The Other Girl

Chapter XVIII

I tapped my finger irritably on the steering wheel, waiting for the light to turn green. It'd been two weeks since Karen had started the silent treatment, and I was getting worried. DId she really intend to break off our friendship? Over Kimberly?

The light flashed the 'go' signal, and I turned into the driveway to Tim's condo. He'd rented the place over winter break, setting it up over the last few months. He was the one that had invited everyone over, and I was nervous about what he wanted to say.

Surely it was nothing bad? If it was, wouldn't he have asked to meet somewhere else? A call would do, or maybe an impromptu meeting in an isolated corner of the campus.

Then there was the matter of whether Karen would show—the boys had no relation to the scandal, so she wouldn't break off friendship with them too, right? She couldn't possibly be so mad as to never attend any group meetings, right?

Taking a deep breath, I slid on my purse and stepped out of my car. There were a few cars parked around the lot—Quinn and Hunter had already arrived. I reached for the doorbell, spotting it after a moment's search.

"Stella!" Tim said, opening the door before I could press the buzzer. "Come in, please."

"Where is everyone?" I asked, stepping into the homely duplex.

"In the kitchen," Tim replied, leading the way. "They're video-chatting Jason."

"Jason?" I echoed, following him. A laptop sat in the middle of the table, a freckled face beaming out from the screen.

"Who're you planning to market to?" Hunter was asking, eyes focused on the face behind the screen.

"We're thinking of targeting collegiates and recent graduates," the face—Jason—explained.

"What is this?" I hissed to Quinn as Tim left to answer the doorbell. Wa Tim... planning to form a startup?

"Jase, meet Stella," Quinn said, thrusting me into the lens' field of view.

"Hi, um, Jason," I greeted awkwardly.

"I'd ask for your number if I didn't already have a girlfriend," Jason joked, flashing me a crooked smile. "But please—call me Jase."

"What's happening?" Stacey asked, walking in with Karen and Calum in tow.

"Hi all," Tim said, walking over to stand beside the laptop. "I called you all over to tell you that Jason and I are creating a startup together. That's why I'll be dropping out of Uni."

---

"—and Tim completely flipped out! Never saw him so scared," Calum recalled, laughing. We all laughed at the image of young, naive Tim learning about menstrual cycles.

"I just want to remind everyone that I was a sheltered child," Tim said, face flushed. "My mother loved me very much."

"I'll bet," Karen grinned. "Didn't your mom call you every day for the first semester of freshman year—couldn't handle her baby being so far from home?"

"I'll have you know that my mother is a very lovely woman," Tim defended, feigning hurt.

"She's a model, Tim," Chad said, stating the obvious. "Remember how the whole seventh grade class was smitten with her during open house?"

"If I remember correctly, you were the one drooling the most," Stacey shot back, causing us all to laugh.

Tim was leaving out group—unofficially, of course, but nonetheless partially. He was entering the real world—the world our parents lived in. The world built on capitalism and capital, supply and demand. The world where you have to build yourself up. Keep yourself afloat. Yes we had submarines and lifejackets handed down from our parents, but that doesn't make the plunge failproof. There was a chance of failure—a chance of loss. A chance you might not live up to the expectations of your parents.