asks, “Maura can you please tell me what happened with Alex? Did he hurt you?” I grimace at the mention of Alex. “No, he didn’t hurt me physically, well not directly,” I say. He looks skeptically at me.

  “Please explain Maura. I really need to know,” he pleads. I take a moment and then realize I have to tell him. “I met him as soon as I started here. He was always nice, and we became friends first. He asked me to a fraternity event in December. We really hit it off and I was trying to move on from you. Remember, I thought you dumped me,” I say regretfully. Zack nods apologetically. “So, I went to this party with him and then he starts to pursue me. He calls a lot and shows up where I am, that sort of thing,” I explain. “He begged me to come to New York for New Year’s Eve. His sister lives near Times Square so he invited me to her apartment. I gave in and went,” I tell him careful to edit out the details. “After we returned to school from winter break, we became a couple. I always felt like he thought of me as his property. He would always parade me around like a prize he had won. He treated me like that when we were alone too,” I said carefully. Zack is clenching his jaw and looks like he is trying to hold it together. “Zack, I don’t know if I should continue,” I say anxiously. He reassures me he can handle it and reinforces his need to know.

  I resume, “He expected things from me,” I say with my eyes closed because I can’t look at him. “The day I fell, we had spent the day visiting with my sister and parents. After they left, he wanted to go to his room at the frat house and… mess around. I turned him down because I had a lot of homework to do. He was furious. He told me I should be grateful that he dates me and that plenty of other girls would be willing to give it up to him. I was in shock! I took off running and that’s when I ran into the table and chairs. After I fell, I saw him watching nearby and then he just walked away,” I finish sobbing. “He never spoke to me again, but he let everyone think we were still together until my friends set everyone straight,” I explain.