♫ Drew ♫
I feel like I was doused with freezing water when Leslie told me that we should end our relationship. Even when she got inside her unit, I stayed out in a daze.
I wasn’t sure if I should knock on her door or just let her go in the meantime. Even during his Dad's dinner party, she made it clear we were over.
No matter how I squeeze my brain, I can’t figure out the reason why it ended up like this. so without finishing my food, I headed to the studio.
I was lying on the couch with the lights off. Not sure how long I’d been in that position when the lights turned on.
I forced myself to open my eyes and was surprised to see Kevz and the rest of the boys there. “We knew you'd be here,” Kip clapped my leg before sitting on the couch.
“Why are you guys here?” I asked confused.
“Uncle Ed asked us to look for you,” I creased my forehead. ‘Why would Leslie's dad do that?’ “Uncle Chris said he called your house and you’re not home yet, so we decided to check for you here,” Homme explained.
“So, enlighten us, what happened?” Kip pried. “I thought you guys were fine all along. How did you two break up?”
“I don’t know too,” I sighed. “Remember how she's not answering my calls? I waited for her at her condo the other night but I guess she didn’t go home that night. I come back every night until I was able to see her. When we talked, she told me she wants to end our relationship, she broke up with me,” I glanced at Kevz as I noticed that he’s been pacing back and forth since they arrived. “Do you know anything?” I asked him.
He stopped and stared at me for a few seconds before sitting on the bean bag closest to me. “Dude, the other night, Partner came here because she saw you waiting for her.”
“And?” Roj asked impatiently.
“She said she doesn't want Drew to see him so she went here. I asked if something was going on between the two of them and she said yes. But then I told her I won’t force her to say anything if she’s not ready yet.”
“How can we fix this if she won’t say anything?” I asked, infuriated. “Can she just break up with me without giving me a reason?”
“What did you two talk about? How did she tell you that she wants to break up?” Homme queried.
Leaning back, I tried to recall my conversation with her last night. “I asked her why she's so distant and why she's avoiding my call. Then she told me we should just end our relationship. I asked why and she said she told me before that she hates to be cheated and lied to, but I did both in a week.”
“And she's referring to the holiday break?” Kip asked and I nodded.
“What exactly did you do?” it was Roj this time.
“I can’t think of anything, to be honest,” I sighed. “Ok, so let’s say I didn’t tell her about the party, she found out about it. She even tried calling me on Christmas Eve, but I wasn't able to answer it. I tried calling her the next day and she wasn't answering my calls anymore.”
“Could it be because you weren’t able to answer the call?”Roj assumed.
“That’s all?”
“That can’t be,” Kevz interrupted. “After I went to Drew, I called and told her that he’s still asleep because of the party. She said it’s fine and that she’d just call her the next day.”
“See? It’s not that shallow. There must be another reason. The question is, what is it?” Homme stated.
“Exactly! I woke up at three in the afternoon of the 25th. I called her but she didn’t answer. Then I saw the pics David posted. I still tried calling until New Year but to no avail.”
“But think about it guys. Based on Uncle Chris’ story, Lem locked herself inside the room on the 26th. Then something must have happened between 25th and 26th,” Kip theorized.
“But what?!” I asked confused. “I didn’t even leave the house during those days. Well, except when we meet here.”
“That I think is true. Partner and I were able to talk to one of the members of the sorority and she told us you didn’t go to the countdown party,” Kevz narrated.
“It’s hard to think how you ended up like this,” Roj said in surrender and I can’t come up with anything to say. Even I can’t think how Leslie came up with that decision.
“Hang on…” Kevz broke the silence. “Can you be honest with us Drew?” and I nodded. “Is there something going on between you and that Nica?”
“Nica who? The girl who came here?” Homme asked and Kevz nodded.
“There’s none!” I answered firmly but they were just staring at me as if I just said the biggest lie. Defeated, I sighed, “Fine and I’m sorry. Nica and I had a thing even before Leslie left for the holidays. We had a fling or something like that,” I confessed.
“Wow, you’re really an asshole!” Kip spat at me.
“You mean, you cheated on Lemon?” Homme asked, obviously annoyed.
“Sorry! I’m really sorry!” I looked at them one by one before cupping my face and letting out a sigh. “I was frustrated that time. I talked to her several times about Zone but she won't listen. She always has an excuse and I felt insecure. I feel like Zone’s more important to her than me. I think that’s why I ended up entertaining someone else,” I explained.
They were all quiet for a moment. I know they’re mad and I'm more than willing to face the consequences of what I did.
“Don't you think it's Nica?” Kevz asked.
“How? What do you mean?” Homme queried.
“I don’t know too,” Kevz sighed while Kip rolled his eyes. Homme and Roj sighed and I just bowed my head again. “That Nica affects her. Does she know Lemon? She knows she’s your girlfriend?” he asked and I shook my head.
“How? Can you explain it?” Kip pried, close to losing his patience.
“On our first day of school, right after the holidays, one of the members of the sorority called us. She was asking about Drew, but since she was talking to me, Partner was just quiet, listening. All of a sudden, this Nica girl showed up and when she looked at her, Partner’s hands started shaking then she paled. After that, she excused herself, and the next thing I know, she already fainted in the restroom.”
“What?! You mean she knows Nica?” I blurted out.
“I don't think she does. She wasn’t here when Nica came,” Roj answered.
“Ahhh! This is frustrating! If she knows her, then how? Nica never mentioned her nor asked about my girlfriend or if I even have one. Besides, if it's Nica, how can they talk when she was on a vacation?”
I feel like all of us are confused. Not one of us can explain what happened that caused Leslie to decide to break up with me.
After an hour or more, we've decided to go home in the meantime. When I got home, I went straight to the veranda.
I slumped on the garden chair and closed my eyes. After a few seconds, I felt someone pull a chair and saw my dad when I opened my eyes.
“How are you son?” he asked without looking at me.
I sat up and sigh. “Not ok Dad. I don't even know what's going on.”
He cleared his throat before sipping from his cup of coffee. “Why don't you retrace your steps, son. Go back to where you were before we left. Maybe then you’ll figure out where it went wrong.”
“I did, dad,” I answered quickly. “Kevz and the rest of the guys helped me but I still can't find the missing puzzle.”
“Hmm. How much do you love her? Leslie, I mean,” he asked again.
“So much! Even now, I don’t know what to do anymore just because she broke up with me.”
“Are you sure about that?” narrowing his eyes at me, even he, seems to be doubting my feelings for her.
“Dad, I'm willing to save her with my life,” I sighed.
Dad was silent for a few seconds as if he was thinking about something before letting out a sigh. “I was able to talk to your brother after we came back. Now you go to him and ask, he probably knows something.”
Without wasting a second, I run up the stairs and knock on David’s room. “David!” I called as I continue knocking. “I need your help,” I told him as soon as he opened the door. He creased his forehead for a second before letting me in.
“Is this about Leslie?” he asked and I nodded before sitting on the edge of the bed. “Then I can't help you, bro. I know nothing too.”
“But Dad said you can help me out!” I whined.
Again, his forehead wrinkled. “Maybe dad thought Leslie and I talked about it. But she didn't give me any details as to what the problem is. All I know is that it’s about you and whatever it is you did,” he smirked.
My shoulders automatically slumped after hearing what David said. Just like everyone else, all he knows is that there’s something wrong, but he doesn’t know what it was.
I stood up after thanking him. I was on my way out when he called me back. “Wait Drew,” I turned around to face him. “I recall something. On Christmas Eve, someone called her but I’m sure she doesn’t know who it was.”
"What do you mean?"
"She received a call while we were in the garden. I'm positive she doesn't know the caller because it took her a while to answer and the number’s not registered on her phone but she answered anyway as it won’t stop ringing. After that, she was just in a daze, so I asked her why. Her exact words were ‘The caller asked me to check my email, she said it’s important.’ Then the caller apparently ended the call after telling her that. I'm pretty sure she wasn’t able to check because we weren’t allowed to use the internet after dinner. She checked it the next day or the next next day. That was probably why she locked herself inside the room. But I feel like she’s already seen it the next day since she's always spacing out even when we’re all busy posing for her cousin. But aside from that, I know nothing more.”
I heard everything clearly but my brain can’t process it. When I came out of his room, I immediately texted Kevz.
I need to talk to him. If I remember correctly, he can access Leslie’s email. Hopefully, I can find there what I should be looking for.