Fire & Snow

Chapter 15

“Well, well, well, look who we have walking towards us after so long of going MIA on us,” Chance said as he saw Liav walking towards us with a Faith by his side. “I don’t know whether to find their friendship weird or utterly cute,” he turned and looked at me.

I shrugged, I had only known them for a week and then the other one I had to work without them being around because Faith was sick and then Liav suddenly disappeared. It was odd, were they secretly dating or were they just really good friends? I had no idea and I was not ever going to ask. I was not ready for that awkward conversation nor did I want to get involved in their personal lives, it was not my in my place.

“They happen to only want to speak with Neva and not any of you,” Liav replied. “It’s nothing personal but we like Neva more.”

Chance placed a hand on his chest and faked hurt. “And here I thought that you liked me more and that we are really good friends,” he said. “This is the ultimate betrayal and I don’t think I will ever be able to forgive you for this Liav.”

Faith had a neutral expression as she looked at Chance with disdain clear on her face. I was intimidating and I did not know whether to fear her or like her even more than I already did. 

“It’s nothing personal,” Liav replied with a shrug. “It’s just a personal preference.”

“Yet I am the one who introduced you to her,” Chance said. There was a hint of sadness in his voice though he tried to mask it with a fake smile.

“I know,” Liav replied and then turned to me. “How have you been? Hope you were taking care?”

I was shocked, he was distant to his own friend but then decided to be nice to me. I did not know whether to feel flattered or apprehensive over the fact that he could do that to his own friend. “I have been okay and how about you?”

“I have seen better days,” Liav replied and then asked. “How was your Math test? I know you had it on Friday.”

Chance rolled his eyes at that. “Don’t even go there. She passed but she is too modest to admit that it was a really simple test for her,” he replied instead.

Faith turned to me with that serious look on her face. “Don’t ever be modest about being intelligent. If it constitutes bragging then brag but never look down on yourself and how smart and intelligent you really are,” she said. “I am intelligent and I always tell myself that. It’s pointless degrading yourself. don’t ever do it.”

“Okay,” I replied. That was all that I could say.

There was an uncomfortable silence that fell over us. It was though no one wanted to be the first one to break the silence and speak first.

“I hate uncomfortable silences,” Liav was the fist one to break the silence that had befallen us. “Talk to me Neva, what’s new? Any drama that I would like you know?”

My heart skipped a beat at that. Did Aydan tell him that we talked and what we talked about? I did not know why I was panicking but I was. It was not as though I did something wrong but I remember clearly Liav and Faith warning me to stay away from Aydan but I had gone and done the exact opposite of that.

“No drama, just been a busy week with so much work to do,” I replied with a sigh. “That reminds me, I did everything you told me. I got Faith’s work and all the assignments.”

I risked a glance in Faith’s direction and there was a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

“I knew you were the best person to hire,” Liav said smiling. “Now come along, we are going to get some food.”

I turned to look at Chance whose mouth was hang open. He looked as surprised as I felt and he was their friend. I glanced in Alex’s direction and he just shrugged. Okay looks like I was going with them and I had no say in it.

Faith, Liav and I left Alex and Chance. I did not know but I felt bad for leaving my friends, we had known each other since freshman year and now I was leaving them for juniors. It just did not seem fair to them and to nonetheless.

                                                                                   ***********

“Neva,” Liav called me from the other side of Faith’s room. “Could you come here for a minute, I happen to need your help with something in here.”

Faith shook her head and I walked into the bathroom. The junior rooms had everything, from a bathroom to a kitchen and lounge. It was a suite and I could not wait until I was a junior and got to move into the junior suites though I doubted they even came close to the senior ones.

“What do you need?” I asked while leaning on the bathroom door. I watched as Liav tried to do something that I had no idea was. Though it was kind of amusing watching him struggling to do it.

Liav quickly turned his head in my direction. “Can you grab me a screwdriver?”

I arched my eyebrow in question at that. “Why?”

“Because I want to fix this,” Liav replied with a semi frustrated sigh while pointing to the sink.

“Okay, and why are you fixing it? Why not get the maintenance man to do it?” I asked. “That is his job after all. To maintain things.”

Liav got out from under the sink and rolled his eyes dramatically. “I know that but I want to fix it on my own. That way I am able to gain experience from doing it.”

“Don’t let him ruin my sink for me,” Faith shouted from her bed in the other room. “He doesn’t know what he is doing and he will only end up destroying it more than it already.”

I nodded my head in agreement to that but Liav rolled his eyes once more.

“I am not going to destroy anything. I am going to fix it and there is no need to call the maintenance guy to do it,” Liav shouted back in response. “I got this and I know what I am doing.”

I opened my mouth to say something but there was a knock on Faith’s door.

“Neva, could you come see who it is,” Faith said. “I don’t to get up from my bed.”

I rolled my eyes and sighed. I understood that she was still feeling weak and needed her rest but I could not help but think that she was over using me. I walked to the door and opened it.

                                                                         *************

“Sophomore,” Aydan said and entered the room. He walked over to Faith’s bed and hugged her. “You okay now?” he asked.

“A little,” Faith replied. 

Aydan nodded his head and sat on the still empty bed. 

“Neva I am waiting for that screwdriver,” Liav shouted from the bathroom. “I want to do this now.”

“Wait, why is Liav in your bathroom and why does he need a screwdriver?” Aydan asked with an arched eyebrow.

Faith rolled her eyes. “My sink is licking and apparently he thinks he can fix it.”

Aydan burst into laughter just as Liav walked out of the bathroom.

“What’s so funny? Did I miss a joke or something?” Liav asked as he sat next to Aydan on the bed. “Come on now, fill me in on what we are laughing at.”

Aydan looked at Liav and laughed even harder. “You trying to fix something is what is funny,” he answered.

“Why is that funny?” Liav asked with a raised eyebrow and his hands crossed over his chest. 

“Because the last time you tried to fix something, you almost burned the entire house down,” Aydan replied while still laughing.

I shook my head and sat on the chair that was at the desk. I watched them interact, their friendship was weird but for some reason they made it work and all got along well.

Liav wanted to say more to that but Faith cut him off. “Aydan,” she called.

“I don’t need anything,” Faith replied.

Aydan smiled incredulously. “Every time you call me by name, you always want me to do something for you. Whether I like it or not.”

“That isn’t true,” Faith protested. “I don’t always want something from you when I call you by your name. Like now, I don’t need anything from you.”

“Uh-huh and I totally believe that,” Aydan said still smiling.

“She does always want something when she uses our names,” Liav added. “It’s weird how we always know when she needs something. She is nicer than most times.”

Faith sat upright and leaned on the wall. “I am nice,” she said in her defense and then turned to me. “Aren’t I nice Neva?”

I froze, I did not want to say something that would upset her. She was a nice at times I guess but I hadn’t spent enough time with her to be able to say anything on that matter. Aydan and Liav were the ones who knew her better than I did and hence were in the right position to say.

“You can tell me the truth, I won’t be upset,” Faith said softly. “Just be honest with me about it.”

“Don’t fall for it,” Liav said. “She will hold a grudge against you and trust me, you don’t want that. The girl is petty as hell an d that’s coming from her best friend.”

Faith glared in Liav’s direction. “I do not hold grudges, I simply remember every shitty thing you do to me and then get you back for that.”

“That’s still holding a grudge,” Aydan said with a shrug. “Just because you changed the phrasing does not mean it isn’t the same thing.”

“I hate you both,” Faith said with her eyes narrowed at Liav and Aydan. “Screw you both, except for Neva. I like her more than you two arse-holes.”

I was flattered that she liked me but also worried at the same time.

“You love us and that’s all there is to it,” Aydan replied smugly. “She won’t say anything because she is scared of you. Look at how uncomfortable she is right now and she hasn’t even seen the whole you, just the sick and annoying you.”

Okay, so how I was just a she and no name. Okay. I was not going to say anything. Aydan was treating me as though we had not spent the last two days talking and I did not understand why he was doing it but I was not going to call him out for it. It was his choice after all.