Chapter 10- Taunting Reunions

[] L E O []

"How are you so fucking lazy for a basketball player?!" Andre exclaimed frustrated.

Jamal groaned in response and continued his attempt to fall asleep on my couch. Andre huffed and kicked him in the shin.

Jamal threw a pillow at him response.

I sighed at the two.

Suddenly, Andre turned to me with a grin.

"Hey Leo-"

"I'm not running with you Andre." I stated.

He pouted at me.

"Why not?"

"Because my paper for English is due tomorrow you dufus," I said, continuing to type away.

"What paper do you keep talking about? Amelia hasn't mentioned it," Andre said.

I clicked my tongue at the mention of her name.

"Fine," I said, shutting my laptop screen down to stare at him. "There is no paper. I'm not going with you because there are many other things I would like to do with my Sunday afternoon, Andre."

Andre sighed.

"If Amelia was here, she'd join me," Andre mumbled.

"Well good thing I'm not Amelia," I said waving him off.

Andre sighed dramatically once more and started heading towards the door.

"I can't wait till she comes back!" Andre said, walking through the door.

I shook my head and sighed.

Ever since we found out that she was gone for the weekend, my mind was in a turmoil. On the one hand, I was ecstatic. Finally, the confusion called Amelia had temporarily left our mini group.

But on the other hand, I felt like absolute shit.

I kept thinking of all the times I had treated her like crap, and every time, I felt horrible about it. On top of that, I hadn't seen her since I dropped her off at her dorm on Monday night. This made me feel more uneasy.

I couldn't understand what was going through my mind.

All I knew, was that just like Andre, I had been waiting for Amelia to come back all this time too.

* * *

[] A M E L I A []

It was Sunday evening now, the perfect time for me to start heading back to my dorm. The city was an hour away from here, and I knew I had to leave now before it got too dark.

After we loaded everything I had brought for myself in my car, I finally bid farewell to my parents. My mother once again couldn't stop her waterworks, but my dad held her back, allowing me to escape quickly. I let out a small chuckle and started heading to my car.

Giving them one final wave, I was out on the road and on the way to my temporary home.

* * *

Monday rolled round quicker than expected, and before I knew it, I was sitting in my regular spot in Sociology, pulling out my notebook for lecture notes. Suddenly, a shadow loomed beside me and I looked up in surprise, only to be met by Andre's pouting face.

He plopped down in his regular seat beside me and sighed. He propped up his elbow on the table, dropped his chin into his empty palm, and tilted his body to face me.

"Where have you been little one? We searched all over the city for you," he said.

My eyes widened in surprise.

It didn't occur to me that I had been MIA since last Thursday. I had even forgotten my phone here and it had been dead when I got back to my dorm last night. It never crossed my mind that Andre could be looking for me.

I also may have forgotten that I had agreed to go on a run with him on Sunday.

"I went home for the weekend. I didn't mean to scare you," I said hesitantly.

To my surprise, Andre brought out his other hand to pat me on the head. He pulled away as quick as it came, and spoke again.

"That's okay but to make up for it you're going to join us for lunch."

My eyes widened further in surprise. Just as I was about to shake my head in 'no', another voice caught our attention.

"Amelia?"

I snapped my head up to the sound of the voice and my eyes fell upon a girl. Her hair, her features, everything screamed familiar. However, it took my mind a few seconds to conjure up who this was.

When it did, it was already too late.

"Wow. I really didn't think this would happen," the girl before me muttered with a smile on her face.

My mouth parted in shock as I stared at Gemma.

"Is it cool if I sit by you?" she asked brightly, pointing to the seat beside me, on the opposite side of where Andre sat.

I was hesitant. I wanted to tell her that she couldn't. She just couldn't sit beside me. However, before I could say anything, Andre spoke.

"Of course you can."

Gemma turned her attention to him in surprise.

"I'm Andre," he introduced, holding out a hand for Gemma to take.

She took it gently and soon enough, I was sitting between the two. Before we could say anything else, the professor began the lecture.

I barely paid attention to what was going on in the lecture. All that I was focused on, was the fact that Gemma was sitting beside me. She was writing in her notebook neatly, a habit she had since I had known her too. However, I couldn't even write without shaking. I simply gave up a quarter way into the class.

The thought of Gemma being here was simply terrifying. It was shaking me to the core and I just wanted to wanted to leave. I felt like all the breakfast I had this morning was going to come back up. If Gemma was here then that would mean that my past is here too.

And that was not okay.

After class ended, I quietly started packing my things, ready to bolt out of the class. I was thankful that no one had started talking yet, and I hoped, prayed, that Andre wouldn't ask about lunch agai-

"Let's go Amelia," Andre said, throwing his bag over his shoulder.

I looked over to his grinning face, already knowing that I wouldn't be able to say no. I mentally sighed and gave a small nod.

Beside me, Gemma cleared her throat and faced us.

"Hey I know this is a bit weird, but can I join you guys for lunch?" she asked, shifting from foot to foot.

Surprisingly, Andre turned to me with a questioning look. I shrugged at him, not really knowing why he was asking me. I ate with him, not the other way around.

As unenthusiastic I was about having to sit with Gemma for lunch, I couldn't exactly say no to her face.

Because no matter what, Gemma was someone I considered a friend at a time.

As much as I didn't want to come along with the two, I knew I had to. For some reason, leaving Gemma alone with Andre, Jamal, and especially Leo, didn't sit well with me.

So I quietly followed behind Andre and Gemma, who walked in front of me making small talk. Andre kept up most of the conversation, asking Gemma about her degree and such. I quietly listened in, mostly worried that Gemma would slip in something about my past. I found her turning to me every once in a while, her gaze simply questioning. I said nothing, and soon enough, we were walking towards the Coffee Rush, the coffee shop we always went to.

Andre held open the door first, saying "After you, ladies," and I made my way after Gemma. Gemma sighed in content after entering, probably due to the strong scent of coffee lingering in the air.

Andre closed the door behind us and we made our way further inside. I finally looked up to see where the guys were sitting and found them in the same spot as always, by the big window.

I found myself subconsciously scanning over their features. Jamal looked the same as I last saw him. He had a lazy grin on his face and for once, he was in his basketball attire. Leo sat opposite to him, and due to this, I couldn't see his face. He was also slouched over onto the table in his classic sleeping pose.

Despite my earlier thoughts, it felt good to see them again. For once, it felt like I was coming back to something, and that was a good feeling.

However, soon enough, thoughts of the last time I saw Leo swarmed into my mind. It was the time he saved me from him. And then walked me home, where I slammed the door shut in his face. Suddenly, I wanted to vanish into thin air.

How could I have forgotten?

That incident was the sole reason I returned home for the weekend. I wanted to tell my parents that he was here. That he found me. That I was in danger again.

However, when I saw my mother's already worry-sicken face with the thought of me living away from them, I couldn't tell them the truth. For now, they had to stay in oblivion, no matter what the cost.

But what worried me more, was that Leo saw. Leo saw what happened, and he asked about it.

And I couldn't tell him. I couldn't tell anyone.

We finally made our way to the table and somehow, Andre and Gemma were now in front of me, blocking my view of the table.

"Hey guys," Andre started. "Look who I brought!"

He suddenly moved sideways, finally giving me room to see them. My eyes landed on Jamal first, who immediately smiled when he saw me.

After noticing the commotion, Leo sat upright and slowly turned in his chair to see what was going on. It was the first time I saw him in a week, and my eyes widened in surprise when I saw his attire.

He had bags under his eyes and his mouth was turned downwards in a frown. His clothing was crumpled and seemingly worn out, which wasn't super unusual, but somehow, he just looked tired.

When his eyes caught mine, they widened unconsiderably. He blinked a few times and then his eyes softened. My own eyes widened in disbelief due to the intensity in his gaze, and I held his stare.

The sound of a chair being scraped across the floor caught my attention, and I looked away from Leo's intense gaze to see Jamal getting out of his seat. To my utter surprise, he got up and came over to wrap his arms around me. I squeaked in surprise and he chuckled, pulling away.

"Long time no see, Amelia," he said, now standing at an arms length away from me.

I nodded and tucked a stray strand behind my ear nervously, all this attention being a little too much for me to handle. Andre came to my rescue by introducing Gemma, who I had completely forgotten about.

"Guys, this is Gemma. We met this morning in Sociology," Andre introduced.

Gemma gave them a small wave and turned to Jamal first.

"I'm Jamal," he said politely, taking a hand out for her to shake.

She smiled at him and shook his hand. Then she turned to Leo, who was now looking at Andre with a confused look.

"Leo," he muttered, looking to Gemma.

She nodded in response.

We finally sat down, and this time, I somehow ended up beside Andre, who sat between Gemma and I, while Leo sat opposite of me, and Jamal beside him. Andre instantly striked up a conversation with Gemma, and Jamal piped in. I quietly listened in, not in the mood to talk right now.

To my utter shock, I heard a clearing of a throat coming from right in front of me. Surprised, I looked over to Leo, who was staring at me with a curious look.

"Did you have a good weekend?" he asked.

Still shocked that he talked to me, I was only able to give a small nod.

"Were you gone back home?"

Once again, I nodded.

"Good. You look like you needed it."

This time, I couldn't take it anymore. Because after saying those words, Leo did the unthinkable, the unfathomable.

Leo smiled at me.

* * *

I tossed and turned in bed all night. All the events of today finally caught up with me, leaving me a mess of nerves. I sat up in my bed, rubbing the sweat of my forehead using the back of my hand.

The primary reason for my worry was none other than Gemma Pollard.

I had somehow managed to escape her after lunch this afternoon, since my class was about to start. However, I knew it wasn't long before we collided again, seeing as she was also in a dorm somewhere on campus.

Despite my worry of having her in the same vicinity as me, it felt nice to see her again after all these years. She last saw me nearly two years ago, when we graduated. Afterwards, she went to study elsewhere, and I ended up sticking to my hometown. However, we had lost contact a while before that. It wasn't like she didn't make an effort, in fact, she was one of the few who did, but it was me.

I pushed her away.

And now that she was back, I didn't know what to think of it. The Gemma I had last seen cared about me, put up with me despite my bitterness, and somehow, managed to look past my flaws.

But what now?

What if in the time we didn't see each other, she realized that I wasn't worth the effort anymore? What if she somehow turned against me and followed what everyone else thought of me? And what if to get back at me, she spills the one secret I had been trying so hard to bury?

I swallowed the lump in my throat and wrapped my arms around myself.

No. She wouldn't.

I nodded to myself and leaned my head back against the wall.

Finally, my mind drifted off to my biggest problem as of late: Leo.

His penetrating gaze was engraved into my mind, and all I could think of was him acknowledging my existence this afternoon. Before today, he has never personally started a conversation with me, unless it was to tell me off about something. The way he spoke this morning, made me wonder if Andre had put him up to this.

Yet, no matter what the reason, Leo's sudden interest in my life didn't sit well with me. It was fine when he ignored me, but him acknowledging my presence was simply nerve-racking.

With the addition of everything in the mix, Gemma's return, Leo's spark of interest, and the looming threat of him in the back of my mind, it was safe to say that I wouldn't be able to get sleep for a while now.