Not Just One Night

Chapter 17

Camila's POV

I arrived home around five, and snuck into the apartment as quiet as I could muster, only to find Ally pacing by the front door. She had her cellphone in one hand, her arms folded across her chest, and she was obviously angry. But it wasn't the first time seeing her so anxious.

Remembering how to handle her with caution, I offer a small smile but she quickly dismisses it. She's already far too livid to even appreciate that I don't want to fight with her.

"Look, Al-" I attempt an apology for leaving to see Lauren, but she cuts me off.

"Seriously Mila?" she snaps before I'm completely in. To avoid confrontation, giving her time to cool off, I lay my keys down on the table by the door, and attempt to walk around her.

I know how she can be once she's gotten herself worked up. I'll give her until later before I try to approach her.  But she steps in front of me. I go to move again, but she jumps back to her left. With no other choice I still my body, putting my hands on my hips, waiting for her to silence her childish games.  Instead, she practically glares through me.

I avert this unwanted attention by checking out my surroundings. I notice that Troy's still asleep on the couch, snoring and I shift my weight to glance down the hallway and see that my bedroom door is still shut. As if I had asked, Ally blurts out, "She's still here!" I hadn't expected Shay not to be. It's early, and when I left her she was sound asleep.

I ignore my roommate, and try to step around her again but she blocks my path. "Ally, what the hell is your problem?" I say, still rather calm, due to the high that Lauren has me on after our night together. But I can see fire in my roommate's eyes and I know I'm not far from being knocked down.

"You're my problem," she says blatantly, grounding her tone through gritted teeth. She has been nothing less than vocal on her disproval of Lauren and I, and although she didn't say much before I left earlier, I could tell that she was upset. I've known Ally too long not to see disappointment in the way that she knits her eyebrows together and her eyes dance around mine.

But I would have never imagined that she would be this agitated over me going across town to see Lauren. It has to be more.

"What did I do to you?" I ask, pulling my shoes off. If I don't distract myself, Ally will get under my skin. She always does when she's like this.

I can feel her watching me as she sneers, shaking her head.

"This isn't about me Mila, and you know that. My problem is that you left that poor girl in there alone, while you went off and fucked Lauren," her voice rises and out of the corner of my eye, I see Troy stir on the sofa. To avoid waking him, and bringing a third person into our already heated, but pointless conversation, I lower my voice. "First thing," after prying them off, I kick my shoes underneath the table by the door. "I don't even know her," I point back toward my bedroom, annoyed that I was suddenly responsible for the stranger in my bed. "So I don't have to stick around out of courtesy just because she's Troy's friend." She huffs a heavy breath, and gnaws incessantly at her bottom lip. "And second," I continue. "I did not fuck Lauren."

She smirks, sarcastically. "You really expect me to believe that Mila?" I did. She was my best friend and what reason did I have to lie to her? "I don't buy that for a second," she follows and her distrust is enough to push me that little bit closer to losing it.

"I don't care if you do or not Ally." And like a light switch, I see her go from angry, to livid. I know her buttons to push and had I not felt threatened by where she was headed with the conversation, I wouldn't have neared them. But finding myself, already here, the damage nearly done, I drive it home. "The last time I checked you have no say over what I do."