It was Wednesday of Cammie's last week of school before spring break. I leaned back against the umber bricks of her lecture hall.
I had dropped her off after the party on Saturday, and hadn't attempted to bother her since. But as much as I hated how it sounded, I wasn't paying her all that money for nothing, and I needed her to get the ball rolling again. Every day we did nothing was a day closer to Macey's wedding, and I was not going to let her get married to Moore, no matter how much I had to badger Cammie.
I checked my watch. Her class should end any minute now…
Thunk! The heavy oak door slammed open and students poured out of the lecture hall. I scanned for Cammie's glossy hair. She was talking to Bex while shoving some papers in a folder.
"Cammie!" I called.
She turned around, trying to locate the person who yelled for her.
"Cammie, here!" I called again. I fought through the stream of people coming out of the building. I arrived in front of her, slightly breathless. "Do you have some time? I need your help."
"Sure," she replied demurely, throwing her folder into her messenger bag.
But Bex stepped in front of her, hands on her hips. Her eyes were narrowed at me, focusing her chocolate-brown wrath on me. "What did you do to her?" she demanded. "She came home, and she was obviously upset, but she wouldn't tell me why."
Cammie put a hand on Bex's shoulder. "Bex, it wasn't his fault, if that's what you were wondering. He just drove me home."
Bex pointed two fingers at her eyes, then aimed them at me. "I'm watching you," she warned.
I nodded in affirmation, and then grabbed Cammie's wrist, dragging her away.
"So where are we going?" Cammie asked as we walked down the street. "And exactly how many people will be there that hate my guts?"
I grinned. I had been so afraid that Cammie wouldn't be as comfortable around me after my family tore her apart at the party, but it seemed her sense of humor hadn't gone anywhere.
"Probably just Macey," I said in answer to her question. "Maybe some of her friends, but that's it, I swear."
"Fair enough. So. What are we doing today?"
"It's a surprise."
"I hate surprises," she grumbled.
"Well you'll definitely be surprised by this one," I murmured under my breath.
I led her back to the park that I first met her at on Friday afternoon. I swung by the fountain, and reached up into the tree next to it, pulling down a picnic basket and a red-and-white checked blanket.
"A picnic?" Cammie asked with a wide smile. "You were wrong Zach. I actually like this surprise."
Just you wait… I thought. Let me know if you still possess that sentiment in half an hour.
I spread the blanket in the shade provided by the tree, and Cammie sat back on her feet in front of me. I handed her a PB&J sandwich proudly.
"It's about the only thing I can make," I said sheepishly.
Cammie looked at me curiously as she bit into the sandwich. "Really? So what do you do for dinner? Or breakfast, for that matter?"
I shrugged. "I'm more a Capn Crunch and takeout guy. There's nothing in my fridge except maybe some leftovers, and that's on a good day. Besides, I usually have too much work to do to learn to cook. So I just pick stuff up on my way home. And Macey couldn't cook, either. She just had her housekeeper do it for her."
Cammie burst out laughing. "Do you have any idea how ridiculous that sounds? 'She had her housekeeper do it.'"
"Yeah, well, you shouldn't be talking. I mean, you've been subsisting on ramen and hope for months."
She shoved me over playfully. "Excuse me! At least I know how to cook! If I had the money to buy all the ingredients, Bex and I would be eating like kings."
I laughed, but it died on my lips when I saw Macey exiting the Boston Public Library building across the street with two friends. I watched her squint in our direction, checking that she had really seen me and Cammie. Having confirmed our identities, she started walking over casually, pretending like she hadn't seen us. Showtime.
I stood up, pulling Cammie with me. I was suddenly grateful that Cammie had chosen a nice summery dress to wear today. Now the scene would look complete.
"Cammie," I started loudly, knowing Macey was now within hearing distance. "Since the day I met you, I've known you're the one I want to spend my life with." I knelt down on one knee pulling the velvet box out of my pocket.
Cammie looked at me with panic in her eyes. "What are you doing?" she hissed. "Stand up!"
"Will you marry me?" I asked. My heart was doing its best to escape my chest, and I couldn't figure out if it was because Macey kept advancing or because I was asking a girl to be mine forever.
"M-marry you?" Cammie stuttered. She looked like she couldn't breathe.
I locked eyes with her. "Yes, marry me," I repeated firmly.
Cammie stared at me intensely, like she was trying to figure out what I was doing. Just go with it, I pleaded in my head. Don't strip away my dignity in front of the girl I love. But of course, Cammie couldn't see Macey coming closer and closer behind her with, I noted happily, a horrified look on her face.
"Yes," Cammie finally whispered weakly. "Yes, I'll marry you."
I internally breathed a sigh of relief. It looked like Cammie realized what I was doing, because she grabbed me by my hand and pulled me back up. I slipped the ring on her finger, and she pulled me close into a hug.
"You jerk! Macey's behind me, isn't she?" she whispered in my ear. Even though her voice was steady, I felt her shaking like a leaf in my arms. "You almost gave me a heart attack!"
"Surprise?" I said weakly before letting her ago.
Around us, I heard people erupting into laughter and applause.
"What a beautiful couple!"
"He's very handsome. She's very lucky."
"What a gorgeous ring!"
But my mind was racing, away from the proposal and towards the storm cloud Macey McHenry's seemed to be experiencing. Her friends were whispering behind her back, but as she got closer, she shushed them and pasted a serene expression on her face.
"Zach! Carla!" she cooed.
"Cammie," I corrected.
"Congratulations! I can't believe it!" Macey continued, ignoring my comment. "We're all engaged! This is absolutely wonderful! Isn't it, DeeDee? Mick?"
"Oh, of course!" both girls caroled simultaneously, and I noticed Cammie's posture beside me stiffen as she noticed Macey's company. I threw an arm around her waist reassuringly.
"Do your parents know?" Macey asked. "Or do I have the distinct honor of being the first?"
"No, nobody knows yet," I replied. Which wasn't exactly the truth, because Grant and I had planned this whole scene out on Sunday after the party fiasco. But nobody had to know that.
"I assume you've moved in together?" Macey asked, looking at Cammie meaningfully.
"Uhm…" Cammie began. She glanced at me, unsure what to do.
"Of course," I interjected. "We're actually in the process right now of transferring her things to my flat, but she should be all moved in by tomorrow."
With this announcement, I realized Cammie was getting much better at hiding her surprise. This whole charade was one big impromptu acting session, after all. But despite no change in appearance, I knew we were going to have words as soon as Macey and her friends left.
"Well that's just lovely," DeeDee said, with a saccharine laugh. "Who in our small little high school class would've thought Cammie Morgan would marry the wealthy and handsome Zachary Goode?"
"And who would've thought DeeDee Falkner, the most popular girl at our school, would've gone on only to become second-class, following Macey McHenry around like a lovesick puppy?" Cammie bit back, unleashing her acerbic tongue.
I pulled Cammie closer, alarmed by her outburst. I decided it would be best to end this conversation before things got too ugly.
"Well, it was nice seeing you Macey," I said. "But we do have to get going. We want to have everything out of her apartment tonight. You do understand how much work it is to move things around…"
"Of course," Macey said through clenched teeth. "I remember when I moved in to your flat – it took nearly a month!"
Cammie faked a smile at her. "And how long did it take to get all your trash out?"
If Macey's looks could kill, Cammie would've exploded into billions of dust particles. Time to go.
"Goodbye, Macey," I said again, before scooping up the picnic blanket and basket and positively running out of the park with Cammie in tow.
"So we're living together now?" she asked with a scowl after we'd turned the corner.
I shrugged. "For appearances sake, I think we have to."
"Bex is going to flip out."
"Oh yeah, about that…" I flipped open the picnic basket and pulled some papers out. "I need both you and Bex to sign this. I told you on the way to the party that you shouldn't tell people about this, and you gave me your word, but I need it in writing. And obviously I can't ask you to hide it from your best friend, but I don't want the whole world suddenly knowing our relationship is a hoax."
Cammie held the papers in one hand gingerly, like they were going to bite her. She looked at them and then at me, shaking her head.
"You, my friend, are going to owe me big time after this. A proposal, moving in, and now this?"
"So you agree to move in?" I asked.
She rolled her eyes. "I guess. If Bex doesn't kill me. I'm the reliable one when it comes to paying our rent, so if I can find somebody to replace me…"
"Don't worry about the money. I've got it covered."
She muttered something under her breath, something that sounded suspiciously like "Of course you do."
I walked her back to her apartment in silence. Despite the fact that a catfight had almost started over our 'engagement,' I considered the day a success. The plan was working perfectly. I was almost a hundred percent positive that Macey didn't actually love Moore. I was planning to look into why she was with him in the first place. They were getting married, for crying out loud! And it was obvious that she still liked me, or at least was interested in keeping up with my life. So, yes. Everything was going terrifically.
Cammie pushed open the door to her apartment quickly, allowing me to enter after her.
"Grant said he'd come by to start packing up your stuff, so by now your room should be about half-packed," I said tentatively.
Cammie shot me another of her looks. "You expected this to happen and knew I'd go along with it, didn't you?" she accused.
"Sort of…"
But her retort was cut off by the sight in her living room. Grant and Bex were kissing in a way that, if this were a movie and I had kids, I would be covering their eyes right about now. They hadn't gone any further than kissing, but I got a feeling that if Cammie and I hadn't walked in, they might've.
Cammie sighed. "I'll be in my room," she called, sounding like she was used to walking in on Bex with guys. I, on the other hand, was entirely lost for words.
Grant blushed profusely, something I never thought I would see, and broke away from Bex, who looked put out at the interruption.
"So how much did you pack?" I asked, finally finding my voice.
Grant flushed even deeper. "Well uh…I came over…and Bex and I exchanged a few words…and then…ah…"
I held up a hand and scrunched my eyes shut, trying to block out the mental image. "Got it. Thanks. Well, we'll be packing up her clothes if you need us."
So who liked Sassy Cammie? Or was I the only one that had fun writing the scene between her, DeeDee, and Macey?
Now everything's out in the open! You know Grant's original plan, you know Zach's new plan, you know why Macey broke up with Zach in the first place. The only thing you don't know is why Macey's marrying so soon… So of course I'm now obligated to throw another wrench in the story! Next chapter, my friends, be prepared for a blowout! hehehe… :)
Oh, also, I had a guest reviewer who asked if this was a Zammie story…YES. I swear on my life times a million that this is Zammie through and through. THEY ARE GETTING TOGETHER. Patience is a virtue, fellow readers :)
Love,
achi
