The next morning I woke up with Brennen as usual.
"Morning" Brennen said with a bright smile that complimented his gorgeous eyes. "Morning. I feel like I look at you with goo-goo eyes" I said back getting up. "You do" he laughed, "good to know" I whispered whilst putting my hair into a ponytail.
We walked into the living room and decided we were going to get breakfast at Ihop. "You mind if I invite Sam and Colby? They are leaving for Australia tomorrow and I want to see them before they go." Brennen said scrolling through his phone.
"Yeah that's fine" I smiled and went to the bedroom to get dressed. Brennen and I had stopped at my place to get clothes for today knowing I'd be staying the night like every other night. I yelled to Brennen, "I really need to keep some kind of container of clothes here. I practically live here!"
"True... we could do that" he replied
I smiled and finished putting in the denim jeans, long band t-shirt, and vans I had packed.
* * *
We walked through the door of Ihop and found a table. A minute of two later the two boys came walking through the door and Sam caught my eye. Not because of what he was wearing, or his smile on his face walking through the door, but because he had his hand locked with a girl.
"Sam has a girlfriend? I wonder how long they've been together..."
I pushed my thoughts aside when everyone took a seat at the large circle booth we were in. I greeted Colby with a smile, but kept my eyes off Sam.
"Hey, sorry I didn't tell you I was bringing Kat along. We made plans to spend the day together and I didn't want to cancel either of the plans." Sam said smiling.
"Nah, it's fine dude" Brennen chirped in a friendly voice. "Oh, Y/N, this is Katrina, my girlfriend" Sam said, he put a little bit of a husky tone to the word 'girlfriend.' Was it obvious I didn't like the idea?
We ordered our breakfast and ate. I sat quietly eating while Sam, Kat, Brennen, and Colby talked about the things in Australia that Sam and Colby were going to see, that's all I really got out of the conversation because I was being consumed by my own thoughts.
"I have to go to the bathroom" I said urgent to get out of there and escape whatever it was that made my breathing unsteady. Colby and Brennen let me out and instead of going to the bathroom I exited out the back door. I leaned against the wall next to the door and pulled a pack of cigarettes out of my pocket.
Brennen didn't know I smoked and I wasn't planning on telling him. I have been trying to quit, but it's harder than it sounds.
I lit the cigarette and inhaled the toxic smoke. Whenever I'm stressed, annoyed, or mad I smoke. It isn't a good habit but I felt relaxed when I smoke, though that doesn't make it right.
The door to the exit opened and I moved over on the wall so the person exiting could get out. It was Sam...
"Oh... hey" I said hiding the cigarette behind me.
"Hey. By the way I already saw it. Plus they have a smell" he replied.
"Oh" I took another inhale of the smoke and exhaled
"You don't mind do you?"
"No your good"
I nodded and continued to look the opposite direction of him. "What's up?" He asked reaching for the cigarette, I handed it to him and he took a puff.
"Nothing, just taking my mind off things"
"Like what?"
"Nothing"
"It's not nothing, I can see it" he said skeptical.
I always knew I was to easy to read, everyone seemed to know my every emotion. I also tried to get rid of that habit, hide my emotions better. "It doesn't matter, its irrelevant." I said, he passed the cigarette back to me.
"Girlfriend, huh?" I asked trying to change the subject, only it made it more obvious.
"Katrina? Yeah, a year"
"Nice, she seems sweet"
"She is, don't tell her I said this but... that's really all there is to her." He smiled jokingly and I smiled and even laughed a little.
"Really? She seems like she's done a lot"
"I mean she's into music, she's a singer"
"That's cool"
"I guess, she's uneventful though, when she isn't making music. She doesn't want to talk, doesn't want to hang out with Colby or our other roommates with me. She doesn't want to do anything but text her friends."
"Oh, that's to bad"
"To be honest I don't think she loves me. Which is fine. I..." he didn't finish his sentence, he huffed another big puff of smoke into his lungs.
"You what?"
"Nothing"
"So I can't say nothing but you can?"
"Fine. I don't love her either" he said looking down and kicking a rock. "Ok" I looked down at his feet and stared at them like he was. I looked at my phone, they'll be wondering where we are.
"Let's get back, I'll go then you come back a minute or two later." I dropped the butt of the cigarette to the ground and crushed it. "Oh and don't mention this," I pointed to the cigarette, "to Brennen. He doesn't need to know that my lungs are slowly becoming sacks of tar." Then I smiled and walked through the door.
I sat at the booth with Brennen at my side. He put his arm around my waist and I placed my hand on his.Sam walked back 30 seconds later and sat with Kat. He looked at me then to Colby.
"So Kat..." I said taking my mind off him. I talked to her for a bit, getting to know her. Sam was right, she's uneventful, but overly sweet. Throughout the rest of the time we talked and ate, Sam kept taking glances at me when he thought I wasn't looking. Though I didn't mind, I couldn't tell if Brennen noticed. I doubt he did, we was staring at Colby the whole time, not very observant sometimes.
Once we finished eating we all got up, I hugged Kat, Colby, and Sam goodbye and wished the two boys a fun time in Australia.
