04: Books: Courtney and Trent

Courtney tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for her mocha latte with non-fat whipped cream and dark chocolate drizzle. She hated lines, well really it was the waiting that got to her, and she swore if she had to wait for this barista another minute she was going to throw a brick at the girl's head. It didn't help that the girl looked too much like a certain backstabbing goth Courtney would rather not recall.

She let out an annoyed huff as she took her drink from the girl's pale hands and gave a curt "thank you". It took her months to find this new coffee place when she transferred to Chicago to continue with her law degree that fall, and while the coffee was good, it was the atmosphere she liked best. The booths were cloaked in relatively darkness with antique lamps dangling above. Old paperbacks were sold for cheap on the back wall, but the thing that made it the best was hardly anyone came to the place. If she needed to do homework when her roommate was too busy gabbing with friends or taking a boy to her bedroom, Courtney would grab her things and head to the shop to get some work done.

Currently, she had no work. The law student was just in a bad mood and didn't want to be around anyone. She got a Facebook update that morning that turned her mood quite sour.

"SHE SAID YES". Courtney didn't follow Duncan on Facebook anymore, not since their breakup when they were still in high school, but Bridgette liked the status and photo of the ring attached and it showed up on her newsfeed. As soon as she saw it, she growled. What in God's name was Duncan thinking, getting married before he was even twenty-five? Didn't he know the statistics of failure that were looming over them? No, of course he didn't, Courtney wasn't there to tell him. She hadn't been there in a while.

The bull-headed young woman slammed her laptop shut then stormed out of the residence, stomping her way to the shop with her knee-high boots. Now, she looked around for her favourite booth, the one next to the books, but saw it was occupied. Courtney was not in the mood to deal with this stupidity, so she marched over and was about to yell at the intruder when she recognized him.

"Trent? What are you doing here?"

The dark haired boy looked up from his copy of "A Christmas Carol" and stared at the dark eyed girl in surprise. He hadn't changed much since "Total Drama". She saw his guitar case beside him and his skin was still as fair as it had been when they last saw each other a while ago at the reunion Geoff and Owen organized.

She wasn't sure what to make of his presence. Courtney always associated him with Gwen, and currently she despised the girl who stole her boyfriend and was now engaged to him. Yet Trent had never done anything wrong to the law student personally. If anything, he knew her situation better than most, since he too had been left for another. She brushed aside her shoulder length caramel hair and waited for an answer.

He smiled at her and his green eyes lit up pleasantly. "Courtney, hey! I didn't know you were in Chicago," he said as he put down his book.

"I transferred in the fall to take some courses for my law degree. I might go back to Harvard in the spring," she wasn't sure why she added that last part, but she felt it necessary to explain fully why exactly she was there. "What are you doing here? I thought you were in San Francisco?"

Trent shrugged. "Plans changed. Well, my place got flooded so I had to leave."

"Oh no, that's too bad! Was anything ruined?"

He held up his guitar case. "Nothing that mattered. Why don't you sit down? It's been a while since we caught up." He moved over in the booth, giving her enough room. While it might not be the best thing for her to be around people, she couldn't deny the sweet guy.

She reluctantly sat beside him and took a sip of her coffee that had cooled down a little. At first, neither said a thing. Trent was looking at her and she stared at the wall across from them, keeping herself composed.

"Okay, I have to say something. How in the world did you ever manage to date Gwen?"

Trent blinked but chuckled at the surprise question. "I don't know, it just happened. One of those unexplainable things I guess." He shrugged. "I could ask the same about you and Duncan though. Although, I'm guessing you saw the Facebook update and would rather not discuss him . . ."

"Oh no, I have no problem talking about the boy that left me for some stupid, unoriginal, boyfriend-stealing loser," she seethed, taking another sip of her drink. Courtney realized she was talking to the boy that once loved Gwen a lot and felt bad for what she said.

"I'm sorry, that was uncalled for."

Trent shook his head. "All things considered, I think it's appropriate. Still, I'm surprised you haven't let go of him yet."

Courtney blinked. "What do you mean, haven't let go? I've moved on. I'm going to be a successful lawyer and he'll be living in poverty with Gwen and their little munchkins," she grumbled, gripping the cup tighter in her hand.

"See, that's your problem Court, you're so concerned about beating him, beating Gwen, being better than them both, that you can't even see how miserable you are." Trent placed a hand on her shoulder. "You gotta let him go."

The student glared at him and wanted to say something biting, something that would push him away, but she couldn't think of anything that would do the trick. Nothing really got to Trent. He was so cool and laid back, almost like Geoff except he had his music to keep him involved in the real world. She wanted to tell him he was wrong, that she had moved on, but had she really? It had been years since they dated, and she hadn't dated anyone since. She claimed it was because she was focused on more important things, but really, her wounds were still open from Duncan. He never apologized for leaving her, not that she expected him to, but she wished he had, because healing started with admitting wrong doings, and she knew they both had done their fair share.

Courtney's gaze softened and she sighed, her shoulders slumping forward. "How did you do it, let her go that is?"

"I wrote her a letter telling her I was sorry for the mistakes I made while we dated. I admitted to myself, and to her, that I wasn't perfect and I hoped she was happy. After that, I got invested in my music and stopped feeling guilty for things I had done in the past," he explained.

"Did it work?"

Trent grinned. "I think so. She sent me one too and while we don't talk, we don't hate each other either. We can be civil to each other and genuinely wish the other well. That helps."

Courtney nodded and glanced at his book. She picked it up and smiled half-heartedly. "This used to be my favourite book. I watched every movie they ever made about it," she commented out of the blue.

The young musician chuckled. "Me too! I think I have a copy of the Disney version lying around in my apartment. Want to come back and watch it?"

She mulled over the idea for a minute before nodding. "Sure, it's not like I have plans or anything. Maybe while there you could help me write a letter?"

Trent nodded and got out of the booth, extending his hand to her. "Sounds good to me." She took it and they left the store together, book and guitar in hand.