Jordan shifted half a step. Tyler bounced farther. He looked surprised, only for a moment. Then he grinned. "Watch where you're going."
Jordan looked at him. Tyler was nearly as tall but built narrower through the waist. Jordan could have answered. Instead, he looked past him. Two students had seen everything.
One lowered her eyes. The other pretended to study a campus poster. Jordan reached into his bag. The notebook came out. Tyler's smile faded.
"You really doing that every time?" Jordan wrote 11:47 a.m. Library North corridor. Tyler Bennett initiated shoulder contact. Two witnesses nearby. He closed the notebook.
Yes. Tyler leaned close enough for Jordan to smell mint gum. You know what people are going to think when they see a guy your size complaining about a shoulder bump? Jordan's jaw tightened. That sentence was designed better than any insult.
Tyler knew exactly where to place it. Jordan slid the notebook into his bag. That's why I write it down. Then he walked away. The next day, someone pulled his chair out as he sat down in an engineering study room.
Jordan caught himself against the table before he hit the floor. Laughter erupted behind him. Logan, Tyler, Chase. This time, three other students were in the room. Nobody joined the laughter.
Nobody stopped it either. Jordan stood upright. He looked at the chair, then at Logan. The phone was already raised. "Come on," Logan said.
"That was funny." Jordan pushed the chair back into place. "Was it?" Logan's grin faltered. Jordan sat, opened his laptop, went back to work.
That seemed to bother Chase most of all. He walked behind Jordan and looked over his shoulder. Still pretending this place wants you here? Jordan's fingers stopped over the keyboard. Chase continued, "Because it doesn't look like anybody's exactly rushing to your defense."
Jordan turned slowly. The study room went silent. Chase was smiling. Jordan wasn't. For several seconds, he said nothing.
Then he answered in the same calm voice he had used on the terrace. Some people need a crowd to feel important. Tyler stopped laughing. Logan lowered the phone slightly. Chase stared at Jordan.
That was the first time Jordan had given him anything close to a wound, and Chase felt it. Jordan could see that too. He turned back to his laptop. Behind him, Chase said quietly, "Careful." Jordan didn't respond, but he wrote the word down later.
"Careful." Friday came with a sharp wind and a low silver sky. Jordan was leaving the engineering building when he heard something fall near the main hallway. A cleaning cart had tipped beside the stairs. A campus custodian sat on the floor, one hand braced against the wall.
She looked to be in her late 50s. Jordan dropped his bag. Ma'am, don't move yet. I'm fine. Okay, then let's prove it slowly.