None of the three quite understood the consequences that would follow along after that night. They assumed it was just fun, something they did with no strings attached. Ophelia was beginning to realized that there were always strings attached. She didn't realize that finally hooking up with Max would make him think she wanted to be with him, but there he was, walking with his arm around her as they strolled through the building. He had met her outside of her class room; surprising her with a coffee from her favorite local cafe. After he had rejected her the first time she told him she liked him, she had forced herself to move on. Her attraction to him was purely physical, but she knew she couldn't tell him that.
"You hungry?" Max asks, rubbing her arm as he grins at one of his friends passing by. "A little." She admits. She felt horrible about not having the same feelings for him that he had for her. He was amazing, but, he was almost too good for her. He treated her like royalty, like she was the only thing that mattered. She hated herself for wanting the boy who treated her like he couldn't care less about her. She didn't understand her feelings in the slightest. She had been trying so hard to figure out which one of them she was really into, but she had always known the truth. She just didn't want to accept it. "Wanna see if Sam and Jessie wanna join us for lunch?" He asks curiously, and she squints her eyes a little. He was seriously this okay with her hanging around Sam? Was he that oblivious?
"I haven't seen Jessie in like a week. It would be nice to hang out with her." Ophelia nods, slipping her fingers into his as they exit the lecture hall. Max takes his phone from his pocket, texting the two of them and saying to meet them at the diner. The idea of being with all of them at the same time made her nervous. She knew Jessie was going to notice that something was up, and she didn't want to have to deal with the interrogation that would follow. How was she supposed to explain her situation?
It was only about thirty minutes before the four of them were sitting at the table, giving the waitress their orders for drinks. Max insisted on sitting across from Ophelia, and she figured it was probably so he could imagine they were on a date. Jessie took her seat beside him, leaving Sam with only one option - next to Ophelia. She let out a sigh as she leaned against the booth, playing with her fingers awkwardly as the three of them talked about their classes. "So what have you been up to, Lia? I'm really sorry I haven't been around much. Tati and I are kinda still in the honeymoon phase, she never wants to leave my side. But I guess you get that, right?" Jessie asks with a sly grin, motioning between Ophelia and Max. Ophelia's face heats up, and she wished she could become invisible. Max only grins at her, "I get it." He says, as if he completely understood what Jessie was talking about.
"Wait, you guys are like, actually dating?" Sam says, his voice full of both annoyance and disgust. "We're not..." Ophelia begins, then catches herself when she hears Max speak at the same time as her. "Yeah." He says, and Ophelia's eyebrows raise at his response. "We are?" She sounds surprised, feeling genuinely confused at the statement. "Are we not?" Max furrows his eyebrows, and Ophelia shakes her head, "We... We've never talked about it. You've been thinking we're dating this entire time?" She squints at him, and Jessie takes a sip of her drink, watching it unfold. "I mean, yeah... You haven't been?" He asks curiously, and Ophelia sighs, rubbing her forehead. "We need to talk about this another time. This isn't exactly the place."
When she looks back up at him, he has a grin plastered across his face. "Gotcha." He teases, and Ophelia's mouth falls open. "What?" She knits her eyebrows together, hearing a sigh come from the brunette next to her. "I was just messing with you, Lia. I know we're not dating. I'm stupid, but I'm not that stupid." He laughs, making Jessie start laughing too. "Well, can you blame me for believing you? I mean - you basically act like my boyfriend." She says, annoyed at the joke. "I didn't mean to upset you, I was just messing around." Max frowns, leaning forward on the table. "I know. I'm sorry. It's just been a weird week." Ophelia mumbles, glancing over at Sam and locking eyes with him for a second too long.
