"Are you gonna tell him?" Ellie asked me for what was probably the fortieth time in the last half hour.

"No."

She paused. "How about now?"

"Still no!"

A second passed. "Now?"

"Elizabeth Yasmin Stevens! Stop!"

Ellie pouted and flopped down onto her bed as I finished packing my things into a small canvas bag. I shoved clean underwear, pyjamas, a tank top, some shorts and my toiletries into the bag and zipped it shut.

"You have to tell him at some point, you know." Ellie informed me as she rolled over onto her stomach, red-streaked hair draping over her shoulders in luscious loose curls.

I sighed. "I will. I just... I don't even know if I'm going to accept it yet-- I mean, the only information Mr Manolis gave me was that he wanted me to intern at the LA office for six months. Taking a semester off college is a big decision and I want to consider every option before I commit." I reasoned, causing Ellie to roll her eyes.

"Boooorrrinnnnggg. Take a risk, Isabelle!" Her eyes gleamed as she bounced excitedly on the bed. "Opportunities like this don't come around often, and you'd be crazy to pass it up. Besides," she shot me a sly look, "if you and Noah love each other as much as it looks like you do, then distance isn't going to be an issue."

I sighed and raked a hand through my hair, taking a huge, cleansing breath. "It's not just Noah, Ell. I mean, where am I going to live? How am I going to support myself? It's not like an unpaid internship is going to put a roof over my head." I frowned as I pictured myself sleeping on the ground of the magazine office, eating crumbs off the floor and drinking water straight from the sink. The thought made me shudder.

"Why don't you just call Mr Manolis and ask exactly what the job entails?" Ellie suggested, and I had to admit that that sounded logical even to me.

"Yeah I will. But for now I just want to enjoy my evening with Noah." I brushed off her comment easily as I pushed my cellphone into my pocket and grabbed my dorm keys from the study desk.

"I'll see you tomorrow afternoon." I informed my roommate with a smile, and she replied by wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

"Have fun! But not too much fun, God knows we don't need any little Noahs or Isabelles running around here." Ellie  teased, making me blush furiously as she continued to flip through the magazine laying on her bed.

"It's not like... I mean, we haven't... I uh..." I trailed off and felt my cheeks become even more heated. "I gotta go." I muttered quickly and practically ran out of the door, leaving a smug-looking Ellie behind. The afternoon air was cool for Spring, but the slight nip felt nice against my warm cheeks.

The train station was only a ten minute stroll away from campus, making it the perfect way to travel to Noah's college. Noah wasn't expecting to see me until Friday, and it was only Wednesday, but a few of my classes had been cancelled due to a timetabling clash and I figured I'd surprise him.

I reached the train station just as the express train pulled up, and I hurried through the doors to find an empty seat. There were only a few people on the train but I liked to find a window seat right at the front, where no one would bother me.

I spent the first half hour of the journey researching The World Against Us magazine on my phone, unable to stop myself from thinking about Mr Manolis' proposal.

I was twenty minutes away from my destination when I decided to call him.

"Good evening you've reached Peter Manolis. I'm Mr Manolis' secretary Jane, how may I help you?" The woman's gentle voice spoke through the speakers, and it took me a moment to pull myself together and gather the courage to talk to her.

"Oh hello," I greeted her, my voice sounding shrill and squeaky, "my name is Isabelle Conway. I'm calling regarding an email Mr Manolis' representative sent me. I was offered an internship position at your LA headquarters and I was wondering if I would be able to receive some more information on this?" I questioned, trying to sound professional and not like I had barely graduated high school.

"Oh! Yes of course, Miss Conway! Mr Manolis will be delighted to hear that you've called-- I was actually going to call you myself tomorrow. Mr Manolis has requested that you be flown down to our LA office this weekend to speak with him personally. All expenses paid, of course, Mr Manolis' realizes that you're in college and flights are costly."

I had to physically cover my mouth with my hand to stop myself from choking on my own spit.

Ladylike, I know.

"He... What?" I managed to say as a multitude of emotions, all a variation of shock, ran through my body.

Jane the secretary chuckled. "He seems very keen to have you part of his team, Miss Conway. Perhaps he envisions you as more than just an intern in the future."

I shook my head stupidly in disbelief, as if Jane could actually see me. "I don't know what to say." I admitted, unable to pick my jaw up and close it like a normal human.

I could almost hear the smile in Jane's voice as she spoke next. "How about you think everything through tonight and give me a call tomorrow." She paused. "Off the record, Miss Conway, I would take advantage of this opportunity if I were you. Mr Manolis has never so much as talked to an intern before other then to ask for coffee, never mind insist on recruiting one. You must be extraordinarily talented-- don't take his interest in you lightly."

My heart pounded in my chest as I tried to string together a coherent sentence. "I'll make sure to call you tomorrow, Jane. Thank you for your help."

"Goodbye Miss Conway."

"Bye."

The line went dead and I shoved the phone back into my pocket, sitting in awestruck bliss for the remaining ten minutes on the train. When we finally slowed to a stop I pulled my duffle bag onto my shoulder and glided out of the carriage in a trance-like state. Even as I walked towards the bus stop and hauled myself onto the bus I couldn't gather my thoughts.

It wasn't until I stood outside Noah's dormitory door that I got myself together and knocked lightly. The door flew open and Wren, Noah's roommate, stood in front of me holding a slice of pizza in between his teeth.

"Oh, it's you." He greeted me, the words coming out muffled.

Great to see you too, Wren. I've been well, thanks, yourself?

"Yeah, it's me. Can I come in?" I asked and Wren instantly threw the door open, allowing me to step through.

Noah and Wren's room was an absolute mess, unlike how Noah's room had been back in Connecticut. There were dirty clothes and books strewn across every available space, and their too-small beds were left unmade.

Noah, however, was no where in sight. Unless of course he was just buried under the piles of stuff in his room and yet to find his way to the surface.

"Is Noah here?" I asked Wren, who had now removed his shirt and was draped over the chair in front of the study desk, his gangly limbs protruding every which way.

"He's at practice. Down on the common." He informed me before letting rip a loud intrusive burp. I cringed and quickly let myself out of the dorm and out into the courtyard. I wandered for a little while until the common came into view, and sure enough the team were running laps up and down the bleachers.

I would never understand how people liked that kind of inhumane torture.

I sat down on the bleachers on the opposite side and let my eyes find Noah's jersey number. I watched him as he sprinted, his calf muscles flexing with the strain of vigorous exercise.

A strain I had never felt.

A few minutes later the coach blew his whistle and the team dispersed onto the field, preparing to play. Even though I had absolutely no idea what was going on, it was still interesting to watch.

Mostly because I was able to stare at Noah for long periods of time and not be judged for it.

He was so graceful on the field. A combination of brute strength and athleticism, but also a grace that made his movements appear effortless.

It was incredible how made for this sport he was.

I couldn't help but wonder briefly how I would feel if Noah got offered an opportunity to transfer to an even better team than Temple, somewhere hundreds of miles away.

As I watched him throw the ball almost the full length of the field, I immediately knew my answer.

If meant he could pursue his dreams, of course I would.

The question was, would he feel the same way about me?