The Friendship Equation | NCT DREAM

Chapter 3: "Surprise Surprise"

/AMELIA AND PETER/

Amelia sits at her usual spot in the quiet diner, a familiar refuge where she can nurse her heartbreak in solitude. The place is nearly empty, the soft hum of a distant jukebox and the occasional clink of dishes the only sounds breaking the silence. She stirs her Frappuccino absentmindedly, replaying the conversation with Carter in her mind, his harsh words echoing in the back of her mind. It was a short relationship, but the breakup left a deeper mark than she expected.

She sighs and takes a bite of her lunch, which was a loaf of banana bread, savoring the simple but comforting flavors. Lost in her thoughts, she doesn't notice the man sitting a few stools down until he speaks.

"Mind if I join you?" Peter asks, his voice smooth but not intrusive. He entered to diner not too long ago knowing that some of the hottest girls that go to the college came here.

Amelia looks up, a bit startled at the tall man, with an easy smile and a confident demeanor that immediately sets him apart from the few other patrons. She hesitates, but then nods.

"Sure," She says, trying to muster a smile.

He moves closer, taking the seat next to her. "First time here, Sunshine?" He asks curious as this was his first time laying eyes on her. "No, not at all I try to come here as often as I can, mostly for lunch or an afternoon snack. You know when you start college life doesn't get any easier." She says ending off her sentence with a tired chuckle.

As they sat together at the diner counter, the conversation between Amelia and Peter began with light, casual topics.

Peter asked about the book she had with her. "What are you reading?" He inquired, nodding towards the novel she had set aside not really knowing why he asked based on the fact that usually when he's interested in getting into a girl's pants he would skip the formalities and bring her to his house but something about Amelia made him interested in so much as a book...a book?

Amelia glanced at the book and smiled faintly. "It's just something to keep me company. A mystery novel," She replied. "I love getting lost in a good story, especially when real life gets too complicated."

Peter nodded. "I get that. Sometimes a good escape is exactly what you need. He agreed knowing damn well he was referring to jerking off. "What's your favorite genre?"

"Mostly mysteries and thrillers," Amelia said, a hint of enthusiasm in her voice. "There's something about the suspense and trying to figure out the puzzle that I find really engaging not that I'm a bookworm or anything it's just that my friend Ophelia introduced the genre to me so I'm checking out a few of them."

"Ophelia?, Like Ophelia Nakamura?" He raises his eyebrow. "Yeah why? you know her?" She asks curiously. "Nah just a friend of a friend." He vaguely responds letting out a brief chuckle.

They then moved on to talk about their favorite places in the city. Peter mentioned a quaint record store he loved, tucked away in a quiet corner, perfect for people-watching. Amelia countered with her favorite park, where nowadays she liked to sit by the pond and read as a new hobby.

Peter shared a funny story about his recent attempt at cooking a complicated recipe to which he ended getting an earful from Tony when he asked for his help, it ended in a minor disaster but a lot of laughs. Amelia laughed, feeling a connection through their shared sense of humor.

After a while, the conversation turned more personal. "So, what brings you here today?" Peter asked gently entering mid-way of step one of 'girl grabbing' 'as he'd like to call it): Getting comfortable with the target.

Amelia hesitated, then decided to be honest. "I just needed some time to clear my head. My boyfriend and I... well, ex-boyfriend now... we broke up recently. I cqme here to think...and to convince myself not to TP his house....crazy huh?"