Pieces of Us (SatoGou)

Chapter 18

I meet Serena at Castelia Park. It's a chilly day, so I wear an oversized sweater. The sleeves cover my hands, but it keeps me warm, so I don't care. Serena's wearing a turtleneck sweater, pleated miniskirt and sheer tights with black boots. Her hair is mid-length now, brushing over her shoulders. I spot her the second I enter through the park gates.

She waves, and I wave back, smiling. She looks cheery, and it puts me at ease as she skips over to me, throwing her arms around me for a hug. She smells the same as I remember- a mixture of strawberry and coconut. When she pulls away she's beaming at me.

"It's so good to see you," I say down to her. I think I'm even taller than her than I was last time I saw her, even with her heeled boots.

"You too, Ash." It doesn't seem like she feels awkward at all.

We spend an hour catching up. I tell her about the wedding, and mention the road trip briefly but don't linger on the subject. She doesn't bring up Goh, or ask about the articles, so I let myself hope she just hasn't seen them. She tells me about her idol performances with Lisia, and how she's currently modelling for a designer company, and that they're asking her to do a runway show next year.

When we finish the brunch we bought from a food van, Serena decides to look for a cute coffee shop, saying she needs caffeine to fix her jet lag. I follow her into a half bookstore, half coffee shop that looks cosy, and she picks the corner table, away from everybody else. I tell her to order me whatever she's having, because I have no idea what to order from a place like this, and she comes back with two coffees that smell a little sweet, with a swirl of cream on the top and sprinkles of some kind of nut, I think. There's also a little cup of cream for Pikachu, which she sets down on the floor for him.

"Thank you," I say, taking the coffee from her. She sits opposite me and crosses her legs, smiling. I'm surprised at how easy it's been to talk to her, actually. I was worried that after the phone call there might be a little animosity, but there's been none at all. In fact, she doesn't seem bothered about my love life at all.

"So, there is something I didn't mention," she says, smiling sheepishly. My heart sinks. Here we go. I wait for her to carry on, holding the coffee cup in both hands to warm them up. "Your roommate told me you've seemed really down since you got back."

I wonder how the fuck they've even been communicating. Did he give her his number when she came to visit me, saying he'd let her know when I was back, for an excuse to text her? I wouldn't put it past him. "Is that why you came?"

She shakes her head, her hair swirling around her. "No. I just wanted to see you. But it did push me to come sooner." She's frowning now, and I don't like it. I don't want to talk about anything serious. I want her to carry on distracting me. It's the most normal I've felt in days, and the least lonely.

"He's an ass," I mumble under my breath, but I don't mean it. Nate's just looking out for me... in his own way.

"So what's been going on?" she asks, taking a sip of the coffee.

"Nothing, really," I lie. "Just jet lag."

She narrows her eyes and pouts slightly. "Bullshit. Your energy levels are so much tamer than usual. Come on, you can tell me."

Stubbornly, I turn and face out of the window, watching the clouds slowly gathering in the sky, dark and threatening. She waits all of thirty seconds before probing me again.

"Is this about whoever you have feelings for?" She asks quietly. Honestly, I feel close to my limit now. I feel like I'm balancing on the edge of a cliff, and have been for over a week. At this point, I wish I'd just fall.

"Yeah," I say, surprising even myself. I have to get this off my chest, though.

"If you don't want to talk about it then that's okay. I just hate to see you like this. It's not you at all." She's frowning even deeper now. I hate the way she's speaking, like I'm a different person. I'm not, I just... I can't get my head straight. Literally.