Where the Lines Overlap

I knocked impatiently on the red wooden door in front of me. When someone didn't come to answer it straight away I sighed and pounded my fist against the wood once again. Nervously, I began chewing on the ends of my fingernails whilst trying to figure out just exactly what I was going to say.

Cameron pulled open his front door and stared at me. "Maria, what are you doing here?" He asked me, his expression somewhere between startled and confused. My eyes flashed down to the suit he was wearing and I stepped back, forgetting everything that I had come here to say.

"Please tell me it’s not true?" I whispered after a few minutes of recollecting my thoughts. It was amazing that he was able to hear me. I took a deep breath in to try and calm myself down. Cameron stepped forward out of his parents’ front door and put his hands gently on my shoulders.

"Maria, breathe for a second." He simply told me, staring straight into my eyes. I'd forgotten to breathe out after breathing in. I released the pressure on my lungs and quickly gulped in some more air after breathing out. "And tell me what the hell you're talking about!"

"What I'm talking about?" I fumed at him and stepped away from his hands. He looked hurt, but I had to remind myself that I was mad at him. One look at his confused face made me want to forget all that, but I was here to make a point and I was not going to leave without a fight. "You know damn well what I'm talking about."

"What!" He replied. "You turn up here on my doorstep, when you're supposed to be in Paris, screaming at me and expecting me to know why? Please elaborate Maria because I am extremely confused." He folded his arms and frowned at me.

"Well, there is the small detail that you're getting married." I pointed out to him. His face suddenly became emotionless; he'd finally twigged why I was so mad. I took another deep breath in and then out again. "Why didn't you tell me?" I asked him and looked away from his still confused blue eyes.

"It’s not something I could exactly explain over the phone, Maria." Cameron sighed and pressed his hand to his face.

"I'm supposed to be your best friend." I reminded him and folded my arms. "If you can't tell me then who can you tell?"

"I don’t know." Cameron sighed. "This isn't really the time or place to talk about this Maria. I'm supposed to be at the church in a few hours."

"Isn't the time or place?" I asked him and shook my head in anger. "It wasn't the fucking time or place to tell me you loved me before I went away to Paris. But you did it anyway!" I reminded him with a raised voice. He glanced behind him frantically at the open house door before closing it quickly and grabbing the top of my arms once again. He forced me to look into his eyes, but I still continued to frown at him.

"Do not bring that up now." He warned me. I pulled myself away from his grasp and started to walk away from him slowly, but never taking my eyes away from his. "It's really not a good time."

"When will the right time be then?" I asked. "We need to talk before you do something you're going to regret."

"I don't have the time Maria."

"Make the time." I pleaded with him. "If not for me, do it for yourself. Please. I have to talk to you and figure out what the hell is going on. I think I deserve an explanation." He looked unsure. "You know where I'll be." I told him and turned to walk away down the street. I didn't stop to look back and see if he'd move, because part of me knew what his decision would be.

I took the long country lane right to the end, and just before the turning that would take me into town I crossed the road and walked slowly down a small pathway that led to a small lake. I'd discovered this small lake when I was eleven. I'd just started high school, stumbling across it one day when I'd fallen out with my mum and I just wanted to be alone for a few hours. Over the past seven years I'd come to the lake when ever I felt like spending some time with my own thoughts. Cameron, being my best friend usually was the one who came to find me and bring me back to the land of the living whenever I disappeared for a few hours.

I stumbled down the path, with it being summer all the bushes were overgrown and over the footpath that I had created with the amount of times I'd walked down there. A few times I tripped over a stray fallen branch from a tree, but I carried on walking till I reached the edge of the lake. When I reached the still blue waters I slipped off my shoes and dipped my feet into the cool water. Now all I had to do was wait, and see if my friendship actually meant anything to him anymore.

"Ok. I'm here."

I turned round, shocked that Cameron had arrived so soon after I had. Either that or time had really flown by. I looked up into his eyes and then turned around and watched the still waters of the lake. I heard Cameron walk closer towards me and then he sat down next to me.

"Why are you marrying her?" I asked after a few minutes of silence. Cameron sighed and I looked over at him, watching him try to skim stones over the surface of the lake. I looked away and waited patiently for my answer.

"I don't have much of a choice." He replied after he'd run out of stones to throw.

"That's not really an answer," I replied quietly.

"She's pregnant." Cameron interrupted me before I had the chance to say anything more about why he should give me an answer. My mouth dropped open and I turned back to look at him. He kept his eyes firmly on the trees at the other side of the lake, never once looking back at me as he waited for a reaction.

"What?" I asked in shock. It was only now that Cameron looked over at me, his usually bright and brilliantly blue eyes seeming not so bright or brilliant anymore. “Are you some kind of idiot?” I asked him and shook my head. Cameron scoffed and shook his head back at me.

“What?” He replied with an open mouth. “I was expecting a wow or some kind of congratulations or something. But seriously!”

“Is it even yours?” I asked sourly. “You know what Jodie is like.”

“Of course its mine.” He replied, equally as sourly as I had asked him. “This isn’t high school anymore you know. Jodie has apologized for what she did then, its all in the past.” I raised an eyebrow at him. “We don’t have any secrets.”

“Oh, really?” I asked him. “So did you tell her about what happened before I went to Paris?”

He looked away from me again and I saw his hands clench into fists at his sides. I knew he wouldn’t be mad at me, but more at the situation we’d gotten ourselves into.

“Obviously not.” Cameron fumed and then sighed.

“Hypocrite.” I mumbled and my best friend tried to glare at me before his face broke into a small smile.

“I know.” He sighed again. “But I’d break her heart, especially right now. I can’t be that guy that ups and leaves his girlfriend when she’s five months pregnant.”

“So, you didn’t know when I left?” I asked him after a few minutes. He nodded slowly and he relaxed a little.

“I had no idea. We’d been on that ‘break’ for a week or so.” He shook his head at the memory. “She didn’t know herself till the week after you’d gone.”

“I don’t understand why you have to marry her though.” I sighed. “Isn’t that a bit old fashioned?”

“Yeah, but it seems like the right thing to do.” Cameron explained. I sighed and I had to sort of nod in agreement. Cameron looked over into my eyes and smiled halfheartedly. “You understand where I’m coming from don’t you?”

“Not really. I suppose you have a point, but I still think there is no need to marry someone because they're pregnant. Especially if you don't love them.” I tried to argue but then sighed in defeat. “I’m sorry. I guess I was just hurt that you didn’t tell me. Do you realise how crushed I would have been if I’d have come back home in a couple of days and found out?”

“I know, and I’m sorry.” Cameron laughed to himself and draped his arm over my shoulder and gave me a tight and quick hug. I let my head rest against him and closed my eyes.

“I just want to stay like this forever.” I confessed. “Right here, right now.” I heard Cameron chuckle to himself and I smiled. “I missed you while I was away.”

“Of course.” Cameron laughed again and kissed the top of my head. I moved away from him and looked into his eyes once again.

“Maybe we should talk about what happened?” I suggested. “I mean you did confess that you were apparently madly in love with me the night before I was about to hop on a flight to Paris for six months, and then … well we both got carried away.” I trailed off and blushed slightly.

“Yeah, I suppose that would be a good thing to do.” Cameron half smiled at me. “But you do know whatever I’m going to say isn’t going to change what I’m going to do this afternoon.”

I nodded, understanding exactly what he was trying to get at. I looked away from him and sighed. I heard his suit shift and soon his arm was around my shoulders again. Shyly I glanced at him from the corner of my eye. He must have noticed because he smiled reassuringly at me.

"I meant it though, every word of it." He confessed. "But I guess some things just aren't meant to be."

I nodded and looked away from him once again. The summer breeze blew around us and some of my hair blew in front of my face. No sooner had I looked away could I feel Cameron’s soft hand reaching to touch my cheek softly and brush the hair behind my ear. This time I turned my head fully towards him and simply stared at him.

He leaned closer to me and softly pressed his lips to mine. I seemed to forget about everything and just lived in the moment. I reached up to place my hand on the back of his neck as he intertwined his hand that was not touching my cheek with my own free hand. Cameron moved his hand from my cheek down to my back and pulled me closer to him slowly rubbing his thumb gently across my hand. And then as quickly as it had begun, it was all over.

"I'm sorry." Cameron sighed as he pulled away but not taking his hand away from my back. "I shouldn't have done that."

"No you probably shouldn't." I replied and then laughed quietly to myself.

Cameron dropped his hand from my back and shuffled away from me. Now there was only our hands’ connecting the two of us. We both looked down at them and then separated ourselves completely.

"I probably should go." Cameron suddenly stood up. I stared up at him, trying not to look disappointed, but I couldn't help it. He looked like he was about to say something else, but he didn't. I sighed shook my head.

Instead I looked down at my hands and whispered something to myself. I didn't expect him to hear, because part of me didn't want him to. From his lack of reaction I guessed he didn't. I looked back up at him and he was holding out his hand.

"Are you coming?" He asked. I shook my head instantly.

"No thanks. I'm not in the mood to watch you get married to someone who will just hurt you at the end of the day." I frowned. I wanted to laugh, to show him I was only joking but I couldn't make myself.

"No matter what though, I still love you Maria." Cameron confessed and then frowned in confusion when I didn't reply. I just continued to stare up into his blue eyes. He then turned to walk away, heading in the direction of the road. I stayed sat by the lake for who knows how long. It hurt that he didn't turn round and come back and promise me that everything was going to be ok. The shadows of the trees soon stretched far across the green grass and I had to accept the fact that he'd picked her over me.

"I love you too." I whispered into the slowly approaching darkness before picking myself up from the grass and walking in the direction that my best friend had headed what seemed like a lifetime ago.