Don't Tell My Brother

Chapter 43 - Miss Me

Lucas arrived early, just like the last time. But this time, those wide marble steps were empty, worn smooth under countless footsteps. There was no stranger with a book. Lucas didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed. When sober, Damien seemed to have a decent handle on his emotions (or, at least, he could lie through them), but Cameron got under his skin.

He didn't want an incident. Things with Damien were going well, Lucas thought as he climbed the stairs. He hadn't seen him outside of work that week, but Damien would text him at odd hours of the night. Sometimes silly, stupid things: comments on whatever movie he was watching, something annoying Andrea had done, Sofia's poor taste in music. Less often questions about whatever homework he'd made himself do: usually History or English essays, he didn't seem to have issue with whatever maths he did. Sometimes, when Lucas was awake past midnight studying and Damien was doing whatever he did in the early hours of the morning, he'd send him messages that made Lucas flush so deeply it felt like there was fire underneath his skin. After those, he couldn't focus on his schoolwork anymore.

The doors to The Palace swung open with ease. The lobby was sparsely populated, with a lone couple at the front desk and Cameron, reclining in one of the plush leather couches, flicking idly through yet another book. He glanced up when the door shut behind Lucas, but didn't close his book or make a move to stand. Instead, he raised a hand and beckoned Lucas over.

"Good. You're early. Sooner we start the sooner we finish, right?"

Lucas nodded. Cameron looked as neat as ever, in a navy woollen sweater with a white collared shirt underneath, perfectly poised as he stood and closed his book with a sharp snap. He smiled, and Lucas noted they were the kind of teeth so straight and perfect they must've cost thousands in orthodontist bills.

"I'm sorry I didn't text, by the way." Lucas said, as he followed Cameron towards what he assumed was the ballroom. "I got busy, and it just slipped my mind." He'd actually barely thought of Cameron since their first meeting. Things with Damien had been changing by then, and as he'd started to feel differently Cameron had faded. Maybe there was a reason for that correlation.

"Text?" Cameron frowned, looking pleasantly confused. "Oh, about the book. I completely forgot about that. But it's quite alright, I understand Nietzche isn't for most people. If you ever change your mind, the offer's still there."

"You don't think we should wait for Damien?" Lucas asked, glancing behind them as Cameron lead him out of the lobby and into a hallway with a high, arched ceiling.

His feet sunk into the carpet as they walked past landscape paintings in gilt frames, buttery gold under chandelier light. Neither he nor Damien were familiar with the place, and leaving him alone in the lobby to find it himself wouldn't be fair. Knowing Damien, he'd easily get someone to help him, but Lucas still would've rather gone together. He wanted to see Damien as soon as possible.

"He's coming?" Cameron grimaced, upper lip curling in distaste. "Really?"

"He works with me, of course he is. Is that going to be a problem?" Lucas replied, colder than he'd meant it to be.

There was definitely a note in Cameron's tone he didn't like. Something fierce had sprung up inside him, and Lucas found he had to try very hard not to glare at Cameron. It might've just been a misunderstanding. Cameron was nice, after all.

"No problem." Cameron said, quickly pulling on a smile again. "He can catch us up, when he decides to get here. It'll be better if it's just the two of us, though." He shrugged.

"I don't know, I think we should wait for him. If we all start together, you won't have to explain things twice, right?"

Cameron gave a little snort of laughter at that. "Knowing Damien, I'd have to explain it twice anyway."