Forever | ✓

48. Sugar

Liam

I looked as if I had been stood up.

As I waited at this table myself, I became aware of the looks I was getting for last few minutes especially.

This is what happens when you have someone in your life who is way too much of a stickler for being on time.

Rena practically pushed my ass out the door this morning to make sure that I wasn't late to my lunch with Chris.

In all honesty, I didn't care that she made me leave earlier. If it meant that I got to see her first.

"Hey, man," I felt someone hold my shoulders, shaking a little.

I instantly recognised Chris' voice and then he walked around to sit across from me, a grin on his face. He'd bought new glasses, a circular frame and somehow it made him look more intellectual.

"Hey, you alright?" I asked.

"I'm well. All good with you?" Chris asked.

"Yeah. Although, I've been kicked out of my place for the day," I chuckled.

He looked at me confused and amused.

"What?" He questioned.

"Bea wanted a girl's day with Rena, so she came over to my place earlier. But for some reason, I couldn't stick around and had to leave," I told him.

Chris laughed. "And so I'm a substitute?"

"Of course," I joked and Chris shook his head.

One of the things I loved about making the move to New York, was finding out the Chris was also here. I had lost touch with quite a few people from high school. I kept in touch with my boys initially, but after Julie, that stopped.

They reached out when they heard the news, but I closed myself off after. I shut myself off from the rest of the world.

However, in the last year, I began to reach out again.

It felt good to meet up with Chris every now and then, one of my boys. Or as our old math teacher called us, the rat pack. He was not a fan of us.

"Truth is, Bea had a bad day yesterday and I asked Rena to come over to cheer her up. Bea always loves seeing her," I said.

"What happened?" Chris asked.

"Someone from Bea's class told her turtles can't be pets, which made her think she was hurting her pet turtle, Leo," I informed him.

It was an entire ordeal. It worried me when I picked her up from school and she was crying. After I explained that for some turtles, it wasn't okay to have them as pets, but we had done our research for Leo.

She seemed to have understood what I said, but she crestfallen look on her face upset me and I just wanted it to go away.

I called Rena, who happily agreed to have a girls day. When I suggested it to Bea, her mood instantly lifted.

"Kids are cruel," Chris commented.

I let out a sigh. "You have no idea."

"How is it going with Serena?" Chris asked.

I smiled. I learned that it was now an instant reaction when her name was mentioned.

Good thing we aren't teenagers, or I would be mocked for that.

"You are so whipped," Chris commented, before I could reply to his question.

I guess the dopey expression on my didn't go unnoticed by him.