Giselle

mingling with trouble

 Phone, check. Keys, check. Water-bottle-that-was-filled-with-coffee-instead-of-water, check. Backpack, over her shoulders.

A horn sounded briefly outside her apartment. Her ride. Put a checkmark on that as well.

Giselle looked around her room, hoping she wasn’t forgetting anything. Satisfied she wasn’t, she opened her door and walked out of the room.

Today was the first day of her Master’s program and booooy was she excited. It came as a shock, though, to find out that she could tremble with anticipation at the start of a school year.

Seriously, she had been a student for four years and had seen it all. The routine, the everyday life; it was etched in her bones, indelible and boring.

This morning, however, the air felt different. She felt…thrilled.

Giselle bounced out of her apartment building and into the passenger side of a shiny black Audi.

Without bothering to greet, she ran her hand over the dash and said to the driver, “New car, huh. What’s this one called?”

Jaden chuckled. “Audi Q7. You like?”

Giselle rolled her eyes. What was not to like? The exterior glistened with the remnants of morning dew or the smooth leather interior. Or was it the dashboard that looked futuristic with all the different dials, switches and metres.

Giselle tilted her head to look at her friend. “It’s pretty neat. When did you get it?”

“Earlier this week.”

“Really? Then why haven’t I seen it?”

They had met for meals several times during the week. Jaden had arrived in his normal, still ridiculously expensive, Lexus.

“New start, new car,” Jaden said with a shrug. “I wanted to start the new school year with it.”

Giselle shook her head. “Other people just buy new backpacks, you know.”

Jaden leaned over to flick her temple. “Yeah, where’s the fun in that?”

“Ouch.” She rubbed the throbbing spot as he chuckled. “You wanna keep bullying me or you want to move? We’re going to be late.”

“You know, like, you know that is not possible. It’s literally impossible.”

Giselle dimpled at that. Her apartment building was ten minutes from the school and that was on a slow drive.

Say you’re in a hurry, you can get there in three minutes flat. And there was barely any traffic where she stayed.

Add that to the fact that it was currently 7:32 am and they were required to be present by 8 am, there was no way they could be late. Literally impossible.

“And we’ve done this so many times before. We’ve never been late,” Jaden added, starting the car.

“Except for that time when…”

Jaden hit the steering with his palm. “I just knew you were going to say that. I just knew. Let it go.”

Giselle tossed her head back and laughed. Jaden shook his head, a smile on his face. He put the car in reverse and pulled out of the spot. Straightening out, he switched to drive and the shiny car hit the road.

Giselle leaned forward and pushed a button on the dashboard, frowning as the interior lights came on. Jaden glanced at her briefly, returning his eyes to the road with no comment.

She pushed the same button to switch them off. She squinted at the dash, roving her eyes over the different options available to her.

“Should be this one,” she muttered and pushed another button. This time, the hazard lights came on, blinking rapidly. She quickly shut them off, a little panicked.

Giselle turned to Jaden, saw him looking at her and mouthed a sorry.

Jaden laughed. “What do you want to do?”

“Radio.”

“Radio?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s why you…never mind.” He took a hand off the wheel and with a push of a single button, the sound of morning news filled the car’s interior. Looking at the sheepish woman, he said, “Next time just ask.”

Giselle blew him a kiss. “Thank you.”

“Just out of curiosity, what were you going to try next?”

Giselle immediately pointed to a black button between them. Jaden glanced at the button, back at Giselle and at the button again before returning his gaze to outside the windshield.

“Giselle, read what is written on that button.”

“Engine…” she stopped.

“Giselle?”

“Yes, Jaden.”

“Read.”

“Engine start…slash engine stop.”

“Giselle…”

“Jaden…”

“Do we want to touch that?”

Giselle swung her head from side to side, like a toddler refusing medicine. “No, Jaden.”

Jaden nodded. “Good girl.”

They both glimpsed at each other and smiled. Giselle's lack of handiness with such things was well-known to both of them. It was nothing new.

They spent the rest of the ride in silence, listening to the woman behind the radio speak.

As they pulled into their department’s parking lot, the final portion of the news was being read.

“Police are searching for any witnesses or anyone with information that pertains to the murder of a 54-year old woman, Mary Payton, that took place in Ri—”

Clip, the radio shut off.

Giselle looked up from the radio and scowled at Jaden. “I was listening to that.”

Jaden removed his finger from the button and forced a smile. “Don’t you want to see our classmates?”

Giselle c****d her head. He was acting strange. “Yeah, I do. But what does that have to do with the radio?”

“Look,” he pointed at the small screen in the dashboard, “it’s 7:40. We’re early. Let’s use the time to say hi and get good seats.”

“Okaaaay.” Giselle frowned. Something was up but it didn’t seem important enough to warrant a push, so she let it go.

Besides, getting to know your new classmates was never a bad thing.

They got out of the car and walked into the building. They had spent the past four years of their life going in and out of this building, in different states of mind.

Just finished a test, they would be relieved. Preparing for one, tensed. Trying to keep up with different assignments and projects, stressed. Due days are here and all assignments are done, treat-yourself kind of mood. Starting a new year, meh.

Except for today.

Today, they were master’s students. There was a type of freshness to that.

With a light spring in both their steps, they headed up the stairs to the lecture theatre they would be using at a meeting point today.

As postgraduate students, their timetables were downright fluid, the amount of time spent in the various modules varying tremendously based on the lecturer’s availability, the course of study and the semester.

The orientation today would be one of the few times that they would ever meet in such a manner. Together, in one place.

They arrived at the doors of Lecture Room 4 and Jaden pulled the doors open for her and they stepped into the brightly lit hall.

The sight that met them was an unfamiliar and yet, somewhat familiar one to them.

The lecture hall was designed in the same manner as all the other halls in the department but it was a little bit more luxurious than the regular lecture halls.

As they took in the sight, it was obvious how early they were. There were no more than ten students seated, all dispersed in the large room.

Most of them were former classmates and were those selected by the department for the special scholarship. The rest, she did not recognize.

Giselle immediately separated from Jaden and headed towards two girls seated at the back of the theatre and began to socialize. They greeted each other warmly and spoke about how their summers were spent. As the girls chatted, Giselle could see their eyes occasionally wander over her shoulder and glaze over.

She could bet the very air in her lungs and her lungs too that the girls were eyeballing her best friend. Not that she minded.

Jaden deserved the attention. Not only was he hotter-than-the-sun, but he was also kind, funny, intelligent-the guy got a scholarship- and all in all, a very wholesome guy.

With the way their eyes shifted and focused and with the blooming of red on the girls’ cheeks, Giselle knew that Jaden was behind her. No use talking to them now, they were too dazzled to hold a convo.

She turned to smile at Jaden and was very grateful she didn't bet her lungs or the air in them because the person in front of her was not Jaden. It was a stranger. A very good-looking stranger. A very tall stranger.

And a slightly familiar stranger as well.

Dropping the smile meant for her friend and smiling a more professional one, Giselle extended her hand calmly and said, “Hello. It’s nice to meet you. My name is Giselle Braxton.”

After all, that was why they came early. To mingle.

The stranger took her hand and shook it. Returning her smile, he said in a deep voice, “Brent Webley.”

Giselle almost flinched at the contact. It felt like all the nerve endings on her palm were on fire. She pulled her hand back and fought the urge to rub it against her jeans. Instead asking, “Are you a Master’s student as well?”

“Yes, I am. I’m guessing you are one too,” Brent said, tucking his hand into his pocket.

“Mhmm. What area are you looking to specialize in?”

“International Trade and Globalization.”

Giselle’s brows shot up. “Really? That’s what I intend to specialize in as well. Well, me and my friend.”

Brent smirked. “What a welcome coincidence. That means we’ll be seeing more of each other.”

“Yeah,” Giselle said, smiling as well. She wanted to end the conversation there, especially as she saw Jaden walking towards them but her curiosity got the better of her. “Uhmm, Brent, have we met before?”

She expected a quick shake of the head and a no or a shrug and a maybe. What she did not expect was his grey eyes to flash with a dark intensity and his lips part slightly as if he was trying to catch his breath.

“Giselle…,” Brent started but never finished his statement as Jaden arrived and somehow found a way to get between them without physically stepping between them.

Placing a hand on Giselle’s shoulder, Jaden said, “G, it’s almost time. The lecturers will soon arrive. Let’s settle down.” Turning to Brent as if he just noticed him, “Or are you guys still talking?”

“Yeah, Brent wanted to say something.”

Brent shook his head, his smirk returning. “No, it’s fine.” He turned and took a few steps before glancing over his shoulder with a seductive glint in his eyes and saying in a very seductive tone, “See you later, Giselle.”

As she watched him walk away and felt Jaden’s grip on her shoulder tighten, Giselle knew she was in trouble.