Mallory
My friend Cleo christened our hangout spot in Capricorn Woods 'the Lake' when we were fifteen. Three guesses on why we chose that particular name. Spoiler, it was because Capricorn Woods bordered the biggest lake in Merlot. It wasn't a very creative nickname, I know.
I loved the Lake because Reid and I spent countless evenings together here. Memories floated in the clean, crisp air and the gleaming cerulean water next to us.
Conveniently, our group of friends drove straight into the clearing, because the woods were sparse. Reid and Nick's cars were our current transport. Once we unpacked our camping stuff for the night, Cleo, Reid and Nick took charge of cooking and bonfire control. Tony was dancing with Cleo, and they were laughing together.
I sat alone on Nina's collapsible loveseat with my knees drawn to my chest, thinking about how beautiful the sky looked at night. The constellations weaved their paths above us, transcending space and time. Our plan tonight was to sleep under the stars.
"What are you thinking about?" Reid asked me. His dark eyes sparked into gold, reflecting the light of the campfire as he sat next to me.
I tore my eyes away from the sky to smile at my boyfriend, reaching out to play with his hair. "I'm thinking about how perfect you are." I considered my words, then shrugged. "Well, I wasn't really. But it's true."
Reid quelled my speech with a soft look, tucking a stray curl behind my ear. "It's funny that you're calling me perfect, considering you're the very definition of it."
I quirked an eyebrow at him. "You're smooth tonight. Got any other lines for me?"
"Are you kidding? I have a list committed to memory." Reid quipped, and I laughed. He leaned back against the loveseat, letting out an awed sigh as he stared up at the sky. "Wow. Now I know what you were thinking about. It definitely wasn't me."
"Do you want me to think about you more?" I teased him.
"Not necessarily. I've missed you, these past few weeks. We've been buried in finals." he complained.
"We also survived our first year of college. Take this time as our reward." I soothed him, snuggling against his shoulder. I felt Reid kiss my forehead, and I smiled into his shirt.
"About that," Reid began, moving to settle his head on my lap. His long legs dangled off the edge of the seat, but he didn't seem to mind. I placed my hands in his hair, wondering what he was talking about.
"What is it? You need to be somewhere?" I asked.
"Yeah, I need to pick something up. I'll be gone twenty minutes, max."
"Can I come with you?" I asked, curling my body into his, because Reid was warmer than me.
"No!" Reid said abruptly. I looked at him with wide eyes, then laughed, relaxing.
"Wow, okay. Are you going to be with your secret celebrity girlfriend?" I teased. Despite my relaxed disposition, I wondered what could evoke such a reaction from Reid.
He relaxed, his dimples appearing as he spoke. "Sure I am. I have a whole list of girlfriends, one for each day of the week. You, Mallory, are my Sunday girl." He leaned in closer, whispering conspiratorially to me behind his hand. "That's why I spend more time with you."
I rolled my eyes, pushing him away. "Very funny."
He put a hand on his heart. "You think I'm not serious? Baby, I'm serious all the time. Especially about you being my Sunday girl."
I huffed. "Fine, go continue your secret love affair. Fair warning, you'll be coming back to your stuff in a box outside my door, labelled 'you don't know what you're missing.' That's if you're lucky."
Reid reached for me and wrapped his arms around my shoulders, smiling into my neck. "You know you're the only one I want. You're my lobster."
Reid knew I loved Friends. I softened, wrapping my arms around my boyfriend and looking into his eyes. "I could be sold your dream. Where do I apply for the other six days of your week?"
"No need to apply. You can have them whenever you want." He punctuated his statement with a sweet kiss on my cheek. I blushed. How did Reid make me fall in love with him more every day? At some point, it should have become statistically impossible to elevate my feelings.
"You guys need to stop," Tony whined, seeming to materialise out of thin air. He squeezed into the tiny space between Reid and I. We glared at him. Tony ignored it. "It's been six months of us being the third, fourth and fifth wheel. Are you going to be stuck in this lovey-dovey phase for eternity? Where's the interesting parts; the arguments, the days of stony silence?"
"I'll give you stony silence any day you want. Now please leave." Reid retorted. I almost thought he was serious. Almost.
Tony huffed. "I see when I'm not wanted."
He stood up, but I grabbed his wrist. "You know he's joking, right? We love you."
Tony gave me a bright smile. "Of course, you cinnamon roll."
"Speak for yourself, Mallory." Reid coughed.
Tony glared at him. "Sometimes, I wish Mallory was my cousin. This is one of those times."
"You love me, really." my boyfriend protested.
"I would never say those repugnant words to you." his cousin answered without hesitation. Tony glanced from Reid to me, then he looked over at Nina.
When Tony caught her eye, Nina shouted, "Hey, poet brother of the simpleton, do you want some corn on the cob?"
"Sure," Tony said, forgetting about Reid and I. He wandered over, taking a plate.
Reid looked at them thoughtfully. He glanced back at me, and a smile grew on his face. He moved over to wrap his arm around my shoulders, stroking his thumb over the exposed skin from my top. I leaned into his touch like a cat.
But I moved away slightly to give him an appraising look. "You should be nicer to Tony."
He stared at me blankly. "Why?"
I rolled my eyes. "You know what I mean, Reid."
"He should know better than to interrupt my Mallory time, then," Reid replied, resting his cheek on my shoulder. I looked at him, taking in how the firelight added a golden glow to his sharp, gorgeous features.
Reid's physical beauty was only a bonus. If souls entwined when they found their match, then ours were already connected beyond separation. We watched the bonfire burn brightly against the darkening sky in a quiet, comfortable atmosphere. And it stayed that way.
Until I noticed Nina walking in our direction. I thought I saw something flicker in her eyes, but it disappeared once she smiled. "Hello, lovebirds. I love your top, Mallory." Nina said lightly, looking at the kerchief-style amalgamation of color. "Especially the patterns. I was trying to figure them out from over there." She pointed back at the grill.
"Thanks. You already know your outfit is gorgeous, Nina." It truly was. Once again I was jealous of Nina's daring style, accentuated by her overflowing confidence.
She cocked a hip, smirking. "I try." Nina's smile fell as her eyes flicked to my boyfriend, sobering. "Reid, do you want to talk?"
"I'm fine." he cut in. Something in Reid's voice made me look at him, and sure enough, his expression looked oddly tightened.
Nina's mouth drew into a flat line, and she narrowed her eyes at him. "Fine." She sauntered back to Tony and Nick, swinging her hips as she walked in her heels.
I frowned at my boyfriend. "Is something wrong?"
Reid looked back at me and smiled, but I could tell it was forced. "No, I just don't feel in the mood to talk with her right now."
"That's not an answer." I protested.
He shrugged complacently, his expression fading into blankness. "Depends on whether you trust me or not."
I knew that was a cue to change the subject. Clearly, this was something I'd need to bring up later. Now wasn't the right time.
I put my arms around his neck. "Hey, it's fine. I'm here to support you, okay? But don't keep secrets from me."
"It's nothing important." Reid said. He moved closer to me again, burying his face in my shoulder. But I looked away from my boyfriend as my thoughts began to wander.
Nina was back at the grill with Nick. For some reason, once my gaze was hooked on Nick, I couldn't look away. He was a mutual friend of sorts; still an enigma to me, unlike the rest of our group. Nick was standing over the grill, working on flipping burgers with a concentrated expression.
Nick was quiet, as a rule; quieter than anyone else in our group, preferring to make his opinions occasionally. Maybe he was uncomfortable around some individuals; maybe he was introverted. But I appreciated Nick's presence, even if we rarely spoke.
We never talked without our friends, but I was never alone with any of my guy friends on principle. It was an unspoken rule for my relationship. Reid did the same, but it wouldn't have bothered me if he went out with any of our friends alone. I trusted Cleo implicitly with Reid, given that she introduced me to him.
Nina was a close friend of mine, but she never interacted with Reid. Today was the first time I'd seen them talk. There shouldn't have been problems in their acquaintance. But according to Reid's dismissal of Nina, something was amiss.
"I better do that thing I told you about. I'll be back soon." Reid said into my shoulder, drawing my attention to him.
"Fine. I trust you, by the way. Just go do what you need to, okay? But I still think you're running off to a mafia meeting to gather the month's total profits." I invented.
"Your imagination knows no bounds." Reid said warmly. "Like I said, back soon." He waved as he got up and walked to his car, blowing exaggerated kisses to our friends. They rolled their eyes at him. Then Reid's eyes met mine, and he smiled as he took his car keys out. He easily made me feel like I was the only person he saw.
I wish I stopped Reid then, held him back. Not trusted him enough to let him go. If I did something, this wouldn't have happened. I wouldn't have a tragic story as its legacy. Reid would still be with me.
I watched Reid's car pull out of its parking spot, and he drove away from us. I glanced around the group, taking a swig from my vodka bottle straight.
Nick was alone at the grill, clearing up the grill. I decided it was time I talked to him. So I got up, dusting myself off, and strolled over to the grill. When I started helping with putting the utensils away, Nick looked silently up at me.
I smiled at him. "Hi, Nick."
He smiled slowly. "Hey, Mallory. What are you doing here?"
I sighed. "Reid had some ultra-secret mission to do without me, so I'm waiting for him to come back. Is everyone winding down from our barbecue?"
Nick glanced around. "From the looks of it, yes. You should go into one of the tents; I'm sure Reid will come back soon."
"But what about you?" I asked him.
Nick's eyes were slate grey as they stared into mine, and it felt like I could see the stars in his eyes if I looked closely enough. "I'll be fine. Go."
I gave him a small smile, then I returned to my loveseat, curling up on it alone. I watched the stars as I waited for Reid to return to me, clutching my phone to my side.
Twenty minutes.
I watched the time pass on my phone. Twenty minutes turned into thirty, then forty, until it was past three hours. Somewhere beyond twelve am, and Reid was still out there.
I littered my call history with outgoing calls to Reid. I left messages, each with an interval of twenty minutes before sending. I swear that wasn't normal behaviour for me; I never wanted to come across as the clingy girlfriend. But Reid never vanished like this.
"Come on." I muttered under my breath, forcing myself to listen to the painful ringtone of an outgoing call for the hundredth time. "Just pick up, Reid. I promise I'll never complain about you to Cleo or Nina ever again. Not even Tony."
"Because every healthy relationship involves bitching about your partner to your friends." Cleo sat down next to me, beaming as she threw an arm over my shoulder. "What's up, my sweet cinnamon roll?"
I blinked at her. "How drunk are you?"
Cleo looked over her shoulder, then back at me. She leaned in, then showed me her thumb and index finger pinched close together, with a thread of air between them. "Like this much? Is that a lot?"
I suppressed a laugh. "That's plenty."
Cleo grinned, then she sighed sleepily, resting her cheek on my shoulder. Like Reid did all the time. "Were you calling Reid?" Cleo asked, her eyes closed.
I stared at her, agreeing, "Yes. Why?"
"Well, did you notice that Nina, Tony and Nick left us?" Cleo informed me casually, counting each name on her hand.
My eyes widened. I sat up properly on my loveseat, blurting out, "What do you mean?"
Cleo looked at me, confused. "They ran away. I heard the guys talking about going to Nina's car, because it's closest. That's why I came over to you." Cleo finished, letting out a high-pitched giggle.
"They ditched us?" I asked disbelievingly. I glanced around the space, getting up to walk around the clearing. I prayed that someone would show up, and this nightmare would be over. But the grill and bonfire were abandoned. Nina and Reid's cars were gone, but Nick's car was still parked.
I walked around the empty space, willing one of them to show up. But the grill and bonfire were abandoned on the side. I ran my hands through my hair, willing this to be some ill-timed joke. First Reid did a disappearing act on me. Now, Nina, Tony and Nick followed his example.
"I can't believe this." I muttered in defeat, looking around the Lake.
Cleo snorted. "What, do you think it's easier for me?"
We heard footsteps pattering towards us in the darkness. Cleo clutched my arm, looking scared. I had to restrain myself from doing the same to her. You could see I wouldn't have fared well in a horror movie.
Thankfully, it was Nina and Nick. But Tony wasn't with them. I rushed over to Nina and clutched her shoulder, my eyes searching hers as I begged, "What happened to Tony? Where is he?"
Nina swallowed, avoiding eye contact. Her eyes and nose were red, like she cried recently. Nick stood beside her, sober and pale. "Something happened to Reid." Nina told me, her voice stifled with tears.
My heart dropped in my chest. That one sentence coagulated and realised my fears. The past hour's stress took hold. "What is it?" I demanded, my voice sounding hysterical and unfamiliar. "Is he hurt?"
A tear fell down Nina's pink cheek. I watched it spill down her face. "He got into a car crash. They found him about ten minutes ago."
My world began to collapse around me. It didn't immediately fall. Piece by piece, the layers tore into shreds before my eyes.
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