The Beautiful Monster

"Alright, alright. Let's get some drinks," she laughed softly as they left the building and headed toward the library.

"You're making it sound like we're getting alcohol, which I'm not opposed to," Zoe commented.

"I think I'm swearing off alcohol for a while," Alyssa smirked. The last time she had some hadn't ended well. Unless she saw the drink made from scratch right in front of her eyes, she wasn't drinking it.

"Did you hear that ADP is barred from holding any more parties?" Zoe asked.

"What? How?" Alyssa asked as she gave Zoe a confused look.

Zoe shrugged.

"I guess someone made a complaint or something," she replied before walking into the library.

Elias walked in after her.

Alyssa's eyes trailed him. She remembered how he said that he would "get it taken care of." She couldn't help but wonder if he had something to do with this.

She decided to ask him another time. ADP was known to be full of douchebags. She doubted that she was the only one that had a bad experience with them.

Once they got their drinks and took over a table in the corner of the café, they all placed their phones in the middle, waiting for the notification for their exam grades. It was almost ritualistic, like they were trying to conjure up good grades.

"I just want a C at least," Elias sighed as he tapped his finger on the lid of his ginger mango tea.

"I think I got a C at most," Zoe replied before sipping on her cold brew coffee. Her foot tapped rapidly beneath the table.

Alyssa stared at her phone, waiting for that notification. It had to be coming in any minute now.

"Even if we don't score as high as we want to on this one, we still have other assignments to bring our grades up," she reminded them. It was fine to mess up, as long as they could lessen the damage.

"You're right," Elias said as he started to slowly relax in his seat.

"Yeah, don't we have at least two more tests? Those can easily raise this grade," Zoe pitched in, trying to join in on lifting everyone's spirits.

All of that disappeared the moment everyone's phones started buzzing from a new notification.

Exam 1 Graded

Alyssa looked at everyone before lunging for her phone at the same time as them. She hurriedly opened the notification, feeling her heart race as she waited for the app to load up her grade.

"82! I got an 82," Elias announced as he stared at his phone with wide eyes. "That's the highest I've scored in this class."

Zoe pumped her fist into the air.

"75, baby! That's a C!" she cheered.

Alyssa gave her phone a little shake, wanting it to hurry up and load. She couldn't take the anticipation any longer. Finally, a number popped up on the screen, and she couldn't breathe for a second.

"94," she breathed out as she smiled down at her phone. She got an A. It was a low one, but it was still an A. This would only help her grade, and she wouldn't have to stress so much about the next exam.

"We did it," Zoe beamed as she lifted her cold brew to them. "We passed."

Alyssa laughed and bumped her cup against Zoe's and Elias'. Even if they hadn't been sure of their success, they still pulled it off.

She was happy to share this with them. Usually, she celebrated her own successes by herself. Now, she didn't have to feel so alone. It was one of the best feelings in the world.

The group decided to celebrate their passing grades by walking through the local downtown area that night after they finished up their other classes.

String lights criss-crossed over the streets, glowing through the darkness. Chatter sounded all around as people sat outside at local bars and restaurants or walked down the street with their friends. It was the most alive part of town besides campus.

"No, no. Shanahan's is the best bar here," Zoe said as they all strode down the sidewalk.

"I'm the only one here even old enough to drink. How would you know?" Elias smirked at her.

Alyssa couldn't help but like that he was a little older than her. She preferred guys that were at least a little more mature, and he acted his age.

He was fun, but he could be serious too. The more time that she spent with him, the more she realized how great of a match he was for her.

She hadn't found anything about him that she didn't like yet. Of course, she knew that he wasn't a perfect human being.

She wasn't expecting that from him either. She just hoped that his flaw wasn't something huge, like he wasn't faithful or he wasn't serious enough for a relationship.

Zoe shrugged with a sly look on her face.

"I might've been snuck in once," she replied.

"Troublemaker," Alyssa lightly teased at her friend.

Zoe put on a proud face before throwing her arm over Alyssa's shoulders and pulling her close.

"I'm going to teach you all my tricks. You'll be causing trouble before you know it," she said.

"Don't be corrupting her," Elias playfully warned Zoe.

"I know you like her just how she is," Zoe replied as she lifted an eyebrow at him.

Alyssa shot Zoe a warning look. She didn't even want Elias to have a hint of her true feelings for him, and she didn't need Zoe selling her out.

"How about we get something to eat?" she asked, trying to shift the focus.

"Sounds good," Elias merely said as he tucked his hands into his front pockets.

A feeling of worry gripped Alyssa as she walked with her friends in near silence. There was some tension now, and she hoped that Elias wasn't weirded out or anything. Maybe she could play it off as a joke if he asked her anything.

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