Serendepia

Ava led the way to the football field where the university team was training, going a few meters ahead with firm and determined steps to reach JC. 

Camila could observe how her best friend’s attitude had changed the moment she knew the consequences that the whole situation could bring to Beatrice; it was obviously that at first she tried to remain cheerful and a bit carefree, but as the minutes passed and they got closer to meet her ex, she had acquired a more serious attitude and even looked impatient and worried. 

It was extremely strange to see Ava acting in such a serious manner, Camila had only seen her act this way so few times that she could count them on the fingers of one hand and in all those situations it had always been about Diego, the person her best friend loved the most. 

Keeping up with Ava’s footsteps was proving a little tricky for everyone except Beatrice who kept talking to her brother asking him about the details of the fight he had had with their parents about her and now everyone knew that being angry made her accent thicker and her steps faster than normal. 

Lilith stood by her best friend’s side, staying silent and allowing the pair of siblings to fight without interruption; her stature and long legs helped so that she didn’t have to strain as hard as the others to follow Ava’s footsteps, and keep up with Beatrice. 

Camila could hear the pair of British siblings arguing right behind her, getting closer as they moved towards the football field that was already in sight; she looked to her left when she heard Beatrice almost beside her, though it wasn’t the freckled British girl she saw first, it was Lilith standing next to her. 

It was nighttime, the sun had gone down not long ago, but the paths of the university were well lit and that allowed Camila to notice that Lilith’s eyes were slightly red, something she hadn’t noticed before when she had been closer to her; although she hadn’t noticed a strange or different smell either, which, instead, Shannon had quickly noticed just by having a bit of Lilith’s clothes near her face. 

It wasn’t a surprise, after all, Camila had seen Lilith hold the small transparent bag with weed in her hand and hide it in her jacket pocket after leaving the bathroom in the middle of the party, accompanied by the smiling boy with long brown hair; however, she wasn’t going to judge her for that either as if she herself hadn’t tried it before. 

The distance between the two wasn’t much, but Camila hadn’t noticed it until her hand lightly brushed the fabric of Lilith’s sweatshirt around her wrist, which caused the shorter girl to reflexively look down and thus notice the white bandage that wrapped around the young British girl’s hand and was hidden underneath the cuff of her sweatshirt. 

The bandage was white, at least it had been at first, at some point before that moment, but now it was covered in a black powder that adhered to the fabric almost everywhere and gave it a dirty appearance, even her fingers protruding from the bandage were almost completely black, especially at the tips. 

Lilith also felt the small graze near her wrist, which made her unknowingly mimic Camila’s actions; she looked down, lifted her hand slightly and turned it stiffly in search of whatever had caused her to feel the sensation of something moving her clothing. 

“Does it hurt?” questioned the curly-haired girl with a slight tone of concern in her voice. 

Hearing the questioned, Lilith looked up immediately and noticed the slight frown on Camila’s face. 

“Oh, something like that, not all the time; it only causes discomfort when I twist it too much, but it will be fine in a few more days.” 

Camila held Lilith’s forearm carefully, just below her wrist, and lifted the taller girl’s hand so she could better examine the bandage after she used her other hand to pull the cuff of the sweatshirt down and move the fabric out of the way. 

“What happened?” 

Lilith was stunned for a second, maybe two, perhaps by the unexpectedness of the curly-haired girl’s action and her delicacy. “Just Crimson being an idiot, again.” 

“The blonde girl at the party?” interrogated Camila as she looked away from the young British girl’s wrist, but still not letting go. 

“Same one.” 

Camila returned her attention to the bandage around Lilith hand and was silent for a couple of seconds with a thoughtful expression on her face. “I could help you keep her at bay”, she offered. 

Now it’s Lilith turn to be silent for another couple of seconds, her head tilted slightly to the left and a small smile formed on her lips, accompanying the curiosity reflected in her eyes, but before she can say anything, Ava shouts in front of them. 

“JC!” 

The tan complexioned young man resting nonchalantly on the bleachers in front of the football field immediately looked up from his phone upon hearing his name and stood up when he saw Ava and the rest of the girls behind her. 

JC looked confused, but that didn’t stop him from starting to walk hurriedly towards his ex with a bit of concern plastered on his face. 

“Ava, what’s wrong?” questioned the black-haired boy immediately. “Why did you say this was a code red?” 

“I need you to be Beatrice’s boyfriend” Ava stated bluntly and without any warning. 

“What?” JC exclaimed, much more confused than before. “Are you feeling okay?” He added before reaching out to touch his ex’s forehead. “Did she ingest something?” he questioned, this time looking at and addressing Camila. 

Ava slapped her male best friend’s hand away from her face. “I’m fine” she clarified a bit offended. “Beatrice’s parents are coming to visit her and they must think she’s straight so they won’t send her to a convent in Sweden...” 

“Switzerland” Beatrice corrected, smiling a little at Ava’s confusion. 

“Yes, there.” 

JC looked at both of them, switching between one and the other, with the same confused expression on his face; he kept silent while he processed all the information he had just been given and after a couple of seconds he finally nodded. 

“I accept” answered the black-haired boy with a relaxed attitude and a small smile, as if that request wasn’t the strangest one he had ever been given. 

“Really?” asked Mary, surprised and confused by the speed with which the young man had accepted despite the little information he had been given. 

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I?” 

~Wow, that was easy~ commented Ben, through the speaker phone of Beatrice’s phone. 

JC looked at the phone and walked over to Beatrice to peek at the screen of the phone she was holding in her hand. “Oh, hi” he greeted amicably. 

~Hello~ replied Ben in the same tone, also imitating the other boy’s friendly smile. 

The black-haired boy who was physically present, at least on the same continent, looked at Beatrice with a fake expression of indignation. “Are you already cheating on me?” he questioned, unable to contain a smile. 

“He’s her brother, drama queen” Ava pointed out, placing her palm on her ex’s face and pushing him away from the freckled British girl. 

“I’m just getting into character” JC argued, defending himself. “Speaking of which, what’s my backstory going to be?” he questioned, almost vibrating with excitement. “I can be like a secret agent; dark and mysterious.” 

“We already have Lilith” Mary commented with a smirk on her face. “She’s enough.” 

“We just need you to be charming and like her parents” Ava said, “then it will be easier for them to believe everything you tell them.” 

JC frowned slightly, though he wasn’t really angry or close to it. “You asking me to be myself is a waste of my talent” he said disappointedly. “When are we going to do this?” 

~Saturday night~ answered Ben. ~Our parents are arriving in the morning, but they’s meeting with Senator Foster first and then they’re going to a charity event or something.~ 

“Wait, back up a bit” JC asked. “You mean Senator William Foster?” 

~Yes...~ 

JC turned this time to the British boy’s sister on the phone. “What do your parents do for a living?” 

“Politics” Beatrice answered a little confused. 

“Oh...” mumbled the black-haired boy with a hard-to-decipher expression. “I’m sorry, I don’t think I can do it” he apologized, looking at Ava and then at Beatrice. 

“What? What are you talking about?” Ava asked. “Why can’t you do it?” 

“My family has a slight problem with politics, everything always ends up... not very well and I learned something from that” explained the black-haired boy looking a little embarrassed about it. “So, I’ll probably end up yelling at the two of them in the middle of a restaurant.” 

“Great, the boy has family traumas” Mary muttered. 

“I have no trau...” JC stopped abruptly; he was silent for a second as he analyzed his own actions. “Okay, maybe I should go to therapy.” 

“Everyone should go to therapy” Shannon mentioned. “It’s always good.” 

“And if Bea avoids touching on any political issues” Ava proposed. 

~I don’t think that’s possible~ opined Ben. ~Out father never stops talking about it.” 

“You’re not helping” Lilith pointed out, sounding more frustrate than annoyed. 

“Wait” JC exclaimed excitedly, “I’ve got it.” 

“Will you do it?” Ava questioned. 

“No, but I know someone who could do it and have a conversation about politics without hitting someone” the black-haired boy replied, keeping a smile on his lips. “Besides, I bet he won’t object while Camila is here.” 

“What?” Camila questioned with the same confused expression as the rest of the people present. 

JC turned towards the football field without giving any more information. “Hey, Todd!” he shouted louder than necessary, considering the distance that separated them. “Come here!” 

Camila could feel her cheeks and ears start to heat up a little as she understood what her friend had meant before yelling at the football team player. 

“JC” Ava called, still not quite understanding why her ex had called him friend. 

“Trust me” JC asked calmly. 

If Ava planned to argue further about it, she fell silent as soon as Todd trotted up to them, still wearing his protective gear. 

“What’s going on?” questioned the football player, looking at his friend, though his attention immediately fell on the short, curly-haired girl. “Oh, hi, Cam” he greeted with a smile. 

“Your parents are politicians, right?” JC immediately asked, without giving his friend any context. 

“Yes” Todd replied, looking confused. 

“Conservatives?” 

“Well, I like to think they’re changing, but you could say yes.” 

“Great!” JC exclaimed, draping one of his arms over his friend’s shoulders. “Do you want to be his fake boyfriend this Saturday to fool his parents into thinking she’s straight?” he questioned with a grin as he pointed at Beatrice. 

Todd looked at JC with a confused expression on his face, then looked at Beatrice and turned his attention back to his friend before finally looking Camila as if he was waiting for something, some sign that this was some strange joke. 

Camila shrugged with a small crooked smile on her lips. “It’s a little complicated” she admitted, “but it’s very important.” 

The football team player remained silent and nodded slowly, after a second or two he returned his gaze to the girl with Asian features who was looking at him with a hint of pleading in her eyes. 

Todd let out a slight sigh, not exactly with a defeated attitude, at least not in a bad way. “Todd Macready”, he introduced himself with a smile, extending his hand towards Beatrice. 

The freckled British girl looked confused, but still shook the football player’s hand. “Beatrice Clarke”, she replied hesitantly. 

“Does that mean you accept?” Ava questioned. 

“Cam says it’s important, and JC wouldn’t have asked me if he didn’t think so” Todd commented. “Besides, none of this will hurt anyone” he added with a smile, though he paused for a second. “Right?” 

“Everyone will be fine.” 

“Wow, Beatrice was only single for like two minutes” Mary mentioned. 

“What matters is that this is pretty much settled now” Lilith pointed out, looking calmer. “We can work out the details later, we still have a couple of days.” 

~Well, I wouldn’t say it’s completely solved...~ 

“Why?” Beatrice interrogated. 

~I may have left out a detail or two before~ replied the British boy, evading the question. 

“What did you do, Benedict?” questioned Lilith in a deeper, more intimidating tone of voice that even made even Mary take a small step to the side to get away from her friend. 

~They asked too many questions, okay?~ Ben pointed out, justifying himself. ~I tried to be as vague as possible, but when they asked where Beatrice had met her boyfriend because they wanted to know if he was a nice guy I just thought I’d tell them that...~ 

“Benedict...” 

~I told them that I was sure he was a good guy because he’s a friend of Lilith’s boyfriend.~ 

“I’m going to kill him” Lilith muttered looking at her best friend. 

“Maybe they haven’t mentioned it to your mother yet” opined Beatrice, trying to be the optimist of the situation now. 

“They tell her everything.” 

~My parents also want to meet Lilith’s boyfriend and they’ll invite them both to dinner with Bea and her boyfriend~ Ben added quickly, as if that would make his younger sister’s best friend less angry. 

Lilith raised her unharmed hand to press the bridge of her nose with her index finger and thumb as she took a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself down. “It’s okay” she said more to herself. “I can come alone and make up any excuse, it shouldn’t be a big deal; besides, I’ll be there to back up your story with Todd.” 

“Why would you go alone?” JC questioned. “You could bring your boyfriend, the guy from the party.” 

Camila could see past her friend’s fake innocent attitude, she knew JC had spoken only to find out if Lilith had some kind of romantic relationship with the bot at the party; and honestly she didn’t know if she wanted to hit him and hug him for that since it was also something she wanted to know since she had seen Lilith casually walking around the campus with the same boy the day before. 

“What boyfriend?” Mary asked. “Which boy?” 

“No one” Lilith replied hastily. “Forget about him.” 

“Why don’t you go with her?” Todd questioned his friend before anyone tried to dig deeper into the subject of Lilith and the mystery boy. 

“Because maybe I could beat up Beatrice’s father in the middle of the restaurant” JC explained roughly, getting a look of complete confusion from his friend. “It’s complicated” he tried to add, “although I think it all started when I was six years old a Thanksgiving...” 

“Family problems” Ava interrupted. “Let me explain later.” 

“It would be best to keep JC away from Beatrice’s parents” Lilith commented. 

“I understand...” replied Todd, still looking too confused to be true, but he quickly let it go and turned his attention to the two British girls. “I could ask a friend to help us with this” he offered kindly. 

“I don’t know if involving more people in this is a good idea.” 

Beatrice looked at her best friend immediately after hearing her statement. “Maybe it is a good idea” she opined with a little more optimism in her voice. “It would make the story more compelling.” 

Lilith seemed ready to give more than one argument to refute her best friend’s position, but when she saw the hopeful expression on Beatrice’s face she immediately abandoned any opposing stance, giving up in front of the other Briton’s pleading eyes. 

“All right” Lilith replied after letting out a long sigh, accepting her defeat. “What is your plan?” she questioned looking at JC’s friend. 

Todd didn’t answer directly, he simply turned towards the court, more specifically towards one of the side benches where his teammates were talking, and shouted to one of the other players. 

“Hey, Michael!” 

The tall, blond boy Camila had spoken to briefly during Sunday's party immediately looked over his shoulder after hearing his name; he saw Todd, who motioned for him to come over and Michael said something to a couple of his teammates before turning away from the rest of the players and walking toward them. 

The blond tried a few yards and stopped next to his friend, “What’s going on?” he questioned Todd, though his gaze drifted to the British girls immediately after. “Oh...” he murmured in surprise. “Hello, Lilith” he greeted with a smile, looking at the taller girl and then at her best friend. “Beatrice.” 

“Silvius” Lilith replied in a more formal tone of voice, though she didn’t sound hostile. 

~Is that little Mickey?~ Beatrice’s brother asked on his cell phone. ~Hi, Mickey!~ 

“Ben?” asked Michael in confusion. 

“You two know each other?” asked Todd. 

“Our families run in the same social circles” Lilith replied simply. 

“Wealthy Brits” murmured Mary, not too surprised by that fact. 

“That complicates your plan” added the taller Brit girl, ignoring her friend’s comment. 

“What plan?” Silvius asked, even more confused than before. 

“We needed your help to trick Beatrice’s parents” JC replied. 

“Wait” Ava interrupted. “Why would that complicate the plan? Do your families hate each other or something?” 

“No, but anyone who knows both of us won’t believe we’re dating” Lilith pointed out. 

“What?” asked Michael in surprise. “What are you talking about?” 

“We want to fool my parents” explained Beatrice. 

“I got that part, it’s the rest that confuses me.” 

“Okay, the short version is this” JC replied before taking a deep breath to begin the explanation; “Beatrice’s brother lied to their parents telling them that his little sister finally had a boyfriend, so Todd is going to help her by pretending to be her boyfriend during the weekend that Beatrice’s parents will be visiting the city, but the problem is that Ben also lied about Lilith, saying that she also had a boyfriend who is a friend of Beatrice’s boyfriend, which is obviously not true either, and that’s why we need your help” concluded the black-haired boy with the last of air left in his lungs. 

“Excellent summary” commented Shannon. 

“Oh...” Michael muttered, taking a second to take in everything JC had said; his gaze settled on Beatrice after all the information was processed by his brain, then he looked at Lilith, who was already looking at him with a much softer, though still barely legible, expression. “Well, I guess I could...” the blond scratched the back of his neck nervously and averted his gaze from the taller Brit girl after they had a brief, silent conversation with the look that Lilith ended by raising one of her eyebrows and tilting her head slightly. “Yeah, I’ll help you.” 

“Really?” questioned Beatrice in surprise. 

Silvius looked quickly at Lilith and nodded slightly. “Yes, really.” 

“Why? Everyone could find out about this and nothing would be true.” 

“Let’s say he owes me one” Lilith stated without elaborating. 

Michael’s cheeks took on a slight shade of red at that statement, but he refrained from revealing any more information and simply nodded in response. 

~Why does he owe you one?~ Ben questioned, sounding almost angry. 

“It’s none of your business, Benedict” Lilith pointed out without giving much thought to her best friend’s brother’s interest. 

“Heym guys!” shouted another one of the football team players standing on the side of the bench next to the field. 

Todd and Michael turned to look at their friend immediately, with the brown-haired boy signaling for them to wait a little longer. 

“Go” Lilith said, not as an order, but sounding very much like one. “We can work out the details later.” 

“Are you sure?” asked Michael, looking at both British girls. 

“Yes, we still have time” Beatrice said with a much calmer attitude than before. “There is no need to delay or cancel your plans.” 

“Okay, then...” Todd tool a second to think for a bit. “Cam and JC have my number to contact me, you decide when you want to continue this conversation and I’ll let Michael know so we can both be there.” 

Beatrice smiled and extended her hand to the brown-haired boy. “Thank you.” 

Todd looked a little confused for a second, but quickly recovered and hurried to extend his hand to shake the hand of the shorter British girl. “No problem, anything for JC and Cam’s friends” he replied back, then let go of Beatrice’s hand and extended his hand to the taller British girl. 

Lilith looked at the boy’s right hand in front of her and raised her own right hand to show him the bandage around her hand and wrist. “I don’t think so” she replied earnestly. 

“Oh, sure, I understand.” 

Michael took a step forward as soon as his teammate stepped back. “It’s good to see you again, Beatrice” he declared, smiling at the girl and extending his hand. 

“Same here” replied the shorter Brit girl, shaking the blonde’s hand. “It’s been a while.” 

“I guess it doesn’t matter now” Silvius commented before releasing her hand, then looked at the taller Brit girl and looked uncomfortable for a couple of seconds. “Lilith” he said simply as he raised his hand in farewell. 

“Michael” replied the bronzed British girl in the same way, although omitting the hand movement. 

“Oh, I almost forgot” the blond mentioned, moving a little closer to Beatrice. “Bye, Ben” he said a little louder to make sure the boy on the other end of the video call could hear him. 

~Bye, little Michey. And thank you for helping my little sister~ said Ben amicably, though his tone quickly shifted to a slightly more serious one. ~Wait, why do you owe Lilith a favor?~ 

Michael didn’t know what to answer immediately, so he looked at the taller British girl for help as his cheeks turned a little red again. 

“I’ll take care of him” Lilith replied calmly. 

Silvius nodded and looked grateful as he finally stepped back to catch up with Todd, who was talking quickly to JC so he could catch up with them in the locker room a few minutes later. 

“Text me the details to follow up on this” Todd said amicably, then averted his gaze from Beatrice and focused on Camila. “See you later, Cam” he said goodbye with a slightly bigger smile. 

Camila was a little surprised, she was hoping that with everything that had happened in the last few minutes Todd would forget that she was even still there, but she managed to pull herself together quickly and answer him. “Yeah, sure, see you later” she added as she clasped her hands nervously behind her back, not wanting to give JC any more ammunition to taunt them. 

“Can’t believe that actually worked” Mary commented after the football team players said their goodbyes to each other and began to walk away. 

“I just hope this doesn’t get any more complicated” Lilith mentioned, taking Beatrice’s phone from her hand. “Is there anything else you’ve decided to leave out?” she asked her best friend’s brother. 

~No, that’s all.~ 

“Okay; don’t fuck it up anymore, please.” 

Before Ben could answer anything, Lilith ended the video call and handed Beatrice back her phone. 

“Language” Beatrice complained, it being more of an automatic response than an actual reprimand. 

Ava tool advantage of the moment of silence as Lilith looked at her best friend with a defiant look and a small smile on her lips to approach JC and give him a hug. 

“I owe you one” Ava murmured against her ex’s shoulder. 

“I’ll definitely remind you of that the next time I need it” JC stated with a smile as he quickly returned the hug. 

Beatrice cleared her throat and stepped forward, she didn’t seem uncomfortable by the display of affection between Ava and JC, she seemed nervous for another reason. 

“I’d like to thank you, for everything...” the shorter brit girl stated as she extended her hand towards the black-haired boy. “You didn’t have to do that.” 

“No problem” JC replied with the same nonchalant attitude, unwrapping his arm from Ava’s to shake Beatrice’s hand. “That’s what exes are for, I guess” he added with a playful grin. “Anything for my ex and her girlfriend.” 

Beatrice’s cheeks quickly took on a deep red color, as did Ava, as she stuttered a bit trying to form a response. 

“JC!” Ava exclaimed, more embarrassed than annoyed. 

“That’s my cue to leave” the black-haired boy mentioned, taking a couple of steps back and taking a safe distance. “Send me the details of the next meeting as soon as you have them ready!” he exclaimed as he trotted away towards the field. 

Mary smiled at the way Ava and Beatrice were looking at each other now, both flushed and nervous; she around her girlfriend and draped her arms around Shannon and Camila’s shoulders. “Yeah, we should leave them to work that out” she commented as she pushed both girls away the same way they had come before. 

Lilith picked up on her friend’s intentions and began to follow them so that Ava and Beatrice could be alone and maybe finally have a conversation about their feelings, something she surely didn’t want to hear or witness. 

After making sure they were far enough away to not hear anything, but still have a fairly clear view of everything the pair of love-struck idiots did, Mary stopped and looked back with great expectations reflected on her face. 

The sound of the ringtone on Lilith’s phone caught the attention of all four, causing them to avert their gaze from the potential lesbian romance scene and watch as the taller Brit pulled the phone out of her pocket and read the name of the caller. 

The name and picture of Benjamin appeared on the screen for a couple of seconds, the time it took Lilith to reject the call and put her phone on silent before putting it back in her sweatshirt pocket. 

Shannon looked annoyed, very annoyed, as she glared at her teammate, though Camila doubted that was just for refusing to talk to Beatrice’s older brother; however, and luckily for everyone, Mary also noticed her girlfriend’s annoyance and was quick to give them a new topic of conversation to focus on. 

“Hey, Cam, are you planning on taking those clothes back to your dorm with you?” 

Camila gave Mary a confused look, but followed friend’s gaze to the sports bag hanging at her hip. 

“Oh, right. I forgot...” the curly-haired girl mumbled to herself before taking the strap of the bag and slipping it over her head. “This is yours” she declared, looking at the British girl. “It’s the change of clothes you lent me the other day and also the jacket you gave me outside the bar” she clarified at the look of confusion from the taller girl. 

Lilith understood quickly and reached out her healthy hand to take the bag. “Thank you” she replied with a half-smile. 

“I’m the one who should be thanking you” Camila commented, giving the British girl a look that made it clear she wasn’t just referring to the clothes. 

“I told you, it’s not necessary.” 

Camila could feel Mary and Shannon’s gaze passing from her to Lilith curiously, which made her a little nervous and almost made her forget another detail. 

“I almost forgot...” she said before taking two steps forward, placing herself just inches away from Lilith so she could reach the bag that was already hanging from the taller girl’s shoulder; she opened one of the bag’s side zippers and took out the golden lighter. “I managed to save it before the rain ruined it.” 

Lilith looked at the lighter with a surprised expression on her face, she raised her unharmed hand and held the lighter, wrapping it around part of Camila’s hand. She took a second and then looked at the shorter girl, opened her mouth slightly as if she was about to say something, but quickly retracted it, then gave a quick glance at Shannon and Mary before finally deciding to say something. 

“Can we talk?” 

Mary’s frustrated sigh was audible, but she didn’t resist when her girlfriend grabbed her arm and slowly pulled her away with a small smile on her lips. 

The British girl stopped holding Camila’s gaze and followed her friends’ movements until they were both at a distance she deemed appropriate before turning her attention back to the curly-haired girl in front of her. 

When their gazes met, they were silent for another couple of seconds as Lilith seemed to hesitate again about what to say next. 

“Did something happen?” questioned Camila, now genuinely concerned. “Is everything all right?” 

“Yeah, yeah, everything’s fine” Lilith affirmed as she nodded slightly. “It’s just that...” she paused again to take a slightly more serious attitude. “I took care of them.” 

“What?” 

Camila thought she understood what Lilith was referring to, she was almost completely sure who she was talking about, but the simple fact of thinking about them again made her feel uncomfortable while the feeling of fear slowly grew inside her. 

“You don’t have to worry about them anymore, they won’t be around.” 

“How? Did you confront them again?” she placed her free hand on the British girl’s right shoulder and began to watch her more closely for any sing that she was injured in any way that she had gone through something before. “Are you okay?” 

“I’m fine, I didn’t physically confront them, not again” Lilith clarified quickly, finally taking the lighter from between the fingers of Camila’s right hand to place it on her arm. “But it will be better if you don’t know the details, you might get into trouble.” 

“Trouble?” Camila repeated as she finished analyzing the information she had just received. “You got into trouble? What kind of trouble?” 

“It doesn’t matter, everything will be fine as long as it doesn’t get out that I was involved.” 

“Involved in what?” 

“I told you, it’s better you don’t know.” 

“But...” 

“Hey” Lilith interrupted, giving a light squeeze on Camila’s arm that she was already holding, “the only ones in real trouble right now are them; they’ll be expelled and you won’t have to worry about seeing them around again.” 

“They will be expelled? Did you talk to anyone about what happened?” 

“No, I wouldn’t do it without asking your permission first.” 

“Then, how...?” 

“Cam, trust me, I’m not going to get in trouble and I won’t let you get in trouble either; the only thing that matters is that you’ll be fine and you won’t have to worry about them again.” 

The curly-haired girl was a little distracted by Lilith’s intense gaze on hers as she pronounced her last answer. 

The British girl’s brown eyes looked darker at night, almost completely black, but the white light from the street lamps surrounding them let the dark brown color be noticeable if viewed closely enough and at the right distance. 

Camila managed to recover relatively quickly, it took her only three or four seconds to be able to react; at least partially, her lips managed to form a smile, but the words did not come out of them, so she just let herself be carried away by her impulses and wrapped her arms around Lilith’s neck and pulled her down into a tight embrace. 

Lilith put up no resistance, mainly because she was caught off guard, she leaned down and placed her left hand, which still held the lighter, on Camila’s waist to steady herself. 

“Thank you” Camila murmured against the black fabric of Lilith’s sweatshirt. 

Lilith did not respond verbally, but simply gave Camila a light squeeze on her hip where the British girl’s hand already rested. 

Camila jumped a little in place from the surprise, and the slightly sensitive area where Lilith was touching her, though she also tightened her grip a little more around the taller girl’s neck; however, begore she could pull away and apologize for that, Ava yelled a couple of feet to her right. 

“Oh, great!” exclaimed her best friend excitedly. “Group hug!” 

Lilith’s hand quickly disappeared from Camila’s waist, leaving her feeling strangely lost and cold. 

“No” Lilith answered with a serious tone of voice, “absolutely not.” 

Camila finally separated a little form the taller girl, keeping her arms around her neck, and watched the funny situation unfolding between her friends. 

Lilith had removed her hand from Camila’s waist so she could keep Ava from approaching them both, placing the palm of her hand on Silva’s forehead, still holding the lighter with her fingertips, and keeping her arm outstretched so she couldn’t let her get any closer and join the hug. 

“But I love hugs” Ava complained, pouting a little and holding her arms out to either side. 

“Ask Beatrice” Lilith replied with the same serious tone in her voice. Giving Ava’s head a not-so-light nudge. 

Beatrice’s nervous little stutter, added to the blush that quickly spread across her cheeks, made the whole situation even more amusing for Camila. 

“Don’t take it personally” Shannon interrupted, walking towards them, “Lilith doesn’t like hugs very much.” 

“Even though she doesn’t seem to at the moment” Mary pointed out with a smirk. 

Mary’s gaze shifted from Lilith and Camila, with the same smirk on her lips, which made the curly-haired girl understand what her friend really meant. 

Camila quickly unwrapped her arms from Lilith’s neck and took a step back as she felt whole face heat up quickly. 

“Well, kids, it’s time for you to go back to your dorm” Shannon interjected, before anyone could comment on Lilith and Camila’s interaction. “You guys need to get some rest so you can get up early for class and we still have team stuff to discuss.” 

Lilith snorted and shifted uncomfortably in place, adjusting the strap of her bag over her left shoulder and deliberately looking away, avoiding the gaze of any of her teammates. 

Beatrice didn’t seem encouraged by the thought of the conversation they would have to have either, but she was visibly less uncomfortable than her apartment mate. 

“Yeah, sure, we’ll let them talk” Camila replied, keeping her gaze on Lilith’s facial profile for a couple more seconds. “We can work out the details of the plan tomorrow.” 

“Send us a text message when you get to your dorm” Mary ordered, with her big sister attitude. 

Lilith looked directly at Camila as soon as Mary finished speaking, she didn’t say anything, but something in her eyes let Camila know that she agreed with that. 

Ava looked a little disappointed, but tried to hide it was best she could. “You’ll have to come up with a better way to ask me for my number because it won’t be that simple” she joked with a playful smile. 

“I bet Beatrice didn’t even have to ask.” 

The intention to answer something intelligent was clearly on Ava’s mind, but when her mouth opened to speak, no words could come out of it because she had no intelligent answer at all, so she closed her mouth again with a slight frown and a reddish tinge painting her cheeks. 

“Well, we’ll leave the three of you alone” Ava said, pouting slightly, stepping forward to link her arm with her best friend’s. “Good luck” she added, looking at Lilith. “Come on, Cami.” 

Camila didn’t have time to say anything before she started to be dragged in the direction of her dorm. “Uh, right...” she mumbled as she tried not so stumble while following Ava. “Bye, girls” she said looking over her shoulder, but looking specifically at Lilith before continuing. “See you guys later.” 

“Don’t have too much fun” said Ava sarcastically, after turning around and starting to walk backwards. “Bye, Bea” she added with a big smile. 

“Bye, Ava” Beatrice replied, mimicking her smile. “Oh, bye to you too, Cam.” 

Camila laughed at the attitude of both girls and just waved her hand in the general direction of the volleyball team members, though giving an extra glace at Lilith. 

“I don’t even know why I’m surprised that they completely ignored to two of us” Mary commented to her girlfriend. 

Shannon laughed and replied something that Camila was no longer able to hear due to the distance that had formed during their retreat, but she thought maybe it was better that way, she felt she had embarrassed herself enough for one night. 

“You and I have things to talk about too” Ava pointed out with a huge smirk on her face. 

“Joder...” Camila muttered with a defeated attitude as she allowed her best friend to drag to dorm.