Chapter 1
OLIVER
○●○●○●○●○●○●○●○●○●○●
"Guys, the fruit punch is over," Casey announced as if someone had died.
I scooted over to where the fruit punch bowl was. "No, it isn't. There's enough for half a glass."
Casey put his hands on his hips. "Really Ollie? Half a glass? Do I look worth half a glass of fruit punch?" His dark eyes, black as fresh charcoal, were poring right into my soul.
I sighed inwardly, preparing myself for another one of his theatrics and smirked, "Not exactly. You're worth a quarter a glass."
Casey held his glass precariously and gasped in response. He theatrically leaned his head back, placing the back of his other hand on his forehead."How dare you! Your words have wounded thine heart and soul. And now, I shall retreat to the darkest depths of the earth to die. All alone with no one to..."he tugged at his grey sweatshirt, "...to help me."
I had to roll my eyes but mostly in amusement.
That was Casey for you- over the top and always in his head
I was about to reply, possibly telling him for the thousandth time tenrolll in a drama class already when someone came behind him and wrapped a hand around his waist.
JJ, Casey's boyfriend, swiped Casey's blonde locks out of his eyes and pressed a kiss on his cheek. "Cut it out. It's only a fruit punch."
"Only?" Casey said incredulously." My life depends on that punch."
JJ shook his head. He was a head taller than Casey standing at around 175 cm. He had sharp Mediterranean looks like a hawk with bright red hair and freckles on his nose. His body was lean but leaning more on skinny. Exactly Casey's type though how he managed to bag him remained a mystery. Casey's romantic standards were astronomically high.
"I told you you need to take an acting job at the theatre, drama boy." Echoing my exact thoughts earlier.
Casey scrunched his face. With his almost round face and a nose that got bigger as he scrunched it, he looked almost like a cartoon. Or a baby. "But it's my favourite flavor," he whined.
I had two best friends. He was one of them. When I joined High school, I was extremely reserved-still am-and no one wanted to talk with me.
Casey, however, decided that one morning he would sit with me in class, basically bouncing his way to my desk and smiling like a diseased clown, proclaimed I was now his friend and saying we were linked for life.
And true enough, after high school, now in college, we still were.
My other best friend was.....
"Casey," Rick walked over. He had come from upstairs to the kitchen (following Jayden, I guessed) to check on us. We were having a sleepover at Rick's house and as the host, it was his priority to check on our needs. "What's up?"
"Punch is over," I told him.
Rick studied the bowl for a minute with a blank face I had come to associate with him whenever he was thinking deeply. His coffee brown skin glowed in the lit kitchen. It was slightly darker than mine but his defining feature was his broad shoulders and ripped physique. With his tall stature, he looked like a heightened Kevin Hart.
Rick was the first friend I'd made in college. We met in Music Club where he was trying out a piano and I happened to help him learn it though he ditched Music for Science Club.
He looked up. "I can make more."
Casey let out a triumphant 'yes'. "I love you Rick." He blew him a kiss.
JJ looked at Casey, clearly offended. "Don't forget I'm here."
Casey gave him an innocent grin as he took him upstairs by the hand. "I know."
He stopped midtrack and turned to us. "Btw, we're starting the games in thirty minutes. You better hurry up. Vanessa is getting impatient."
"Thirty?" Rick asked incredulously, "I can't make punch that fast?!"
"I'll help," I said.
"Great!" Casey beamed and sprinted upstairs before we could ask him to help us. JJ looked up at him leaving and sighed, probably wondering why he was dating such a person before sprinting after him.
"Unreliable asses," Rick muttered.
He turned and immediately started to work, grabbing the leftover ingredients needed.
"Dammit," he said," There's no pineapple juice left. Ollie, could you check that cabinet on your right for lemon juice?"
I rummaged through the cabinets untiI found a container with clear liquid labeled 'lemon'.
"Here," I gave him.
As he took it and started mixing the juices, I leaned back on the counter and started scrolling through my phone for unread messages. Some were from my Mom who was checking on me. And some were from...
My lips curled with unpleasantness as I read another message:
I MISS YOU
PLZZZ REPLY
XXXX
LIONEL
He was a nasty fling who I messed around with several times in school; well we hadn't gone all the way; just making out. But he'd later told me he was experimenting and after one date, he ghosted me for two weeks.
Now he was back.
I almost threw my phone across the kitchen but I restrained myself.
The audacity of that guy.
After that ghosting incident, I'd made a mental note to avoid any person claiming to be experimenting like the plague.
"How's Lionel?" Rick asked.
I couldn't help it. I flinched, almost dropping my phone. I looked over my shoulder, wondering if Rick was behind me then I recalled I was leaning on the counter. Rick had his back turned to me so he hadn't seen my reaction.
Thank God.
"Don't really know," I said, trying to keep my voice as level as possible. "Haven't seen him in a while."
"How've you two been fairing?"
"Fine," My voice went a pitch higher than normal.
"You're a terrible liar you know that?" Rick chuckled. He put the blended juice in the refrigerator then turned and pinned me with an accusatory glance.
"Yesterday, he came up to me in school asking me how you've been doing. Told me you guys haven't talked in a while. Said you ghosted him."
"He said what?" I couldn't believe what I just heard. This guy had to be joking. I ghosted him?
Breathe Ollie, I muttered to myself.
I wondered how Lionel knew Rick but I smacked myself inwardly.
Rick was in the soccer team along with Lionel. They were teammates. Ofcourse, they knew each other.
Lionel must have known Rick and I were friends and approached him. Plus Rick and Casey knew I was messing with Lionel because I told them.
God the one time I wished I didn't confide something with them.
But the nerve to actually say I ghosted him??? My blood was boiling.
"Him? He's the one who ghosted me!"
Rick held his hands up in surrender."If you say so. But he seemed like...I don't know. He misses you."
"Misses me?" I scoffed. "Yeah, right."
A memory of us kissing behind school grounds leapt unbidden in my mind. I pushed it aside with a shudder.
Rick canted his neck. "I thought you two were going to be a serious thing. Come on, give him another chance. You guys looked cute together and-"
I held up a hand, silencing him. "Listen Rick. We would be cute. But its over. I don't want him."
Rick was about to say something else then thought otherwise about it. His shoulders slumped so slightly in disappointment that anyone who didn't know him well wouldn't have noticed.
A pang of shame ran through me. I understood why he felt that way. He and Casey were the only ones who knew how much I wanted a relationship. A byproduct of watching too much romcoms.
But also, it was envy and longing. Casey had JJ. Rick had Vanessa. For a moment, I thought I had Lionel. Turns out, it was only something built on lust. I found him hot. That's it.
I didn't want that. I deserved more.
Rick sighed. With his hazel-brown eyes, he looked so much identical to...
No, I thought, don't think of him. You'll only get angrier. Besides he's not here. He's sleeping.
Rick turned. "I think the punch is ready. Let's..."The front door suddenly clicked opened and his voice died.
I frowned. "Were you expecting someone?"
From the look on Rick's face, clearly he wasn't.
The front door closed shut. Rick picked the nearest knife. No sooner had he popped his head out of the kitchen door than he was met by a tall figure.
"Jesus Christ!" The figure exclaimed, flinching back.
"You idiot," Rick fumed, placing the knife on the counter."I could have stabbed you."
The figure stepped into the light and a bitter taste filled my mouth.
Jude, I thought distastefully.
