ᴊᴜɴᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ʙʟᴏɴᴅ ʙᴏʏ
𝙛𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙝𝙨 𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧
"oh my god, you're a woman!"
aunt tracy's jade eyes were glossy as happy tears filled them. i chuckled at her usual dramatic manner, pulling her into a hug. "it's only been three months!" i laughed after she pulled back.
they had just arrived in berkeley about an hour ago, checking into a hotel and rushing to the university of california so they could see my face as soon as possible, as tracy told me on the phone earlier.
"more like three million!" she sighed exasperatedly, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.
"come on, i'll give you a tour." i giggled, leading both taylor and tracy up the cement steps that led to my sorority house.
"i really didn't take you as a sorority girl." tracy muttered, eyeing the greek letters above the front door.
understandable. i didn't either, really... all the horror stories i've heard about sorority houses had me thinking the same thing. sharing bathrooms, a personal chef, thirteen other hormonal girls... it all seemed like too much, but at the same time, i didn't want to live in a stuffy dorm room in a seven story building. plus, a personal chef sounded nice.
i'm also the type of person that has to be in a busy place, where everything else around me is moving, and living in an on-campus neighborhood of fraternities and sororities, where there were tons of people my age, outside their houses, doing whatever it is college students do when they're not partying their heads off. even though it was a little cheesy seeing the boys in their dolfin shorts with a coffee in their hands behind their picket fences every morning, it helped me stay productive, knowing that everyone else was.
i opened the heavy door to the house, stumbling back a step when a mess of black locs almost smacked me in the face. the girl let out a relieved breath when her wide eyes landed on me.
"june! my god, i couldn't find you anywhere."
"sorry, nai. this is my aunt tracy and uncle taylor." i chuckled nervously, gesturing to the two standing beside me.
nairobi was one of the girls in my house. she was usually the one to plan and set up events for the house, explaining why she seemed so stressed. she had put together a silent auction for parent's week, auctioning off a few baskets of different things, including painting supplies, self-care sets, and of course, golden bear merchandise to represent the university.
"okay, why the hell is the wine in here? i specifically said earlier, do not put the wine in the house." she hissed.
"okay, okay, it wasn't me!" i whispered lowly. "abby was the one who put it there. i told her not to, but she just refused!" i quickly defended.
she groaned, rolling her eyes and stomping over to abby.
i introduced them to some more of the girls and gave them a brief tour of the house. "bathroom, laundry, boring stuff..." i muttered, lazily gesturing my hand to the open doors.
we exited one of the hallways, coming to the large, floor-to-ceiling length window that displayed the backyard. "this is our backyard..." i pointed to the wooden planks over the pool. "that used to be a pool, but people would jump off the roof, so..." i pursed my lips together, glancing up at the roof.
"ohh..." tracy nodded her head, carefully eyeing the roof. taylor had an amused look on his face as he was probably thinking something along the lines of, i could make that jump.
nairobi approached me again, two large bags in her hands. "can you take care of these? i don't know what to do with them."
i glanced down at the twelve bottles of wine before looking back at her and sighing. "we can just put it in my car. why the hell are these even part of the auction?" i took the heavy bags from her tired grasp. taylor quickly stepped in to grab them for me before my arms fell out of their sockets from the weight.
"i don't know... apparently abby lives by this huge vineyard-winery thing... i don't know." she repeated, sighing tiredly.
"hey, go sit down and eat something. i'll take care of this, 'kay?" i placed a hand on her ebony colored arm. she sighed again, smiling appreciatively before leaving to the dining room where other families were.
after putting the wine into my ugly little amc eagle, which i had... unfortunately... inherited from my uncle when i moved up to berkeley. it was a nice car, but it wasn't the best color... and the interior wasn't in the best shape.
a bit later, the actual luncheon happened, so we ate a filling brunch before i showed them around the full campus. after walking up and down the steep roads, checking out the turtle derby and other little games around campus, until about five p.m when sunset rolled around, we sat in the grassy courtyard in front of the school, where a few others were playing volleyball.
"so how are you settling in so far? professors treatin' you—" taylor was cut off by a green tennis ball smacking him upside the head. "what the..." he mumbled, looking around for the perpetrator.
"shit, sorry!" the boy in blue dolphin shorts dropped his tennis racket on the ground and rushed over, grabbing the ball from the grass.
"hello to you too, lars." i chuckled lightly, squinting my eyes to block the sun as i looked up at him.
lars was one of the first people i met when i got here. he was a pretty interesting guy actually, having moved from denmark to... california... of all places. i thought that was a bit weird, but overall, he was really nice and welcoming, and apparently he was a drummer, which was an immediate 'be my friend'.
"hey, june..." he stood upright again, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked between tracy and taylor. "sorry about that."
"no worries." taylor grumbled, burning with embarrassment as his wife threw her head back in laughter.
"this is my aunt tracy, and my uncle taylor." i introduced them for what felt like the hundredth time today.
"nice to meet you." the dane held up his hand in greeting, chuckling nervously. "yeah, likewise.." taylor whispered lowly, earning a smack on the arm from tracy.
they made small talk while i zoned out at the squirrel circling one of the trees. even while keeping myself busy all day, i couldn't get one specific thing off my mind.
james.
he didn't take it so well when he found out i was leaving.
"oh my god, i totally forgot to tell you!" i turned to face him in the driver's seat as he was shoving french fries into his mouth.
"yeah, what?" he mumbled through a mouthful of food as he dusted the salt off his fingers.
"i got accepted into uc!" i exclaimed with a bright smile on my face. he chuckled, shoving more food into his mouth. he must've realized i wasn't joking when he slowly turned his head to look at me again. he swallowed his food, pointing his finger at me. "you?"
"yeah..." i chuckled awkwardly.
"...accepted into cal?" he blinked at me.
"yes, james!" i slumped my shoulders exasperatedly. what was he not getting?
"okay," he chuckled awkwardly, turning the key into the ignition. "like.. when?"
"in august."
he raised his eyebrows before nodding, keeping his eyes on the parking lot in front of us.
wordlessly, he pulled out of the parking lot. the entire drive back to his house was silent, until i finally spoke up before he could escape to his garage.
"james, are you mad, or something?" i spoke up, setting the bag of leftover food on the counter. he kept his back turned to me as he planted his feet at a stop in the hallway. i waited for him to say something, but instead he just continued walking until he reached the garage door.
i followed him out, scanning my eyes around the unfamiliar area. it was stripped of all the toys it used to have when we were younger. now it was full of metal band posters, records & CDs, and a couple guitars. he sat on one of the old couches and picked up a flying v guitar, plugging it into the amplifier next to it.
i was curious how he got all the money for this stuff, but there were more important things that needed talking about.
"james, talk to me!" i said a little louder, only to get my voice drowned out by his distorted guitar booming through the amp.
i bit the inside of my cheek, tired of his petty behavior. i stomped over to him, yanking the cable out of the amp. he whipped his head toward me, sending me a hard glare.
"you're mad at me." i acknowledged, letting out a breath. "why?" i held the cord in my hand as i spoke.
he carefully eyed the cable in my hand before placing his guitar hard on the floor and swiftly moving to his feet.
"i'm not mad, i just—" he scoffed, wiping a hand down his face as he paced the room. i stayed quiet, waiting for him to continue.
"i mean, what am i gonna do after you leave? you're my— you're the only person i hang out with..." he muttered.
"james... it's only a few hours away, i'll come home for holidays, and—"
"a few hours?" he interrupted, turning to face me. "it's a fucking six hour drive, june! neither of us have the gas money for that, and plus, with all your nerdy college shit, you'll be too busy."
"i'll make time! why are you so against this?! this is a good thing for me!" my voice was louder now.
"i'm not against it! don't turn this on me." he replied.
"you totally are! what, are you jealous? that i actually get to do something, and leave this shitty town?" i said coldly, immediately regretting my own words.
his face fell slightly before his burning glare returned.
"get out." he said lowly, not breaking eye contact with me.
"james, i didn't mean—"
"get the fuck out!" he demanded, yanking the cable from my hand aggressively. i took a step back, feeling my eyes burn with tears just from his aggressive demeanor.
i kept my eyes on the floor until i reached the steps to the door. swallowing thickly, i whispered a goodbye to him, as it'd probably be the last time i spoke to him. i knew there was no chance he'd ever speak to me again if i left.
and i was right. ever since that evening in june, i hadn't seen or heard from him at all. some nights, i'd see him greeting his brother at the door after he got home from work, but other than that, not at all.
i was starting to miss the fucker. his stupid cocky smile whenever he'd say something to get me flustered, his blond curls... even the zits on his stupid face. i missed his voice too, like hell. he didn't even call me once after i left, and he didn't even say goodbye when i moved out. i was hurt, but i also knew he was hurt. because of me. and i never even apologized.
i had been melting into a puddle of self-loathing and pity when i realized lars was already gone, and my aunt was snapping me from my daze. i looked over.
"you okay?" she asked, scanning my face.
"yeah." i nodded. "just thinking..." i shrugged. "what about?" she scooted closer to me.
"well... i guess i just," i sighed. "i kinda thought maybe he'd come with you guys, but..." i shrugged.
she furrowed her brows before nodding. "well... i talked to him a few days ago,"
i darted my eyes over to her. "you did?!"
"yeah... told him we were coming up, and he was welcome to come along if he wanted.. he kinda just, subtly said no, fuck off."
i chuckled softly, looking down at the grass as i tugged on it.
"hey, it's just another stupid friendship fight. he'll come around."
i only shook my head, not meeting her eyes.
"tracy..." taylor whined, bumping her arm. "i'm hungry. can we go now?" he didn't even look in my direction.
"yeah, it was nice to see you too, uncle." i snorted.
"i'm sorry, kid. all i've eaten today is cheese and beef jerky from the sinclair all the way back in downey." he stood up, brushing his shorts off.
"well, you had six other chances to eat at the six other places we stopped at, since suddenly cheese makes you have to—"
"okay! well, i'll take that as my cue to say goodnight, i love you guys, and i will see you... tomorrow, right?" i stood up with them.
"alright." tracy nodded. "we love you, honey. call if you need anything, 'kay?" she gave me a hug.
i nodded, then giving a hug and kiss goodbye to my uncle. as they walked off into the courtyard toward their car, i sighed heavily. the walk back to my sorority house was boring besides the brief small talk with lars as i passed the tennis court. we decided we'd meet up for lunch tomorrow with my aunt and uncle so tracy could go hit up the little shops she was so excited about. i didn't understand it, really. they were the same old shops like the ones in downey. but hey, they made her happy.
the sun had finally set just as i made it back, scoffing quietly when i discovered the door was already locked.
and i had no key.
"fuck." i muttered, tripping over rocks and almost breaking my ankle to maneuver around the house to my window. i stayed as quiet as possible as i climbed through my window, only to fall onto the floor with a loud thud. "shit." i cursed, praying abby wouldn't hear it from her room right next to mine.
i moved to my dresser, pulling out a random shirt and pulling my pants off, replacing my blouse and bra with the oversized t-shirt.
i fell onto my dearly missed bed, letting out a final sigh as my body melted into the mattress. i was so tired i almost fell asleep over the covers until-
knock! knock! knock!
"what... the fuck?" i grumbled, shooting my eyes open and glaring at my wall. i stayed in my spot, hoping one of the night-owl girls would answer the door. i was just about to doze off again when the three loud knocks repeated.
"fuckin' stupid abby probably got locked out..." i grumbled insults under my breath as i stomped out of my room, not caring who i woke up anymore. i walked over to the door, swinging it open. definitely not abby.
"junior."
HIII!!!! ok ok, first off, i am really really sorry for not updating in so long. plz forgive, as an apology i give you this sort of long chapter. i hope it makes up for it.
also probably gonna turn on capitalization after this chapter cuz i dont like having to switch back and forth.
vote, comment, follow!