I searched the room for a staff member—any staff member—but I was unable to locate anyone.
“Crisis averted. Patient was rerouted to Baltimore due to the extent of her injuries.” Charlie’s calm voice relaxed that rocky feeling in my stomach, and I allowed the sensation of relief to wash over me.
Seeing the interactions with other people, I wondered if I had missed out on something because I, essentially, never learned how to make friends. I could potentially see myself being friends with someone like Charlie…maybe.
“You feel like going to breakfast after one of our shifts, Alexis?” Her friendly tone made me want to try out the friendship thing.
“Sure. I’d like that.” I felt my lips stretch across my face as I gave into a smile. Friendship wasn’t something I had experienced before, but maybe it was time for me to step into the world I had been missing out on.
4
Cameron
Somehow, during Charlie’s relationship crisis with Louis, she still managed to make a new friend. That’s how Charlie was. She was friendly and outgoing. When we were little, Mom said she would approach random people in the store or the mall and introduce herself to complete strangers. I didn’t remember that, so it must’ve been before we were five, which was when my lasting memory had developed. But it was one of my parents’ favorite stories to tell.
Even when we got a little older, she would make friends wherever we went. At the playground, at little league games, or school, she would ask to join anyone playing. She was quite the tomboy, so she mostly approached boys. A few times she was told that girls can’t play football, basketball, et cetera. But then they would see her throw the football or dribble a basketball or hit a baseball, and they would fight to have her on their team.
I made friends, too, but I had moved at a little bit of a slower pace than Charlie. It took me three days and an equal number of Kit Kats to ask crying girl her name. Every day, I would ask why she was crying, and every day, she said she didn’t want to go home.
“I’m not allowed to tell strangers my name.” She said with rivers of tears again streaming down her cheeks.
“Stranger? I’m your friend.” I sat next to her on the bus, and I’d given her candy. In second grade, that’s practically considered being best friends.
“I wish I could change my life.” She sighed, and with the Kit Kat in her hand, the crying slowly began to subside. “You know like how a caterpillar changes to a butterfly? A butterfly gets to have a better life than the ugly caterpillar. A butterfly gets to fly away and see the world, while the caterpillar is stuck crawling around.” She was pretty smart for only being in kindergarten.
“Well, since you’re not allowed to tell me your name, I’ll just call you Butterfly then.” It was better than calling her crying girl, anyway. “Maybe I should have a name with wings then, too.”
“You mean, like, a bird?” Her eyes grew wide and curious.
“No. I mean, like, Batman.”
She let out an adorable giggle in between sniffling whimpers of her soft sobs. I couldn’t believe I actually made her laugh. “Batman doesn’t have wings. He has a cape.”
“But he has a car that can fly, so I want to be him. We can be Butterfly and Batman. Best friends.” She nodded in agreement and then locked her thumb with mine so that our fingers spread outward like wings. And at that moment, I had a new best friend.
Travis was the newest friend Charlie had decided to adopt. Technically, I was friends with him first—this seemed to be an established pattern with us. We both worked at the local high school; he was a teacher, and I was the athletic trainer. We weren’t close by any means, but I had sat through enough faculty meetings and professional days with him to consider him more than an acquaintance. These events usually reverted the genders to segregate, much like middle school dances. The men sat on one side of the room, and the women sat on the other. Therefore, I sat next to him, or near him at all those events. We ate lunch together in the faculty breakroom on occasion, so I’d heard about some of his personal stuff.
I may have misinterpreted Travis’s original intention regarding my sister and thought that he was looking to date her. But they both quickly learned that neither were ready to begin dating again, so they decided to be friends instead. Travis was now a regular attendee when Charlie and I spent time together. She and I still liked to catch a meal, go kayaking, go for a bike ride, or spend time at the beach. I gave her a hard time, but I considered her my favorite person. She was supportive when I needed it, but she gave me a kick in the pants when I needed that, too. We shared a lot of the same interests and hobbies, so we had a lot in common. I figured girls like my sister were one in a million, and that’s why I haven’t met anyone else like her. She’s fun to be around and isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty.
Since it was already natural for Charlie, Travis, and me to go out for a meal, having her bring Alexis along wasn’t a far stretch from our norm. As Charlie had already pointed out, I was very intrigued by Alexis. I was looking forward to going to breakfast with her.
Travis and I had arrived at the diner and secured a booth by the time Charlie and Alexis showed up after their shift. Charlie thought it would be easier to convince her to come to breakfast if we ate immediately after their overnight shift. She said there would be less pressure because it would only be for a short while, and then the two girls could go home and sleep.
Alexis approached alongside of Charlie but didn’t seem at ease. She crossed her arms over her chest like a comforting hug as she stood next to the table. I didn’t take the gesture as an attempt to be closed off to us. I figured it was a way to calm herself before moving into an uncomfortable situation.
I wasn’t going to let her stay uneasy for long. Rather than stand and have her slide into the booth being trapped against the wall, I slid toward the interior of the bench, and Travis did the same. Charlie was quick to scoot next to Travis, leaving the only option for Alexis in the spot next to me.
I swallowed hard during that devastatingly long moment while I silently willed her to take a seat on my side of the table. With obvious reluctance, her slim figure bounced on the vinyl as she finally gave in and accepted the last place at our table.
“I showered this morning.” I might’ve mumbled that under my breath, but it didn’t stop her from hearing me. She swung her pale blue eyes my way.
“If you don’t want me to hear your thoughts, you might not want to say them out loud.” She batted her dark-blond lashes—which may have just been her blinking, but I was mesmerized just the same. My emotions had never been swarmed with fascination and nervousness simultaneously before.
“That’s good advice. I’ll be more careful about my slips of the tongue.” I realized what I said the same moment Travis and Charlie erupted with laughter. Couldn’t they just be good friends and ignore my blundered comment?
But turning my attention away from the goofs across from me, I heard small giggles, and Alexis’s shoulders shook with humor. Maybe I hadn’t screwed up too badly if she could find the hilarity of my blooper. Her eyes sparkled with amusement, and I instantly felt more at ease.
Conversation flowed naturally, and I found myself having a great time laughing and relaxing. We talked about everything, and we talked about nothing. Alexis seemed shy and reserved at first, but she slowly began to share a little about herself. She talked about high school, and college, and work. I was enjoying our easy conversation when I caught a glimpse of my childhood friend out of the periphery of my vision standing at the pickup station of the counter. I jerked my head to reaffirm my quick observation. He stared in our direction, so I assumed he saw the group of his friends gathered at the table not too far away. I shot my arm upward and waved, drawing the attention of everyone seated near me as I motioned him over to the booth. He appeared rooted in place, so I called out to him. “Louis!”
Charlie’s face lit up like a kid at Christmas. Joy shone in her gray eyes as her lips stretched into a sm
ile. I figured she was happy to see him, but Travis didn’t display the same contentment. With some hesitation on his part, Louis eventually approached our table.
“Cam told me you crashed at his place last night.” Even Charlie’s voice had a sunny cheerfulness. I watched as her cheeks reddened while she blushed. I had never seen her in such awe of another person on the planet. Ever. Seriously, I had seen her meet some of her favorite professional athletes without so much adoration seeping from her pores.
“I figured you would sleep in, so I snuck out this morning without waking you.” I was feeling particularly content, so I exchanged a grin with my friend.
“You do have a lot of experience sneaking out in the morning without waking anyone.” Great. I was doing my damnedest to convince Alexis that I wasn’t an ass, and my lifelong friend was sabotaging me.
That puppy-dog expression that Charlie had been wearing since Louis approached resolved and she, not so subtly, made a gesture with her finger across her throat to try and stop Louis from saying anything more to damage my reputation in front of Alexis. She’s a good sister.
“I’m totally kidding. Cameron has always been a complete gentleman.” He smiled at Alexis and offered her his outstretched hand. “I’m Louis. And you are?”
So much for my friend making me look like an ass. I was doing that all on my own. I hoped I could recover from the lack of introductions. “I’m sorry. I don’t have any manners this early in the morning, I suppose.” I stumbled over my words. Smooth dude. Real smooth. “This is Alexis. She works with Charlie.”
“I figured as much given the scrub costume.”
Charlie exhaled a long sigh of contentment in response to his words. These two needed to figure out that they were meant to be together.
Caught up in her bliss for a beat longer, I witnessed her break free from the gaze holding onto the connection between her and my friend that was palpable to everyone at this table. “And this is Travis. He works with Cameron at the high school.” Louis simply nodded in response to Charlie’s comment.
Alexis grasped Louis’s extended hand and pumped it in a dainty handshake. But when he turned to Travis, he only furrowed his brows and pursed his lips into a thin line.
A handshake between the two men didn’t happen. The cashier yelled Louis’s name, and the pair broke their death stare with each other, ending their standoff. “Well, I don’t want to interrupt your double date any more than I already have, so I’m going to grab my sandwich and head out.”
His attempt to establish some pleasantness became futile, as a distinct hardening of his eyes developed. He was obviously uncomfortable with the situation. I was sure he thought Charlie was on a date with Travis. I could have offered clarification, but I either didn’t think quickly enough, or I figured it was best to let things play out between them. So Louis retreated to pick up his breakfast and rapidly exited the restaurant.
Following a slightly awkward day at the beach the next day with Charlie, Travis, and Louis, we planned dinner for the following week for the four of us, plus Alexis—and my other sister Claudette. I’d found it challenging to watch Charlie stare dreamily at Louis at the diner. But watching my childhood friend drool over my sister in a bikini during our beach excursion was more than a little weird. At least it seemed like Travis and Louis were able to speak to each other after our outing without the condescending glares and the mutual muscle-flexing. I tried not to think about the weird exchange that continued to occur between those two men, and I decided to focus on seeing Alexis again instead.
The previous morning at breakfast, I’d felt so at ease sitting next to Alexis. And for the first time in forever, I wanted to see the same woman a second time. In fact, I couldn’t wait to just see her again. I couldn’t wait to sit next to her and have her talk with me. I, unfortunately, had to admit that maybe I’d been a bit of a man whore at times. The only emotion I had toward a woman previously was most likely lust. If I wanted to see a woman again, it was to see her without her clothes on. I didn’t even care if words were exchanged.
But Alexis was different. I wanted to learn things about her. I wanted to hear her voice. I wanted to see her sweet smile. I wanted to know if I could ever get her to laugh. I wasn’t sure how to identify that emotion because no single word could describe it.
I got excited to see her…like, meeting-your-favorite-all-time-sports-player kind of excited. I developed a tickling sensation within my stomach, and my pulse kicked into another gear as my heart rate accelerated. Just thinking of her could induce these same feelings—I didn’t even have to see her. Sure, it was a little bizarre for me to have this happen, but I didn’t want it to stop. I wanted to continue to feel that way. If this was how Charlie and Louis felt about each other, I couldn’t understand why they wanted to push the emotion away. I wanted to embrace it.
Louis, Travis, and I drove together to dinner the following week. We offered to take Charlie too, but she quickly declined. I wasn’t sure what her latest status was with Louis, but I’d decided I would let everyone else engage in their own drama. I planned to only focus on Alexis.
She was already sitting in the lobby staring at her phone when Louis, Travis, and I arrived at the restaurant. She didn’t have her hair pulled back into the ponytail I had always seen her with. She let her long, dark-blond hair flow around her shoulders for tonight. It was a beautiful look on her. Her brilliant, light blue eyes pulled upward and caught the sight of me. I’d been told my hazel eyes could be both endearing and threatening, so I didn’t want to scare her off. The soft curve of her lips pulled into a gentle smile. It was merely a friendly gesture, but I somehow found it incredibly sensual. Her subtle actions made a bigger impression on me than the blatant signs typically thrown my way.
I admired her colorful floral top. It reminded me to have a bright outlook on life. It seemed like not too long ago, I was trying to go to a dark place, but her entrance into my life was like the rainbow on a sunny day following a thunderstorm when dark clouds had once filled the sky. Lord, what is this girl doing to me?
“Hey,” I managed to say. I hadn’t been nervous speaking to a girl since eighth grade. But this girl had me nearly trembling with anticipation.
“Hi, Cameron.” Her voice was soft, and her lashes fluttered as she spoke. She wasn’t flirting with me, but maybe that’s what I liked so much. She was just being herself.
Charlie walked into the lobby after our brief moment. Alexis and I broke our short-lived re-acquaintance, and we all exchanged pleasant hellos before the hostess guided us to a six-top table in the middle of the dining room. Charlie followed me, and Louis followed behind her to fill the three seats on one side of the table. Then Alexis sat across from me, and Travis sat next to her, across from Charlie. I was happy with the seating arrangement.
But before Alexis and I could begin a conversation, Claudette flew in like a whirlwind of blond hair. “I’m so sorry for being late,” she said, nearly out of breath.
My older sister quickly hugged Charlie and then kissed me on the cheek. “Hey, Claude,” I managed to stammer.
“It’s good to see you again, Claude.” Louis stood to hug her, and she kissed his cheek also.
She made her way to the other side of the table and extended her hand to Alexis, “Hi, I’m Claudette.”
“Alexis.” The woman I would like to consider my girl, pumped my older sibling’s hand once without standing up from her chair. They nodded to each other, and then Claude turned to Travis.
Louis returned to his seat, but Travis was standing when Claudette reached for his hand. “Hi, Claudette, I’m Travis.” Rather than shake her hand as Alexis had done, he grabbed her by the fingers and brought them to his face to plant a soft kiss on her knuckles. Gag!
Claudette’s face turned a bright shade of pink as he pulled out her chair for her. Once she was seated, he pushed the chair in and sat next to her. The two of them began a dialogue, leaving just Louis and Charlie to be forced to speak to each other. Maybe th
is dinner would turn out okay after all.
“It looks like everyone is suddenly paired up at this meal,” I said to Alexis. I now had a close-up view of her blue eyes sparkling at me. I also had the opportunity to observe that those blue gems were surrounded by the prettiest, longest eyelashes I’d ever seen. She didn’t wear that black, painted-on crap that Claudette and other girls did. I definitely preferred the soft, naked look of her lashes.
Her silent demeanor didn’t sit well with me. I really hoped she would open up some more. She was more talkative the other morning at breakfast. Maybe that comment I made about pairing up was too much too soon. But considering Claudette and Travis were consumed with each other, and whatever was going on with the Charlie-Louis situation, it was going to be a very long, boring dinner if she and I didn’t somehow find a way to hold a conversation.
Her lips slowly tugged upward in that adorable smile I loved to see, and she leaned forward, resting her forearms on the table. Moisture left my mouth and my pulse quickened, knowing that she was about to speak to me, and only me. “Didn’t Claudette and Travis just meet?” Her gaze bounced between them and me. “They are certainly smitten with one another.”
Did she really just say “smitten”? My Lord, she was adorable. “Yeah, it appears they are. Do you believe in love at first sight?” I whispered unintentionally.
“Uh…no.” Her tone was louder than mine, and her gaze immediately dropped downward, making me aware that I’d said something she didn’t like. I continued to watch her eyes move up and down as if glancing over the menu for a dinner selection.
“Have you ever been in love?” I had no idea what anyone else at the table was talking about. Alexis was the only person I was focused on, and my curiosity prickled my skin. Her abrupt coolness had me wondering if someone had broken her heart before.
Butterfly Girl Page 4