Bittersweet Cravings

Chapter 5

I woke up at eight twenty-five this morning and made myself some toast as we only seem to have bread in the cupboards, I then fell back to sleep. It's now quarter past eleven and I'm getting dressed to go out shopping, as I'm doing my makeup, I think about what I'm going to wear tonight. I finish my makeup and stand up, I walk over to my mirror. Perfect. Anyways, I grab my handbag, put on some shoes, pick up my key card and walk out the door. "Poppy?" I hear a familiar voice. I turn around to see Aurora. "Aurora! Hi, I haven't seen you in a bit, you alright?" I ask her, smiling. She nods. "I'm ok, thanks. Are you free? I'm about to grab a coffee." She smiles. I check my watch, half eleven, I can spare some time. "That would be great. Let's go." I nod. We walk over to the lifts and press the button for the ground floor. "Are you coming to the party tonight?" I ask. I hear her sigh and then she shrugs. "I don't know, possibly. I was asked by that guy, the hot one but I don't really know if it's a good idea." She shrugs. She was asked by "that guy, the hot one"? Don't get me wrong, there's a lot of "hot" guys here but I'm pretty sure it's the one and only. I laugh. "Andre Cohen asked you to the party?" I ask, perplexed. She looks at me and grins. "That's him, we saw him outside the other day." She smirks. I frown. Andre Cohen is going with my friend, what about his other girlfriends? "Are you ok, Pops?" She asks, her brows furrowed. I'm perfectly fine, I'm just confused, I don't know why I'm even bothered, if I'm honest. "Yes!"  I snap. She chuckles and shakes her head. "Do you like him? I can cancel if you want, I don't even know if I'm going yet but if it makes you uncomfortable the thought of me and him going." She shrugs. "No! I do not like him, he's just trouble, if you ask me. What if he acts like he likes you but then never speaks to you again?" I falter. She shakes her head and smiles. "Don't worry, I understand these whole one night only "dates" or whatever they're called." She assures me. I don't want Andre messing my friends about, they deserve better than some player like him. The elevator arrives, goes down to the ground floor and we walk out. I walk over to the reception, it's the girl from my first day. "Hi, we'd like a taxi please." I smile. She nods and then glances at her keyboard and computer screen. "Miss Love and your name, Miss?" She asks, looking at Aurora. "Aurora." She acknowledges the receptionist. The receptionist types away on the keyboard. "Have you got a dress for tonight?" Aurora asks me. I shrug and chuckle, her eyes widen, she shakes her head. "If I have to, I'll pick one for you or else we're going dress shopping." She insists. Oh my, she really likes to be prepared. "What, after we grab a coffee?" I ask. She nods. "I need to go food shopping." I state. She rolls her eyes. "Fine, you'll meet me back here at 3:30 though!" She laughs. I sigh. Me and Aurora walk outside and wait for our taxi. "Have you got a date?" Aurora asks. I nod, I don't particularly want to go anymore, if I'm honest. "I'm going with Alex." I shrug. She doesn't respond. Our taxi arrives and we head to the local café. After ordering, we catch up. "When did Andre ask you then?" I ask. She smirks. "It's weird, he just approached me randomly this morning." She laughs. Weird, I don't trust him one bit, it's like he thought "There's a girl, I'll just ask her.", he's probably already running out of women. We continue talking for thirty minutes and then I went food shopping, I'm now waiting for her at the student lounge as she said she would meet me there, it's after four o'clock, she's over thirty minutes late. "Hey, sorry I'm late, we got busy." She giggles. I shake my head and smile but it soon disappears. Wait, "We got busy"? Who's we? I look up to see her with Andre. I roll my eyes. Oh. "Are you ready?" She asks me. I refuse to look for a dress with him around, not a chance. "Actually, I've already found a dress, I was meant to tell you earlier. Have fun, I guess." I walk away, rolling my eyes. He's hanging out with her? She's oblivious. I chose to take the stairs, it helps me clear my thoughts. I reach my floor and I walk out of the doorway. "Poppy, you good?" I hear Mark's voice. I turn around and nod. "Yes, all good, thanks." I brush him off and continue walking.  He chuckles. "You're totally lying but sure, ok." He grins. Ignore him, keep walking, Poppy. I swipe my card and walk into my room. My mind is stuck again, my thoughts revolve around Andre, it's so annoying. It wouldn't surprise me if Andre acts like Aurora is "special" and ends the night by saying "I've had a great time, give me your number." but then never even acknowledges her again. Suddenly, there's a knock on my door, I walk over and open it. "Poppy, tell me, what's wrong, I know you're lying." Mark insists. I open the door wider to let him in, he walks over to the sofa and sits down. I close the door and sit opposite him. "Is Andre a player? Does he flirt one night and ignore the next?" I ask him. He sighs and then moves his hand sideways. "He has a reputation for it, why? He hasn't played you, has he? I'll kill him." He asks me, angrily. I shake my head and laugh. "No, it's just he's going to the party with Aurora and she's completely oblivious. He's even with her now." I frown. He furrows his eyebrows. "What? He's hanging out with her now? Before the party?" He shakes his head, frowning.  I nod. "Yeah, why?" I ask. He looks confused. "He never does that." He shrugs, confused. Don't tell me he actually "likes" her. "Um, ok." I shrug. He gulps. "You're going with Alex, Andre's going with Aurora, Jorge's going with Alejandra, I'm going all alone." He laughs. I laugh. "Why don't you ask Rita?" I nod. He shakes his head and then sighs. "Jorge would go ballistic so no." He retorts. I shake my head. "He can't stop you though." I smirk. He chuckles but continues shaking his head. I huff. "You're scared to ask her more like." I smirk. He stands up and then rolls his eyes. "I am not scared to ask her, if I'm honest, I'm scared of Jorge." He shrugs. I burst out into laughter. He pulls out his phone and I snatch it out of his hands. I open "Rita" and text her "Hi Rita, would you like to go to the party with me tonight? Thanks x", I smirk. Mark opens his mouth and frowns. "She'll go mad, I don't think she even likes me!" He retorts. We talk for a bit more but then he leaves to go and get ready for the party. It's now twenty past eight, I'm getting dressed. I'm wearing a dark red dress with matching red heels. I have the classic smoky eye makeup, the original black mascara, with dark red lipstick because it matches the dress. I chose to straighten my hair rather than curling it as it seemed easier. I'm now waiting for Alex in my living room. Alejandra walks out wearing a black skirt and a black crop top, she has dark pink matte lipstick on, she's looks lovely. "You look amazing!" I smile. She looks at me and then beams. "Says you, you look beautiful, better than me." She grins. I don't feel it but I appreciate it, if I'm honest, I really can't be bothered with tonight but Alejandra practically forced me to say yes so I don't have a choice. "Thank you, we're always beautiful though." I laugh. She laughs and the door goes. She opens it and I pick up my handbag, I check to see that I have my phone, purse and key. "It's Alex and Andre." She yells. "Alex and Andre.", of course  Andre is here, when isn't he? I despise him. I stand up and walk outside. Alex is wearing a dark blue shirt with black jeans, he looks handsome. Andre suddenly walks out of the door. Oh my, no words can describe how incredibly handsome he is. He's wearing a black shirt, black ripped jeans with a dark black leather jacket. It's as if leather jackets and Andre were made for each other. He looks me up and down, causing my cheeks to go bright pink, I smirk at him. He rolls his eyes, he had to ruin it, didn't he? Well, let's just say tonight is going to be a long night.