The Timing of Love

Chapter 4

"The hell she didn't?!" Camilla exclaimed when we told her what happened.

We were all gathered around the TV with popcorn and sodas when she came back home. We had dragged all the matrasses from our room to install in front of the TV in the living room as usual when the boys stayed over. Pilled under multiple comforters and cozy with more pillows, we were watching re-runs of How I met your mother when she came back, looking like she was on cloud nine. She was all smiles, as wide as a Cheshire cat with a blush as red as her lipstick. She sighed happily and sat down next to Jeffrey on the mattress, leaning her head on his shoulder.

Jeffrey had a huge crush on her since they met actually. But she was too dense to notice and he was too shy to tell her. Besides, he was scared it would mess with our friendship in case it did not work out. So, he opted on being a player and a dirty talker around her. Now, when she was telling us how her date went, we all tensed up knowingly and let her go on and on about how he was awesome and a gentleman without asking any questions, fearing she would give more details and break Jeff's heart even more. It was easy to do so due to the little drama that happened earlier that day. Austin was still a mess after crying a little bit and we offered him chocolate ice cream to calm him down. He did. But Amelia and I were already planning to wreak havoc on Felicia's fucking parade.

I went to grab more ice cream when the guys told her what happened. Hearing the story again might make me want to bolt out the doors and track her down like a terminator. What she said was not right. Austin did not yet make a public coming out. Sure, he liked boys but never officially dated one yet. He was in a dark place when his mother died. Austin had just told her he was bisexual and thought she was alright with it for she hugged her and then, everything proceeded normally. His father on the other hand still had some difficulties coming to terms to his son's sexuality. His parents often fought, and he once told me that his father was abusive. He would come home and find marks on his mother and puffy eyes. Then, one week after he had announced his preferences, his mother committed suicide. He thought it was his fault, that he was what pushed her to finally do the deed. Or that they fought more because of him and that was what caused it. But I doubted it. All in all, his father was a mess after that and he redeemed himself. He tried to be more present and supportive and Austin managed to forgive him.

When I came back into the living room, I stopped short in my tracks. To say Camilla was mad was an understatement. Her eyes which were full of giddy happiness now express pure fury and revolt, her fists were curled and she was already up. Surely, I knew she would be up to join Amelia and me on our quest.

"The fuck is wrong with that bitch? How can she be so...be so fucking messed up! Ugh! Why did you date her, you idiot?!" She ranted on.

"Calm down, Elle's done her well," Austin said, patting her back.

After that, when all was calmed down again, we played some cards and some other games like truth or dare which was pointless. We almost knew anything about each other. It consisted mostly of dares. We cooked, we baked, we sang and we played again. Around dinner time, Austin was feeling better and our fury had subsided, for now. Now we were all back on the matrasses, readying ourselves for sleep way past midnight. Amelia was next to me while Austin was on my other side. Jeffrey was next to Amelia and Camilla.

Austin snorted, "I still can't believe you threw a dustbin on her." He said and laughed. It was so contagious that we joined.

"Man, and there I was wondering what the hell you were doing holding a dustbin," Jeffrey added, "I thought we lost you to La La Land."

The rest of the weekend was spent the same way. Chilling. Now, I was hurrying down the corridors towards my business management lecture. I bounced in the lecture hall and made my way to the middle seats. There were not many students in this class so when I was lucky, I would have the desk to myself. Today, however, luck was not on my side. I was minding my own business when the chair moved beside me and a familiar cologne hit me like a car would hit a deer on a rural road. I turned to look at him intently, hoping he would understand my telepathic message to move away. There were a lot of free seats and desks in the hall. When he didn't, I sighed.