The Truth About Love

Distracted - 1

One week later -

It wasn't a very bright day. The sun was greyed out by a thick cover of clouds and it reflected in the surly faces of everyone Leo passed by on the street. Leo was sniffling into a soggy handkerchief. He'd been suffering from a cold for the past week. When he caught a cold it usually lasted a month, sometimes more. It was routine now, he knew which medicines to take, what food wouldn't parch his throat and what would be difficult to swallow. He needed a pick me up. A nice strong cinnamon latte. He reached the coffeehouse at the end of the street, dropped his bag on his favourite chair and queued up at the counter. The aromas of coffee beans and tea leaves and hot spongy muffins tickled his nose and he pulled his head back before snapping forward for a loud sneeze. It was fortunate that he'd been at the end of the queue: he tended to snap his leg back when he sneezed, like a girl did in romance movies when she was kissed, only a lot more violent. The queue went by fast and Leo placed his order. When he had collected his order, he returned to his seat and set up his laptop and notebook at the table. He first checked all his social accounts, noted all the emails regarding assignments for the week and then proceeded to his little space on the internet.

Leo had a penchant for writing. It had been five years since he'd first been returned the report from his English teacher, who'd criticised his material but complimented his style. By the end of the year, he'd written quite a few short stories, and started a little blog where he posted his material. He'd gathered quite a few readers, some of whom he'd even met in person. It was quite an experience to know that people wanted to read more from him, something that boosted his morale to perform at more than just sports.

A lot of people had commented on his last post, "Birds and Bees" and he started to respond to them. A lot of "hahaha you're so funny" and "I can TOTALLY relate to that!!!". Once he was through, he sat back in his seat, gulping down the hot drink. It scalded his tongue, but relieved his sinus and the itch in his throat. He let out a rattling phlegmy cough and took another sip.

His mind began to wander to his surroundings. There weren't many people at the shop today and it was a calm atmosphere. Great to get a few pages in on his new story. Fresh brews of tea and the warmth from the baking oven in the back kept the chill away. A couple walked in with two children. They were twins, both girls in matching outfits, probably five years old, woken up this early on a Saturday with a promise of cake. The couple took a seat next to him, all smiles and helping the little girls onto their seats. Sure enough, both girls said, "We want cake!" in unison and the father went to the counter to place their orders. The mother played with the little girls, making funny faces and brushing her hair behind her ear every time they grabbed hold of it and yanked. Jude and I could've been sitting here... It was just a crush, he told himself firmly. His laptop pinged and he turned his attention back to his blog, ignoring the couple and their little girls.

Two weeks later -

'Hey, Jude!'

'Wait up, man!'

'Jude!'

He paid attention to no one. It didn't matter what they thought. He had his eyes fixed straight ahead of him. If he sped up a little he'd catch up just before -

'Leo! Wait!'

The boy didn't stop. Jude began to push past the crowd in the hallway. He reached out his hand and grabbed a fistful of Leo's bag and pulled.

'Leo, listen. I -

'Not now, Jude.'

'Please, let's just go in that room, we must talk, it's been weeks since -