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chapter five; cleo, ━━━━━
IT'S A FEW DAYS LATER when she sees him again. She's standing in line preparing to buy provisions to eat during the movie when she notices him approaching. He doesn't take immediate heed of her presence as he's too indulged in the conversation he's having with the girl that's walking beside him — it's not until he looks up while they're walking towards the back of the line where she's at that he finally notices her. Cleo purses her lips in a genial smile, bringing her hand up mid air as she gestured a wave at him.
He reciprocates the amicable gesture but any attempts of further communication is interjected when the girl that he's accompanying, narrows an ornery look between them at their apparent familiarity and intertwined her arm within his before tugging him towards the back of the line. Cleo is undaunted by the girl's territorial proclamation, only shakes her head in amusement before she's moving further up in the line as the cashier clamors "next person in line!"
She purchases a large tub of buttered popcorn, a small box of peanut M&M's and a large cup of cherry Coca Cola. She puckers her mouth around her straw, sipping gingerly on her drink as she makes her return outside to the car where the rest of the friends where as they waited for the movie to begin. "Hey." She's halting mid stride, turning around and peering over her shoulder to look at the person who's beckoning her.
"Hey." She says, her curiosity piqued as he approached closer until they're standing inches athwart from each other.
It's only been a few days since she's last seen him but her mind had curiously wandered about him every day afterwards. The reason was unbeknownst to her, she's encountered hundreds of people on campus every day more than half of them don't even get a second's consideration as they were subjected to only being faces she sees in passing; but with him she felt her thoughts wander on several occasions regarding his well-being. Even with his insistence that he was fine and seemingly had his attacks under control, there was still a residual concern about the validity of that statement. She knows she doesn't know him well enough (or at all really) to address these concerns to him so she decided to keep those pestering thoughts to herself.
Cleo's eyes scrutinized in on him taking heed of his appearance; his face is colored in its normal umber tone unlike the gravelly blanched hue that drained his face the last time she saw him.
"I uh, just wanted to thank you again for helping me out last time." He posits in gratitude, his hand reaches up and sheepishly rubbed at the back of his neck.
Cleo nodded, "You're welcome." There's a part of her that's nagging in curiosity and wants to further inquire about it, but she relents in doing so knowing that it wasn't her business to prod in. She looks up after feeling the smothering scrutiny of someone's glare, her eyes wander around the loitered parking lot and narrow in on the girl that Lando was with earlier. She's standing by the concession stand, impatiently tapping her foot as her arms folded across her chest and her face marred an indignant expression.
