Second Lanark

Sources - Part 34

I laid in bed and listened to Cal and Lark battle it out in the next room. Jill was in with Tom, which meant that Rob was lying next to me, listening to her wailing and crying, begging Cal to believe her. She still wasn't admitting that she'd cheated on him. I wasn't sure if there was a word beyond stubborn, but Lark would certainly fit it.

I sat up a little and looked over at Tricia, but she was turned towards the wall with her headphones on. The Solitudes CD was turned up louder than normal, but it still wasn't drowning out the noise next door.

"Do you think he'll cave?" I asked Rob, lowering myself back down beside him.

"Don't know," Rob said, pulling me close to his side so I was resting my head on his chest. I loved listening to the steady thump of his heartbeat

"Would you? If you were him?" I thought I already knew the answer, but Rob had never told me himself.

"No," Rob said quietly. "I caught my ex sleeping with some bloke from her course. I popped over to surprise her after a class. We both got more than we bargained."

"I'm really sorry," I said, kissing his chest.

His shoulders rose up and down, moving me with them. "I was gutted. But, I reckon it all worked out for the best. If she hadn't done that, I wouldn't be here." He kissed my temple. "I can't imagine being anywhere else."

We lay in silence, listening to them arguing next door, but I wasn't concentrating on what they were saying anymore. The air between me and Rob had grown thick and I longed to say the three words I'd been avoiding up until now. Did it matter if I said them first? Was it too soon to say that to him?

"I hope Lark's the one who moves off the floor now," I said, instead of saying what I really wanted to say. "She's going to be unbearable."

He rubbed my back in aimless circles and squeezed me tight. "Maybe the break will do her some good." He shifted slightly and I lifted my face. Then, we were kissing and I moved so I was lying partially on top of him, conscious of Tricia trying to sleep in the next bed.

He pulled back and stroked my hair, tucking some strands behind my ear in a tender gesture. "I reckon I'm going to fly back a day early. Will you come back early, too? I'd really like you all to myself."

A teasing smile played at the corners of my lips, but my heart was racing. "Oh yeah? What would you do with me?" I asked.

He grinned. "All sorts," he said as he pulled me back down into a kiss. "Is that a yes?"

"I don't know how I'm going to go two weeks without seeing you. Of course, it's a yes." I gave him another quick kiss and then settled back at his side.

The next morning, I woke to the sound of our phone. I crawled over Rob and grabbed it off the receiver, casting a blurry eye to the clock. It was just after noon.

"Hello?"

"Hi, my name is Nadia Zemini and I'm a reporter from The Ottawa Citizen. I'm looking for Elizabeth Jones. Would she happen to be available?"

My stomach dropped to my feet. "This is Elizabeth Jones," I said, suddenly awake. I looked over to Tricia's bed, but it was empty. I glanced over at Rob and he had one eye cracked open, watching me.

"I'm doing a story on hazing at the university and I understand that you may have been forced to participate in an initiation for the Varsity Swim Team. I was hoping that I could set up a time to talk to you about this in the next day or two," Nadia said, reeling off her spiel.

Panic blurred the edges of my vision, and my hand started to shake. "I have no comment at this time," I said, clicking the off button. In a daze, I wandered over to the lawn chair and slumped down into it.