SINFUL ATTRACTION

CHAPTER 7

We're back

{ Liv }

I dial Martin's number for the seventh time only to get the same response, voicemail. If only I could call someone and know if Martin is okay or not. But he doesn't have any siblings, he's always with me and my friends became his friends so there's nowhere I'm getting at with my worry. It's what I've been up to for the two minutes that I've been awake.

Camila and I stayed up late talking. The cruel world out there got to her and I can't imagine she went through all that hell. Pretty faces hide a lot plus she made me swear that I wouldn't divulge to anyone.

Someone's talking downstairs.

Crawling out of my bed, I make my way to open the door and I thought mum wasn't around? Or did Bill pull one on me?

I head downstairs and mum is in the dinning talking to Mike. He is Jake's best friend whom I haven't seen since my brother broke up with Alicia. I mean we go to the same school and all but ever since the ordeal, I can count the number of times I've seen Jake on one hand, same case to Mike.

"You have that look that you've seen a ghost!" That's Mike snapping me out of my thoughts and I smile walking up to hug him.

"I haven't seen you in like forever." I say.

"That's what I was telling him." Mum seconds as I turn to her.

"Bill told me you were away for work." I say.

"Yes and he also told me you came with a friend." Mum responds.

I know I'm not winning this her. So I pull a chair to sit next to Mike.

"Where have you been?" I ask Mike as mum leaves for the kitchen.

"And how is Martin, Alex and Micaela?" Mum shouts from the kitchen before Mike can respond.

I simply lie that Martin is okay. I mean he is, if we go by what the doctor said yesterday. I lie as well about not seeing Alex for quite a while and I inform her about Micaela's departure to another country. The last bit being true, not forgetting that I made a new friend, who is so nice and her name is Camila.

She's still asleep considering we slept way late.

"Who's Camila?" Mike inquires.

I raise an eyebrow,

"Where have you been all this time?" I ignore his question because mine wasn't answered.

"We have the whole day for that, plus I'm here because I need your help."

"If it's about girls, you're not dating my friends but I'm listening."

He just smiles.

"I miss the old gang. How we used to party together, hang around, we were family." He says. "I want that back."

"Me too but you know how that ended."

"Yeah. I know. That's why I'm here. I need you to help me organize a small get-together, something that we can bring everyone together and remind them of how things once was."

It's so thoughtful of him and yes, I'm in for this. If it means getting everything to what it once was, which might be a step at a time, why not. Everyone would want but the problem is Jake and Alex. Talk of the latter, I watch him walk through the kitchen door and mum welcomes him with a big heartfelt hug.

And their conversation shifts from why I haven't seen him in a while. That's according to the lie that I told mum and Alex, stares at me knowing well, why this is happening.