Testing Limits

CHAPTER ONE: CAMERON

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Boston Logan International Airport. The local time is 2:46pm and the temperature is 73°F. On behalf of JetBlue Airlines and the entire crew, I'd like to thank you for joining us on this trip and we are looking forward to seeing you on board again in the near future. Have a nice stay!"

I'm woken up from my short-lived nap by the obnoxiously loud announcement letting everyone know that we've arrived safely in Boston. From what Logan's told me about our plans - well, the plans he made behind my back - it'll be a while before I'm able to have a proper nap.

Logan, my older brother, has always been the more athletic and social sibling for as long as I can remember. I've always kept more to myself, allowing him to do most of the talking - something he has definitely never complained about. The girls in my grade saw this as an excuse to tease and make nasty remarks about how chubby I was behind my brother's back.

Whenever he was around they would shamelessly flirt and throw themselves at him and Owen, his repulsive best friend who was too charming for his own good. From his toned body to his annoyingly perfect smile, Owen Davis was well aware of the fact that he was extremely hot. He had girls smiling their fake pearly white smiles and laughing at his jokes which were far from funny. All he had to do was lift a finger and they'd be at his beck and call. Their immediate changes in attitude never failed to surprise me. I even felt the urge to applaud them for just how quickly they could switch from bitchy to excessively nice.

They say good things come in threes. If that's the case, then why did our trio become a duo, and why did that duo exclude me? Maybe it was because they were embarrassed of me or suddenly found playing with me too boring and childish. Soon, a daily cycle of new girlfriends replaced me. I went from sitting on Logan's right, to the end of the table, to not even in the fucking cafeteria. After that, Logan began to lock his door when Owen came over to hang out.

I couldn't understand why they were leaving me out, but I was pretty sure it had a lot to do with my brother's so-called 'best friend'.

The Davis family has been glued to the hip with my own family for 23 long years. Logan and Owen have been inseparable ever since, and mum, the optimist in our pessimistic family, is still convinced that their meeting at the park was fate. That the two were destined to be the ultimate set of friends. A year later, I came along, and of course, that meant inevitable jealousy on Logan's part.

That jealousy didn't last long though because once Logan took advantage of my big blue doe eyes that allowed me to get away with murder, I became the trio's scapegoat. Both Logan and Owen accepted me into their pack and soon I found myself following them everywhere they went.

Funny enough, they didn't seem to mind. They even seemed to enjoy my company as much as I looked forward to theirs. All three of us were so close. Well that was until my 14th birthday party at least.

***

"Happy birthday baby!" Mum gives me a sloppy kiss on my forehead, her freshly applied lipstick staining my skin and leaving a bright red mark.

"Thanks ma, love you," I tell her before making my way past all my friends and family and towards the house. After the cake had been cut, Owen and Logan - who looked to be extremely pissed off... disappeared.

The only place they ever hang out here is in Logan's room, which is exactly why I make my way up the stairs and towards his room. My hand reaches the handle but I freeze at the sound of Logan yelling.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" He shouts angrily.

"It's not like that, I swear." A voice calmly responds. Owen's voice.

I wonder if they're fighting over Jasmine,  Logan's first official girlfriend. She's only been over a couple of times and I already don't like her. I've seen the way she hits on Owen when my brother isn't around. A bit pathetic on her part, and I doubt that Owen would reciprocate her actions even if he was somehow attracted to her. Logan's friendship means too much to him. He wouldn't risk it over some girl.

"Then what's it like then?" Logan's anger seems to only worsen after hearing this.

Owen doesn't respond. Instead all I can hear are the heavy footsteps of someone pacing around the room.

Logan takes a deep breath before saying, "Get the fuck out."

The door opens and Owen steps out of the room with his head down. His hair is tousled, signalling that he's combed his fingers through his hair one too many times. After what feels like forever, he finally lifts his head up and our eyes meet. He looks guilty. Sad, even. The mesmerising flecks of browns and greens that often shine with playfulness, suddenly seem dull as they stare back at me.

I inhale a sharp breath at the sight of tears which rest at the corners of his eyes, threatening to break free and descend down his face at any given moment.

Our staring contest continues to go on for what feels like another minute or so, before he backs down and his feet come closer towards me. I hold my breath as his muscular body moves past mine, realising he's heading for the stairs. I push past the disappointment that sits heavy on my chest. The words, "Happy birthday Cameron," leave his mouth in a whisper before he's gone. I spend the rest of the party fixated on those three words. He didn't call me Cam.

***
After that event, Owen avoided me like the plague and Logan stopped inviting me to hang out with them.

I knew it was unfair of me to expect Owen to have kept our little interaction, no matter how brief, between us, but knowing that he must've told my brother annoyed me, which only confused me further.

If anything I was mainly baffled by how something as little as accidentally eavesdropping on a conversation could completely tear apart two relationships with the two people I loved deeply.

Eventually, Logan and I returned back to our normal teasing and bickering. I guess that's what siblings do. Fight and make up.

Owen continued to flat-out ignore me, and eventually I stopped trying to mend what he had broken.

I had overestimated the strength of our friendship, a mistake I refused to make again.

The only thing I was sure of was that Owen Davis was without a doubt the most arrogant and self-entitled person I've ever had the displeasure of meeting.