The Last Summer Apart

Chapter Nine

I woke up four hours later to a pounding at the door.

“Lucas? Audrey? Are you guys still sleeping? Breakfast is ready! Open up!” Roger shouted from the other side of the door.

“Shit!” I whispered and pushed Lucas out of the bed into the makeshift one on the floor.

“Ow! What was that for?” Lucas whispered, rubbing his shoulder.

“Roger’s outside that door, he’s gonna see us! Put on some pyjama pants at least!” I said throwing them at him. We scrambled to put all our pyjamas on and then Lucas went and opened the door. I pretended to be packing some stuff in my bag.

“Hey did you guys lock the door?” Roger asked.

“Lock the door? Like the front door?” Lucas asked, pretending to be confused.

“No this one, it locks if you push the doorknob in and turn it” Roger said, showing him.

“Oh really?! I should have used that yesterday to keep you from barging in here while I was changing!” I said to Lucas.

“Oh c’mon, that was an accident, when are you gonna let it go?” Lucas protested.

“Guys seriously! Stop the bickering. I’ve got a really terrible headache. Let’s just whisper okay?” Roger said, closing his eyes and rubbing his forehead.

“Awe, Roger’s got a hangover!" I teased.

He shook his head and started walking away, “Like I said, breakfast is ready, I’ll see you downstairs.”

As soon as he was out of earshot I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding in. “That was close” I said.

“I agree, but I think he’s too hungover to be suspicious.” Lucas laughed. He came over to me and hugged me from behind. “I don’t know how I’m going to last the day without being able to love on my new girlfriend...” He mumbled into my ear.

I turned around to hug him, “Just 24 more hours and we’ll be home....” I mumbled into his chest.

“Let’s go get breakfast, I’m starving!” Lucas said, his stomach growling.

“Yeah we both worked up quite an appetite yesterday....” I winked at him, and Lucas laughed his hardest the whole weekend.

“There you guys are! How are you feeling Audrey?” Lauren greeted us.

“How am I feeling....?” I asked confused and slightly panicked.

“Last night, you said you weren’t feeling great so you headed to bed early...?” Lauren clarified.

“Oh yeah! No I’m fine now, my body was probably just exhausted from the canoeing, all better now though!” I answered a little nervously. Lauren narrowed her eyes at me in suspicion, but then shrugged her shoulders and went back to her plate of food. As we were sitting down, Mahira came down the stairs very slowly.

"Good morning guys" She said, her voice deep and scratchy, and she was wearing her sunglasses, indoors.

"Mahira?" I said. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah I'm fine," She practically whispered, "The light is just bugging me today and I have a migraine."

"Wow you and Roger must have gotten pretty wasted last night!" I laughed. She winced at the loud noise.

"Shhhhhh... And ladies do not get wasted, they have a good time, and maybe get a little tipsy..."

"Alright, then you and Roger must have had a good time last night!" Ethan teased.

"Why would you say that? We went to bed right after you guys, we didn't stay up and drink for longer after that, why would I do that? It must be the Canadian beer that we aren't used to, that's all..." Roger rambled.

I narrowed my eyes at my pancakes. Something was fishy around here, and it wasn't just the way Lucas and I were behaving. Mahira and Roger must have something to hide fro- wait a minute! They rode together on the way here, sharing a room, canoeing together, their kiss last night! It all makes sense... I thought. Let sleeping dogs lie Audrey. If they wanted to share, they would have said something.

"So what are we doing today?" Lauren asked.

"Nothing this morning I hope..." Roger muttered.

"I agree with Roger," I said, "we should all take it easy this morning, and this afternoon we can go for a hike around the lake?"

Nobody had a problem with taking the morning off. After breakfast and cleaning up the breakfast dishes, Ethan and Lauren played cards on the patio, Mahira and Roger went back to sleep. I was in my room, packing some of my things for tomorrow, and Lucas was reading on the bed.

"You look so beautiful..." Lucas said to me while I was folding my clothes. 

I laughed, throwing a shirt in the bag. "You better be careful, saying something like that might get people thinking we're together. How absurd!" I joked. 

Lucas laughed loudly, got up from the bed and came over to me. He hugged me from behind and whispered in my ear, "And how suspicious does this look?" 

I turned around and wrapped my arms around his neck. I got up really close to his lips, just grazing them with mine and said, in the sultriest voice I could muster, "Very... suspicious." Suddenly, I broke away and went back to folding my clothes as if nothing happened. 

He stood there flabbergasted. He sighed deeply and went back to the bed to resume reading. "Are we ever going to tell them? The group I mean."

"Of course! But not for a few weeks, and especially not now, in this confined space. Think about it, if they knew, they would never leave us alone. All the constant teasing. it's too much."

He nodded his head in agreement. "I thought Mahira and Roger are doing a terrible job to be honest."

I whipped around, "You knew too?!" 

"Of course I did! They kind of gave it away last night with that kiss. Who would have guessed they'd end up together though..." Lucas added. "Ah, it doesn't matter. They'll tell us when they're ready. For now, why don't you keep me company over here while I finish this chapter?" He gestured to the space beside him. 

I glanced at the door. I doubt anyone will walk in... But still... Aw hell, why not. It's only a few minutes. I went over and snuggled beside him. "To Kill a Mockingbird, my favorite!" 

As he began to read, I stopped listening and thought about where I was. His arms were where I was supposed to be. His voice was musical, listening to him read the passages of the fifty year old classic. I looked up and watched his lips form each complex word perfectly, each syllable roll off his tongue in an elegant manner. His eyes were focused on the paper, interpreting the meaning behind each hidden metaphor the book offered. Those eyes I thought are the best gift I've ever gotten. 

Suddenly, rudely interrupting my train of thought, I heard footsteps shuffling down the hall!