I couldn't really trust anyone to make contact with Arisa anymore. Tomasia said she was willing to speak with her but I saw through her pretty quickly; she only chimed in to keep me and Khaleel from fighting. Her intentions were good, but they weren't going to keep her safe at Jackheights. So, I decided to step up and ask Arisa to join the campaign myself. It might be awkward...and Khaleel might kill me for pulling rank but I felt like I had no other choice.
'Hey, how have you been?'
'I know it's been a while since we spoke but could you make some time for me?'
'I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important.'
The first few messages I sent Arisa were never read. I told myself she was busy with other things. I believed whatever I wanted to in order to not become too invested in her response, but it was hard. What if Khaleel already said something to her about the campaign? What if she was purposely ignoring me because she knew what I wanted to ask?
I paced in Zander's backyard with my phone and tried to contemplate my next steps. Tomasia left a little after Khaleel because Mrs. Easton wanted her son to go run errands. Hino went inside to entertain Zola and Zenith. I seemed like I was the only one losing my mind over teaming up with Arisa. I could go her place and have a face-to-face conversation? But the thought of meeting her after months of absence didn't sit well with me. I didn't want my heart to shrivel up at the sight of her, because I knew it undoubtedly would.
My phone lit up to reveal my ex's name. She was calling me. She was calling me? My fingers lingered over the green icon just as my stomach churned. "Keep it short and quick," I coached myself before picking up the call. "Hello?"
"Hey." Her voice was soft and sweet. Just as I remembered it. "Sorry about not texting back, I was...held up."
I wanted to ask with what but bit my tongue. "It's alright," I replied. "So, I'll assume you at least read my messages?"
"I did. I'm actually headed to the movies with my mom shortly, but we can catch up afterwards, if you're free?"
"I'll make myself free."
There was a short pause. Maybe she was feeling just as uncertain as I was about the conversation, but I wanted to let her know that just because we weren't dating anymore, it didn't mean I stopped caring about her. "Text me when you're finished at the movies and we can meet at our old spot," I said. It came out like word-vomit, it was so embarrassing. Arisa had probably moved on to bigger and better things and here I was still getting my hopes up.
"Sure," she said. "Is everything okay? You said it was important. I know you've been going through a lot lately and if it's something that can't wait—"
"It can wait," I assured her. "It's important but it can wait. Have fun with your mom. And thanks Arisa, for giving me a call. It made me really happy."
"Sure, no problem."
I took a slow breath. "Can I ask you one more thing before I let you go?"
"Shoot."
"Did Khaleel drop by your place today?"
She was quiet before she answered. "Covered in blood, as per usual."
"What?" I couldn't believe it. "Why?"
"He ran into some guys from school who have been putting a lot of pressure on him to succeed you and I think he just snapped."
And the first thing he did after-the-fact was go see Arisa? It was nice to know his feelings for her were still brewing. I couldn't help but wonder if she felt the same way about him now. Could I be up front and ask her that? Was it inappropriate? Maybe it wasn't any of my business? It would be selfish to ask. After Arisa and I broke up, Khaleel was one of the only people who kept in constant contact with her. I saw first-hand how close they had become and even though it bothered me, I knew I couldn't win her back while still pursuing my status at Jackheights.
"Where is he now?" I asked.
"Home, hopefully," Arisa said. "Don't worry, I bandaged him up before sending him off."
"And while he was there, did he say anything to you about Tomasia?" I asked, biting the bullet.
"She didn't come up. Why?"
I shook my head. "I'll explain later. I should really let you go, so you can spend some quality time with your mom. Don't forget to text me when you're done, okay?"
"Sure, sounds good."
"Alright, bye."
"Bye, Loyal."