Kiwi |H.S.|

three

   Saturday was the most chaos I had experienced in weeks.

I woke up bright and early to a series of honks and heated yelling going on from outside my window. Trucks lined the outside of the girls' dorms, boxes were stacked directly outside the front entrance. I could hear elephant steps from outside my own dorm door, with the occasional squeal and a few loud bangs. When I awoke Ariana had already brought me breakfast and was busying herself doing her long hair. Whilst I nibbled on my fruit salad she tied her hair up in intricate knots.

Every time I heard a loud thud, I flinched, Ariana however seemed completely unfazed, as if she was off in her own little world.

Last night when Abby left we stayed up until late in the night. Ariana and I spoke to one another as if we were a pair of old friends catching up. She told me all about her summer and her family vacation. Over the past few months she'd had quite the adventures -- skiing, wake-boarding, skydiving, sleeping with three different boys and swimming with tigers were among a few of them. I refrained from telling her about my summer, mainly because it had been a messy one. There were no fireworks or master suites. For the majority of my summer I searched around, anywhere I could for a couch to sleep on, trying to take care of my brother. That was at least, until we met Jane and her husband.

So I told a few white lies about how I'd gotten a job interning at an office. I told her that I spent most of my days running around getting coffee instead of running from social services. Although she was slightly appalled that I'd spent all my summer brewing coffee, she easily believed my lie.

I gazed at her as she tied back the last wave, finishing off her time consuming masterpiece. She looked at her reflection in the tall mirror and bit the inside of her lip, practically oozing excitement as always. She caught my eye in the reflection and sent me a playful wink.

I winked back as I chewed my piece of cantaloupe, absentmindedly watching the television as my mind wandered. I heard the bedsheets rustle as Ariana sprang onto my bed.

She looked at me with interest, "Sooo..." she dragged out, resting her pointed chin onto one of her hands, "How did you liked the boys?" She inquired, finally asking about her friends. It felt like she'd been waiting to ask me what I thought about them all night. It was clear that they were important to her.

I crossed my legs and gave her a smile, "I thought they were really nice," I replied honestly. I took the moment to ask a curious question that had been on my mind since yesterday at the cafe, "Julian was kinda quiet, was it because of me?" I asked slightly self-conscious.

She shook her head wildly and frowned, "No hun," she denied, her voice losing some of its liveliness, "He just recently broke up with his girlfriend, so he hasn't really been himself lately."

Her shoulders sagged and I could tell this had really been affecting her. She looked like she was battling herself internally as she twiddled her fingers. I nudged her shoulder with a weak smile, urging her to continue. It looked like she needed to get whatever she was thinking off her chest, and although I was still pretty much a stranger, I could still offer moral support.

"I called him after I spoke to Beckett on the phone, after Beckett told me all about how Julian had broken up with his girlfriend and was moping around everywhere," she started, sighing as she laid back on my bed, getting comfortable, "I called Julian about a million times, we used to be so close, so I was obviously concerned. Finally when he answered he told me his girlfriend Annalisa had cheated on him."

She shook her head as a stray tear slid down her face. Her makeup however stayed intact, "He was so angry kiwi," she sobbed, leaning her face against my bare thigh, I was dressed in only a camisole and pajama shorts. I rested my hand on her shoulder as she dampened my leg with her tears, "J-Julian was angry at me," she let out in a choppy tone, struggling to make the words out, "He was angry at me because my ex-boyfriend slept with Annalisa in order to get back at me."