Amber walked into her first class that morning at seven-fifteen with yesterday’s events all but a fleeting memory. Sunrise began at 5:45, but birds were chirping outside even before that, making sleep impossible. Unable to relax, Amber eventually got up to brush her teeth and shower instead, preparing for the first day of her sophomore year in college.

Now, Amber strolled leisurely into an empty classroom with a full stomach stuffed with pancakes, sausages, and orange juice. While class didn’t officially begin until seven forty-five, she wanted to get a head start on reading, preferring to do so in the classroom than in the hallways or apartment. Otherwise, she’d be watching the clock every so often just to make sure she wouldn’t be late.

As for the book, it was one of the two that she had to buy. The rest would have to be checked out from the library, which was her purpose yesterday. Unfortunately, she had gotten so distracted that she came home empty-handed instead. The goal had been to get into the library and get out since it was the last day before the school year. Ergo, it would be empty. Or so Amber believed.

The classroom setup was that of a theater, with the front of the room at the lowest level. The farther back you sat, the higher the incline. However, instead of comfortable chairs like the movies, they were long booths with hardwood seats and back for support and cushioning. The desks were long rectangular shapes, enough to fit about two students each. To get in or out, one would have to angle between the horizontal spaces between each slab.

Amber selected a spot in the center of the classroom near the end, farthest from the entrance. She didn’t enjoy being too far back that it would be difficult to hear the professor. On the other hand, sitting in front to be called on for questions all the time wasn’t ideal either. Thus, the safest place was right in the middle, near the end.

Her phone began ringing just as she’d taken out her binder. The ringtone was one she was familiar with without looking. Those closest to her had a unique ringtone assigned, and this one was very dear to her heart.

“Yes, Mom?”

“Is that how you greet your mom so early in the morning?” The voice on the other line was gentle. “How rude!”

Amber bit back a smile, settling the phone between her shoulder and ear while rummaging through her backpack to find the purchased book. “Let me guess. Hope must have woken you up. Otherwise, you would never call me this early.”

“She’s such a baby,” her mother complained through the phone. “I didn’t get any sleep at all last night!”

Amber grinned as she finally located the book deep inside her bag. “May I remind you—she is a baby.”

Her mother laughed. “I was just calling to wish you good luck on your first day of class.”

“I’m your daughter,” Amber answered haughtily. “I don’t need luck cause I’m just that awesome.” She heard the door to the classroom open but didn’t bother to look up to see who entered—probably another early riser like her. Amber ignored the newcomer. There were more than enough seats to pick from, and she wouldn’t expect the student to squeeze in with her so early in the game.

The crying in the background brought Amber back to her conversation. A brief pause before her mom’s voice came back on. “All right, the baby is calling. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Sounds good. Tell dad I said hi!” Amber ended the call and leaned back to stare at the whiteboard in front of her. Her lips curled, and her features softened, thinking of her parents.

Hope was a newcomer to the family, a great bundle of joy, and somewhat of a surprise. At only a month old, Hope was already giving her parents a run for their money. They’ve been so busy with her they rarely gave Amber much thought these days. It was how Amber preferred it, too, enjoying the freedom of no longer being an only child.

But… enough of that! Time to read!

Amber shook her head, clearing away all distractions, and flipped to the first page of her book. She was probably only four words in before someone slammed a large black squared briefcase down next to her with a thud. The force of the blow, along with the loud bang, jolted her instantly from her seat.

Amber straightened and glared up at the figure standing before her. She blinked against the lights of the classroom and the shape that loomed over her. Given her notoriety, no one would be brave enough to be so rude!

As her eyes adjusted, she could make out thick, dark, red hair and—

“Yo, I’ll Never See You Again,” the deep, playful voice intervened.

Amber’s eyes widened, her eyes finally adjusting to the angles and features of the male student before her. One that was still youthful in appearance, even charming. One with a familiar pair of green eyes gazing into her deep fathom ones.

This time their roles were reversed: him standing, her sitting.

Amber’s brain dashed back and forth between horrified and disbelief. She had calculated the chances of meeting him again to be next to none! Never mind the fact that her numbers and calculations were subjective in nature. Even so, the odds were low! For one, what were the chances that they were both sophomores? For another, the odds of them majoring in the same thing were probably less than ten percent, which reduced the likelihood that they would have the exact prerequisites! Yet… here he was, standing before her, in the same class!

“You have the wrong person,” Amber mumbled. She lowered her head and scooted a couple of inches away. Perhaps she should not have worn green today because that stood out in this room of dull and white.

The young man—Hunter—grinned as he darted after her before sitting down, much closer than she wanted or liked.

“I don’t think so…,” he turned to face her with a smile, “I’ll Never See You Again.”

“I—I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Amber scurried farther away from him. Perhaps if she pretended like she didn’t know him, he’d leave her alone? Amber peeped at the small amount of space that was left. Any closer and she would be near the end of the aisle!

Hunter was having the time of his life as he shuffled after her. “I’m fairly sure I have the right person. After all, didn’t you claim I was red down there?”

Oh! My! God!

This time Amber bolted towards him, covering his mouth with both her hands while glancing around the classroom for any other observers. Fortunately, no other students had entered.

Her eyes narrowed perilously with sudden understanding. “You actually weren’t sleeping!”

Since he couldn’t say anything, Hunter raised both his hands up as if caught, eyes laughing with her—or was it at her? Every ounce of sympathy she felt for him that evening disappeared. Now, more than ever, she wished she’d left him alone!

“Gwetly,” He muffled against her hand.

Realizing where her hands were, Amber promptly removed them and darted the last couple of inches to maintain some level of distance between them.

“Guilty,” he said again, following suit, refusing to give her any room. “Why do you keep moving?”

“We shouldn’t be this close,” Amber could feel her face flushing as she tried to shift back once more, only to be met with air. Finally, with nowhere else to go but the cold, hard ground, she leaned her body back instead, away from him.

Hunter pitched forward, following her lead. “But aren’t we dating? You shouldn’t be so far from your boyfriend.”

“You—you—,” she struggled to think even as her mind played the entire scene from yesterday. Everything she said—everything that was said—he heard them all!

Amber’s eyes traveled from him to the door, then back to him, before going to the door again, as if planning her escape.

Watching the direction of her eyes, Hunter finally straightened, all the while still laughing. Still enjoying himself. “Such a shame. What happened to my knight in shining armor yesterday who fought off those hyenas?”

“That was before I knew you were a helpless coward!” Feeling much better now that he was out of her hair, Amber straightened as well, even leaning forward towards him. “If I had known you would let a girl fight your battle for you, I would have left you at their mercy!”

He winked at her. “You were doing so well on your own; why interrupt? I love a girl who can stand her ground.”

Unable to think of a response, Amber closed her mouth and turned her attention back to her book. She briefly debated moving somewhere else, but he would probably just follow. Amber zipped her mouth and remained where she was instead, concentrating on the words in front of her. Pretended to focus on the words in front of her. None of it helped because her mind was one bulky mess.

“How’s the book?” Hunter’s voice was low and husky and suddenly in her ear. She felt his warm breath brush the tips of her ear.

Amber reacted instinctively and pushed him away before glaring at him. “What do you want?”

The doors to the classroom opened as one student entered.

“You’re so cruel,” Hunter answered mischievously, loud enough for the new student. “Didn’t you say I was more man—”

“Mormon, yes, I thought you were a Mormon,” Amber hastily interrupted and shoved him with her foot underneath the desk. Then, lowering her voice. “Do you have to repeat it?!”

Still facing her, Hunter placed his left arm on top of the desk, tilting his head against the back of the hand. “But this is just so much fun!”

Another student walked in and propped open the door so that it remained open before locating a seat.

“All right, all right,” Amber knew when the fight was won and when it was lost. Clearly, in this, she was on the losing end. Amber shook her head, giving up. “I really didn’t think I’d see you again on such a big campus, but you can’t be that mad just because I didn’t give you a name?”

Hunter said nothing and continued to study her with those piercing green eyes of his.

Amber frowned as more students piled in, suggesting class would soon be underway. All around, friends in the same courses gathered and started their own conversations. Those who didn’t know anyone sat on their own, playing with their phones. A few filtered around them, minding their own businesses.

“Do you want my name?” Amber asked as he continued to stare at her. Then, finally, she answered before he could respond, “Something tells me you would have already figured that out on your own.”

Hunter’s lips curled and his eyes twinkled suggestively at her. To onlookers, it looked like she had a secret admirer.

“Could you stop looking at me like that?” Amber mumbled as the students near them started gawking and whispering. “What would people think?”

“I think this morning you look gorgeous,” Hunter answered while still studying at her. “Your hair is as black as midnight, and I didn’t realize your eyes were also as dark until this morning. It was hard to see them yesterday in the library.”

I didn’t ask what you thought. Amber opened her mouth but closed it when nothing came out. His reply caught her off guard, and Amber was unsure of how to proceed.

Here was someone other than her parents telling her she was gorgeous. Even Liam, her fiancé, never said such words to her, preferring to use words such as pretty or adorable to describe her. Like she was still a kid.

Refusing to be bashful, Amber smiled back at him. “I bet you say that line to every girl you meet, huh?”

“No, just you,” Hunter answered as the professor stepped into the classroom. The entire class went mute as the professor made his way to the front and started unpacking while simultaneously introducing himself.

Relieved Hunter’s attention was now focused elsewhere, Amber glimpsed at him from the corner of her eyes. She’d known a lot of guys, familiar with many of them. Liam often brought his friends with them on their so-called dates, so she knew how to handle herself around them. After all, as her mother jokingly told her once: some women lead men so that men may rule the world.

Amber didn’t think she’d be able to lead this one anywhere he didn’t want to go. What was she going to do with this one, and how was she to handle him?

After the brief introduction, the professor shut off the primary lights, leaving only the secondary as he turned on the projector. Amber opened her binder to follow the syllabus he shared on screen, since she had printed her own copy the day before. She listened attentively while he went over his title and contact information before moving on to the rules and grading assignments.

Amber completed her generals last year as a freshman. Now a sophomore, she began her introductory courses in Information Technology and Cyber Security, majoring in Cyber Security and Assurance, with a minor in Information Technology. All of it would go splendidly with her family’s consulting business in the cyberspace realm.

Hunter’s hands shot out in the shadows over to her side, dropping off a piece of paper in front of Amber before withdrawing.

She turned her head in his direction, a brow raised. In response, Hunter simply winked before turning his attention back to the front of the classroom.

Amber unfolded the paper.

In it were three words.

Hunter: Let’s be friends.