3. Play
Karma tries to deny that it ever happened, but she feels her guilt build every day. Amy never mentions the impromptu make-out session, but it has been eating at Karma all week. Even her musical writing class hasn't been nearly as enjoyable as usual. She tries to avoid the subject of Halloween at all, instead putting her nervous energy working on assignments early at the library, away from their room.
It almost works. Karma successfully avoids Amy, save for at night wherein Karma still thoughtlessly crawls into Amy's bed. They have both found that sleeping together and cuddling feels more normal than weird after few nights, because they are best friends. Karma is reading her textbook for class when her phone buzzes in her pocket. She assumes it's Liam, because he's been asking her to eat dinner together for a few days now.
Other than Amy, Karma has only seen friends from class, mostly to study together. She does not want to really hangout with anyone close enough to notice that there is an inner turmoil going on inside of her head. Karma wishes she could just go to sleep and not wake up until the fall semester is over. But she's motivated by the thought that she needs to do well in school to show her parents she isn't going to suddenly become some criminal. Even though they took the news of her alcohol citation surprisingly well, they still mentioned what would happen if she ever lost her scholarships. (No college.) And that kind of wake-up call drove Karma to new heights of focus.
The library is always filled with every type of student: those procrastinating on their laptops, stressed and focused engineers, and people hyped up on Adderall planning on staying until ungodly hours. It made Karma feel better, being in a room full of people, even if she might never strike a conversation with any of them. She continues to take notes, ignoring her phone until it goes off again.
07:30 PM – Amy: Hey. Are you coming back soon?
07:34 PM – Karma: Miss me already?
07:40 PM – Amy: Of course, I haven't had you all to myself in a while.
The message is so honest, Karma almost wants to turn off her phone and ignore it. She considers her response.
08:00 PM – Karma: Sorry, I've been a bit tied up lately.
08:03 PM – Amy: Gross, don't reference your kinky sex life to me. ;)
Karma isn't sure why this sudden comment makes her nervous. It is just a joke, but she can't help but think about being in a compromising position with someone else. It seems like the epitome of intimacy. And though Karma knows very little about BDSM, she understands that it requires complete trust.
After another half hour of diligent note taking, Karma leaves the library to meet Amy for dinner. Karma is eating a vaguely edible wrap, and Amy is scarfing down fries and chicken tenders like there's no tomorrow. Because it's late, almost when the dining hall will transition to serving its late night menu, there aren't many people around.
So, Karma feels doubly unlucky when she finds Liam Booker walking toward them. He is with three other people. It's mostly weird to see him around so late, because he lives off campus in an apartment.
"Don't look now, it's the broody Squirkle Heir," Amy jokes. She still doesn't like him too much, but she knows Karma and Liam are strictly friends now.
"Too late," Liam laughs as he walks up the pair. "How are you, Karma…Amy?" He seems to tack on Amy as an after thought.
"Good, leaving actually," Karma isn't in the mood to deal with Liam's overbearing concern.
"Alright, see you ladies around then," Karma smiles sheepishly at him, as he leaves to rejoin his friends. She pulls Amy up, mid-bite, and forces them to leave. They walk back to the quad silently.
When they're in their room, door locked, Amy immediately goes to the bed and buries herself under the sheets. Karma wants to join her friend, but thinks better of it and goes to her desk, opening her laptop to work on editing her paper for English. From beneath her nest, Amy watches Karma for a few minutes. Then the interrogation begins.
"Yo, Karma, what was up with you and Booker earlier? I mean, I'm not a fan of him either, but you seemed mighty hasty to get outta there," Amy's eyes are closed, but she seems to be thinking about something hard.
"Oh, it's nothing," Karma lies. "I just realized I needed to work on this paper."
"If you say so. You've been acting weird lately—skittish, almost. Everything okay, Karma?"
"Never better." Amy's concern makes Karma feel guilty, but she's not sure what to say. Really, she should be asking Amy if she's okay, with the way she's been acting. Drunkenly kissing her and not explaining or apologizing for it later? Cuddling with her like it's a normal best friend thing to do? Avoiding Amy to avoid the guilt? Karma feels like the worse best friend ever, but she's not sure how to approach any of these subjects. So she continues rereading her paper.
A couple of minutes pass, then:
"I don't really believe you, Karma. But I'll let it slide," Amy comments without looking up from a game of Candy Crush on her phone. Eventually, Karma finishes her homework when Amy gets ready to start hers. Amy gathers her materials and heads to the lounge.
Karma returns to her shower to find the room still empty. She is sitting at her computer still in a towel, feeling too lazy to change yet. She's mindlessly browsing Facebook when Amy suddenly bursts through the door rather loudly.
"Fuck! I forgot my problem set in here," Amy whines, and then she realizes Karma isn't dressed. "Shit, sorry." Amy scurries into the room, grabs a sheet of paper on her desk, and promptly exits.
10:17 PM – Karma: Amy, why did you almost have a heart attack just now? Breathe!
10:19 PM – Amy: You startled me.
10:25 PM – Karma: Geez, by the way you ran out of there it's like I was watching porn or something.
10:30 PM – Amy: Was it bondage?
10:37 PM – Karma: Do your homework, Amy.
It's past midnight when Amy finally comes back to their room. Karma has just finished her cup of tea.
"Sorry about earlier, I was just pissed. Frankie wanted to race me who could finish the problem set first, but I didn't actually have it with me. He refused to share, so needless to say, I had to sprint here to grab it." Amy explains haphazardly while she removes each article of clothing, discarding it in her laundry hamper.
"Did you win?" Karma quirks an eyebrow.
"Yep. He now owes me a dozen doughnuts," Amy smiles triumphantly, wrapping a towel around herself. Of course Frankie would make that sort of bet with her. He's a cocky guy that lives on their floor, also a computer science major. Karma feels weird about the thought of Amy and Frankie doing homework together, even if it is under the guise of a competition for doughnuts. She doesn't like the thought of them spending extra time together.
But it's really inevitable that Amy will extra spend time with any of the guys on their floor, considering that most of them hang out in the lounge. And Amy seems to focus better in the lounge, rather than in their room. Karma dismisses the jealous inkling, thinking that the time apart is good for them. She doesn't want to confuse Amy more, even if it's not as risky since Amy has gotten over her feelings for her.
Amy walks out of their room to take a shower, oblivious of Karma's inner conflict. That's when Karma decides to call it a night, and while Amy's not in the room, she makes the autonomous decision to settle into her own bed. It feels less comfortable than Amy's bed. But she knows it'll be healthier to draw the line of separation.
When Amy returns from her shower, hair still wet, smelling like her body wash, she immediately notices Karma in her own bed. The lights are off and it's dark, so she can't tell if Karma's eyes are closed, but Amy utilizes the element of surprise by pouncing on top of Karma.
"Amy, what the hell?!" Amy's straddling Karma, still in only a towel. She starts tickling Karma's next, and the next moment their laughter fills the dark room. Karma tries to reverse their positions, but the comforter confines her so she isn't at a good angle to do much.
"You have to say mercy," Amy smirks.
"Amy—" Here Karma gasps in laughter. "MERCY!" Amy stops, and Karma finally catches her breath. It feels good when they return to this kind of playful friendship that they have always had. Amy is usually the instigator, while Karma goes along with her antics. Even though Karma has felt distant lately, Amy knows the right moment of when to draw her back in. That's what Karma loves most about their friendship: they manage to give and take so perfectly from each other.
"Karma, are you really going to sleep there tonight?" Amy questions her, which Karma is surprised by that.
"Yeah, I guess I should really sleep in my own bed some of these nights." Karma wants to shrug, but Amy is still on top of her in a fresh towel. They seem to be near naked around each other a lot these days.
"Fiiiiine, you have a point," Amy pouts. Actually pouts, which is something Karma finds hilarious. Amy constantly tries to act sardonic and carefree when she's around everyone else, but around Karma she is comfortable enough to show this cute side of herself.
"But tomorrow you'll sleep with me?" She asks with a little more hope than Karma had expected.
"Of course," Karma grins mischievously. "What's friendship without cuddling?"
A/N: If you couldn't already tell, this is a very Karma-centric story. I wanted to explore the intricacies of her character a little more, partially because I already feel like "Faking It" portrays Amy's quite well. But for the most part, the show has made Karma seem rather shallow and callous. But I know she's much more than that.