WILDEST DREAMS | JENNA ORTEGA

six

The love

Tara Carpenter

No smut

(3521 words)

...

"You're staring, again."

Tara snaps her gaze back to the book on the table, ignoring her friends' smug smiles. "Why don't you just go up to her and apologize?"

"She doesn't want to talk to me, trust me, I've tried." Tara rolls her eyes.

It's been two weeks since that night at the party and you have been ignoring Tara. You spent the rest of spring break working at your uncle's shop, avoiding the friend group, sans Mindy because you couldn't exactly avoid someone you lived with. Tara attempted to give you space the following days and then reached out to you in hopes that you could talk and sort out the situation. Tara doesn't want to lose you as a friend.

"I'm not gonna apologize for something that wasn't my fault, Mindy. Just because she caught feelings doesn't mean we can't be friends. But now she's ignoring me?" Tara scoffs, "Well, some friend she is."

"God Chad's right. You two are clueless." Mindy's nose wrinkled.

"She knows where to find me when she's done being stubborn." Crossing her arms, she glances back at you. You were sitting across the quad, on a bench surrounded by your other friends; laughing and talking, unfazed by Tara's brazen staring.

How were you not seeing her shameless looks?

She swallowed the pitiful lump in her throat as she continues to observe your carefree nature.

"Weren't you begging me to tell her to call you back like a week ago?" Mindy objected causing Anika and Quinn to snicker as they listen in, not bothering to pretend like they weren't eavesdropping.

"Begging is a stretch," She mutters weakly, picking at the corner of her book.

"Tara, why can't you just admit that you want to be with her?" Quinn ponders, genuinely confused as to why you two are playing hopscotch around one another. Everyone could see how madly in love you two are.

It genuinely puzzled the friend group as to why it's taking this long to get you guys to stop playing games.

They just wanted to see their friends together and happy, definitely not because of the growing bet pool. And not because it was getting increasingly expensive to wager in the bet the longer it ran because you two refused to acknowledge the clear feelings you have for each other. (It was starting to burn a sizeable hole in their wallets)

The brunette shakes her head defiantly, "We're just hooking up."

"You're not acting like you guys are just hooking up." Anika counters, "actually, you guys act more like a couple than me and Mindy sometimes."

"No. We don't," She frowns.

"Yes you do and it's gross," The aforementioned girl interjects. "No one should be cuter than me and my girl." She wraps an arm around Anika, leaning in to lovingly peck the girl's cheek.