Searchin' | Shuri

Part Twenty One

| Hazel |

A week had passed and I still hadn't talked to Riri, it was probably the longest we've gone without speaking and I found myself missing her more as each day passed.

A part of me wanted to put my pride to the side and reconcile, but the other part of me couldn't get over her lying.

Everything else had basically gone back to normal, Shuri was off at meetings everyday and I was preparing for another phase in my life.

I laid on the couch bored out of my mind while Shuri was getting ready to leave.

"So what's in your plans for today?" She asked, coming out of the room and sitting beside me on the couch.

"Mallory invited me to lunch, but after that I don't have anything planned." I smiled, hoping she would have something for us to do.

She's been so busy we really haven't been spending much time together.

"Nope" She answered as if she could hear what I was thinking, making me roll my eyes. "When are you returning to school?"

"Actually... I've decided I'm gonna take a semester off." I shrugged. "And go with you."

"You're not serious." She smiled, failing to hide her excitement. "You're taking a semester off for me?"

"Mmm, no. Not for you. For me. I think it would be a good experience and I probably need a break from reality anyway."

After having a conversation with my mom she made me realize how much I wasn't living life, which resulted in my decision, and school will always be there.

The smile on her face widened as she pulled me into a hug. "That's great. I'm glad that you made that decision. For you."

"Me too. Okay, I have to go meet Mallory. You have fun at your meeting and I'll see you later." I smiled, giving her a kiss before heading out of the door.

Mallory chose some sushi restaurant that was like 20 minutes away, which was unfortunate for me because I hated driving.

I pulled up to the small restaurant, spotting her car immediately. I parked beside her and hopped out of the car, making my way inside.

"Hazellll" I heard Mallory's voice sing the moment I stepped inside.

She was sitting at a booth in the back corner.

"Hi" I smiled as she stood up, giving me a hug. "How are you?"

"I'm good! I've missed you." She pouted as we took our seats.

"I've missed you too."

Which was true being that I also haven't talked to her since everything went down.

My smile fell when I looked up from my menu.

"Was this a setup?" I sighed, seeing Riri make her way over to the table.

"You call it setup. I call it convenient." Mallory shrugged, making me roll my eyes.

"Hi." Riri greeted as she approached us.

"Yeah, I think I'm gonna go now." I said, scooting out of the booth.

"No. Sit down." Mallory demanded, glaring at me. "I did this for a reason. You two need to have a conversation."

"We already have."

"With a mediator. Which will be me. Plus I kinda feel like this is kinda my fault and I feel awkward being in the middle."

"It's definitely kinda your fault." Riri and I responded at the same time.

"And who said you were in the middle?" I scoffed.