Buzzed Hearts

09: exam cookies

CAMILA HAD HER first official relationship when she was thirteen. It lasted until she was fourteen. Everyone voted for them in some superlative for the yearbook and Camila truly believed it would last. That is, until they grew into themselves a little bit.

    She had her second relationship two months after she ended her first and it rolled from there. Dating gives her the most immense thrill, because this is a real person. Someone who has just as much of a past as she does, who has passions and interests, and a whole separate life that they've welcomed her into.

    But they don't last long. The moment something turns a different direction, Camila drops the ball. She's been in long distance, short distance, and touching distance. Some of them are plain incompatible after they slip into a routine.

    The nature of humans and their longing for a sense of self reminds her of her past relationships. This also happens to be her essay topic.

    "Camila. Cami, Mila, Cam."

    She tears her eyes away from her screen to see none other than Laurent King. He looks at home, stuffed into the bean bag, eyes a bright palette.

    "I mean, I'd return the favor but Laurent is...wait. Can you say that again?"

    "Why would you want to hear it again?"

    "Oh my gosh!" Camila exclaims. "You're the library grinch."

    "I don't know what you're talking about."

    "You!"

    "Me." Laurent shrugs and ruffles his hair. "Took you long enough, for a piano prodigy."

    A stray strand of light bounces off of the watch he's wearing and his wrist is angled in a way that it reflects onto his lips and his eyes. Although there are hints of dark circles under his eyes, and a nick on his lower lip, Camila almost loses her mind.

    "You're..." she begins.

    "Perfect. Immaculate. Strikingly and devilishly handsome. Je sais, mademoiselle Bean."

    If Elle had been sitting in her shoes, she would have fired off insults at the get-go but Camila doesn't possess a razor tongue or a one-track mind.

    "I meant to say skipping, but okay," she says. "Why do you do it?"

    "I don't know if you've noticed yet, but classes are really long and our teachers are really boring. Hey, I have an idea. Let's introduce ourselves."

    His proposition throws her off guard and the words dissipate from her tongue.

    "Oh," she says. "Well I'm Camila Amlan Bean but you can call me—"

    "Mila. Got it."

    "—Mila. Okay. And I've played the piano for all my life, I have a rabbit named Vanilla—"

    "Vanilla Bean. Dorky but I guess."

    "—and I'm Ivorian American. I'm also vegan and I'll be at Juilliard—"

    "Fantastic."

    "Can you stop interrupting me?" she asks.

    "Sorry. I'm bad at school because of this ADD," Laurent apologizes.

    "Oh. I'm sorry about that."

    "Just kidding. Although my brother is but he's a super star in the classroom."

    "That's nice," she says. She admits, it's hard to keep up with him. Laurent appears sluggish but the mouth on the boy can launch ships. "Well, what about you?"

    "I play soccer and I'm a Euro mutt," he states. His phone goes off and he diverts his attention to it, fingers flashing across the screen. "I have to go. The Booster Club's giving out exam cookies."

    Just as fast as his words are, Laurent hops onto his feet, gives a one-handed wave, and walks away with his blonde hair still damp from his morning shower.