GULF'S POV
He still keeps asking me and I can never avoid him. Whenever I see him at school or at home, he would randomly come up to me and say, "Sleep with me" and would just walk away when I turn him down. What a weirdo.
Does he really think the more he asks, the more I'll eventually say yes?
"The other day I handed him my sleeping pills and he wouldn't take them", I was telling Gun and Saint. "He says they don't work for him but me sleeping with him will. What's up with that?".
Gun giggled at my story. Zee and Saint owed Off lunch because of their silly bet so we decided to go to a cafe near the university.
"Maybe he actually has a thing for you and wants you to get busy in bed with him", Gun jokes.
"No way! He literally means just sleeping. Besides, does he even like guys?", I asked, directing the question to Off.
"He does. Why? Are you interested now?", Off nudged me.
"What? No! I'm done with relationships", I told them. I'm not interested in having a partner right now and maybe even in the near future. I don't think I need someone right now.
"Relationships? What does that have to do with sleeping with him, huh? Look at these two! They're all hot and horny for each other yet won't commit!", Off was referring to Zee and Saint who were in front of us.
"Hey! I call foul!", Zee exclaimed.
"Where's Mew anyway?", Saint asked Off.
"Beats me", Off shrugged.
"Can someone text him? I feel bad that Gulf's the only one here without a boyfriend or fuck buddy", Gun laughed at his own words. I threatened to punch his arm but he just made a silly face at me.
Zee was laughing by himself. He was on his phone and showed the screen to Saint. Saint rolled his eyes and handed the phone to me. Off and Gun hovered to see what was so funny.
Zee: Wanna have lunch with us?
Mew: Us?
Zee: Me, Saint, Off, Gun, and Gulf
Mew: Pass.
Zee: Come here!!!!
Mew: No thanks.
Zee: I'll pay for your meal ;)
Mew: Really?
Zee: Hahaha NO. What will get you to join us?
Mew: Tell Gulf to sleep with me.
Off grabbed the phone in my hand and started texting. After he was done, he placed the phone on the table and proudly smiled. "He'll be here in a few minutes".
We all leaned forward to look at the screen and saw what he did.
Zee: Mew, this is Gulf. Have lunch with us and I might say yes.
–––––––
Mew arrived after twenty minutes and he's been quiet since then. I could tell he was glancing at me from time to time but I pretended not to notice.
I'm really curious about him. Aside from the fact that it's bizarre that he keeps trying to convince me to agree to what he wants, I wonder what caused him to have those problems in the first place. And, how did he own such a big house alone? Where are his parents? It must have been lonely to live in such a big empty place.
The cafe door opened. I was a little surprised to see him here. He's with Win, of course. They must be doing well. I tried to hide behind Gun's shoulder but this guy's too small for me to be covered completely. We accidentally made eye contact. They sat down at a table near the window. Bright said something to Win and then stood up.
Please don't come here.
"Gulf...", I looked up and he was staring at me.
"Uh, Hi", I managed to say.
He scanned our table and looked back at me, "Can we talk?".
"Now?". Bright, don't do this right now.
Off started whispering to Gun but I was close enough to hear him, "Who's this dude?".
"That's Bright. Gulf's ex", Gun was trying to whisper back but I think everyone including the guy he's talking about heard him.
"Please?", Bright looked down and touched my hand on the table.
Nobody was saying anything and I didn't want to cause more tension so I agreed to go outside so we could settle things. Before standing up, I glanced at the table and everyone was avoiding eye contact except for Mew. His eyes were fixated on Bright but I couldn't tell what he was thinking.
––––––––
"What do you want, Bright? You left your boyfriend inside", I said to him. I really wasn't in the mood to talk to him but I know he wouldn't have stopped bugging me if I said no.
He sighed, "I just...I want to apologize. For what I did and for what I said over the phone. I'm really really sorry Gulf".
I know he's sorry, but still, it kind of sucks. For the four years we were together, he's been patient and kind with me. I don't get why he did what he did but he must have had his own reasons.
"Yeah, okay. Is that all? I should get back inside".
I was turning around to leave but he grabbed my wrist. "Wait, that's it? You're just going to forgive me? You're not even going to say anything to me?"
"What do you want me to say?"
"Dammit, Gulf! You're doing it again! At least punch me in the face! Get angry! Do something!", he yelled. He pushed my chest hard enough for me to stumble back a bit.
I was caught by surprise. Why was he so mad at me? "Bright, you're causing a scene".
I glanced back inside and saw my friends' shocked faces. Also, Mew wasn't there anymore. Where did he go?
"We were together for four fucking years and I replaced you with someone else! And you're just letting me go and forgiving me that easily?", Bright continued.
I didn't answer. My chest felt heavy.
"Gulf, I loved you throughout the four years we were together, but...I want to know if you still felt the same way during the last two. Did you? Did you still love me?".
"Of course I did".
"Really? Are you sure?", Bright asked again.
"What do you mean? I did everything I could to make you happy and you seemed okay with everything I've done. I even moved in with you last year––"
"But you never asked me what I really wanted, Gulf!", he raised his voice again. "I didn't need you to cook for me all the time or walk me to my class every morning. I loved it when you smiled at me, laughed at all my jokes, hugged me and kissed me, but I also wanted something more from you, Gulf...."
I was confused, "What?"
"I wanted you to open your heart to me again", his voice broke.
"What are you saying?".
"I miss the old you, Gulf. The one who endlessly talks about the most random things. The one who gives a long run down about all the interesting stuff that happened to their day. The one who's straightforward enough to tell me that he's mad at me. The one who cries when he's had too much of the world. The one who knows how to talk about their feelings, Gulf!".
I could see in Bright's face that he wasn't mad anymore...he looks disappointed.
"Well, I'm not that kind of person anymore, Bright". It's true, I wasn't and he knows exactly why.
He sighed, "After your 20th birthday, I know everything changed for you and I completely understand that. It's not your fault. I just...I wish you leaned on me. I wish you let me comfort you instead of acting like you were always fine. I wish you trusted me".
"I'm sorry I made you feel that way these past two years". Bright, please don't bring up the past right now. You know what that does to me.
Win suddenly appeared and held Bright's shoulder. He pulled him to leave but before they did, Bright faced me again.
"You can't always say you're fine, Gulf. You should trust the people who love you and allow yourself to be vulnerable in front of them. I hope you realize the more you bottle up your feelings, the bigger you'll explode".
I was frozen in place, watching Bright and Win walk away.
Author's note:
Well, here comes the angst. Sorry for making this so long :( The next chapter will be this lengthy as well.