Art of Opposites

Chapter 8 ~ Come At Us

Venice's POV

"Lottie, have you ever gone camping?" I asked my friend while sipping my smoothie. She glanced at me curiously but I just gave her an innocent look.

We were currently at the mall, grabbing a drink before what she thought was clothes shopping. I was actually planning on convincing her to go camping then getting stuff we needed for said camping trip.

"No. And I don't plan on going anytime soon." She said as she ate a French fry. I sighed - I had been expecting this.

"Well, a couple friends and I were planning on going this week." I told her. I wasn't really telling her the whole truth, but I wasn't lying either. "And I'd really love it if you would come."

My mom had given me permission, and if it worked James told me we would be gone Monday to Friday.

"Who are these friends you speak of?" She raised an eyebrow as I gulped.

"Um, James." I said. "And Oliver." I muttered.

"What? No!" She hissed. "I'm not going with him." Her face turned red and she narrowed her eyes.

"My boyfriend cheated on me with my best friend."

"Lottie, please tell me Oliver wasn't the boyfriend that cheated on you?" I held my breath as I waited for her answer. Her small nod made anger raise up inside me. I had shipped her with that prick!

"I'm going to cut the balls off that bitc-" I began to rant but Lottie cut me off.

"It's not like that, exactly." She said with a sigh. "Technically someone did drug his drink at the party, but I just couldn't handle the thought of it. After- it - happened, we had a big fight." She stared intently at the table, referring to the cheating incident. "And he didn't try to fix things, so it was over."

Based off the heartbroken expression on Lottie's face, I was guessing she had really liked Oliver, maybe even loved him.

I'm going to kill that motherfuc-

"Until now." Lottie groaned, interrupting my train of thought. "Now he's trying to make amends, and I have absolutely no idea what to do." Her bottom lip began to quiver and her eyes glistened with tears. I grabbed her hand across the table and gave it a quick squeeze.

"Lottie, you always have me, just remember that. And I'm sorry for bringing up camping, we don't have to go." I told her truthfully. If I had known what happened with Oliver I would have told James no the second he asked me.

"No." Lottie said with determination. "I want to go." My eyes widened.

"Lottie, are you sure about this? You don't have to." I didn't want her to feel uncomfortable or pressured. And based off the making out that had happened at the party, there was definitely going to be some awkwardness if we went on this trip.

"I need to prove that I can do this, that he doesn't control my life. And besides, this would be a great way for us to bond!" She smiled and I could tell it was forced. However, I could also tell that there was no way she wasn't going. She needed to prove this to herself.

"Alright."

As soon as I finished my drink Lottie grabbed my hand and started pulling me through the mall.

"Lottie!" I gasped. "Slow down!" She huffed and slightly slowed her pace, however we were still jogging.

"We need to get you some clothes for the trip!" She said as she dragged me into some French store I had never heard of. She let go of me and ran over to a wall filled with bikinis.