Caden’s POV
She stood in front of the canvas, her eyes glistening and her cheeks wet from the tears. I was not worried about her anymore because I knew that this time she’d cried from happiness.
Happiness that I had brought her.
I felt overwhelmed from all the negative emotions that her distress had stirred in me mixed with the relief that I still had her trust and the pleasure that I’d brought her joy.
“And your coursework? Will you be selling that?” She asked, and I sensed worry in her tone.
How could she think that?
That picture was dearer to me than any other I’d ever drawn. It was the embodiment of Alice – my life, my love, my world – and I would not part with it even if someone offered me millions.
“No, that stays with us,” I reassured her. “I don’t mind putting it on display in a gallery though,” I admitted. It was unfinished but I could already tell it would be one of my finest works. How could it not when I put so much love in it?
And I really wanted to show it off; I wanted to show off the perfect creature that Alice was and I wanted everyone to marvel into this celebration of her virtues.
I embraced my girlfriend.
“Now, let’s give you a grand tour around my studio, my little Alice. But I should warn you: you’ll be seeing a lot of your face in my work.”
“Don’t you have enough of me already?” She asked.
“Haven’t I told you that I can never have enough of you, Alice?” I replied, hugging her tighter. “My little, sweet, innocent Alice.”
*****
Keegan’s POV
“What happened?” Was my roommate’s greeting as he ran to me as soon as I entered apartment 202.
“What do you mean ‘what happened’?” I questioned in turn, closing the door behind me.
“Did you guys… talk?”
“Did you leave me there with Alice so that we’d talk?” I asked, getting suspicious.
“Are we going to communicate only through questions now?”
“Skyler!”
“Alright, alright! I left so that you and Alice could talk; no need to raise your voice.” He slumped on the couch. “So did you? And if you are mad at me, please shout at me later because I’ve spent all afternoon worrying about you two and I think I’ll go insane if I don’t get an answer soon.”
“You were worried about us?” I was confused. Didn’t he leave me there to speak with Alice about her problems? What did he mean by us?
“I thought you still had feelings for her. Didn’t you talk about that?”
“You thought…” I was speechless.
How could Skyler of all people worry about that?
He was way too carefree and always had his head in the clouds. He wasn’t what I’d call astute even though he sometimes surprised me. It wasn’t a miracle if he noticed his sister or Alice having problems – he loved them both so he paid attention when it came to them - but when did he start worrying about me?
“You had no right to get involved in this,” I stated. I was angry – just a little bit – that he’d butted in on my business. But I still felt the exaltation from realizing I was over Alice. And I wouldn’t have come to that conclusion if Sky had not left us on our own… even if it was under false pretext.
“Are you angry with me?” He asked timidly.
“No,” I sat down next to him. “For once, you didn’t mess up.”
“What do you mean ‘for once’?” He nudged me with his elbow, pretending to be offended. “So, you two sorted things out?”
“Yeah,” I replied with a small smile. “We talked and I realized I’m over her. Completely.”
“That’s good,” the blond commented, smiling as well. “Otherwise things would’ve been awkward between you and Caden would’ve gotten angry… Why are you frowning all of a sudden?”
“I’m worried. We were right that she’d had a nightmare and I think I convinced her to tell Caden about it.” I sighed and lay back on the couch.
Feelings of doubt and guilt were creeping up in my mind now.
What if I’d made a mistake?
What if Alice wasn’t ready for this conversation and I forced her to have it?
If something happened between them because of that, it would be my fault.
I sighed.
Why did I get involved?
I guess Skyler wasn’t the only one who was butting in.
“Hey, do you know what the shortest personal story is, Kee?”
I turned my head towards him.
What the Hell was he trying to do?
Couldn’t he see I was upset?
He looked nervous and hopeful so maybe he’d picked up on my bad mood and decided to cheer me up. His nonsense was probably going to annoy me but at least it would distract me from thoughts about Caden and Alice.
“No,” I replied curtly.
“I.”
“You what?”
“I,” he emphasized as if that was supposed to make a difference. “You don’t get it, do you? That’s the shortest personal story.”
I stared at his rosy face. Once again I thought about how much he looked like an angel with his blond hair and bright blue eyes. Or at least like a cherub. A skinny cherub, dressed in a designer while button up and purposefully ripped jeans.
“ ‘I’ is the whole story,” he explained again.
“Is this supposed to be funny?”
“It’s supposed to be clever and entertaining,” he murmured, his enthusiasm diminishing.
“Well, it’s neither,” I concluded, making him pout. “You should really eat more,” I added, nodding my head towards his torso.
“I’m naturally skinny,” he justified. “I don’t even need to work out.”
“You’d look better if you had some muscle on those sticks you call arms.”
“I have muscle,” he protested, rolling his sleeves up. “See?”
In all fairness, he really had well-defined arms: not pumped, but shapely. I still wasn’t going to let him off that easily. I enjoyed messing with him and Skyler Miller was particularly sensitive about his appearance.
“Maybe if you bring me a magnifying glass,” I teased.
The door opened wide and in strutted Beth, followed by Ashy-boo…
Asher.
Followed by Asher.
The nickname Skyler had given him was catchy and now stuck in my head.
“Guess who I just talked to, bro,” the female twin sat on a sofa and crossed her legs. With her straight posture she looked elegant even in an old t-shirt – Asher’s if I was not mistaken – and a pair of faded jeans.
Huh, the Millers actually had old clothes?
All their parents’ money meant that I’d gotten used to seeing them in brand new clothing.
“Who?” Her brother asked, leaning towards her.
Their faces close, I couldn’t help but compare them.
The only reason I’d called Skyler “a skinny cherub” instead of an angel, was because I always thought the later had something too feminine and more adult in nature. Even though Sky’s features were refined and therefore somewhat feminine, he didn’t get the adult part covered.
Bethany on the other hand distinguished herself from an angel only by the color of her skin; while the heavenly creatures were usually depicted with a fair complexion, this girl had a natural tan.
There are both beautiful though, I thought, frowning; guys should not be beautiful. It was a girl’s trait and it was better if it stayed a girl’s trait.
Beth opened her mouth as if to reply, but Ash spoke first:
“Do you have a tongue ring?” My childhood friend asked my roommate.
“Oh, yeah. I put it on to cheer up Alice and then we had ourselves a Disney marathon…”
“A Disney marathon? And you didn’t invite me?” His sister resented.
What was with these people and Disney?
“Sorry,” Sky apologized sheepishly then tried to change the topic:
“You were telling me who you’ve talked to,” he reminded his sibling.
“Mom,” Beth replied, still pouting. “She said she’s coming over to Aberville to see us next week. I can’t wait to tell Alice.”
“Maybe you should wait,” I suggested.
“They probably don’t want to be disturbed right now,” Skyler added.
“Oh, they are having sex?” She asked casually.
“No, they are talking,” I replied. “We think.”
“That talk,” Sky put in.
“You mean… about the nightmares?” Asher asked, both he and Beth tensing up.
“Yeah.” My worry and guilt were returning.
“I really hope they sort everything out,” Beth sighed. “They are so good together, just like me and Asher. And how can we not be? I’m awesome and he’d the perfect boyfriend.”
“Because he always agrees with you on everything,” I suggested.
“He doesn’t always agree with me.”
“Yeah, I don’t always agree with her.”
“You just did,” I commented.
“Just because I agreed now, it doesn’t mean I always do it. Right, Beth?”
“You pretty much always do,” Sky backed me up. “Just like you pretty much always ask her for permission.”
“You used to the do same,” the girl noted, pinching her brother’s arm. “Now stop picking on my boyfriend!”
“You are so cute, Bethy-boo, defending your Ashy-boo,” my roommate cooed then jumped up to avoid her smacking him.
“Stop insinuating we are one of those corny couples who hold hands all day long, dress the same and do everything together. Ash and I have our problems – small ones but we have them – and we always talk things through. Honesty and conversation – that is the key to a successful relationship. Right, baby?”
“That’s right,” the boy complied. “There comes a time in every relationship when the couple has to talk about things they don’t really want to talk about, to admit some hard truths or say things they hadn’t said before to spare the other person’s feelings. That’s tempting; keeping quiet to protect your partner’s feelings…”
“Yeah, like how you didn’t tell Beth her soup tasted like soap,” Sky shot out, proud to give an example and show us that he understood.
“He said WHAT?!” Bethany shouted.
“Now, baby,” Ash raised his hands defensively and leaned away from his glaring girlfriend. “I swear I can explain…”
“Good one, Sky,” I murmured.
What on Earth had made me share Asher’s story with him?
*****
A/N: Whoops, Ash seems to be in trouble. How will “the perfect boyfriend” get out of this one?
Anyway, I realized that this chapter and the seven preceding it take place in just two days. Can’t believe I spent eight chapters on two days!
That beats my previous record of seven chapters from Here We Go Again taking place in two days (chapter 22 – 27).