Chapter 43- Taunting Embraces

[] A M E L I A []

The following few days were long. Leo had gone home to visit his family, leaving the rest of us behind. Lunch without him was sad, and each of us would look over to his empty seat once in a while. Since he was away for the weekend, I couldn't even busy myself with classes.

He left the day after I visited him, and ever since then, he was barely able to contact any of us. This was understandable, however, I couldn't help the part of me that wanted to pick up the phone and talk to him for hours on end. I wanted to know how he was doing, how the rest of them were doing, and more importantly, how he was feeling.

Apparently, Laura had decided upon holding a small funeral for her ex, and now late, husband. I thought this was courageous of her. Even though Leo resented the thought when he first heard it, he finally agreed to it after hearing Laura's point of view. She didn't want to have any lingering feelings, and especially, feel any regret. I understood her in a way, but on the other hand, my heart ached for Leo. More than that, it ached for Clara.

I had spoken to her briefly yesterday, and she had only said a few words, all sounding forced and disheveled. I cut it short then, not wanting to intrude on their privacy.

In a way, I saw myself and my family in the Kennedy's. I guess this was why Leo had taken me to meet them in the first place. They were all strong, a little more than my family and been, and this courage made them something grand in my eyes. The thought of what Laura had to go through when she decided upon holding her ex-husband's funeral, caused a shiver to go down my spine. After everything that occured, she felt as if she had to say goodbye to him one last time.

I hurt for her the most.

Despite her family's history with the man, she did what she thought was morally right. I agree that what her husband did was nowhere close to being forgivable, especially since he never asked for forgiveness, but he was still the same man that had a part in giving her Leo and Clara. That to me was enough reason for her to want to hold his funeral.

And maybe Laura had been the opposite of Leo.

Maybe she could remember the good times she shared with her husband.

I sighed and stole another look at my phone that was sitting on my side table. Before I could reach over to pick it up, I heard a groan beside me.

"For goodness sakes Amelia, the darn phone hasn't rung."

I pulled my hand back and turned to give Gemma a sheepish look.

"You've been checking every five minutes," she groaned. "Why don't you just call him?"

I bit my lip in contemplation. It was a tempting offer, since the last I spoke to him was two days ago. However, I shook my head at her, not wanting to bother him.

"Not right now Gemma. He must be busy."

Although Gemma didn't know his full story, she knew that Leo's dad and Laura's ex-husband, had passed away. None of us told her more than that, careful not to spill too much of Leo's story since it wasn't ours to tell. But she noticed the change in the three of us since Leo left. I knew she had a feeling that there was more to his story than a dead father, but if she had any questions, she didn't ask me. For this I was grateful, since I wasn't sure if I could betray Leo to tell her the truth, and if I couldn't, then if I could lie to her and hide the rest of his story from her.

Gemma had been an amazing friend so far. She proved to me time and time again that her friendship was worth it, and I wanted to return the favor with every chance I got. Therefore, I wouldn't be able to lie to her. But then, I wouldn't risk hurting Leo. And I think she understood that. So she held back her curiosity, once again proving that she was an amazing friend.

Gemma rolled her eyes at me.

"Amelia... I bet he's looking at his phone too right now, wishing he could be here with you instead."

I thought about her words, my stomach twisting in nervousness with the thought.

'Could it be true?' I thought.

Then I shook my head feverently.

"Of course not Gemma. He's busy with his family-"

Just as I spoke, my phone tinged with it's annoying beeping sound, indicating that I had a new message. Without even finishing what I was saying to Gemma, I quickly shot to the side, the laptop between us that was playing 'A Walk to Remember,' toppling over as I did so. However, I could care less as I bolted for my phone. I hurriedly slid it open, butterflies erupting in my stomach as I saw Leo's name flashing on the screen.

I quickly opened his message, my heart beating rapidly.

I'll see you tomorrow Moonie :) -Leo

And for some reason, his simple words were enough to put a smile on my face.

* * *

"Stop fidgeting Amelia," Andre teased.

Gemma, Andre, and I had just trudged out of our class and were now heading to our usual lunch spot. Today's lesson seemed to drag on forever. It felt as if the class was never going to end. However, maybe that was because I was too excited to see Leo.

I was nervous to see him after our four day gap. Things had shifted between us before he left. I, for one, admitted that I didn't hide from him simply because he kissed me. And he made me give him a promise I wasn't sure I could keep. On top of that, I was finally able to admit to myself that I liked him, more than a friend, that is.

After all of this happened, he left. Therefore, I wasn't so sure what to expect when I saw him again.

Would he be as happy as I would be to see him again?

Would he feel as if time sped up as well?

"Amelia!" Gemma suddenly said, causing me to stop in my tracks.

I turned to her surprised, only to see that her and Andre were nearly five feet behind me. They were both smirking at me, as if they knew something I didn't. I took a step closer to them, wondering why they stopped.

"Why did you stop?" I asked.

They turned to each other and shared a look before turning back to me.

"Amelia... we're already here," Gemma said.

"Huh?" I said dumbly.

I looked up then, only to see that we had already arrived in front of Coffee Rush.

"Oh."

Andre and Gemma simaultaneously snickered at my reaction and I found myself reddening.

"Ha-ha, very funny," I muttered brushing past them.

Their howling laughter continued behind me and I ignored them as I went into the café.

Coffee Rush was bustling with its to-go customers as it always was, but the rest of the place was nearly empty. I automatically started in the direction of our usual table, not surprised when I heard Andre and Gemma behind me a few seconds later.

They didn't comment any further on my lack of direction earlier, and for this I was grateful. We continued our trek to the end of the café, and before I knew it, we were nearing our table.

My heart rate accelerated as I saw the back of Leo's head from here. Jamal was sitting across from him, his face sombre as he listened to what Leo was saying. Jamal noticed us first. His eyes lit up when he saw us approaching and he saluted to us with his two fingers.

A moment later, Leo turned in his chair. At first, his eyes were searching the crowd, and then, they froze when they landed on me. My eyes widened when I saw him, unsure of what to do.

Before I could make more of a fool out of myself than I already had, I continued walking towards the table. I kept my eyes trained on Leo as I walked, curiosity brimming in my eyes. I wanted to ask him how everything went, how Clara was, how James was, and how Laura was doing. But I held my questions back and went to our table.

Somehow, Andre and Gemma reached the table before me and they quickly went to take their seats beside Jamal. For once, I didn't mind that our friends were openly implying that I sit next to Leo, and it seemed that he didn't either, for his features softened as I took the seat beside him. It was then that the atmosphere changed. All of us looked to Leo expectantly, waiting for him to say something. He finally tore his gaze away from me and turned to face the trio.

"Ask away," Leo simply said.

Jamal broke the silence first.

"How was the drive?" he asked, referring to the snow outside.

Leo shrugged.

"It was irritating. I got home in nearly three hours, then got back here in just about the same."

Jamal nodded and slumped back in his chair.

"How is your family doing? Laura, Clara, James?" Andre asked.

"They are... adjusting," Leo answered.

A sombre silence fell upon us then. Leo didn't elaborate further, and none of us had the heart to ask him any more questions. Something told me that we'd all just ask him whatever we wanted separately. It wasn't something that should be discussed out in the open anyway. I focused my attention to the edge of the table, unsure of whether or not I should speak up to end the silence.

Gemma broke the ice this time.

"Uh, I'm going to get food," she suddenly said.

She got up from her spot and let out a small breath. Then, she turned to Andre and shared a look with him. After a moment, Andre's eyes widened in realization, and he let out a loud "Oh!" Then, he followed Gemma and stood up as well.

"Yeah, me too!" he said, oddly enthusiastic about lunch.

Before I could ask them why they were so excited about this, the two were already walking away. I furrowed my brows at the two, but didn't think of why they rushed off like that. I then turned back to Jamal and Leo with a sigh.

"Oh would you look at that!" Jamal suddenly exclaimed, looking at his watch. "I have practise in five minutes."

Then before I could call out to him, Jamal was also leaving, which meant that it was only Leo and I left now. I cleared my throat and looked over to Leo. To my surprise, he was already staring at me, a small smirk on his face.

"I think we just got set up Moonie."

And of course, I turned bright red at his words, which caused Leo to laugh at me. I slumped in my chair, rubbing my hands over my face in embarassment. I felt Leo's gaze on me still, his laughter diminishing into low chuckles. I stayed where I was, with my hands covering my face, thinking of a million ways to end this awkward moment. After a moment Leo's laughter slowed to a stop, and then I heard the scraping of a chair.

Suddenly, a large warm hand encased my own. Startled, I pulled my hands away from my face, only to see that Leo was barely a breath away from me. His hand covered my own as he slowly dragged it away from my face and pulled it into his own lap. He had turned in his seat now, his body fully facing me.

My heart stopped at his actions. Did he not see what he was doing to me?

He was fully holding my hand now, drawing circles on it with the pad of his thumb.

"But we didn't have to be."

And now I was six feet under, my thoughts barely processing, and my heartbeat ringing in my own ears.

I stared at Leo, my mouth slightly parted.

I was about to say something, was about to comment on how he should let go of my hand before Andre and Gemma come back. However, as I sat up a little straighter, I noticed how Leo looked.

It was the little things I hadn't noticed before when he was too far from me. I didn't see the dark circles under his eyes, the rim of redness surrounding his eye lids, and the way he sagged as he held my hand.

He was hurting.

And suddenly, I didn't care anymore. I didn't care that we were in a crowded café, and that Gemma and Andre were probably making their way towards the table now, because all I saw, was Leo Kennedy.

I turned to him now, my eyes widening in worry. Leo finally looked up from our joined hands and his gaze fell on me in confusion. I turned in my seat to face him, and he sat even straighter. Now, my knees were brushing his, my hand gripped his back, and I found myself leaning toward him.

And before I knew it, I reached forward and wrapped my arms around Leo.

At first, he stayed still, his breathing shallow against my neck. However, as time ticked by, he slowly relaxed in the hug. And then, his arms slowly wound around my waist, as he hugged me back. This time, he held me tightly. His arms wrapped around me securely and he snuggled his face in the croon of my neck, his nose tickling my collarbone. I shivered at the gesture, but  welcomed the comfort it brought.

I didn't say anything. I didn't ask him anything. There would be plenty of time to talk later.

For now, I wanted to show Leo that I would always comfort him, just as he's done for me.