LOVEBOMB, Rafe Cameron

08. where it began.

❝ But please don't ruin this for me
Please don't make it harder than it already is
I'm trying to get over this ❞
-ᴹᵉᵐᵒʳⁱᵉˢ ⁻ ᶜᵒⁿᵃⁿ ᴳʳᵃʸ

08.  𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐧.

    Before her breakup with Rafe, Blair spent a lot of time at Luna St. James's place— once arrived she felt a wave of nostalgia hitting her as she noticed that not much had changed since the last time she had been there.

    Near the beach on Figure Eight, the young woman's house was beautiful, a spacious and open floor plan maximised natural light during the day and offered a stunning views of the ocean. The house had large windows and glass doors that opened onto a wrap-around balcony on a first floor and a terrace downstairs, allowing its residents to enjoy the fresh sea breeze and panoramic views.

    The interior of the house was tastefully designed with high-end finishes, such as marble flooring, custom cabinetry, and designer fixtures. Featuring top-of-the-line appliances, such as a built-in espresso machine, a wine fridge, and a large kitchen island, the kitchen possessed plenty of seating for guests.

    And the backyard was just as impressive, with a large pool and plenty of lounging space, the beautiful comfortable outdoor furniture and shade structures were making it even more impressive as it was accompanied with palm trees and other exotic plants.

    Walking inside, Blair quickly realised with satisfaction that she hadn't got the dress code of the night wrong. The atmosphere was lively and informal, with food and drinks almost everywhere, you could hear the loud thumping music from outside the house. There were people spread all around the property in clusters, sitting around outside, or either making out, dancing somewhere, drinking or just talking — in the living room, in the backyard and in the large rectangular pool. A lot of teenagers were already tipsy, even drunk. She had never spoken to most of them yet still saw them everyday at the Island Club.

    Even though they hadn't spoken in a year, Luna was the one Blair was trying to find in the crowd. It was her birthday after all, and she was the one who allegedly asked Rafe to invite her so she thought it might be good to say hi. The young woman had a weight in her stomach, she wondered how she was supposed to act towards her old friend. Was she supposed to act distant at first or was she supposed to act as if nothing had happened, as if they hadn't stopped being friends for more than a year.

    Unfortunately she didn't have much time to think about it, a short moment after she stepped a foot on the grass of the backyard and passed a group of people who were smoking and talking, a feminine voice quickly made her squeezed the shoulder strap of her bag and turn her head to her left.

     "Oh my god." A black haired girl smiled and opened her arms as she walked towards her. "B."

     "Luna." The Routledge girl said with obvious relief in her voice. "Happy birthday."

    Luna jumped into her arms so hard and fast, she was forced to take several more steps back so they wouldn't fall. Her arms are locked around her neck for a moment. Her feet eventually met the floor before they pulled away from each other. She smelled like tanning oil—fake coconuts and bananas.

    Blair was surprised to see how excited the girl was to see her, but it made her happy. Maybe she was wrong, maybe people actually missed her. Wearing a short white flowing dress with red leather boots, she had a bohemian look. She was beautiful.