XXPMDSXX
Part 3
Perry couldn't let Della leave and without getting an apology from Laura. He wouldn't let Della be degraded she never deserved disrespect from anyone. Della's heels clicked on the pavement angrily almost making it across the campus and out of Perry's sight.
"Della, please, wait!" Perry called out. He strode quickly which didn't take him long to catch up to her. Grabbing her by the elbow gently, he pulled her back, so she couldn't reach the door handle. She stopped turning to face Perry. A single tear slipped down her cheek. Knowing she was hurt by the awful words spoken by Laura, he took his thumb and swiped it away, pushing a strand of hair away from her forehead.
"Della, don't leave. Come with me right now," Perry demanded while leaning over placing a gentle kiss on her cheek where the tear was previously.
"Why, so I can be a ridiculous joke to you?" Della turned her head away from him and started to abandon the conversation again. As he touched her arm gently, he turned to see a fuming Laura coming towards him with Hamilton, Kerry, and Paul in tow.
"Great, look what you did, Laura, pushing Perry away. He was the meal ticket for the rest of your life," Kerry spoke up.
"We'll just see about that," Laura snapped back.
"This is going to be good," Hamilton smirked and followed the girls. Paul followed them but kept his distance not wanting to interfere only to be a good listener which is what he did best. Plus, great detectives always have a good ear. Catching only part of the conversation of Perry and Della's voices. Laura saddled up beside Perry slipping her arm through his claiming him in front of Della who was unaffected by her attentions.
"Laura, you need to be the better person and apologize to Della, right now." Perry informed her and disengaged from her clutches.
"I will not do such a thing, Perry Mason. She deserved it for taking company with you in the first place. A wealthy, high class, young man, that's dating a prominent successful young woman that I am," Laura sneered crossing her arms over her chest.
"I think you got your intentions all wrong. I'm already spoken for so I don't need your 'man'," Della countered her, finally giving Laura the answer, she wanted. Laura's demeanor didn't waver though.
"Being engaged doesn't mean you'll be married. Couples can always change their minds, plus, what did your future fiancé, even see in you in the first place, my dear. You don't have wealth like 'we' do and you certainly don't have the looks or the taste for that matter," she leered at Della's clothing and fingered her earring that had to have cost her a fortune, that Della could not have afforded on a year's salary.
"Are you done, Laura? Because 'we' are finished. I can't believe how low you can go disrespecting someone that you firstly, don't know at all. Words like that hurt people. Would you want that same thing to happen to you if you were in Della's position? You need to be the better person here but I can't see that happening with you. I have seen your attitude and set back let it all unfold before my eyes and you are not the woman I want to be with or around for that matter. We are over and done with. Do you understand me? We are done!" Perry made his point clear right in front of everyone, even Della.
"But….Perry… what about our plans we talked about?" Laura whined trying to convince him to change his mind.
"Listen to me, there is no 'future' for you and me…" Perry told her firmly looking at her harshly while the group of friends was left speechless. Laura stormed off with her friend Kerry while Hamilton shrugged his shoulders following after them. Paul was left standing with Perry and Della.
"Perry, I really need to go now. I can't stay and waste any more time. I have an appointment I really need to be on my way," Della swiped another tear from the corner of her eye.
"I'm sorry Della that all of this happened all at once. Believe me, I wanted her to apologize but that apparently didn't happen," he spoke softly to her.
"She'll always go through life hating people that are not of her social class. She probably doesn't even like herself for that matter," Della frowned then gave his hand a quick squeeze. She left the two guys standing there in their respective spots as they both watched her climb the steps. Della turned to glance back in their direction to see if Perry was watching her, he was and she could feel his eyes on her until she disappeared into the women's dorm.
"That's some Dame, Perry. You know come to think of it, Perry I too started noticing Laura's behavior this past month. Anyway, women are all alike, they all have beauty somewhere inside them or outside," he wiggled his eyebrows at him.
"Paul, can you do me a favor tonight?" Perry wrinkled his brow then looked back at his friend.
"Sure, what do you want me to do? Sneak into the ladies' dorms? I have already done that. That'll be easy," Paul took his cigarette pack out of his suit coat.
"No, I don't want you to do that. I want you to follow Della this evening," Perry told him and gave him a serious tone in his voice.
"Sure, I can do that Perry. But she's already got a man, you heard it yourself. Why would you want to destroy her happiness?" Paul took a drag off his cigarette looking at the building then back at Perry.
"Well, Paul I got to thinking about that myself. What if she is not happy with her beau? I can't stop thinking about her. I just need to have a little more time to see for myself if she feels the same about me. It's when I'm in her presence, something just stirs my whole being. It's not something a man can describe to you unless you experience for yourself," Perry explained staring at the window of the dorm, where he thought a young lady passed the window only to have a curtain pull shut.
Della closed the curtain seeing that Perry and his friend had watched her enter the building. She looked out the window several times and knew that their dorms wouldn't permit men in the building unless it was personnel. She wasn't concerned. Janet and Valerie joined her as she sat down her notebook with a loud thud to the table in her room.
"So, what's going on Della? People are buzzing outside the dorm-like bees to honey? Who's the handsome man that grabbed you? I thought he was dating that uppity Laura girl," Valerie said flicking her hair mocking her accuser, making Della smile for a moment.
"Val, it's nothing. Forget it okay," Della responded trying to distract herself from the question, and headed for her closet for a change of clothes.
"It's nothing when a handsome young man breaks up with a well-to-do young lady. So, spill it, Della. What's going on between you and what's his name?" Janet butted in before stopping her from picking out her change of clothes.
"Nothing is going on between me and Perry. It was just a simple lunch date that's all. Nothing to be of your concern," Della retorted and picked out a light-colored floral dress and placed it on her bed.
"Oh, so it's the wealthy Perry Mason. Paul has told me so much about him. He's his best friend. A well-to-do, up-and-coming fellow, he'll be a promising young attorney in the future. Everybody talks very highly about him even the professors. If you have a question about anything, Perry's the one to go to for advice," Valerie winked at Della.
"Well, what about Laura. I heard they had recently started to date," Janet interrupted the two, as she had missed part of the conversation.
"He broke it off with Laura today. It was his choice to end it I had nothing to do with it," Della answered her from the bathroom as she quickly changed into her fresh clothes.
"Sure, you didn't Della. He knows you are one of a kind or he wouldn't have broken up with her. I mean come on Della you have something special that he is attracted to…or maybe something else," the girls giggled and retreated leaving Della to herself making her blush just a little bit. She was fond of Perry and how he respected her even though she didn't know him all that well or his personality. She was about to.