Clementine had become a wild child. Born in America but raised abroad, she now had little regard for the expectations of high society. But her reckless ways eventually catch up with her when she is kicked out of college in New York City and forced t...
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She didn't even realize how much she missed him, until he kept incessantly popping up in the crevices of her mind as she was trying to execute a round of perfect battement tendues on the barre.
She met up with Mina to do a dance session, hoping all the stretching could physically remove him from her muscle memory, but it only seemed to perpetuate more of it. More of him.
"What's up?" Mina asked her from behind, over the music. Instead of classical music, they were playing eclectic Brazilian beats, keeping rhythm with that instead. "You seem a bit distracted. You're not keeping time."
Clementine sighed deeply and turned to face Mina, all the while keeping up with the exercise.
"It's Zico," except Shem mouthed his name, as if saying it would bring on some sort of spirit.
"Que?" Mina mouthed back.
"Zico." Clementine said a little more sternly than she intended.
"Oh men Deus,"Ohmygod. Mina stopped doing the exercise. "You're still seeing him?"
"Yeah, so what?" Clementine turned back around to face the other side, still not breaking the exercise, and to hide her blushing.
"But," Mina went around toffee C herself, "after everything that happened?"
"I'm just...shocked, a bit. I mean, I'll support you if that's what you want." Mina stared at the ground for a second, and then ran to pause the music. "Come on," she said gathering her stuff, "let's go eat. My treat."
They ran out onto the street and took a bus towards the water front, from where they walked. Passing by a few street cafes, mostly tailoring to the tourist crowd, they found a nice, sunlit patio in a hole in the wall type of place.
Once they got seated at a table, underneath a sprawling umbrella, they waited for the waitress to come by and pick up their orders before they dove into the real conversation.
Clementine was getting ready to start defending herself as necessary, but then it was Mina that dropped a bomb that Clementine was not expecting.
"I'm getting married." She whispered underneath her breath, as if ti was a. Casual thing to say, taking to something like discussing the weather.
At that, Clementine chocked on her lemon water, having to grab a napkin to cover he mouth to avoid sputtering al over the table.
Then, she gathered herself and said "Congratulations!" Leaning over to hug Mina right there at the table. "It wasn't like nobody saw that coming. You were together forever, and are perfect for each other." At least from the outside, Clementine thought to herself."
Mina nodded, putting her hands up as if to say guilty! That's me! In love and loudly talking about it!
"I feel so stupid, I feel like I've been so caught up in my own drama that I didn't even really have a chance to catchup with you." Clementine took another sip, wishing she could switch to something a little bit harder. Like a screwdriver. "I feel like a bad friend," she said quietly.
"You're not, because I gotta give it to you, you have kinda had a whirlwind yourself. We can talk about the wedding later, because trust me its going to be big, but I want to know, are you falling for this guy?" Mina asked.
Clementine blushed unwillingly. "Falling? I don't know about that," YES I AM IN LOVE WITH HIM, she wanted to scream out, but for her own sake and everyone around her she instead said, "its best not to think about these things too much. At least in my case, not to go into trying to plan..or control."
"Oh sure, sure, because you know, next thing you know you're pregnant...." Mina said talking into the table.
Clementine inhaled sharply, letting the sea salt air sting her nostrils, "what do you mean, pregnant?"
Then Mina slowly looked up, and this time it was more like fear in her eyes, which seemed to confirm the fact before any words came out fo her mouth.
"It's true. I'm pregnant." She let those words linger in the air a bit. "Which is why we're rushing the wedding. I mean, yes, I always knew probably somewhere in the back of my mind that we were going to end up together, I just didn't think it would happen so quick?" Mina stared at her glass.
"Look," Clementine began, we're 19..yes it may feel like a little bit young, but when you know, I think, you know. You know?"
Mina laughed, and seemed to perk up, then she placed her hand on her belly, thoughtfully,
"When did you find out?" Clementine breathed, referring to the babu.
"This week. I'm 4 weeks along now."
"That's amazing," Clementine replied, but all the while thinking to herself that she would have no idea what she would do if she were, god forbid, pregnant. And yet, she felt some instinctive tug, telling her that she had her own motherly instincts, and that yes she would be able to be a mother if she had to. Though, at this point, she couldn't even begin to think about it.
"That also means that the wedding is going to be soon," Mina added once their food arrived, a medley of seafood and fish on a bed of rice, flavoured with coconut - Clementine's favourite flavour.
"How soon?" Clementine asked, savouring the flavours in her mouth.
"Soon. And I was thinking," Mina had that peculiar look on her face that Clementine recognized as the prelude to mischief, "you could invite Zico."
Clementine's firs thought was to say nooo, to object to it, because clearly, he would be uncomfortable. But the she thought, why not? Knowing him and his charisma he'd be able to fit in and shine anywhere. Maybe she was more concerned about herself then him, and there it was again, she was catching herself being selfish.s
"Why not?" Clementine smiled, but Mina didn't seem convinced.
"Come on Clem, for once its going to be my party, our party, its about time you started doing what you really wanted and knot what you think people would like you to be doing!"
