The Heartless Persona

29

"Maybe we rushed into things," he spoke softly. "Or maybe we got caught up in the moment while we were on vacation."

Keri let her hair fall in front of her face, letting it act as a barrier between her and Cam.

"Maybe," she forced herself to stay. Letting out a loud sigh, her head tilted up to the sky, where she could see the stars.

Why couldn't she turn back time and pick Cam over popularity? Why did she have to hurt him time after time? How come she would never be happy?

"I have to go," she pressed her lips together as she started to get up.

When she began to walk away, she turned around with a small amount of hope that he would follow her. What she found was Cam still sitting there, holding his head in his hands.

Maybe this was finally the end of Cam and Keri. For good.

The next day, Keri sat in the spare room in her house, that was converted into a library. Intently, her eyes scanned the pages of the book, oblivious to the world outside of her. Well, oblivious to almost everything.

"Keri," she heard a voice say. Glancing up from the novel in her hands, a knot formed in her throat when she saw who it was.

"Um, h-hi," she managed to speak. Looking down, she noticed her appearance. She wore cotton pajama shorts with a baggy t-shirt. Her hair was in a messy bun, pushed back by a headband. She wanted to run into her room to change into actual clothes, but it was too late for that.

"Hey," Cam replied. He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down at the floor. It was silent for a while until he started talking. "You, uh, you dropped this last night," he pulled out the lipstick that must have fallen from her pocket. He took a few steps closet to hand her the makeup.

"You came all the way here to give me my lipstick back?" She placed the book down in her lap and took the lipstick from his hand. After placing it down on the table near her, she turned her attention back to him.

"Not entirely," he ran his hand on the back of his neck.

"Cam, I just want you to know that I didn't lie to you," Keri started to get off of the couch and walk towards him. She wanted to press her hands against his chest, but quickly stopped herself, knowing that Cam wouldn't want that.

He directed his gaze away from her again, almost as if he knew her intentions.

"You used to always say that you could tell if I was lying by looking into my eyes," she placed her hand on his.

He glanced up at her before diverting his attention around the room. His lips were pressed together for a moment.

"I'm not so sure that you're the same person you were a few years ago."

Letting go of Cam's hand, Keri balled her fists up and clenched her teeth. Her pleading was turning into anger.

"You're the only person who actually knows the real me. So, yes, I expect you to fucking trust me, or at least believe me when I tell you that I didn't want that kiss to happen."

"Trust?" He scoffed. "How am I supposed to trust you, Keri?"

"Look at me," she grabbed onto his biceps. "Why would I go through so much trouble just to hurt you? I feel like I'm going through more pain than you. Sometimes, you don't even seem like you care about me."

At this point she was holding back angry tears. This was exactly why she hated relationships. Especially when she was the one getting hurt.

"Wow. I thought you were smarter than that," he pressed his lips together and turned his face away from her. A confused expression washed over Keri's face. "I've always cared about you. And for some fucked up reason, I'll probably continue to care about you for the rest of my life."

Keri's hands slapped her sides. "Why did you even come here? Was it to make me even more upset? Did you want to rub it in my face that you were the one leaving this time?"

"You still don't get it, do you?"

"Get, what?"

"I'm here because I love you. And I can't seem to stay away from you."