if by chance | ✓

10 | mean is my second name

[ 10 ]

C O R A

✦

If it were me on a regular day, I would say it was near perfection. The sun was splendid, casting a soft pinkish orange glow on the marble top dining table on which, rested my breakfast plate. I felt as extravagant as my chocolate nutella spread. But the person in front of me, certainly didn't.

"How many times have you been completely and incurably fucked up?" He asks, sipping on his cup of bitter black coffee.

"Can't tell. I kinda enjoy being fucked up." I snort.

"I'm not kidding here." He pulls a straight face, the dark circles under his eyes were suddenly too visible. And it scared me to an extent.

"To begin with, I don't even understand the point of talking to me about this when you should be with Rhys." I roll my eyes. Heavy and serious conversations were never my thing and Eugene Cooper sitting here at my breakfast table right at eight in the morning was more than my hungover brain could handle.

"Because you're the one who took me to the hospital." He says.

"Too lame. So did Rhys." I retort.

"I know. But you don't understand. He is my best friend. I don't want him to worry his ass out. I know he wants to talk to me and everything. But he's the last person I wanna speak about my tumor because fuck it, all I want is to be treated normal, like everyone else at college." He explains.

"Then why come to me?"

"Sometimes it's better to share stuff with a stranger. And apprently, you don't look like the kind of person who would pull a pity face on me and consider me a charity case." He laughs a little, for the first time in a while.

"I get it." I say, sighing. It was almost time to leave for college, so I quickly gobble up the remaining food on my plate.

"We can talk on our way to campus." I assure him as we walk over to the garage.

I would be driving after a long time. The entire summer I had been using public transport and to be very honest, it had felt better than the mundane Land Rover.

"Yo, where you leaving without us?" Noah calls out and I turn back to see him with a very groggy looking, hungover Rhys Crawford.

Last night, he passed out in the car and Noah insisted he crashed at our place to avoid being reprimanded by his family. Rhys was wearing shades, trying his best to cover up his tired eyes. I stifle a laugh.

"Um, actually, I think you should go with Rhys...in your bike, I mean." I offer Noah.

"Why, are the backseats taken by invisible zombies?" He argues.

Eugene eyes me and perking up a sad smile. There was no way coming up with an excuse of going separately with Eugene when we barely know each other.

"I understand, it's probably Eugene trying to avoid me." Rhys blurts out, taking all of us by surprise.

"Uh...you're taking it wrong. Fine, just hop in everyone." I give up, flashing an apologetic look at Eugene, who just shrugs it off.

"I suppose they called us to college on Sunday for some unnecessary agenda?" Noah asks from beside me.

"Dufus! Have you forgotten we are going to camp tomorrow?" I shake my head.

"Oh about that, I guess I'm going." Rhys says, out of the blue and for some moments, each one of us (especially, Eugene and Noah) believe that he's just kidding.

But then he asks, "What time are we leaving?"

✦

When the three hour long brief lecture gets over, it's already past lunch time. My stomach growls. Even though I had eaten a full breakfast, my appetite was full fledged and all I wanted right now was run home.

"Hey Rhys, mom invited you over for lunch today. So you can't go back home anytime soon." Noah states as we make our way through the departing crowd of students.

"But I haven't told Ma where I am." Rhys objects, like the sincere kid he is.

"We're not as dumb as you suppose us to be. We called her last night saying you were studying at our place for a project and you'd be staying over." I inform and he raises his eyebrows.

"Shit it's raining." Acacia Everhart comments. She was standing close to us, holding a blush pink umbrella half closed. Chestnut brown hair and sparkling blue eyes adding to her glow. I wonder if I had ever spoken to her before but I knew her face and name from the magazines. She was the winner of London Fresh Face contest last spring.

I offer a small smile, which she gladly returns. Sure, she was giving out all the preppy girl vibes.

From under the shade of the parking lot, I look up at dull gray sky, pouring down a cascade of rain. I didn't have an umbrella or a rain coat, like always. But it didn't matter.

"Um, any of you mind giving me a ride back home?" Acacia asks, scanning our faces.

"Sure why not?! Come on in." I say, trying to make her as comfortable as possible.

She looked kind of scared, I don't know for what reason.

Noah and Rhys were already inside the car. I insist Eugene to hop on beside Rhys in the backseat so Acacia could ride shotgun.

About ten minutes of awkward and silent driving on the broadway, it becomes extremely difficult for me to keep my mouth shut.

"So where do you live?" I question Acacia, who looks up at me like I had just broken her trance.

"Just a few blocks away, keep driving." She faintly smiles, returning her gaze back outside the window.

"Acacia is an unique name." Noah comments, trying to melt the ice.

"Thanks." She smiles again. I notice that she smiles a lot, yet there was some kind of mysterious sadness hidden in it.

"Um, on a different note, I think I should just go straight home. Ma would be worried sick." Rhys says in a matter of fact voice and I shoot him a heated glare through the rear view mirror.

"If you speak of going home like some kidnapped kid once again, I shall boil your teeth." I threaten him, making everyone except Rhys chuckle.

"Why are you so mean?" He frowns.

"Mean is my second name."

✦

a/n : writing is therapy.
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