𝐓𝐮𝐭𝐨𝐫 ~ 𝐑𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐧

13. Blind Date

"Absolutely not." You say with a forced chuckle.

"Oh, come on!" Kristy says defensively, yet with a smile clear on her face. "When was the last time you went out with someone?"

Her words make you turn your head simply to not give her a glare. You were on your way to the bathroom - running away from the beginning of a conversation that can only end with you being the theme of - and were caught by surprise right as you were getting off your bed.

All of the girls are sitting either on your bed or by your desk, and today is one of those days when they love to just come over and spend time with you. They usually want to watch movies, other times gossip, and, of course, convince you to meet new people. Specifically boys.

"Aiden was the last one, probably." One of the girls adds.

"Can we not talk about him?" You say, cringing.

"I agree." Kristy says and, after a pause, bounces in excitement on your bed to get your attention, "But, please, hear us out. You'd have so much fun."

"But I do not want to go." You slowly tell her, trying not to sound too serious for the sole reason of not wanting to be rude. "Please, let it go."

"But why?"

You turn around and walk over to your bathroom, wanting to distance yourself from the situation. You can hear some of the girls laughing, which relaxes you. To them, this is still just you making everything dramatic for fun, even when your speeding heart is making sure you know that it's not.

You cannot see a way out of this situation without being rude. But what else can you even do? You can't tell them the real reason why you don't want to talk to a guy at this party or, especially, go on a date.

"Come on." You hear Kristy's voice a bit more muffled now, right as you leave the bathroom door only a crack open.

You lay your hands on the cold counter and sigh once more. You stare at yourself in the mirror and force your mind to think. You need to find a reason, one that might not sound too harsh yet might be carrying a little bit of truth. You can always say that you're interested in someone, but you also know how your friends are. They wouldn't breathe until you told them who it was.

You hear shuffling in the bedroom as well as some whispers, and, deep down, you know that you can't hide in the bathroom forever. You need to get out and talk to them, but it's hard. You just saw Rafe this morning. Spending time with the girls and not mentioning him even once feels... wrong. Yet, mentioning him seems even worse.

For so long you've trusted them with your everything, and, as more and more days pass, you only lie to them more. It's not fair.

It feels fine when you're with him, and it helps that you're able to spend entire nights and mornings with him. Rafe makes everything bad go away. But, when he leaves, it's as if you've just been lifted from a protection spell. Everything and everyone can and will hurt you. All because you're with him.

You fake doing something in the sink before walking back out with your chest heavy and mind slow. As expected, when you step out, you're greeted by all of the girls' eyes and grins. They really want to take you out with some guy. You have no other way out of this.

"It's just one blind date," Kristy assures one. "You can say 'no' after the first 5 minutes. Just do it for us. Just try to go on this date."

Hope spreads through the room as the silence continues. You're making it seem as if you're considering it, and... you are.

"What's his name?" You ask them while making your way back to the bed.