VIOLET'S POV

Back early in the spring of last year,Nick and Kylie were just few weeks into their relationship and everything was just beautiful. It felt really good seeing my bestfriend commit to one girl again,after his breakup with Linda and our beloved Nora,which wasnt a serious relationship though but it even felt better listening to him make a big fuss about Kylie,although,the better part of the really good feeling was that that put a pause to his strings of nights stands and i didnt have to wake up some stinky girl in the morning while stifling an eew,feign nice to make  some coffee before kindly sending her butt out. Though,i  rocked smugging the 'you crashed in my apartment last night,slut' at some of the girls in college.

Though we attended the same college with Kylie,we have never really met until they started dating. She belonged to one of the most popular girl clique on campus that was totally out of my league and our path never crossed with three girls trotting at her tail; Megan, Alexis and Tori. They were the expensive skimpy clothed gals u ll see  at the parking lot purring with the hottest guys wrapped around them. That questioned their compactibility with Nick to me but 'ladies man' he is justified that. It took a while before they really got serious and to everyone's surprise,they became real lovey doveys and before long,turned out mr. alpha and hottest  kylie got trending.

Nick invited Kylie one saturday to our apartment,sounds old fashioned,i had objected but he shrugged it off and i couldnt be more excited to meet her,afterrall my silly bestfriend was already obsessed with this girl. He insisted we bake chocolate cake and order pizza afterwards for the evening. As we got busy into the recipe,i couldnt help but notice he was doing everything possible not to the upset the cake. But then old habit never leaves Nick,as he absent mindedly poked his finger into the emptied dough bowl and tucked it back to his mouth,exposing his dimples as he sucked thoughtfully.

Awww....How adorable,i couldnt help but muse. He sat there at the kitchen table,the empty bowl standing between his rested elbows. He was obviously distracted he didnt see that coming..

"oouch....heyy!"...he whined,nursing his left arm i just punched. "you always pick on this arm" he scowled.

I shrugged and rolled my eyes,picking the bowl away from him and tossing it into the basin.

"So is choc also Kylie's fav or did u make that up?" i asked,standing across by the counter,next to our old oven that began preheating.

"who doesnt love choc cake Hazel?" he said rhetorically,typing away in his iphone.

"so you just made that up then?" i asked again,greasing the pan.

"doesnt matter,girls love chocolate" he said dismissively and shrugged.

I chuckled instead,placing the pan in the oven. Be it her fav or not,Nick is best at convincing people to like what he likes,a charm his eyes are blessed with. Just my treat,I had asked him earlier what Kylie would love to eat. Wouldnt it be nice having your favourite baked by your boyfriend's bestfriend the first time you meet?,infact its the nicest thing that can ever happen to you,i explained,but he wont hear anything for chocolate,so he made that up.

Before long,the pleasant smell of baked chocolate filled the air as the oven timer ticked off. I carefully brought out the pan and wedged it on the counter,slipping the gloves off my hands, as Nick inched closer to the pan. I shot him a glare that says "its not even out of the pan"

"Hot cake" He whined back the look.

"now go clean up whatever mess is left of the house,she should be here any moment from now" i said,pointing at the clock.

"Haaazeeel!.."he whined loudly.

"Goo,go,go,goooo" i commanded,waving him off with a napkin.
             ****************
She smiled immediately i opened the door. She was wearing a pretty blue dress that barely dropped on her knees,along with fine leather kinky boots,her blonde hair in a tight bun. Her face was lightly contoured, smoky eyes and mascara with faintly shaded brows, the lipstick painted on her lips was picked to match the dress. Its just an indoor dinner,i mentally mused.

I extended a hand and introduced myself as Nick's bestfriend and rummie.

"I'm Kylie,nice to meet you" she replied just as sweetly.

Whoah,alot lot different from the parking lot chic,i thought to myself.I stepped backward to let her inside just as Nick appeared now changed into a tight biege t-shirt  revealing traces of the six pack abs that has gotten the two syllable 'damn' a million times.

Oh you poor thing,i thought to myself,it will soon get to the 'other girls' knowledge apart from me that you work out very hard to impress,and he got her where he wanted,smugging in victory as she threw herself at him,the usual purring returning to her voice.

"Hey baby" she let her voice depict the impression.

"how are you today?,i missed you" he smiled,wrapping his arms around her waist,pecking her on the lips.

"i missed you more" she purred again,starting to trace her finger on his hard earned biceps.

He unwrapped his arms from her waist but she wouldnt let go,as she wrapped hers around his neck,caressing his just lightly greased and brushed hair. She whispered something to his ears and he chuckled away,starting to feel uncomfortable,as i stood there amused ,thrilled by their little drama.

"ohh,erm.....have you met Hazel?" he gently broke free,holding her hands.

"ohh,am soo sorry,i didnt know you were still here" she stuttered,looking embarrassed. I raised my brow to say "Kylie,come on,no pretense", but i shrugged with a smile.

Nick angled a glance at me and we shared a whoah and raised our brows mentally.

"and yes,wev met" she turned to him,smiling again.

"okay,so we just finish baking some chocolate cake...." i mended the awkward moment,leading the way to our small table that can barely occupy 4 people, grateful this isnt a double date.

The normal chit chat flowed with Nick doing most of the talking, not getting distracted from the cake all thesame. I decided to leave them for the rest of the evening,because,well,clearly,i should,with the moves Kylie's been making,i called her a slut in my head. Once brushed my leg under the table she thought it was Nick's. Then she moved her chair much more close to his,caressing his nape every minute. She seemed to be a big fan of PDA .I called jade and asked if she was home,then headed to her place, wishing them a wonderful evening afterwards and Kylie was grateful i did.
           ***************
i hummed my way upstairs to the apartment,turning the door open as i kicked off my shoes. I grabbed the only standing ben and jerry's from the fridge and slouched back to the couch,wandering through channels and resigned to watch nothing with a sigh, but just when i was submitting to enjoy the silence,Nick came back.

"Hey,how did it go?" i asked, referring to his date with Kylie.

"wonderful,i just dropped her home" he replied.

"good" i nodded with a smile.

"errm..hey,i dont know how to say this,but errm..." he started skeptically,scratching his nape as he towered above me.

"what?" i stopped midway eating icecream.

"we errm..."

"what?"

"we did it on the couch" he raised his hands as  quickly as i left the couch shouting "eeeewww" as i started kicking his foot.

"got yah!" he shouted back with a chuckle,slumping heavily on the couch. It works this way to have the couch to himself.

"Geez,jerkass!" i started for him as i slumped on him,causing him to wince in pain. He reeled me off the couch with tickles as i flounced away,giggling uncontrollably.

"oh,come on,thats not fair" i said,catching my breath as i sat on the floor across him,hugging my knees to my chin.

"oh really,cuz everything is fair with hazel and blue" he recited,imitating my voice and i rolled my eyes.

"so what do you think of Kylie?" he cracked a conversation,not failing to throw the 'be honest' glance.

" she is nice" i simplified the comment and added when he seemed to want to hear more.

"i think i like her....she is nice" i said again, dancing between words.i wasnt ready to shatter the beautiful illusion he has created because i know what happens when a girl becomes too clingy with Nick.

"Okay" he nodded, staring at me,as if he expected more than that.

I grinned goofily,scooping a mouthful of icecream to my mouth.

"i know,right?" he whined worriedly, grasping my thoughts from a mere grin.

"its nothing, seriously" i said,smiling at him.

"Ofcourse it is" he whined again,crawling off the couch to sit beside me.

"come on blue,you guys are gonna get over it,its just one of the stages of a blooming relationship" i counseled,licking off sticky chocolate from my upper lip.

"i'm really love with her and i dont want to lose her, i want something serious with Kylie" he confessed, the feelings clear on his face.

"I understand how you feel, she is gonna get over the clinging stage soon, just calm down and take it slow with her, okay?"

He smiled for the first time and nodded.

"i trust you re gonna make the best outta it,just be yourself"  i encouraged, rubbing his arms with a soothing smile.

"you re the best" he smiled all the way.

"best buddies?" i whispered askingly.

"till the end" he draped his hands over my shoulders, stealing a scoop from ben and jerry's.
          ****************
"There she is" he said,gesturing towards my direction and i knew he has waited too long already. The alpha's table was crowdy today like most days, and i had whine enough to no avail but he wouldnt let me eat on my own these days. I had just left brian's coffee corner to wait at the lecious restaurant.Combined with school and the culinary classes i attend, the days became too hectic i suspend my meals attimes and blue couldnt help but exaggerate that i have lose 'so much weight' already and that has placed me under his dreadful 'meal monitoring'. I stifled a scoff as i walked to closer to the table, i am seriously not a fan of alpha's clique, but im left with no option than to complete the meal monitoring for the next dreadful days to come. I mentally rolled my eyes, the persisting urge to object hitting me hard an umpteenth time.

"Am so sorry blue, i had presentation today" i apologised for my lateness.

"i was worried you were breaking the rules already" he said, gesturing me to sit beside him.

I chortled and rolled my eyes,lowering my butt.

"i got you banana milkshakes" he said, handing me my favorite.

"And apple fritters!" i cried with glee.

"yes,you may have it after burger and fries" he replied, gladly breaking my heart..

I pouted and scowled a look that aint gonna work on him during these meal sessions and started the task of munching and swallowing. I wasnt half way through the meal but the discomfort i get from this table made me feel too full to carry on. I attempted a puppy face at Nick and got a blank respond. The fact is nobody was even paying attention to me at the moment, but then i never liked the idea of eating at this table on a usual day like this.

"Eat up, or you wont get any of the fritters" he scolded, muffling my whines as he held up the burger to my mouth.

A satisfied look settled on face as he held up the styrofoam cup to my mouth to wash down the last bite of burger when with a swift and angry move of a hand,the soda spilled between Nick and I.

"Hey baby" she fondly purred, pushing herself in between us as i froze in my seat,mouth agape, eyes wide as saucers.

"Kylie, what was that?" Nick queried, confused, like any other person at the table.

"ohh,did i just spill soda on u?,baby am soo sorry okay?" She started caressing his chest smearing the liquid over his shirt. Her first apology line the saturday we invited her came back to my ears and unveiled her skilled art of pretense.

"What are you doing kylie, are you blind?" he swated off her hands,edge in his voice.

"Oh my God" she gasped at me, as if noticing me for the first time. "So much damage i have done,im so sorry, its my bad" she piffled, then quickly did a dabbing work  with a paper napkin on my more damaged shirt, and returned rubbing his chest, as if i didnt exist again.

"How are you?" she smugged and wiggled her butt on his lap as quickly as he rose up, pushing her off him.

"Kylie what the hell are you doing?,are you crazy?" he rebuked, his voice on the brink of anger as he slamped his fist on the table and startled the silence.

"I....I...I didnt mean to upset you,that wasnt deliberate, im so sorry for my clumsiness" she stuttered, somewhat baffled by his growing rage.

His eyes crinkled,trying to control his anger,as he buttoned off his shirt and threw it on the table in a way one would think he is about to pick a fight.

He inched towards me,the eyes following him, ignoring her for a moment as i noticed for the first time that i was standing away from the table. Throwing the 'are you alright?' look,he slightly raised his brow as i nodded in response. "Am fine, am fine, totally" i assured him, feigning a quick smile, as he looked unconvinced.

She pretended to wipe off a tear as she came towards us again, glassy eyed, as she held up her hands in apology, she looked like the sorriest person on earth, exhaling, and more of dismissively, he muttered "its okay".

That was a very quick drama, bravo Kylie!. "i guess its time to leave, i have a class in 10" i picked up my bag and hurried down the hall way without waiting for a response.

I tried failingly to assemble my thoughts, confused as to what just happenned,  really was there need for a show? Or was it just an accident,did she or didnt she do it to annoy me,am i again an obstacle in blue's affairs?,he meant it when he said he wants something serious with her and im not going to be the problem, perhaps she has the right to react, but there are rational ways, i reasonned. I heaved a restless sigh, and felt like an ore of hindrance.

"isnt it bleeding much like the spilled soda?, it hurts,doesnt it?" Alexis smugged in a stage whisper, Meg and Tori reeling in a clique giggle as they walked pass me. That cleared my doubt as my eyes followed them, wondering why this is happening all of a sudden.

I heaved another sigh and shook my head, careful not to utter a response if i had any when Nick caught up with me.

"Hey" he stopped me as i tried my best to conceal my feelings before meeting his gaze.

"What?" i kept my voice normal.

"i just thought u might want this" he handed me his hoodie,draping it over my shoulders.

"ohh,thanks"

"see you later" he waved me off, ruffling my hair.

       ********************

Walking away from the crowd, i didnt feel like going home after my last class so as i inched towards the old library building alone,climbing to the deserted rooftop, the breezy evening of winter adding to my  solo moment. I switched off my cell phone, leaning on the old rusted railing at my favourite corner,taking in the air and empty view of the easing atmosphere.

I have done this almost everyday for the past several months, savoring a moment ro myself. Needless to say, ever since Kylie and Nick grew attached, i had to start avoiding Nick. I noticed for the first time that i cant recall when last we hung out  together as best friends. Kylie had troubled me enough to set a boundary between myself and Nick without him even noticing. I spent more time with Jade and that had made her happier for some reason and because she didnt like either Nick or Kylie.

I tugged at my favourite blue muffler, a gift from Nick, inhaling the cold breeze as i rested my elbows on the frozen railing. It was getting dark, and i wasnt making any attempt to leave, unbelievably, i had grown accustomed to enjoying quite environment without even wanting to. The gentle breeze and bustles of the city from afar lured the enveloping dawn, as i sank deeper into appreciating the silence, yet a feelng of loneliness silently stole its way into me for the first time in months. I felt empty, like a slice of me has been gone for quite a long time and im just noticing it. I held the cold metal railing in a tight grip, eyes tightly shut, breathing in through my mouth, as a  sudden eerie feeling surrounded me. The world felt mute for a moment.

"Hazel?" I caught my favourite voice in the whole world.

"Nick?" i called askingly, astound and frozen.

"Hazel,What are you doing here?" he inched towards to me, crushing empty beer cans and dirt.

"What are you doing here?" i repeated in a stage whisper. His bluest eyes stared at me, too many questions. I felt mine melting into the Hazel-blue mode.

"what happenned, why are you here,alone?" he emphasized on the last word, as if it was the strangest thing he has ever seen. We were just inches apart, his gloved palms cupping my cheeks, as i met the gaze of his eyes.

"Blue?" i whispered askingly again.

"i missed you so much, why did you do this to us?"

I blinked away the liquid forming in my hazel brown, unsure of what to say. As his eyes bore deeper into mine, my feelings became clear to him.

"i miss you too blue"

"I didnt mean to hurt you, Hazel I'm so sorry"  i searched his eyes for something and found it, a real smile stretching on my lips for the first time in months. It felt like a scene from a movie,i felt like i was seeing blue for the first after the 20th scene. After being away from me and now he is back to realise leaving me has hurt me.I was living with Kylie's boyfriend afterall and lost my bestfriend along the way. Cruel. Our gazes glued again, his eyes firm and certain, as if he just took a decision that wasnt going to be amended.

"i dont wanna live with the guilt blue, you re doing this for the third time" my voice shook a little, my worries obvious. I rested my head on his chest as he remained silent, stroking my hair as  a tingle of defeat hit me again, i could feel his heart beat, calm and collected. His chest rose and fell as his arms engulfed me in a tight embrace,kissing the very top of my head.

"You shouldnt have break up with Kylie".

"Priorities, Hazel"

"I always want you to be happy"

"But not even the world can cost me my best friend".

"she has the best pout.....and the best butt"

He chuckled, leaning back to wipe a tear from my face.

"best buddies?"

"till the end"
       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author's note
*Sniff...thats just one of the most beautiful thing ever,isnt it?...

Dedication:
To all readers and voters of mare's nest, i'm grateful for your powerful inspiration.Compliments of the season buddies, i wish you the very best.

Love,
Lil Harphs.