Amaranthine Devotion

XVIII

"So what's her name again?" Adeline asked, her lips curving with every word. Ben continued playing with her hair sloppily and looked with calm eyes at his girlfriend.

"Trixi," Leo answered, exaggerating the last "i". She nodded, mumbling the name again to try and remember next time.

"Have you talked to her since her mom?" Ben asked. Leo shook his head, messing with the old film he took from his camera.

"I sent her a text that night but I thought she needed some space. Have you?"

Ben nodded, his lips turning into a small frown.

"Was she named Trixi or is it short for something?" Adeline, still puzzled at the girl's name. Ben threw his head back against the couch.

"Why are you still on this?" He sighed.

"It's short for Beatrice. Her mom always slurred it though and it sounded like Beatrix. The nickname just went from there." Leo smiled. He wished he had a name like Trixi. It's so easy to shorten and switch around. Leonardo was after the most overrated actor- in Leo's opinion- and hated that he was named after him.

"He's not that great! Jack was a fucking thief!" Leo had yelled once. Trixi barely moved from her spot on the floor.

"Please don't tell me you're taking the most asshole character ever's side. He wasn't a thief," She said calmly.

"Looks like one," He muttered.

Leo looked up from his twiddling fingers as the rain outside got louder with the open door. Trixi stood in the small hallway, a wet coat over her familiar buns.

"Hey Leo," She said with a wide smile. His lips pulled into a grin as he looked her up and down.

"You almost never wear pants." He took note of the maroon skinny jeans.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked with a laugh, pulling him into a long overdue hug.

"Just that you mostly wear dresses and skirts, silly rabbit." He chuckled.

Trixi pursed her lips and looked to the new girl in the apartment.

"Who's this?" She asked, looking at Leo.

"This is my lady friend-"

"Are you fucking serious? Lady friend? Shithead," Adeline interrupted, smacking the back of the boy's head. She turned to Trixi with a sigh. "I'm Adeline. Ben's girlfriend."

"Ah yeah. He's a bit of a slut isn't he?" Trixi joked, taking the new girl's hand.

"How am I a slut when this is the first girl that's come near me in like 3 months?" Ben asked, throwing his arms in the air.

"You wink at every waitress you see," Adeline told him. Trixi and Leo's eyes went wide in recognition.

"Oh my god you do!" Leo laughed.

"That's just because I'm nice," Ben blushed.

"No it isn't, ass. It's so creepy," Trixi shook her head, hands resting on her hips.

"I don't need this," Ben mumbled, falling back onto the couch.

Adeline laced her fingers with his, kissing his knuckles sweetly.

"I still think you're great," She told him, sitting on the arm of the couch. He tried to glare back but quickly settled into a smile.

"Have you eaten?" Leo asked, lightly tapping Trixi's arm.

"No. Work was crazy. I don't even know why. It's a goddamn Thursday afternoon no one needs coffee and a muffin this bad," She scoffed. He nodded before pulling her into the boys' kitchen.

He popped a head into the cabinet, looking for something to feed his friend.

"I don't have any idea what you're doing. I've been here before. I know how it works," Trixi said, pushing him out of her way to reach up and grab a box of cereal. She pulled herself onto the counter and started eating straight from the box, finally eye to eye with the taller boy.

Leo started to say something about how she was raised in a barn but stopped when his phone rang. He rushed to pick it up and slid into his bedroom for privacy.

"Hello?" He asked. His stomach was tied into knots as he hoped it was the job telling him good news. Adeline approved his resume finally and sent it off for him a little over a week ago. Leo's been anxious ever since.

"Is this Leo Valente?" The voice questioned on the other side. It was a woman and that somehow made Leo a little more comfortable.

"Y-yeah. This is he," Leo replied, cursing himself for stuttering.

"Great! Well I just wanted to let you know from everyone here at Flash photography that we're excited to bring you aboard."

Leo closed his eyes, smiling widely. He opened his door to run out to his friends, telling the woman how eager he was to start.

He put his hand on the speaker, pulling it from his mouth.

"I got the job," He whispered. They erupted in cheers but he shushed them quickly, waving a hand at them. "I'm on the phone."

"We saw your pictures and they are utterly beautiful. Total masterpieces. Masterpi? I'm not sure but they were amazing."

"Thank you so much. I won't let you down."

"You better not, Leo Valente. Come down to the office tomorrow and we can talk more," She told him. Leo nodded in real life before realizing that she couldn't see him.

"Right, right of course. Thank you again."

Leo hung up the phone and threw it at Ben.

"DID YOU HEAR THAT? I GOT THE JOB-WHAT THE FUCK?" He yelled in bliss. His friends ran over to hug him, Trixi hugging him the hardest.

"I'm so proud of you!" She said, rocking him back and forth.

For a moment, Leo forgot all the anxiety and doubt. He was just glad someone was proud of him for something.