Sunflowers, Bees and Honey

V

James Anderson was frustrated.

Why, you ask?

Well, quite frankly, even he hasn't figured that one out yet. Perhaps it was because of a certain face of round, blushing cheeks and thin, pink lips. Or maybe it was the pair of mischievous, grey blue eyes that have a hand in this. Did he mention a mob of wavy, brown hair-

He needed to get laid. Period.

Just the thoughts of their almost-kiss was enough to set him on edge, and he couldn't afford being on edge, not with finals almost upon him.

Which lead James to where he currently was, on his back with his classmate's calloused hands and full lips all over his chest. He didn't even know her name, and he can bet on his hard-on that she didn't know his either.

All the better, he couldn't risk developing another silly crush (not that he purposely formed the first, mind you).

Multiple rides later, he was still trying to convince himself that a certain petite, freckled girl had nothing to do with why he came harder than usual. James looked up at his watch and  proceeded to get up to put on his clothes and get to Creamy Clouds, where his head was always feeling way high above the out of reality aura of the diner. The past hour was not enough to get Clementine out of his mind, but it at least took the need off his lust, preventing him from doing something stupid.

The journey from the dorms of UoSF to the diner was a rather short one, and James tried to hide the skip in his steps when he entered through the mint doors, but was incapable of doing anything to steady his heart.

Clem was not there yet, (some nights he arrived first, others she preceded him) so he headed over to his stool and settled down with his current read to pass the time after throwing Dorothy a greeting. She returned it with a knowing smile that he purposely decided to pretend not seeing.

Caught fully in his book, he perked up a bit later to find that an hour has just passed.
Clementine was not there yet.

Then another.

James chose to wait one more when even Dorothy gave him a nervous glint.

She never came.

Dorothy walked over and tried to comfort him with her naturally peaceful energy, "It's probably just the exams wearing her down."

He took her words as a cue to leave.

~

The next night, Clementine did not show up again.

Or the one after.

And before he knew it, James was sick with worry and even Dorothy gave up on trying to convince them both that all is fine.

So James took Clem's address from her and showed up on her doorstep the very next afternoon. While he waited, he took in the two story suburban styled villa with its denim blue paint and neatly kept garden with a dazed, nervous stare, feet tapping against the concrete. He thought he heard the sound of a piano playing from somewhere above, but was distracted when the door opened to reveal a short, chubby woman seemingly in her 30s. His breath hitched when he spotted her eyes: bloodshot from days of crying, and nose a red target against pale cheeks. James did not want to give her appearance more than half a thought, did not want his paranoia to start jumping to conclusions.

"Can I help you?" She inquired, not unkindly.

Breath, he tried telling himself, just breath...

"Hello, ma'am. I'm Clementine's friend. I was wondering if she was around?"

In through your nose, out through your mouth...

All the lady had to do was let her eyes water again and allow a sob to escape through her lips, and suddenly every tad-bit of Jame's rational composure crumbled.

"She - she," the woman kept stuttering through sniffs, "she came back three nights ago and - and her parents got into a fight with her and - and -"
She was no longer making any sense through her sobs; nevertheless, James managed to hold himself together till she finished her story.

"They told her that she's been - been slacking and - and she got to try harder," a wheezing inspiration, "so she pushed herself till - till she coll - collapsed this morning."

The world went white.