-Chelsea-
After I had the conversation with Monica in my dorm room...ever since I uttered those words...my thinking has been different. Now instead of trying to avoid Louis because I am mad at him, or annoyed, or sad- Ignore him because I'm worried that what I said was true..that I love him. Something that I want to believe is impossible, but the thought has been lingering in the back of my mind, and I just can't get it to leave.
Monica came down with the flu a couple of days ago. I've been making sure she knows what work she has to have done. The poor thing has been miserable
"Also, don't forget about your psych paper that is due next week. Your professor told me to give this to you" I extended my arm to hand Monica the manila folder.
She rubbed her eyes groggily and sat up, grabbing the item
"Oh yay" she said with a small smile, but failed at making her voice cheerful. "I got a 95 on my statistics paper" She handed the folder back to me and pointed at her night stand
I quickly nodded and placed the folder down "Anything else I can get you?" I asked as I walked to the door
"No, I'm good" She closed her eyes and sunk back down into her bed "Thanks Chelsea" her eyes stayed closed
I sent her a smile, even though she couldn't see it.
I smeared some Germ-X on my hands as I walked down to the cafeteria- where I'm meeting Anne.
My hand gripped the cold metal handle, pulling the glass door open. I caught a glimpse of her bright red hair sitting at a center table as I stood in line.
"Hey" I breathed, setting my tray across from hers and taking a seat. The cushion airing out as I do so
"Hi" she smiled "How's Monica?" Her brown eyes stared intently at me, awaiting an answer
"Pukey" I sighed "But she's definitely getting better"
"Well that's good" She nodded slightly, sipping her drink "So how are you and...." she looked at me, unsure of whether to finish her question
"Nothings changed." I reply quickly, shrugging my shoulders "But I've finished my half of the Poe report, so we have to meet up at some point to put it all together" I scrunch my face in a sour look "It's due Monday morning"
"You better do that today then" she leaned back in her seat, placing her hands in her lap "Louis is leaving early tomorrow morning for a weekend trip"
"Why?"
"..Because he wants to go on a weekend trip with his friends?" Anne laughed lightly "I don't know why he's going"
"Great." I groan I really don't want to do this today" I slide my tray out of in front of me, making room for me to place my elbows on the table
"Well I know you don't want a zero" Monica raised an eyebrow, a smirk rapidly spreading across her face "Go find lover boy and get this over with"
Exhaling deeply, I give Anne a look before rising from my seat and walking to the trash can. I quickly dumped my garbage and scanned the room for Louis. I don't see him, so I make my way back to the dorms. Most likely he's in his room.
I raise my hand to knock on his door-I pause briefly before taking a breath and actually connecting my knuckles to the door. I hear footsteps shuffling inside the room before the door opens, and Louis appears in the doorway.
"Oh-Chelsea. Hi" he smiles brightly "Would you like to come in?" he asks, motioning his arms past the door
"Thanks, but no" I say politely. His facial expression sinks slightly "I'm actually here to ask you if you've finished your part of the Poe project"
"Yeah. I finished it yesterday" his hand moves from his pocket to his lip ring
"I heard you were leaving tomorrow for a trip, so I thought we had better put our papers together...since it's due Monday"
"Right" he reply's simply "Let me get my stuff" he lets the door close slowly behind him
Moments later, Louis emerges from his room, his laptop in hand "Library?" he asks
I nod, glancing at him quickly.
Louis pushes the heavy exit door open, allowing me to go first. The cold air hits me, sending a chill up my spine. Goosebumps began covering my body. I quickly folded my arms in attempt to make the chills go away.
"Nice day, huh" Louis looks up at the sky, squinting his eyes slightly at the sun "Getting warmer"
"Are you kidding me? It's cold"
He gives me a confused look, looking away after a few moments.
We enter the library and I follow him to a close by table
-Louis-
"Got your half?" I ask, opening my laptop. Chelsea lifts up a folder, placing it on the table
"I'll just combine it on my laptop if you'd like" I suggest "It would make it easier for you"
"Thanks" she says softly
I smile halfway, taking her folder.
I begin combining our work in a fluent way, making the words flow together.
"Remember last time we were here" I smirk as I concentrate on the screen.
"Yeah" she mumbles "You know, I can help you with that. You don't have to do all the work-"
"I'm not done reminiscing" I interrupt. She rolls her eyes, leaning back in her chair "Now where was I..Oh yeah. Last time we were here I gave you your nickname" I looked at her from above my computer screen. I wasn't surprised to see an annoyed look on her face "Fru Fru...wasn't it?" I raise an eyebrow. She gave me a sarcastic smile. I grin, returning to my work.
The only noise you could hear was the clicking of my laptop keys. Chelsea's voice then broke the silence
"Is it cold in here to you?" She asked, pulling her legs onto her chair, crouching into them
"No" I shook my head "It's quite warm actually"
Chelsea stayed quietly and I returned my focus to the screen.
A long time had passed, and I was almost finished with the project. Chelsea had done a lot more research on the subject-not that I would ever admit that to her- so it was only fair that I combine the work.
"So should I put that quote you had about him at the very end, or.." I looked up from my screen. Chelsea's hands were braced against the table, her face was urgent
"Chelsea?" I ask, closing my computer partially
"I'm gonna be sick" She said, her hands now pursed over her mouth.
I immediately get up from my chair, taking her hands and quickly leading her to the nearest bathroom. She dropped her purse next to the toilet, her hands now gripping the toilet. I searched her bag for a hair tie. I find one and quickly gather her hair out of her face, pulling it into a pony tail as she empties her stomach.
"Great" she groans "I caught Monica's flu" She rubbed her eyes "You don't have to stay here"
"It's ok. I don't want to leave you here alone when you're sick like this" I reply
She stayed silent for a minute before a sad, genuine, smile came across her face "Thank you" she said softly
I rub her back lightly as she continues to get sick. Her eye lids get heavier as the time goes. After a while, she had fallen asleep in front of the toilet, my hand still on her back. My heart sinks, hating to see her so sick..feeling so ill.
"Chelsea?" I say lightly, wanting to not wake her if she really was asleep
With a lack of a response; I picked up her purse, then lifted her up into my arms, her head leaning into my chest softly. I smile lightly at how she felt in my arms, before making my way to her room.
I carefully open the door, not wanting to move her too much. I let the door close behind me and place Chelsea on her bed, resting her head on one of her pillows. She makes a light noise, shifting slightly before becoming silent once again. I smile to myself and grab a stack of her throw blankets at the end of the bed, placing them snugly over her. Her face looked quite pale. I place my hand on her head, checking her temperature. I place my other hand to my forehead and realize she's burning up. Not knowing what to do-To take the blankets off of her to make her cooler, or keep the blankets on her- I grab her phone from her purse and go through her contacts, trying to find someone who would know what was best. I find Anne's name and give her a call
"Hey Chels, how's the paper going" Her voice rang at the other end
"Umm, Anne, this is Louis" I say quietly. The line stayed silent, then her voice came through
"Why do you have Chelsea's phone? Did you kill her?" her voice was strangely serious
"What? no. To make a long story short; Chelsea got sick at the library so I brought her to her room. I'm not sure what to do though because she's burning up, but she said she was freezing when we were at-"
"I'll be there in a minute" she hang up and I set the phone down on Chelsea's bed. I took a seat beside it, gently taking Chelsea's hand. I stayed there in complete silence, the only noise being Chelsea's deep breathes.
I quickly got up when I heard knocking at the door. As I opened it, Anne slowly came inside. She carried a large bag that hung on her shoulder
"I can take it from here" She smiled "It was sweet of you to bring her back to her room"
"Well I couldn't just leave her in the library" I stated "..Can I stay?" I ask hesitantly
Anne smiled once again before shaking her head "It's late. You should get back to your room. I'll make sure she gets better" she walked closer to Chelsea, then turned around abruptly "Tell you what" she grinned "How about you come back here tomorrow with some things she can eat..Saltines, Ginger-ale..that kind of stuff. She probably won't be able to eat anything tonight besides water anyway."
I nodded, pulling open the door "Take care of her"
"Will do"