Love Again

Chapter 3

Belly woke up and it was the next morning. She could barely believe half of the things that were busy happening. She was back in Cousins. She was back in Cousins after two years and everything had changed. She looked at the pictures that were standing around in her room while it had nearly hurt. She looked at the stuffed polar bear on her dresser, the blue wallpaper it was the same. It was the same place that she grew up in for so many summers and the same place she had always wished she would call her home, but suddenly it didn't feel like home anymore. It felt like a memory. She had exhaled as she heard her bedroom door opening and saw as it was Steven who came into her room.

"You up?" he asked as Belly groaned and looked at the time.

"At seven during the summer, yes, Belly Conklin is up," Belly said as she sat up.

"How you feeling?" Steven asked.

"Like an idiot. I don't know why me and Conrad can't just figure things out," Belly said as Steven exhaled.

"You guys just need some time," Steven said as Belly shook her head.

"I don't think any amount of time can fix me and Conrad," Belly said.

Conrad looked around in the kitchen. He knew Steven had gone to wake Belly up, and that he would have ten minutes of time on his own. Seeing Belly yesterday felt like an experience in its own. Like seeing someone for the first time all over again. It felt like falling in love with Belly on more extreme levels than they could ever have imagined. He shook his head as he saw how his brother came down the stairs and just rolled his eyes, not wanting any arguments.

"Where is Steven?" Jeremiah asked as Conrad handed his brother a coffee, mostly to shut him up.

"I think he's with Belly," Conrad said.

"It was nice of you to pick her up yesterday," Jeremiah said as Conrad rolled his eyes.

"Don't know why Nicole called me to pick her up. You're Belly's boyfriend, not me, so I..."

"Wait, what? Con, we're not together," Jeremiah said as Conrad looked at him like eh didn't believe the words that came out of his brother's mouth.

"Fuck, come on," Jeremiah said as he dragged his brother up the stairs.

"Do you think you and Conrad can make it work again?" Steven asked as Belly looked at her brother.

"I don't know, I guess..." Belly said as she saw how Conrad and Jeremiah came into her room.

"Conrad thought we were together," Jeremiah said as Belly looked at him.

"What are you talking about, Jere?" Belly asked, confused on what was going on.

"Conrad thought you and Jeremiah were together. That's why he had set you free, Belly," Steven said as Belly looked at her brother.

She still remembered that one June day two years ago. She had arrived back home and she didn't want to see nor speak to anyone. Laurel was the first to know what happened. Belly doesn't know if Conrad called her or what, btu at that moment, it didn't matter. All she needed was her mother. Laurel held Belly tight, kissing the side of her head while it all just seemed unreal. She didn't want to talk.

"I'm so sorry, bean," Laurel said as Belly started to sniffle.

"You'll have plenty of lovers in your life though," she said.

"I don't want anyone else; I want Conrad," Belly said.

"I tried to tell him otherwise, but he wasn't interested," Steven said as Belly exhaled pulling her hair back.

"Me and Belly were never together, Conrad. What you saw that day, was Belly telling me she is still in love with you. She wanted to tell you that," Jeremiah said.

"And Conrad wanted to tell Belly that he still wants her," Steven said as Belly heard her phone ringing.

"Anika, there is no way you are already bored," Belly said trying to sound as cheerful as she can.

"Maybe. Can me and Trusky come up to Cousins? Apparently Conrad is there and Trusky wants to sort him out," Anika said.

Anika Welsh was Belly's Brown roommate. They got along well, and Belly would even go as far as saying that she had replaced Taylor a couple of times when she needed her. Even Conrad's old roommate, Trusky, had been there for her tremendously.

"Yeah, sure. But tell Trusk that if he kills Conrad, Steven and Jeremiah wants to join him. You won't believe the shit I'm caught in right now," Belly said.

"See you in three hours then, Iz. Hang in there," Anika said ending the call.

"Trusky is coming over here to kill you," Belly warned Conrad.

"Since when do you and Trusky talk?" Conrad asked.

"Since I go to Brown and he thought that you would want him to look after me. I thought you knew," Belly said.

"Conrad knows shit cause each time your name is brought up, he just ignores it or changes the subject," Jeremiah said.

"Taylor went to Princeton, and I went to Brown. Neither of us are at Finch," Belly said.

She could just as well admit everything to Conrad since she was being honest.

"Wow," Conrad said and went out of the room.

"Let him think this or think that for a bit. Steven, why didn't you tell me?" Belly asked.

"Because I wanted to try and get Conrad to come to a different insight. But I struggled. And eventually, he just didn't want to hear your name anymore. I don't know what he thought would eventually happen, but I guess he was just too hurt at the time," Steven said as Belly exhaled.

"We are so lost that we can barely look above our shoulders," Belly said as she exhaled.