“Okay, Jen would probably put you in that category, and Carly is the peacemaker that would like you if everyone else did. But Vivian–she’s different. She hates you because she likes you.”

“That makes absolutely no sense at all,” I say incredulously, putting my foot back down on the floor and leaning my forearms onto my knees. Here I thought she was on the guy level and could give it to me straight, and then she pulls a bipolar move and warps into girl mode. I don’t speak girl, I’m not a symbolist, and I don’t read hieroglyphics. Girls, don’t let the pirate movies fool you; we can’t do treasure maps and clues. If you want us to understand something, you have to spell it out with very few adjectives, and even fewer multisyllabic words.

“It makes perfect sense; you just don’t know why it makes sense.” Campbell slides her legs off the side of the recliner and squares her shoulders at me. Everything relaxed and nonchalant, which had comforted me about this situation five minutes ago has been erased. She scrunches her nose, and the scowl lines between her brows deepen. “Look, we all know that you like her. But they all think that you want a piece of ass and then you’d be on your way.”

“Is that what you think, too?” I snap back, matching her posture. I feel the sweat on my palms, nervous from this unexpected turn in conversation. My defenses are up, but I try to disguise it by wiping it away on my pant legs.

Noticing my sudden discomfort, she backs off a tad and reclines back into her chair. “Is that the truth?” she sighs.

I hang my head, collecting my thoughts and gathering my composure. I don’t know who this chick is, but for some reason, I don’t want to lie to her. Whether she can help me get Vivian or not, I just want to tell her the truth. This whole cocky, arrogant thing I have going on is all for show. I’m a messed up piece of nothing underneath, and with a glance, she sees right down to my deep, dark shit layer.

“When I first saw her, I thought she was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. Yes, I wanted to fuck her, and if I was going to get to screw her on more than one occasion because of our living situation, then I thought even better. But then I was around her more, and even though I still don’t know anything about her–damn it if I don’t want to, even if it means I never sleep with her.”

Every word I tell her is true. Vivian has captivated me in ways I didn’t think was possible, and it’s no longer about having my hands on her body, although that would be ideal. I want her more than I’ve ever wanted anything. Considering where I stand with her, I would be honored just to have her acknowledge me.

Campbell crosses her arms across her chest; her eyes narrow on me, sizing me up, looking for any wavering on my part. “If that’s true, then you need to stop being such a fucking douche and show them that you’re not the womanizer that they think you are,” she finally says. “You don’t think Vivian hears about all the girls you’ve slept with? All you’re doing is confirming for her that her original assessment of you is right.”

“Except, Campbell, I’m no different than any other guy,” I explain, holding my hands up in defense. “Those girls don’t like me because of something that all other guys do; I am just more successful at the game.” I lean back again, waiting for her to explode after my last statement.

She uncrosses her arms and moves to the edge of her chair. “That’s my point, fuck-stick. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that Vivian is terrified to get close to someone; she thinks that they will leave her. When she talks about you, she says that she thinks that you would use her and then be done with her. This game you’re talking about, well, she’s afraid to play because, when it comes to you, she knows she’ll lose.”

“And this is why she stays away from me and never interferes when Jen rations out handfuls of shit in my direction?” My fingers find their way into my hair again. Images of all of the one-night-stands I’ve had over the last month and what Vivian’s reaction would have been after hearing about them invades my mind. The pain of tugging on my dark strands helps to ease my torment of hurting her, but I still consider coiling the purple couch cover around my neck and putting myself out of my misery. All this time I just thought she hated me. If I, for even a second, thought that she liked me, I never would have slept with a single one of those girls.

“All that easy pussy isn’t looking so hot now, is it?” she asks, standing and walking into the kitchenette. She returns quickly with a small trashcan and a towel. “Looks like you might need this. Jen is a messy roommate, but I’m pretty sure she would notice puke on the carpet.” I harshly take the towel from her, and then she sets the trashcan on the ground next to the coffee table before returning to her chair. An ear-to-ear grin is plastered across her face. If she was a guy, I would punch her for enjoying my moment of dejection. I have no intention of throwing up, but fuck if my stomach doesn’t feel like I swallowed an entire bottle of rubber cement.

“I appreciate you having me over and dropping this wonderful karmic bomb on me, but what am I supposed to do now?” I use the dishtowel to wipe the remaining sweat from my forehead and the back of my neck. “She’s not going to just decide I’m this amazingly decent guy overnight. Shit, right now you wouldn’t be able to convince me of that.”

Campbell polishes off the rest of her soda and crushes the can, tossing it in the trashcan like an NBA player. It would have only been more impressive if it were a beer she’d slammed. “Well, I can only go by what I’ve heard,” she says, and then produces an almost hissing noise as she scrunches her face, baring all of her teeth. Just as I suspected, she’s only heard negative things about me. I roll my eyes and motion for her to continue.

“Well, first I would say to stop thinking with your dick.” I only nod, because I knew that one was coming. If I have a real chance to be with her, I don’t want any other girls. “I don’t know how, but you need to figure out a way to show her that you would value her for her, and not only what is in her pants. She needs to know that you’re the type of guy that can stay put and fight for what he wants.”

“Fuck, okay, I can do that. You know, if you had been around a little bit more, this month could have worked out a little differently. I really could have used someone on my side; Jen can be scary.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not around much; I have friends who live in a house off-campus. I’m helping them start up and promote their band. Actually, they are having a concert next weekend downtown; you’ll have to come with us.” She rises quickly and heads toward the door, effectively ending our conversation now that it was heading in her direction. I stand as well, throw the towel in the trashcan, and follow her to the door. I guess bonding time is over. When I hear the doorknob rattle, I understand why.

Jen and Vivian waltz through the door, but both abruptly stop when they notice me. Vivian’s eyes lock with mine, and that ball of rubber cement that had been rolling around in my stomach melts, but then she diverts them to the floor. The rubber ball returns.

“What the fuck is he doing here?” I hear, pulling my attention from Red to the bundle of aggression issues that I lovingly call Jen.

The witty zinger for her is ready to burst out of my mouth, but Campbell defends me immediately. “I finally met him in the hall after class, and invited him over. And actually, you owe him a thank you.”

Jen and I both look at Campbell’s two heads that she has apparently sprouted, but she continues on. “He found something important to you that you have been looking for.”

Vivian’s gaze flies up from the floor and the heat of her glare that is bouncing off Campbell is warming my face. I catch Campbell’s hint that I need Jen to disengage in her quest to destroy me, but I’m conflicted. I’m not sure how fucking up a month-long bet would help me win favor with Vivian.