College Sweethearts
I can never help but assume the worst. The moment something escapes your grasp you lose sight of it, and if it's something you care about then your mind instinctively creates possibilities that you pray won't eventuate into reality. Though given the circumstances she's probably worrying more than I am. I like to think it's only natural that what we care about never really leaves our thoughts entirely, when you always think of someone then you know you're in love. Some things reminded me of Ling and the time we'd shared with each other already, the rain was the biggest reminder.
Thankfully the year so far had been rather rain free, almost to the point of draught, though tonight the rain persisted. The small room I occupied was no larger than my old room, though the walls were more confiding and the ceiling much lower. The room was painted white whilst the bottom part was navy blue. My desk faced out through the only window and my bed was a small single, pressed against the wall firmly so that the door would be able to open completely. No wardrobe of dresser that I could keep my clothes, I had to simply keep them in the luggage bags that I'd arrived in. My head was burrowed in an enormous amount of papers and text books, my pen scratching constantly on what looked like paper's that had been simply thrown over my desk. There was an order to the mess of papers that only I could understand.
My door creaked open sneakily, most wouldn't have heard it over the noise of the rain outside. I ignored it as they crept closer.
"Why have you entered my domain?" I asked sitting upright and spinning around on my chair to face her, my pen vibrating within my fingers.
"Sooner or later I'm going to catch you with your guard down!" she announced placing her backpack down on the floor and coming forward. I stood up and we hugging tightly, her slightly wet and thick jacket almost like a cushion in-between us. "But you knew that I was coming back today didn't you!"
"Well maybe your feet are so big they thump as you walk" I teased before leaning back. Jackie's face looked tired and more weathered than usual, she hadn't much time for the small things like cosmetics since starting her Uni course.
"I'm way too tired to argue with that, I just want to sleep" she stated backing away and collapsing down on my bed. She'd kept her hair blonde with light chocolate streaks through it and her figure remained as perfect as it had always been. I was amazed at how much she'd changed since St. Vincent's. Before Jackie bounced from one emotional affair to another but she'd since protected herself from those things simply so she could study harder. She was always smart but I'd never have seen her as a physicist, her personality seems to have only just recently caught up with her career aspirations. "Why didn't you come with us? It was a pretty fun weekend".
"Attending a conference by some loud mouth scientist who thinks he's better than me, yeah that sounds like so much fun" I turned back and sat down at my desk ready to finish up my work. "Did he yell a lot?"
"No, he wasn't like the last guy. I don't think he'd ever held a lecture before because he seemed to stumble and correct himself a lot".
"So what was so fun about it?" I asked trying to remember what my last train of thought was before Jackie had interrupted me.
"The hotel was nice and I hooked up with this cool guy". My eyebrows raised as I spun around. "Not like that! He was from a different Uni and we had the same courses so it was like a weekend long brainstorming session. Jason's a really cool guy, wish you were more like him.".
"He sounds like a tool". I threw my pen down in annoyance that I could work out what I was doing before she arrived. Like my studying was all in a moment that she interrupted. "Well I'm done for the night, you going to get some sleep?"
"M'yeah, so if you want to sleep together I'm afraid it'll have to wait" she replied sleepily as she turned over on my bed to face away from me.
"Right" I whispered to myself, standing up and heading to the door. "Night", I remarked closing it behind me and switching the light off. Outside of my room was the living room and which comprised of a small kitchen and a television, then the bathroom and finally Jackie's room where I would have to sleep for tonight.
Sharing a dorm room together wasn't something I thought would be appropriate given our history but no one seemed to mind, especially Jackie. The first few weeks after Jackie and I moved in were a little awkward as I often wondered if she still had a thing for me, but thankfully that concept didn't develop.
Jackie took everything that we'd done to her in stride. She accepted that we wanted to include her into our relationship but at the same time we were a couple, not a trio. Starting University wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be, I got to see Ling every other week as long as we didn't mind a long travel. it was now the end of the first year and we'd be on break for a solid seven weeks before we'd have to get back to our studying and we'd already planned every moment we'd have together. Time in the city with old friends and with family then some time just to ourselves, maybe somewhere in the country were all there was to relish in was the company of one another. The thought of just being with Ling for longer than a few hours kept me awake some nights thinking of her and counting down the minutes. I could only assume that she was doing that same.
"Think she'll come out this way?"
"Nah, she's probably sneaking around the back with her secret other boyfriend" Jackie teased. I was standing outside of Ling's University, leaning against my vehicle with Jackie sitting in the passenger seat and leaning out to give me inspiration.
"You should be a comedian".
"Oh wait" she announced. Her hand reached out and grabbed my belt buckle to pull my back to her. "Wear this here", speaking whilst pushing a rose stem into my trousers so the flower was behind me. Jackie was in her usual unpolished self, showing off a few freckles than previously I'd never even realised she'd had.
"Oh my..." came a familiar voice from the steps above us. Ling stood on the white path with a few book in both her arms at her front, the top most one open as though she'd been reading them on the move. "You're here!" she screamed running down to me rapidly, her feet a blur as they moved. Her hair was grown down past her shoulders now though she wore it in a ponytail and she seemed to have had something of a growth spurt despite what I'd tell her about the inch she'd grown. She skipped the last four steps and jumped into my outstretched arms. I held her close and spun around on the spot causing her to laugh loudly, her books lay were she'd dropped them. "What're you doing here!? I wasn't expecting you till tomorrow".
"Skipped class to be here early so I could see you" I smiled letting her down but still within my embrace. "Hope it's not a burden".
"No. But if some really hansom guy comes up and starts kissing me he's certainly, uh, not my secret other boyfriend" she teased giving my abdomen a poke.
"Told Ya!" Jackie yelled from the car. Ling and I kissed for a long while, savouring the feel like it was our first time doing so.
"Is this mine?" she asked, the rose in her hands and stroking over the stem with her thumb, the thorns having been plucked from when I'd purchased it. "Couldn't afford a bouche?"
"I pulled them from a garden so they were free. I didn't want to be greedy so I only took one. I couldn't go back and get more?" Ling shook her head, gently taking off the majority of the stem and placing the flower behind her ear then moving back to pick her books up.
"So where are we heading?" Jackie squeezed her way into the back so Ling and I could share the front seats.
"First stop is Ling's place so we can get her things then it'll be a long trip home".
Ling lived in a dorm like Jackie and I with two others. One old friend from school and another that was just allocated into the three person room. It put my mind at ease that they were both girls and a gender divided dormitory. The dorm building was actually a bit of distance away from the actually facility. We were all in the small space together, Jackie helping Ling pack her clothes up while I chatted with one of her room mates. She had long red hair and could only find room in the conversation to talk about feminist rights and how marijuana should me made legal, which explained her the aroma she was giving off.
"Ready to go?" I asked as Jackie and Ling emerged holding a few cardboard boxes that I offered to take off of their hands. "It was nice to meet you" I stated to Serenity, Ling's hippy resident. I could just barely see over the boxes Jackie's dumped on me.
"Yeah, you as well" she paused for a moment. "You're one of the good ones. There aren't enough good males out there".
"Thanks, but if you talk to them I'm sure you'll see they're all pretty nice" I laughed to her before heading out, rolling my eyes to Ling as we headed downstairs towards the carpark. "You pierced your ears" I remarked noticing Ling's added feature.
"Yeah, you like it?"
"Looks great. Just don't get any other those horrid stretchers".
"Don't worry, I like my earlobe the way it is not all dangly and gross". In the concrete corridor Jackie's phone started to ring loudly, echoing around the stairs.
"Shut that fucking thing UP!" yelled a frustrated voice.
"Sorry!" Jackie yelled back loudly, flipping her phone open. "Hey Jason, no I'm not busy. What's up?"
It was past midnight when I pulled up on the highway roadside, no other cars in sight other than large semi-trailers and other large cargo trucks. I'd parked in a small offside area with a shade shelter, toilets and vending machine used for drivers who need a rest; which is exactly what I needed. Ling was sleeping in the back seat while Jackie snored gently in the passenger seat. I gave a small moan and walked out into the night air.
"Hey Mrs. Fraser it's me. I know I said we'd be back tonight but looks like we're going to have to stay over and get there in the morning. So I'm just calling to let you know that we're en route and not to worry we'll be there soon enough. Till then". It felt spooky to be talking on the phone in the deserted highway with very few lights around as it was the setting of every horror movie I'd seen so far. Getting back into the car I let out a loud yawn, Jackie had adjusted her seat back so her backrest was down and against Ling's feet. I moved the car under a street lamp which had a security camera so I could feel a little safer. I tried to stay awake but eventually fell into a deep sleep as well.
"No really. Tell me that that doesn't sound great"
"Shhh!" The voices were coming outside of the car. I didn't enjoy the feeling of waking up and not remembering where I fell asleep, it made me feel vulnerable though when you're in an awkward sleeping place like a car it doesn't take long to remember. My feet had stretched over to Jackie's now vacant seat and my head rest on the door. The Sun wasn't yet out completely so the horizon was a dull pink colour. My hand sleepily reached behind me and clicked the door open, making me fall backwards out of the car rapidly.
"Smooth" Jackie laughed while Ling gasped. My back was bent at a steep angle as I fell out onto the gravel, my legs following the rest of my body.
"I don't know why I did that" I stated looking to Ling and Jackie upside down. They both came over from the shade shelter's bench and pulled my arms to get me upright. "You guys been awake for long?"
"A little while, couldn't sleep" Ling stated dusting me off with both hands.
We hit the road again with Ling happily driving so I could enjoy more of a rest, though that wasn't really happening while Jackie insisted on chatting.
"So you guys have places, yeah? For the Christmas holidays?" she asked, her head between the two front seats.
"Yeah, we've got a few plans. Nothing too official" I replied with a loud yawn. "Do you have plans?"
"Nah, not really. I'll probably just bump about at home or something. It'll just be good to get away from the constant studying". Jackie paused for a while. "You know Jason is heading to Fiji for a while. Apparently he's going to take a plane there and see where it takes him".
"That's nice".
"I've actually considered going there myself a few times. You know, just a fantasy like going to Hawaii or some tropical island. Have you guys thought of that?"
"Yeah, I'd love to go to Fiji some day" Ling stated turning her head slightly.
"Maybe...we could make a trip of it?" I paused and turned to her. "You know like, going to Fiji or Hawaii together as a getaway trip".
"Just like that? 'Let's all go to Fiji?'"
"Well, it would be nice" Ling remarked with a shrug. I noticed that neither Jackie nor Ling were looking at me directly. "And it's not like we're not going to get bored with seven weeks of not doing anything".
"You two have already discussed this haven't you" I accused. Both gave a disgusted gasp at me but didn't deny it.
"Mum!" Ling cried out rushing to Mrs. Fraser and giving her a tight hug. "I've missed you guys so much".
"I've missed you too" she replied, her eyes watery, inviting me for a hug after she was done with Ling's. "How've you all been?"
"Really good Mum, and good news. We're going to Fiji!"
