The Girls of 310 [COMPLETED]

Chapter Thirteen: MIA

Sunday morning rolled around quicker than I had hoped for. I, of course, completed my morning ritual of checking for a message or missed call from Reece before even thinking about starting my day.

    Nothing. Just as I expected.

    I crawled out of bed and walked into the kitchen where I found Marianna packing out groceries. "Mal, my love!" she screamed as she ran towards me.

    I hugged her tightly and left to brush my teeth. "How was the break?" I asked when I had returned.

    "Same old, same old," she shrugged, "but there is something that I was waiting to tell you in person."

    "Continue!" I pleaded eagerly. No matter how much I enjoyed finding solace in the empty apartment, I missed my best friend greatly. We texted every day but it wasn't the same as having her here.

"Well," she turned to me dramatically. "I have a boyfriend."

My jaw dropped before my eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "What about Travis? I thought things were going well!"

She rolled her eyes and stared at me for a second. Realizing that I was clearly that oblivious, she let out a long sigh. "You are seriously so slow."

"He asked you out!?" I screeched. "That's so cute!"

I was extremely happy for Marianna. At least one of us were excelling romantically. She explained that they had been talking a lot over the break, and even met up for a few dates. He was unlike the usual guys she went after. Honestly, I was just happy that he was someone who fit in with us and not just a random loser.

While she finished clearing off the counter, I allowed my thoughts to wander. I frowned slightly as I experienced flashbacks from the month before. The feeling of his hands on my bare skin were still fresh in my mind. When I shut my eyes, I was taunted by his smirk and twinkling eyes.

    "Don't you think it's weird that Reece took off without saying anything?" I asked softly.

    "Oh, babe," Marianna placed her hand on my shoulder, "why he left has nothing to do with you."

    "How do you know?"

    "Well, I wasn't supposed to say anything, but before he took off, he asked Travis to keep an eye on you until he came back,"

    Well he wasn't doing a very good job of it. If he was supposed to be watching me, why was I alone for the whole break? Why did Marianna know and not me? The longer I pondered it, the more it made sense. First, I made it very clear that I wanted to be alone. Second, Travis was now with Mari, so she would be able to keep tabs on me, without making me suspicious. Still, they should have realized that she and I hardly kept secrets.

A new question now disrupted my sanity: why did I need to be kept an eye on? Was he trying to make sure I wasn't seeing anyone else? We weren't even together.

My thoughts flashed back to a few nights ago.

    "Andre was here the other night," I began.

    "Oh, that's nice. So you weren't completely alone, then,"

    I paused for a moment, not knowing how to go about revealing the next part. "Hetriedtokissme."

    "Pardon me? Slow down, Mal,"

    "He. Tried. To..."

    Her eyebrows shot up. "Kiss you?" she finished.

    Nodding, I began to look down at my hands to avoid her stare. "Yeah, I didn't let him though."