Chapter Text
Normally, Jasper couldn’t stand how over air conditioned the library was, but today the cold rush of air that came through as she opened the doors felt nice after coming straight from her work out. The campus gym was only a five minute walk from the library, although Jasper may have jogged it out of pure excitement. If someone told Jasper at the beginning of the semester that’d she be excited to study on a Friday for an exam on the next Tuesday, she would have laughed in their face. At the earliest, she studied for tests the night before, but usually only a couple hours prior to class.
Now, it seemed, all it took for Jasper to drop everything to go study for Shakespearian Discourse was a single text.
Pearl (6:07 PM): I’m heading over to the library to go over the notes for Tuesday, join me?
Jasper (6:08 PM): yea just finishing up with my work out. be there in 10
Pearl (6:11 PM): Great! I’m set up at our usual table.
This was lie on Jasper’s part. She had only been at the gym for about 30 minutes, hadn’t even gotten past her warm up for her usually extensive work out. But between Pearl being busy with all her school activities, Jasper preparing for her next boxing tournament, and class being unexpectedly cancelled the day before, Jasper hadn’t seen Pearl since Tuesday. Ever since they started this thing, the two had met up to study and discuss class every day or every other day.
It had started the third week of class. Jasper was a junior who had put off her English requirement too long, and by the time she got around to registering for classes, all the easy or interesting English courses were filled up and she got stuck in a 300 level Shakespeare class. She hated it. It was way too damn early in the morning and everyone was too damn excited for something so boring. They had been working on one of his easier plays, Romeo and Juliet, when the professor paired everyone up for in-class discussions of possible underlying themes other than the obvious ones. That was another thing Jasper hated about this dumb class: being forced to discuss. And of course she would get paired up with the know-it-all who seemed to have an answer for everything.
As Pearl moved to the back of the class to sit by Jasper, Jasper realized she had only ever seen the back of this girl’s strawberry blonde head. She was much prettier than Jasper was prepared for. Fine. So she was cute. Didn’t mean Jasper was going to get all into this discussion.
“So, Jasper,” Pearl started, “Do you want to go first or should I?”
Jasper waved her hand at Pearl in a “go ahead” motion, hoping if Pearl started, maybe she’d talk until the end of the class so Jasper wouldn’t have to. Pearl started on about how this was not a romantic story at all, but a cautionary tale about the rash decisions young people make when they think they’re in love and how this was so obvious if you actually pay attention to the text, don’t you think Jasper?
What Jasper did next surprised herself. She disagreed with Pearl instead of just letting her go on and on. Jasper thought it was a tale about how children will always suffer for their parents’ problems and mistakes. Jasper expected Pearl to tell her she was wrong or that that was stupid, but instead she asked Jasper to go on, that she had never heard that before. So the two spent to rest of class in a heated discussion with their play books out, circling and highlighting things. It was the first time Jasper actually enjoyed the class.
By some miracle, the two had swapped numbers per Pearl’s request to have someone in the class to study and discuss with. That was five weeks ago. Often times, their “study sessions” lasted hours, but a lot of it included taking breaks as conversation veered off of Shakespeare and they just talked. Pearl was actually really interested in Jasper’s boxing, comparing the footwork to her fencing. Hanging out with Pearl became the best part of Jasper’s days. She loved the heated debates they got into, she loved how Pearl got so passionate about whatever she was talking about, how she showed genuine interest in Jasper’s ideas, the light freckles on her nose, the way the tips of her ears turned pink when Jasper got her riled up…
Their time spent together outside of class only happened in the library, and recently, at the nearest dining halls where they would go eat together if they had been studying for a long time. Jasper hadn’t gotten the courage to ask her to hang out for real, go to her apartment and watch Netflix or go into town to hang out.
As Jasper made her way through the stacks of books to her and Pearl’s usual back table, she thought maybe she’d ask this week. When their table came in sight with Pearl and all her papers already spread out, Jasper stopped where she was between the bookshelves to simply admire her. Pearl always dressed nice, certainly better than Jasper did, but today she was in a dress for the first time Jasper could remember (and she would definitely remember). It was a simple, light blue summery dress, but it seemed to make her glow. Suddenly Jasper regretted not going back to her apartment to change first.
Who was she kidding, though? She doubted Pearl would ever be into someone like her, loud and large and brash. And honestly, she doubted Pearl was into girls at all, even though they had never discussed their love lives.
Making her way over to her, Pearl’s head shot up as Jasper tossed her work out bag on the floor.
“Jasper! I feel like we haven’t seen each other in ages, which is silly of course, I saw you earlier this week. How have you been though? How was your work out?”
Jasper’s treacherous heart did a flip at the thought that Pearl might’ve missed her too, and was she wearing perfume?
“Work out was great,” Jasper said, dramatically flexing one arm, showing off just a little. Pearl tossed her head back and laughed, making Jasper’s mouth go dry. Not even glancing at the Hamlet notes, the two small talked, catching up on the last couple days. The more they talked, the more Jasper noticed just how dressed up Pearl looked. Her jewelry, her perfume, even her minimal makeup routine seemed changed.
The thought hit her like a brick. Pearl was probably going on a date later. It was Friday evening after all, she would probably zip right out of the library when they were done in that cute little dress of hers. Jasper knew she shouldn’t torture herself like this, but she couldn’t help but ask.
“So, you got big plans this weekend?”
Pearl shrugged, “Not really, just studying and maybe catching up on laundry. What about you?”
She should have just let it drop. She should have just complimented Pearl like a nice friend would. Instead she waved her hand at Pearl, referring to her outfit.
“What? No hot date tonight?” she said playfully, casually, even though she felt anything but.
Now Pearl seemed nervous. Her ears did that adorable blush thing as she looked down, picked up her pencil and twirled it in her fingers.
“Of course not. That’s ridiculous.”
“Why’s that? You’re telling me you don’t have guys lined up to take you out on dates?” Jasper joked in a mock shocked voice, trying to lighten the mood again, which had somehow gotten very tense very fast.
“Hardly,” Pearl replied, still not looking at Jasper, “But even if they did, I wouldn’t be interested.”
Jasper had thought it before, that Pearl seemed like one of those people who refused to date in college as to not interfere with their studies.
“Ah I see, college first, dating second, right?”
“No. I just wouldn’t be interested in them. The boys, that is.”
Jasper’s brain seemed to slow down at this. Pearl was still looking down at her notes, but her knuckles were white from gripping the pencil. And suddenly Jasper realized what Pearl was saying and she knew she should say something, tell her that she shouldn’t be nervous about admitting she likes girls to Jasper of all people but instead she stupidly said,
“Ooohh.”
Which Pearl must have taken as a negative thing because she finally looked up at Jasper. And she had her defiant face on, the one she used when they debated stuff in class, but it was also different. A little more nervous, as if she nervous about what Jasper thought, but she was proud of herself enough that she was ready to fight her if she had to.
“Yeah. Is that going to be a problem to you?” Pearl’s voice was serious and a little scary.
At that moment, Jasper was pretty sure she was a little in love with her.
Jasper’s face split open into a lopsided grin, “No! Of course not! Me…Me too, you know?”
Pearl’s defiant face dropped and after a couple seconds, she was smiling too. They both started laughing, not because anything was funny, but fueled by that feeling of a tense situation being lifted.
With renewed energy, they both took out their notes, saying nothing further on the matter but with smiles still plastered on both their faces.
They stayed in the library for what felt like hours, doing a little bit of studying and a lot of talking. Jasper was thankful for the first time that the school library stayed open until midnight because they stayed until they were kicked out. Jasper offered her apartment up to study at that weekend. Jasper swore that Pearl was beaming.
It didn’t occur to Jasper until she was half asleep in her bed that night, that just maybe, Pearl dressed up to see her.
…Did she?
Nah.