Chapter 26

Pauline had a naughty grin on her face. "Is that a hickey?"

"No," Abby said quickly as she tried to look convincing and brought her hand up to her neck. "It's a…mosquito bite."

"You've got some mean mosquitoes down in your hood, huh?" the Kenyan asked sarcastically with a laugh. She high fived the brown-haired boy seated on the other side of her best friend. "Go Hoagie!" she cheered. He smiled proudly as he draped his arm over his girlfriend's shoulders and softly rubbed his thumb against the bruise that he had caused. Abby reveled in his touch as she blinked a little longer than normal. "I suggest you get yourself a few cans of bug spray, if you know what I mean," Pauline continued, winking suggestively at the girl.

Abby smirked. "Oh, we've got that covered. Hoagie's mom has already hinted rather clearly that she's too young to be a grandma, so…" she trailed off, absent-mindedly doodling on her boyfriend's thigh with her index finger. She laughed as she remembered the mortified look on Hoagie's face when his mom had said that while the two had joined his family for dinner.

Just then Lizzie joined the trio at the table in the cafeteria. She was carrying a tray with two meals, one for herself and the other for Nigel. "Hi guys," she said with a warm smile on her face as she put down the tray. The three chorused their greeting in reply.

"And how are you, fair lady?" Abby asked as she picked a fry off of Lizzie's plate.

"I am good," the redhead replied with obvious relief as she sat down, "especially since I'm done with my classes for the week. My weekend starts…NOW," she added enthusiastically as she looked at her watch.

"Cool, lucky you," Abby said. Then turning to Pauline, she continued their previous conversation. "I hope you're taking your own advice, by the way?" she asked with raised eyebrows.

"What…oh, yeah…definitely, I don't want any surprises," Pauline said with an exaggerated waggle of her index finger.

"And how's my homeboy, Kevie-Kev?" the African American asked.

Pauline sighed. "He's great–"

"I'm sure he is," Abby interjected with a smirk and a suggestive cock of the head.

"Hey!" Hoagie protested in mock anger. Abby turned to him and planted a kiss on his lips before brandishing her best smile at him. He couldn't help but laugh at her tactics. "Nice save," he said as he gave her another kiss.

"You two are just too cute. You might as well get married already," Lizzie said of the couple as she sauced her fries, and she received a high five from Pauline for her suggestion.

Drawing his girl closer to him, Hoagie whispered in her ear, "That is definitely on my to-do list."

Abby smirked. "It better be," she said as she gave him a playful nudge. She then turned to Pauline and smiled mischievously as she nodded her head. "*Mahanjam zinapanda," she said before the two girls burst into little fits of laughter.

"I can't believe that's what you brought with you from Kenya," Pauline said as she continued to laugh.

"What?" Lizzie asked in deep puzzlement in reference to the presumed gibberish she had just heard.

"Never mind them. They can be difficult to understand sometimes," Hoagie said as he eyed the two girls in amusement.

Wally and Kuki then came up the stairs, walking towards their friends. The blond passed behind Lizzie and ruffled her hair as he took a seat. She huffed in exasperation and turned to him as she tried to throw him a nasty look. He gave her a lopsided grin that erased her supposed anger, causing her to smile too. She adjusted her glasses and continued eating, not even bothering to make her hair look slightly less dishevelled, for she had learnt from experience that doing so would result in another hair ruffle.

"Bully!" Kuki accused her boyfriend, who turned to her and said, "Yeah, yes I am," before he proceeded to tickle her until she withdrew her accusation.

Hoagie addressed the redhead. "How is Eva doing, from your point of view?"

"I'd say she's doing pretty well, actually," she said as she bit into her burger. Hoagie nodded in response.

Ten minutes later Nigel walked up to the group and gave them a general wave. He came up to Lizzie and smoothed down her hair. "Seems to me you've just survived the attack of the killer Aussie," he said as he glowered pointedly at Wally, who glared back at him. The bald boy bent down and kissed his girl on the cheek. "He definitely likes you; he just has a funny way of showing it."

In the meantime, the two mocha skinned girls' conversation had taken a more serious note. "He told me about his family last night; his real family." Pauline moved closer to her friend as she continued in a hushed tone so that only Abby could hear, "Man, he had it rough as a kid." She went on to narrate his story, pausing every now and then to keep her emotions in check.

Abby locked her arm with Pauline's and inclined her head to hers. "I'm sorry to hear that," she said quietly. "At least his found some sort of peace now."

xxx

That evening as the roommates were walking back to their dorm together from the library, the bespectacled girl spoke. "Hoagie was asking about you today. He was wondering how you were doing."

Eva held her books closer to her chest as a feeling of warmth spread through her body. She smiled and tucked a red lock of hair behind her ear. "Trust him to be worried about me. He's just that kind of guy."

"Yeah, I told him you were good. You seem to be doing pretty well to me," Lizzie said as she deliberately stepped on dried leaves along the path. "You are good, right? You're not hiding anything, are you?" she asked.

"Do I look like a mess to you?" When Lizzie shook her head, Eva continued. "Exactly, I'm alright. Hoagie doesn't have to worry about me so much. Things will soon go back to the way they were. We'll be happy together."

Lizzie looked up at her friend skeptically. "What do you mean?"

The stunningly beautiful redhead realized her mistake and quickly covered it up. "Nothing, I'm just saying that we'll soon go back to the way we were, you know, without the awkwardness."

"Oh, that would be great," Lizzie said with a smile. She knew that would definitely make her friend happier.

xxx

It was Friday, mid-morning, when David knocked on Genviéve's door. She had called him earlier that morning, and he was glad for it. It meant that she probably did want to try and see if they could work things out. He was feeling a bit anxious though. They hadn't made much of a breakthrough yet, and he had been in the US for a month already. Yes, he had apologised a million times. But sometimes that may never be enough. He heard the locks of the door being turned, and looked up in anticipation. He wasn't prepared for what he saw, though.

Genviéve opened the door and the second she laid eyes on him, she burst into tears. David was shocked, and although of late he had been very cautious about trying to touch her – not wanting to push her – he found himself automatically pull his black beauty into his embrace. He didn't know what was wrong, well, he sort of did. He was sure it had something to do with him, the whole affair. But the sudden onset of waterworks came as a surprise, especially because Genviéve had masked her emotions so well for the past month.

But, in fact, that's where the problem was. Genviéve had kept her sadness at bay for too long. Burying it in the darkest recesses of her mind, in the furthest corner of her heart, and really, she just couldn't take it anymore. Many times when David had come home she had felt on the verge of tears, but she could not allow herself to cry, because Jamie was always home. He was already so mad at his father, if she cried in her husband's presence she was not sure if her son would ever forgive David. He would probably blame his father for everything, and she truly just wanted to be a family again; somehow. And even if she and David may not be able to work things out, or be as they were before, she did not want that to ruin the relationship between him and their kids. Jamie was definitely taking the affair the hardest among all the children. And for that reason, she never cried, unless she was by herself in her room, at night, and was sure Jamie was dead asleep.

However, that morning Genviéve called David because she could not hold in her tears anymore. Her grief had reached its maximum threshold, and she just needed a good cry. Jamie was in school, so then would have been as good a time as any to release the pressure. And maybe, just maybe, shedding the last of her dignity before David may help her; help them. So she wept, she wept freely and bitterly into his chest as he held her close to him.

David felt his heart break for his wife. He knew exactly how she was feeling. Dear God, he knew exactly how she was feeling. And it was his fault. He betrayed himself; his principles. He remembered the promise he had made to himself decades ago. He head said he would never ever be a cheater. And now, decades later, he had proved his promise was nothing but words. He guided Genviéve into the living room as he shut the door. They sat on the sofa and he maintained silence as held her to him, resting his chin on the crown of her head.

Her voice broke when she finally spoke, her tears still cascading down her flushed cheeks. "You hurt me, David."

He swallowed a huge lump in his throat. "I know," he whispered.

"You hurt me, and I love you…it's why it hurts so much…*je t'aime. But I don't know if I can ever trust you again."

He sighed and held her even tighter as his voice broke too. "I know."

xxx

It was the final week of school, which meant every student worth their salt was busy memorising, cramming or doing whatever it took to stuff lots of info into their heads for their end of sem exams. So far the papers the KND group had done weren't too bad. Even Wally had no complaints, and that was saying something. The group had studied together, huddling in the library and revising their respective courses.

It was Thursday morning, and therefore the best day of the school semester for the couple because they were going to do their last papers that day, and finally get a break for a month before starting a new semester next spring. Abby and Hoagie had slept in an extra hour, half an hour of which was spent trying to convince each other to get out of bed. They obviously had not succeeded in their endeavour, as they kissed and cuddled and dozed off the whole time.

"Ok, seriously, we've got to get up," Abby said unconvincingly, not even opening her eyes as she spoke.

"Uh-uh," her boyfriend replied as he moved his hand from her waist to the small of her back and drew her closer to him. He planted a kiss on her forehead and then on her lips. "I like it here. It's warm."

"I know, but we gotta get up. Well, I've gotta get up. My paper is at one, and I wanna get to school by 11 – 11:30 so I can do some last minute studying," she said as she rose from the bed.

Hoagie groaned as he held on to her hand in futility, his eyes jammed shut. "Fine," he said in exasperation as he opened his eyes, squinting in the morning light. He threw the duvet aside and swung his legs over the edge of the bed as he moved to a sitting position. When Abby came round to his side of the bed he extended his arm and grabbed her hand, pulling her gently towards him. He held by the waist and brought her to stand between his legs as she leaned slightly into him. Being 'face to face' with her bare flat tummy, he kissed it, and her stomach muscles contracted involuntarily because her tummy was so sensitive to the touch. He then wrapped his arms around her slender waist and rested his head against her abdomen. "I'm tired," he said groggily. "Aren't you tired? Don't go," he said with a pout.

"I'd much rather be here with you, but…" she said as she broke free of his hold and tipped his head up so she could kiss him full on the mouth, "…I have to go." She walked off into the bathroom.

"I hate to see her go, but I love to watch her leave," he said as he watched her. She smirked and then swung her hips suggestively before popping her tush at him. He laughed as she shut the door behind her. Groaning, he scratched his head. "I need to study," he said as he grabbed a t-shirt that hang off a chair and wore it. He then reached for his spectacles case from the nightstand. Putting on his glasses, he walked into the living room where his books were as he shut the bedroom door behind him.

xxx

Abby grabbed her towel as she got out of the shower, feeling fresh and rejuvenated. She walked into the bedroom and got dressed. A few minutes later she exited her room as she made her way to the living room. She instantly felt sick to her stomach. Before her sat Hoagie, whose back was to her, with a gun pointed directly at him. Her eyes were wide as she saw Kensei standing in front of her boyfriend. His gaze shifted to her when she walked into the room. She had stopped dead in her tracks, and so he beckoned her to come to him. She walked slowly to him, fearing the worst. She didn't know if Hoagie was ok. From behind him she could only see the back of his head as he sat on the sofa, so she had no way of telling if he had been shot.

"Hoagie?" she called quietly and he turned his head slightly before Kensei waved his gun at him.

"I told you not to move. Please, don't tempt me," the young Japanese-looking man said as he smiled slightly. "Believe me when I say I would love to kill you." He then made a come hither gesture at the beautiful but frightened girl. "Hurry up!" he growled at her.

She walked faster to him and he grabbed her when she was within his reach. He held her in a one armed chokehold with her back to him. She could now look down at Hoagie. He was alright, thank God. She looked him over. He wasn't bleeding anywhere. He hadn't been shot. The lovers made eye contact, mesmerizing blue meeting coffee brown. Their eyes betrayed fear, but in Hoagie's there was anger too. When he spoke though, there was no anger, but desperation in his voice. "Please, let her go," he begged.

Kensei, whose gun was still trained on Hoagie, eyed the young man seated before him. He cocked his head slightly and scoffed. "Are you kidding me? I'm here for her. We are leaving together," he said as he held her tighter and she gasped.

"You're hurting her!" Hoagie said as he raised his voice and he started in his chair. As soon as he made the sudden movement, there was a quiet 'thup' as Kensei pressed the trigger of his silenced gun. "Argh," the brown haired boy groaned as a piercing pain spread in his shoulder. He heard Abby begin to let out a scream before she was quickly hushed by a nozzle to the temple. She watched in horror as blood trickled out of Hoagie's left shoulder. He brought his right hand up to it as he applied pressure. When he looked up Abby saw the same murderous eyes she had seen on him when Hoagie had fought Kensei. He fought against his anger as he tried to control the tremor in his voice. "Please, don't hurt her."

"Shut up." Who the hell does this kid think he is? "You're in no position to make requests or demands. I don't give a shit about you," Kensei said as he pointed the gun at Hoagie once again. He began to move back, dragging Abby along with him. She had her hands on his arm as she tried to loosen the vice-like grip he had on her so that she could breathe easier. "Now don't move, or else the next bullet will puncture your heart."

Hoagie watched helplessly as his girl and Kensei walked out the door. As soon as the door was shut from the outside he ran at it and without thinking, opened it.

Kensei laughed. "Do you have a death wish, buddy?" he asked. The younger man had found himself face to face with the wrong end of a gun. Hoagie stood still and raised his arms in surrender. He swallowed. "Get back in the bloody house!" The stalker commanded.

Hoagie took one agonizing step after another as he saw the distance between him and the love of his life become bigger and bigger. He looked at her and fear and sadness filled his heart. She was trying to be as brave as ever. Her tears flowed silently down her cheeks as watched him retreat. She extended her arm towards him a little bit, and was repaid for her action with a tighter chokehold. Hoagie knew then that the situation was grim. This man is mad, he thought. He wasn't sure what would happen; if either he or his girl would make it out of this alive. So he went out on a limb and said what was on his mind. "I love you Abby. I always will."

*Thup*

"NO!" Abby screamed as she watched Hoagie double over. "No no no," she cried as she tried to break free of Kensei's grasp. He knocked the side of her head with the butt of his gun, and everything went black.

xxx

Author's note:

*Mahanjam zinapanda is Sheng (Kenyan slang) used to express 'to be turned on'. So Abby was implying that Kev totally turns Pauline on, but it's kinda crude, and hence the laughter. (They are naughty girls).

*Je t'aime is French for 'I love you'. I know about this much French = The space between the bars of the equals sign is equivalent to the space between my thumb and index finger as I say I know 'this much' French.