those years between us

[3] DON'T WANNA LET GO

DEAN MET US outside the apartment complex, hands in pockets, leaning against a fence. He hadn't changed much either, straightening as he noted us walking towards him.

Dean's features were much harsher than Orion's. His hair was cut short in a buzzcut, his eyes were cold and a darker shade of brown, and his chin was quite prominent. His skin was darker and more tanned, which also made sense: Dean was a keen basketball player. Back in Arrington, he'd always been on the basketball court.

His eyes glossed over me and Camille. "Look who we have here."

"Hello Dean," I said politely. Camille waved.

"Long time no see," she greeted. "How's life, Dean?"

"Pretty decent," he admitted. "I'm liking it here. Last year before graduation."

"This guy wants to get back to Hong Kong as soon as humanly possible," Orion muttered, shaking his head.

"Wait," Camille narrowed her eyes. "Why are you two here so early anyways? You already have everything settled, why are you here a whole week early?"

"I had to move into a new place," Dean explained. "Orion decided to accompany me. We got here about two days ago."

"Oh," Camille frowned. "Why did you need to move?"

"My old apartment was shit but I couldn't find a better one." Dean scratched his neck. "Orion can attest to how shitty that place was."

"I swear, everything in that place was broken," Orion laughed. "The fridge, the bathroom, the sinks, everything was fucking broken down half the time. It's a miracle you lasted two years there, Dean."

"Well, I spent half of my time with you, so fair enough. The diner around the street, right?"

Camille nodded. "It looked pretty good."

"It is," Dean agreed. "Come on, let's get there before it starts getting packed."

It was late August, so the sun didn't set in the UK until around nine o'clock. It still looked bright as day at six o'clock as we walked down the street, chatting about our majors, the two boys rating the various shops we passed by. Redchester was a fairly large city. It was no Oxford or Cambridge and its small, cosy university village. Instead the university was located in various buildings littered around the city centre. In dead centre was Dearwood Square, a fairly decent-sized mall. Still, compared to the malls I was used to in Hong Kong, it was rather pathetic in comparison.

Only the malls in London really compared to the ones in Hong Kong, I'd realised in my past four years in the UK.

Despite Dean's worries, the diner was still mostly empty when we got ourselves a seat. Camille and I sat on one side, the two boys on the other. Orion sat right opposite me, and I edged uncomfortable backwards in my seat.

"How was Arrington last when you were there?" Orion asked, crossing his arms. He'd changed out of his clothes and now wore a black shirt with beige shorts. Dean was dressed similarly in a blue shirt, though he had cargo pants instead.

"Intact," I replied with a little snort.

"Intact?" Orion looked amused. "That's your only comment?"

"There's not much else to say about it," Camille muttered, wrinkling her nose. "I think it's pretty much the same as how you left it."

"What, did no teachers leave? What about the new kids?"

"All the new girls were really sweet. The boys..." Camille trailed off, shooting a glare at me. "It's better if you ask Salome about the girls."

I gave Camille an incredulous glance. "Why me?"