Jamie
The flights are booked, the plans have been made; I am going to Scotland in two days. Two fucking days! Okay, I’m only staying until Sunday, but still, that’s four nights in Scotland. I’m excited!
I even made a new playlist with my favourite Biffy and Twin Atlantic songs. I talked to Lori on the phone earlier too when I called aunt Helen to confirm all the plans. Lori told me about some up and coming guy from Glasgow, Lewis Capaldi, so I’ve added some of his songs to my playlist too. The songs are slow and sad, but they’re good, and he has a fucking incredible voice. His tone is out of this world. And the best part is, I’m going to see him live at some venue in Edinburgh with Lori and her friends on Friday night. It’s gonna be awesome. Okay, so the slow sad songs about heartbreak aren’t exactly what I wanna hear right now, but I’m excited to hear him live, and in Scotland too! Lori got an extra ticket for me so I said I’d transfer her the money, but she told me not to worry about it because the tickets were only “a fiver”. I love the way she talks. But a fiver is like less than ten dollars. I can’t believe how cheap it is. Lori says Lewis Capaldi is just starting out, so his shows are pretty intimate and inexpensive. She’s sure he’s gonna make it big over the next couple of years though. I think I timed my trip very well.
The only loose end I wanna tie up before I leave for Scotland; I still need to talk to Patrick. And I have a plan for that too, now. Joel told me Patrick will be at the youth centre tomorrow night, so I’m gonna go by and talk to him when he’s done teaching for the night. I think it’s a good plan, talking in a public place means we can’t yell at each other. And I’ll be more likely to keep my emotions in check.
So tonight, I’m gonna get most of my packing done and then I’m heading over to Aubrey and Kim’s dorm to tell them about my travel plans. Tomorrow, I’ll go to college and then I’ll get totally caught up with all my course work, then I’ll talk to Patrick. The day after that, I’m on a flight to the UK.
Things are looking up. At least I hope so anyway.
After I’ve packed most of my clothes for the trip, a couple pairs of vans and cons, some beanies and scarves (Helen says Scotland is fucking freezing pretty much all year round, but especially at this time of year) I’m out the door and en route to Aubrey and Kim’s.
I decide to walk over to the dorms, get the good of my legs before sitting on a plane for almost 8 hours, you know? But as I approach town, I instantly regret the decision to walk when I see a familiar wave of blonde-lilac hair walking up the street towards me. Fucking Amanda.
I look across the street, because I’m seriously considering crossing the street to avoid walking directly past her. But I’m too close to her now, and I know she’s seen me too. Whatever, she'll probably just say 'hey' then carry on walking. I can do this. Just keep your head up, do not glare at her, do not pray that she'll step on dog shit. Just be nice and neutral.
“Hi, Jamie.” She greets me with a smile as we approach each other. Great.
“Hey.” I mutter, moving to continue walking past her. But she’s came to a halt. She wants to chat. Fuck my life.
“Hey, so, how’s Noah?” She asks me. What the fuck? “I met him the other week, we had coffee with a couple of friends, he seems nice.”
She's still smiling at me. Why the hell is she asking me about him? Fucking weirdo.
“Um, he’s good I guess. I don’t see him much.” I tell her.
“Oh? I thought you guys were dating?” She asks innocently. Really, what is the point in this conversation?
“No, we aren’t.” I look around, I need an exit. “I have somewhere I need to be, so...”
“Sure, I’ll see you around then.” Another fucking smile, then we both continue on our way.
Well that was bizarre. Whatever. I’ll be far away from her in Scotland soon. Just remember that.
*****
Patrick
I open the front door of my apartment building and step out onto the street, just as Amanda crosses over from the opposite side of the road. Talk about good timing.
“Hey, so, Starbucks?” She greets me with a smile.
“Yeah.” I unlock my car and we both get in.
“So,” She says as she clicks her seatbelt on. “I just ran into Jamie.”
I tighten my grip on the steering wheel a little before starting up the engine.
“And she told me, without a shadow of a doubt, that she isn’t dating Noah.”
What the hell? “Okay... why would she say that to you? You just ran into her on the street?”
“Yeah, I asked her how Noah’s doing, you know, since I met him properly, and she told me she doesn’t really know because they aren’t dating anymore.”
I look at Amanda and she is grinning at me from ear to ear. I’m confused. Why is she so happy about this?
“So, I have a theory.” Amanda goes on, clearly proud of herself and whatever her theory may be.
“Okay...” I pull out on to the street and drive in the direction of Starbucks, which is no where near us. It’s about a 40 minute drive. I just don’t wanna go to Symposium and risk bumping into anyone I might know...
“Dude, she likes you.” I can feel Amanda's eyes on me, but I’m concentrating on the road ahead of me. I don’t say anything.
“Oh, come on, Patrick!” Amanda exclaims when I don’t reply to her. “Why else would she have kicked Noah to the curb after months of putting up with his crap? It’s because she realised he’s not the one, you are!”
“Amanda, please.” I’m not talking to her about this. Jamie doesn’t feel that way about me, and nothing could convince me otherwise. Unless Jamie told me so herself, I would never believe it.
“Just look at everything that’s happened between the two of you!” Amanda goes on, waving her arms at me in frustration. “Trust me, take a girls perspective on this. She likes you, Patrick. I wouldn’t be surprised if she more than likes you.”
I come to a stop at a set of red traffic lights and turn my attention to Amanda. “I don’t wanna talk about this, okay? So, if you’re gonna keep bringing it up, tell me now, and I’ll turn around and go home.”
“Seriously?” She says, bewildered by my reaction.
“Yes.” I say, pulling off as the lights turn green. “So, how were your classes today?”
She sighs dramatically, and I can tell she’s rolling her eyes. Tough, I’m not talking about Jamie and Noah anymore. I had enough of that from Joel last night. I just wanna get a coffee and chill out with my friend for a while. No more thinking about Jamie. No more.