"What took you so long?" Becky asked after glancing at her watch and then back at Cyndi who was jogging over to her with her notebook clutched under her arm.

It was 3:20.

"Got...held up." Cyndi replied at a loss for words to describe what just happened to her not moments ago.

"You alright?" Becky asked with a laugh when she caught sight of her friend looking rather frazzled as she stopped in front of her and handed her the purple notebook Becky had asked for.

"Remy called. 'Nuff said." Cyndi said as she caught her breath.

"Uh oh. Can we eat first? I feel like I need to be fully nourished for this..." Becky teased as the two women walked into the large dining hall where students were gathered eating at various tables, playing music, studying and talking on cell phones.

XXXXXXX

"He said what?!!!!" Becky squealed loudly, causing some students to turn around and stare at her rudely.

"Sorry..." Becky apologized to them sheepishly for her outburst then she leaned over the table to hear Cyndi better, positive that she hadn't just heard her say that Remy wasn't married and hadn't been this whole time.

"And this isn't a good thing?" Becky asked Cyndi incredulously.

"That's not who I am anymore, B. I'm not in love with him anymore." Cyndi replied. Becky eyed her skeptically. Cyndi had said this many times but rarely did Becky ever believe it because whenever Remy came up, he and Cyndi were glued at the hip...well at least in the beginning. The visits had started becoming a little more platonic over the past 2 years, but Becky could still see it in her friends' eyes. She loved that bayou boy and she was fooling no one.

"Girl, you're frontin'." Becky accused with a smirk.

"What? No, I'm not." Cyndi scowled as she opened her bottle of strawberry milk and poked a straw into it before taking a sip.

"You don't even know what it'll be like to have him around again. I bet you a million dollars that you fall back into old habits. And is that really so bad? The boy gave you an engagement ring for Christ sake." Becky replied.

"Yea, well...we were 18, well I was turning 19. We're 24 now and we haven't seen much of each other since that day. That time has passed for us. I just wear it because it's pretty and a friend gave it to me." Cyndi said as she flipped open her latest copy of Cosmopolitan and went straight for the quizzes.

Becky sniffed overdramatically and smirked as she said, "I smell bullshit." Cyndi laughed and shook her head at her friends' stubbornness. But perhaps it was she who was truly being the stubborn one. Would it really hurt to try to get back to the way things were with Remy? Cyndi wasn't dating anyone at the moment and Remy was coming up to NY...who was to say that it wasn't worth a try? She could introduce him to all of her friends finally and he could meet her for lunch at the hospital when her internship started...and hell, if Remy was still thieving; Manhattan was the place to be. He'd be as happy as a pig in slop. If everything went perfectly, things would be fantastic.

XXXXXX

By the end of the week, Remy was in Manhattan and taking a cab to NYU to meet up with Cyndi. He hadn't brought a whole hell of a lot except for clothes and his favorite stuff like cologne and shoes, other than that things could be replaced easily. He anxiously sat in the back of the big yellow car as it swerved awkwardly through insanely busy city streets, dodging pedestrians and other vehicles in the process. Never a religious man, even Remy glanced upward at God and asked for his life to be spared.

He knew he would one day die...but not like this...

When Remy's cab ride from hell finally came to an end, Remy peeled himself off of the dirty window he had been pressed against due to a violent turn the driver made to get over to the opposite sidewalk and retrieved his bags from the trunk. He lugged them towards Cyndi's dorm passing countless students on the way and taking in the large campus as he walked through it. College never interested Remy, he felt he had all the smarts he needed and if he was ever in need of anything else, he would take the time to learn it on his own and have himself to thank for it. Besides, in his particular line of 'work'...he didn't exactly need a degree. Still, the environment seemed pretty cool.

He finally approached Cyndi and Becky's dorm and lifted the doormat to find the extra key so he could let himself inside.

"Honey, I'm home!" Remy called out, doing his best Ricky Ricardo. But with his Cajun accent, it didn't quite work out the way he had planned. Still, he got his point across and Cyndi came running out from her bedroom with a smirk on her face as she threw her arms around him and he dropped his bags at his feet.

"You're here, you're here!" She exclaimed excitedly.

"Oui, oui, oui!" He chuckled as he wrapped his arms around her slender waist and held her to him for the longest time. Boy, had he missed her. Hopefully things would finally start getting better for them now that he was here with her.

"Yesterday was my last day of class...sooooo; I'm all yours until I start my internship." She smiled as she kissed his cheek. His body tensed at her words. All his? What he would do to her given the opportunity...

Remy grabbed for her left hand to inspect it, making sure the ring he had given her was still on her ring finger. When he found everything to be in order, he smiled and brought her hand to his lips and pressed his mouth to it, kissing it gently before letting it go.

Cyndi couldn't help but go weak at the knees at the feeling of his lips on her, even if it was just an innocent kiss on the hand...his lips were so full and inviting...and soft...and...

She shook herself out of her thoughts as she smiled and tugged him further inside.

"Are you thirsty? Hungry? I can make you something." She offered as she went into the mini kitchen and readied herself to make anything he wanted.

"Jus' some water woul' be nice." He smiled as he followed her into the kitchen and watched as she pulled out a bottle of water from the fridge and poured some into a tall glass.

"Here ya go, that'll be 6 bucks." She teased. He smirked and took the glass once she offered it to him.

"6 bucks? Wha' a rip off. If God pissed in a glass, Remy wouldn' pay 6 bucks fo' it..." He laughed. She laughed and shook her head as she crossed herself with her right hand, asking God to forgive her for laughing at something so mildly disrespectful.

"Sit down...I'll put your stuff in my room." Cyndi replied with a smile as she held his wrist and tugged him towards the couch, then pushed down on his broad shoulders until he sat down. He grinned at her as she dragged his heavy bags into her room and then plopped back down onto the couch to join him.

"How was your trip, Cajun?" She asked as she snuggled up to him and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Long...almost died in a cab." He smirked. She grinned as he pulled her legs over his lap and his hands lazily stroked up and down her thigh covered by her jeans.

"But, it was worth it." He added.

"I'm so glad you're here. I'm graduating this weekend...think you'd wanna come? My brothers will be there." She smiled. Though the majority of her family was angry at Remy for breaking Cyndi's heart, her brothers and Remy always got along, even back when Cyndi was in New Orleans and they would come to visit her. They all remained friendly ever since.

"Of course, Doctor." He replied with a grin.

"Excuse me?" She laughed.

"Oh, Remy's sorry. Doctor Chere." He teased.

"I'm not gonna get used to hearing that anytime soon. Oh! I got my cap and gown. It's all pretty...wanna see?" She asked excitedly.

"Sure." He replied as she got up from his lap and went into her room, rummaging through her closet to find the garment.

"Not somet'in you'd wear on a date, eh, Chere?" He chuckled when he saw the purple and black gown with a green sash that indicated her area of study.

"Shut up, this is going to be the proudest day of my life, you asshole." She laughed as she looked over the gown happily. Remy couldn't help but be proud as well. His Chere set out to do something and there she was doing it just like she had said she would. He wouldn't openly say it to many people, but he truly admired her. And not just in a way a boyfriend or a best friend admires or looks up to their significant other...but, as if she were his role model. For as long as he could remember, Cyndi was the one who always encouraged him to be better, to do better. He now realized how lost he would be without her if things didn't work out between them.

He would do better this time around.