OLD Campus Crush

38

"I'm okay, you guys. Seriously, you don't have to take care of me," Lucas said. For the first time since I'd known him, he was being timid and the attention was making him squirm uncomfortably. It reminded me a lot of, well, me.

We all stared at him, 'we' being Ava, Nash, Jonathan, and I.

Today was Saturday, two days after the incident and we'd had our eyes on him ever since. Mostly, we took turns and Jonathan decided to stay in the room more often after hearing about his roommate's ordeal.

"We don't mind," Ava firmly stated, folding her arms across her chest and intensifying her gaze. She was leaning against the wall next to Nash and I was sitting next to Lucas. Jonathan, of course, was on his own bed.

"It's okay," Nash comforted. "That look she's giving you just means she loves you."

"I do," Ava confirmed, narrowing her eyes. "I fucking love you."

"Yeah, you're our little worm," Jonathan offered. He grimaced at his own comment then shrugged. "Sorry, I'm not good at compliments. Usually, they sound better in my head but then I say it and..." He shook his head. "It comes out all kinds of wrong."

Lucas giggled freely. "You're so funny and awkward, Jon."

"Aw, look at you two. Close as ever," Ava squealed, returning back to her bubbly state.

"Yeah, he already had pet names for me the day we met," Jonathan informed. "But he's a nerd, so instead of saying 'pet names,' he says 'terms of endearment.'"

I smiled at the two and couldn't help my laughter. "What, do you guys finish each other's sentences too?" I asked, adding to Lucas's embarrassment.

"Y'all are mean," he whined playfully. We all laughed.

"Wait, wait!" Nash said, looking at Jonathan. "What are the pet names he calls you?"

"Uhh honeybug because I like honey in my tea and bambi because of my long eyelashes."

"They really are long," Ava agreed as Jonathan blushed then went on to mention, "I call him Hawking. You know, because he's surprisingly awesome at Physics and stuff."

"You are?" Nash asked Lucas with wide eyes.

"Calling him a genius is an understatement," Jonathan accredited.

Lucas pretended to flip invisible hair. "Stop, I'm flattered. But he's not kidding--if you need your homework done, that'll be fifty bucks." He averted his eyes innocently.

"Guys, if you have other plans, I'll keep Lucas company. I am his roommate after all."

My mind instantly went to David. I was supposed to meet him at his house so we could go spend the day at the park together. I was really looking forward to it, considering it'd be our first open date and one of our last special moments together if the surgery didn't work out. It all weighed heavily on my heart, and with Lucas's incident, I needed something to put a real smile on my face.

"I have a date," I announced.

"How come I haven't met your boyfriend?" Lucas inquired. "Does he exist?"

"Oh, trust me, he exists." Ava wiggled her eyebrows. I started to smile until I looked at Nash. He was staring at the floor, evidently uneasy about the conversation.

"I wanna meet him!"

"Don't worry, we're kinda going public... But I'll tell you who he is after I ask if he's okay with that."

"Why wouldn't he be?" Jonathan asked out of curiosity. Lucas gasped. "Is it like forbidden love? Or, like, a tragic love story? Oh my god, I'm here for it."