#4 days...

people looked at you like you were insane when you bolted away from the game of truth of dare.

your dare was simple, and a lucky one, as dubbed by most of your sorority sisters: you were to kiss oscar piastri, one of the most popular frat boys in your college campus.

and the frat boy who you were shipped with by your sorority and the frat house itself.

many would jump at the chance to be in your place, and yet your stomach started to churn when the crowd of college students started getting hype at the kiss-related dare.

oscar was flushing in embarrassment, and all the sorority girls nearly fainted because of it. the boys of the frat were clapping his back as if he had won a grammy, and you...well, you were trying your hardest not to vomit on the floor.

you had moved in front of oscar, pushing yourself to ignore your pounding heart and instead holding oscar's gaze. he was cute, and you knew it, but he wasn't yours. he wasn't the one who had your attention every lecture and every lunch break.

that was lando norris, the curly haired playboy who leaned against the wall, nursing something that could only be alcohol based on the way he winced every time he took a sip.

he watched you nervously squirm in front of oscar, eyes darkening with an emotion you were too nervous to place as oscar started to lean in, eyes closed as he came to meet you.

meet you. kiss you. on your lips. with your crush watching it happen. the one who you wanted to kiss was watching you give it away to someone else. someone who wasn't him.

you couldn't do it.

you can't even bring yourself to mumble a "sorry" before you clumsily push your way out of the crowd of hyped college students, fighting for a breath of fresh air not populated by the smell of cigarette smoke and warm sweat.

finding a corner in the cool solace of the kitchen, you try to calm yourself as best you can, hands finding the coolness of the marble beneath your fingertips as your eyes swim with unshed tears.

embarrassment eats away at your being as soon as the reality of the fool you made of yourself starts to lower itself on you, and you have half the wit to bust your way out of the party and take an uber home before the sound of a plastic cup being slid down to you takes your attention away from that thought.

lando norris stands in all of his frat boy glory, varsity jacket hood forsaken to reveal his untamed curls as his hazel eyes study you. "want a drink?"

unable to form words at the moment, you nod, surprised when soda greets you in the red solo cup.

"didn't peg you for the vodka type." lando adds, somehow reading your expression perfectly as he takes a sip of his alcohol-tinged drink. the act alone makes your heart flutter, but you do your best to play it cool, sipping as the sizzle almost instantly calms your racing heart.

"god, i should have just sucked it up and kissed him." you mumble to yourself, the consequences of your embarrassing actions finally settling on you.

"you didn't want to kiss him though, did you?" lando tilts his head to the side, and you crack under the question, shaking your head. "then don't force yourself to give away something you don't want to give. you could have walked away from the dare even after you accepted it, and it would have been fine. it is fine. don't feel pressured to do something because you're scared of rejection from others."

"what i'm trying to say is—" lando smiles, looking at you with that gaze that makes your face heat up. "—you did the right thing."

"thanks," you smile shyly, taking another sip of your soda before you glance over at lando. he's moved closer now, cologne washing off of him in rolling waves as he nearly pins you to your spot with his eyes.

"i'm surprised you didn't jump at the chance to kiss oscar. usually everyone's tripping over their own two fucking feet just to get a 'hi' from him," lando rolls his eyes as if it's a common occurrence, and you just shrug, looking away as you flush.

"i didn't want to give my kiss away to someone i don't like." you say, and lando raises one eyebrow before you quickly correct yourself. "i mean, i like him, but not like...like-like him. you know?"

"ah, i get it," lando nods, curls shifting with the movement as he takes another sip of his drink. "who do you like-like?"

the question makes you instantly glued to your spot in the emptying kitchen, heart almost overshadowing the bump of the music as your hands start to sweat. here you were, having your crush ask you who you like, in front of your face.

how were you supposed to say you like him?

"do girls usually tell you straight up who they like?" you ask to dodge the question, and lando laughs, the sound warm and melodic as he nods in consideration. "fuck, you do have a point."

that makes you forget the nervousness building in your stomach for a second, chuckling as lando watches you throw your head back in joy.

"can i tell you who i like-like?" lando poses the question so innocently, it makes you do a double take.

"frat boys have crushes?" you blurt out before thinking, and lando laughs again, eyes crinkling up this time as he nods. "yeah. we're human, believe it or not. so...do you want to know or not?"

"yeah, sure," you blurt out, knowing you're not ready to face the heartbreak you're expecting when lando says the name of another girl—probably one of your sorority sisters, the popular ones with the gorgeous hair and perfect outfits and glittering smiles—

"you."

the confession is so sudden you still instantly, heart ceasing to beat and mind clouded with the only thought you can form: lando just said he liked me.

"me?" you echo back, and lando nods, face losing that flirty charm and being replaced with one of soft shyness. he bashfully rubs the back of his neck, cheeks tinged with what must be a mixture of nerves and vodka.

"i've liked you ever since the first time you were introduced to me. it was one of those crushes that started with the look of you and grew further with who i found you to be later on," lando says, even closer now as he lets out a breath he must have not known he was holding, voice only softening as the music seems to disappear from around you.

"can i kiss you? if i'm not the one you want to give a kiss away to, by all means, stop me now—" you're stopping lando with a kiss, hesitant to touch him before he sighs into you, spurring you to plant your palms against his chest and kiss him like you imagine your sorority wanted you to kiss oscar.

once you pull away, lando's the one who's breathless, cheeks flush with red and lips swollen from kissing as he exhales. "fuck, you're-"

"bad at kissing?" you awkwardly question, cheeks matching the red of the solo cup as you tuck your hair behind your ear. lando shakes his head quickly, curls tousled with the movement as he smiles.

"quite the opposite, i promise."

that statement makes you bashfully smile, and you and lando both realize just how lucky you were to run away from that dare, and how lucky he was to offer you a drink.