Page 6 of Give Me Honesty

Even the way he laughed turned me on.

“I’m sorry. I’m still trying to find my way around this place,” I admitted, bashfully.

“It’s all good. You’re worth bumping into. Just keep your eyes up next time.”

“I’ll try to keep that in mind. Again, I’m so sorry.”

I attempted to step past him, but he held out his arm to stop me.

“Why are you in such a hurry? I don’t believe I’ve seen you around here before. Are you a freshman?” The handsome stranger asked.

“Umm, yeah, I am. Is it that obvious?” I giggled nervously as I tucked my hair behind my ear.

“It’s all good, cutie. What’s your name?”

“Damn, you must think I don’t have any manners at all. My name is Honesty.” I neglected to share my last name because I wanted to get to know people for myself before they found out who my family was.

“Honesty? Wow, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. A beautiful name for a gorgeous lady.”

No one needed to tell me I was blushing. I felt heat rise in my ears and cheeks.

“Thank you. I used to get picked on in grade school, but I love my name.”

“Are you?”

My eyebrows furrowed as I waited for him to finish.

“Am I what?”

“Honest. Usually, people with names like yours are the opposite of what the word actually means. You seem sweet and innocent, so my question is, do you live up to your name?”

I giggled, thinking of how smooth yet cheesy his question was.

“It depends. I try my best to tell the truth at all times, but if you ask my mama or my siblings, they might have a different answer depending on the circumstances,” I replied, thinking about how my siblings swore I was the sneakier sibling amongst the five of us.

“Hmm, I guess I can let you slide. I lie to my Pops all the time.”

His perfectly white teeth sparkled as he laughed, and I found myself mesmerized again by the handsome man in front of me.

“Now, it’s your turn,” I stated.

“My turn for what?”

His goofy expression made me laugh because he was as confused as I was.

“You haven’t told me your name yet, silly.”

I noticed a slight shift in his demeanor. It was drastic, but noticeable.

“Are you serious? You don’t know who I am?” He asked incredulously, as if it seemed far-fetched that I wouldn't know who he was.

“Umm, yeah. I told you this is my first year here. I don’t really know anyone outside of my roommate and a handful of classmates.” I admitted.

My roommate, Ashlanique, was kind of standoffish, so I couldn’t even say I knew her beyond her name and the fact that she was on the dance team.

“Really? Don’t you watch college basketball or anything? I’m sure your classmates have mentioned me, especially the girls.” He stated with confidence.

His arrogance caught me off guard, but I could tell he wasn’t a freshman, so he probably had a little clout on campus. I wanted to tell him I only watched pro basketball and only sat in front-row courtside seats, but I decided to keep it to myself.