Lotus & Lilac

Chapter Four

Cameron could feel the headache she had been trying to fight all morning coming back at full force. It had started as a dull thrum in the back of her skull as soon as she had opened her eyes. She chalked it up to a fitful night of sleep. Her night was filled with an inability to find a comfortable position to lay in and a mind that wouldn't quiet down. She had hoped that her morning cup of coffee would be able to give her some reprieve from the slowly building pain but no such luck. The drive up to the college mixer with Melody had definitely not helped matters.

"I'm sorry, you did what last night?" Melody shouted as she jabbed harshly at the radio dial, effectively pushing the two girls in to complete silence aside from the faint hum of the Civic's engine. Cameron squinted at the road in front of her, trying not to react to the outburst.

"I was working on the project with Jamy and Joy. After we were finished they asked me to come along to hang out with their friend group for a small fire. It was.... fun?" Cameron finished uncertaintly. She had had a lot of fun the previous night with 'the misfits'. More fun than she had initially anticipated having with the group. They were so different from the people she usually spent her time around that it should have put her on edge but it had made her feel more relaxed. The small glare that Melody was shooting Cameron from the passenger seat was the real reason Cameron felt uncertain. She had expected a lot of reactions from Mel, but anger was not one of them.

"Is this some kind of joke, Cameron? Because, you know, honestly, I don't think it's that funny at all." Melody's narrowed eyes did not let up from their glare and Cameron got the distinct impression that they wouldn't any time soon.

"No, it's not a joke. I only didn't tell you last night because I wanted to get to bed and it didn't seem like a big deal." The moment the words were out of her mouth she knew they were a mistake.

"Not a big deal?" Melody shouted dramatically. This time Cameron did cringe away from the outburst. "Cam, every week you tell me how much you hate this guy and then suddenly you're best buddies going to a fireside hangout?"

"Mel, come on. I went because Joy asked me to. Not because of Jamy." the exhausted sigh that escaped Cameron's lips did not get past Melody, who had her eyes trained on her best friend like a hawk.

"Right." Melody huffed, her lips pursing to the side as she decided on what to say next. "Well we can discuss this Saturday when we hang out with Amy and Olivia." Mel crossed her arms across her chest.

"I have plans on Saturday actually." Cameron cringed again when Melody started glaring at her once more but kept her eyes firmly ahead to watch the parkway.

"Let me guess, something Joy asked you to do?" Melody said, voice filled with a little too much snark to be warranted in Cameron's opinion. When Cameron nodded Melody huffed again. "We always hangout on Saturdays. What the hell, Cam."

"Not always. We didn't even discuss hanging out Saturday in the groupchat because Olivia is going away with her parents to their cabin this weekend to get it open for the season, remember?" Cameron felt a small pit of anger in her stomach. Why was Melody being so ridiculous about this entire situation. She had not been expecting anger from Melody. In fact, she had been expecting her best friend to gush about her favorite 'star-crossed-lovers' come to life, which is the way she often referred to Jamy and Cameron. She had no right, in Cameron's humble opinion, to be angry about this situation. Melody reached forward again and hit the volume button on the radio, filling up the silence between them, then turned her entire body to stare out the passenger window.

Around twenty minutes later, as an upbeat pop breakup screw-you song faded into a more quiet song about loving the person you're with for all their flaws, Melody reached forward yet again. This time, however, she did not turn the music off completely. She lowered the sickeningly sweet song to background noise. Cameron raised one eyebrow but refused to acknowledge the change in a more serious way. She didn't want Melody to start yelling at her again.