TRUE LOVE 2 [Chapter 11: The Secret Garden]

The day of staying with Larissa, turned into five days. It gave me time to cool down. Nick had been surprisingly understanding. I knew that I had to handle the situation delicately. I was going to act as if nothing was wrong. I didn’t want to break up with Nick…I just wanted to confront him of his childish actions. But tonight was not the night. As previously arranged, I had plans to go out with Natalie. I headed back to Brad’s house and got ready there, since most of my nice clothes were hanging in Nick’s closet. He gave me a tight hug and kissed me.

“I missed you baby.” He said with a smile…oh that smile and his eyes…Stop it Joey.

“I missed you too.” I lied…okay…it was sort of a lie. I did miss him…but I was still angry and the time away did some good

“What are you doing?” he asked as I looked through the closet

“Getting ready.”

“You’re leaving again?” he asked

“Yeah, remember I told you last week that I made plans with Natalie.”

I looked over at Nick who didn’t seem too enthused about me leaving.

“You mind if I come?” he asked giving me sad puppy dog eyes

Damn it. If I told him no, he would just continue to harass me the entire time I was out with her.

“Sure, babe.” I said

He smiled and walked over to me, wrapping his arms around my lower back and pulled me in. My hands were smashed up between my chest and his. His hard pecs were such a turn on. He leaned in to kiss me and I obliged. Fuck. He was an amazing kisser.

Nick wanted to have sex, but I told him we were already running late, so we skipped it unfortunately and finished getting ready. We drove to Phillip’s and picked up Natalie. She didn’t seem too thrilled that Nick was coming with us. She was however polite as always. We arrived at the club, which was 18 and over, so there were a lot of kids we recognized from high school. A few of them greeted us, others thought they were too good for us and just ignored us as we strolled through the crowd.

“Who are you looking for?” I asked Natalie as she held onto my hand pulling me through the crowded dance floor

We finally emerged from the mosh pit and walked over to a crowd of some familiar faces again from high school.

“Oh my God!” screamed the girl as she jumped up and latched onto both Natalie and me

“Jasmine! Holy shit!” I squeezed her completely shocked

“I missed you guys so much!” she said finally releasing us

“Thank you so much for coming.” Natalie said

“Of course, when you told me you had some important news, I’m like...oh…this is going to be good.” She laughed, “Oh…hi…Nick.” She stumbled over her words

“Hello.” He smiled politely

“I’ll fill you in later.” I whispered into her ear pretending to hug her again

We sat down in the lounge area that seemed to be reserved for our group. A few minutes after we had arrived, Larissa came and hugged us all, including Nick, which surprised me. Natalie introduced her to Jasmine and they seemed to be getting along. After catching up with everyone, Natalie finally prepared to give her announcement.

“Okay everyone. I just wanted to thank you all for coming. I know some of you came out of town and it means the world to me that you traveled all this way, but I wouldn’t have it any other way than to tell you in person that…I’m getting married!”

Nick and I clapped as the girls screamed and ran over to Natalie to hug her. After the girls let her go, I walked in to hug Natalie and congratulated her. Nick then followed, slightly picking up Natalie off the ground. She laughed and pointed at him, “Thanks Nick…but you better take care of my Joey. He’s an amazing guy.”

“I promise. He’s the light of my life.” He smiled at me

It was responses like this that made me smile and melt inside. Damn it, Nick. Natalie gave out a mild “awe”. Nick headed back over to join the conversation with Larissa and Jasmine.

“Hey. Do you have a couple minutes?” Natalie asked me

“Yeah, what’s up?” I asked

“Let’s head to the bar area.” She said

I looked over to Nick who was smiling at me. I gestured that I would be right back. He nodded. We got to the bar, sitting at the very far side of the club opposite of where our group was, secure and hidden.

“Phillip told me that he asked you to be his best man.” She started

“Yeah. I was in total shock.” I smiled

“He loves you like a brother. I’m glad he didn’t chose anyone else.” She said

“I know. He is like a brother and I’d do anything for him.”

“Well, there is something you can do for him…more for me though.” She continued

“And, what is that?”

“Cameron is going to be in the wedding as well.” She said

“I figured as much.” I smirked

“He really does miss you.”

“Natalie.” I tried to stop her

“No, listen please. He would be so upset if I told you…he’s fallen into a depression.” She stated

“What? Are you serious?” I asked concerned

“Really. He stopped shaving, he hasn’t really been out of the house, except to work and that one time that he went to the golf course with Phillip.”

“Jesus.” I responded

“Did Phillip tell you about what Nick did?” she said looking up at her surroundings to make sure we were still alone

“Yes. I’m so furious about that.”

“We’re all convinced that Nick is still the same old Nick. The only difference here is…you.”

“What do you mean?” I asked

“He’s only sweet and kind, when he’s around you.” She clarified

“Are you sure you aren’t just trying to protect Cameron?” I asked

“What? Joey…get real.” She laughed, “You know I wouldn’t be so immature about this. Besides, I’m not taking sides and if I were to take sides…it would be yours. What Cameron did was unacceptable; arguing over money, making you seem to be some sort of gold digger and unappreciative person, blaming you for everything. He knows that what he did was wrong…” she said

“It was wrong…and it hurt me.” I interjected

“Yeah…but we’re human. We make mistakes. I’ve made mistakes with Phillip, he has with me. But we know in the end of the day, we’re meant for each other.” She smiled at me

“Nick is a good man to me. He makes me happy.” I explained to her

“All the time?” she asked

“Well…not recently…but yeah.”

“How often do you guys have sex?” she asked bluntly

“Natalie.” I laughed

“Seriously…how often?”

“I don’t know. Every day?”

“How many times a day?” she asked

“Usually once, but on occasion, twice.”

“When is the last time you had sex?” she continued to ask

“About a week ago.” I confessed

“Which is when you found out how Nick has been acting when he isn’t around you…right?”

My God. She was right.

“Don’t you get it? You are only happy when you guys screw. When you snap out of it and face reality, you see the person he can truly be. I don’t doubt, Nick is a good boyfriend to you. He may be great boyfriend material, but when he’s without you by his side…he’s still Nick from High School.”

She was completely right. I had been so lost in this lust I’ve had with Nick, that I forgot what was important…and opening my eyes to the word around me. I didn’t love Nick…I loved having sex with Nick…I loved having that touch of someone who loved me…but it wasn’t supposed to be with Nick, it was supposed to be with Cameron.

“So what are you going to do about?” she asked

“I know what I gotta do. But I have to play this out right.” I said

“I’m glad you came to your senses.” She smiled at me

We stood up and hugged.

“Thank you. You have always looked out for me.” I told her

“You’re like my brother. I love you.” She said releasing me

We headed back to our friends, enjoyed the rest of the night. Nick and I returned to his brother’s place. Again, Nick wanted to have sex, but I told him that I wasn’t feeling well. He stayed by my side, like a good boyfriend. I pretended to fall asleep in his arms. A few minutes after, I felt Nick look over to see if I was asleep. He kissed me on my forehead and whispered in my ear, “I love you.” I felt my eyes begin to water as they remained shut. Damn you, Nick. Why couldn’t you be better? Why did you have to show your true colors? Why couldn’t you be more like Cameron? Wait…that was the problem. Nobody could be like Cameron. He was my one true love…my forever. I needed to fix this.

            The next morning, I got up early, slipping out of Nick’s arms. He laid naked in bed. Before I left, I stood over him, admiring him in all his glory. I was torn. I would miss Nick. I wish things did work. I wish I did love him back. I leaned over and gently kissed his cheek. I wrote on a piece of paper, “My heart still belongs to another…Please forgive me. – Joey” and placed it on the pillow next to him. I left Brad’s apartment and began to run down the path, down the street and passed the bay where Nick and I first had sex. It’s the fastest I ever ran. Within what seemed to only take ten minutes, I reached our apartment. I walked up the door and was about to knock. I stood there for a few seconds and reached into my pocket for my keys. I unlocked the door and turned the knob quietly entering the door. I walked in looking around for any sign of Cameron. Cloud came running to me. He looked like he had gotten so much bigger. I picked him up and kissed him. He seemed so happy to see me.

“Where’s daddy, Cloud?”

As I walked in a bit further I noticed a small note with a cherry blossom resting on it on the countertop of the kitchen. I picked up the cherry blossom and a flood of memories hit me like a semi-truck. The cliff, our first kiss, our prom, our first time, the helicopter ride, but what it made me really think of…was the tattoo Cameron got. It was something very symbolic to us both. I was such an idiot. Why would I make such a big deal out of the tattoo? The note read, Joey. Natalie told me that you may possibly come over to talk. I didn’t want to look like a mess when you get here, so I left early to get a haircut and be more presentable. Please meet me at the Butterfly Garden at 10am. I hope to see you soon. – Cameron

10am; that left me about two hours to kill. I knew exactly what I wanted to do within that timeframe. I headed upstairs to change my clothes and ran out the front door.

After taking care of what I had planned, I called for a taxi and had it drop me off at the park centralized in Depoe Bay. It was 10:02am. Shit. I was late. I ran across the grassy knoll towards the newly constructed garden. The sign read, “The Secret Garden: A Butterfly Experience”. It looked deserted. The sign on the door even said “Closed”. What happened? Did I read the note wrong? Was this really happening? Just as I was about to rummage through my phone to call Cameron, Natalie appeared out of nowhere.

“Nat? What are you doing here?” I asked confused

“I knew you would come.” She said with a smile

“Am I too late? Where’s Cameron?” I asked frantically

“No. You aren’t late. Let me unlock the door for you.” She said pulling out keys.

“How do you have keys?” I asked

“I work here.” She smiled

“What? Really?” I asked confused

“Yeah. I applied, and I got the job. Today was my shift.” She said letting me in and closing the door behind me

I turned around, bewildered at what was happening. I was standing in an empty halfway area between the outside and the garden. I guess this was used in case butterflies almost escaped, like the one that actually did escape the day I saw one at the beach. I took a deep breath, adjusted my jacket and hair and grabbed a hold of the door knob. I turned it and walked in. The garden was beautiful. Tropical plants, flowers, trees. A small waterfall in the distance. I didn’t see any butterflies though, nor did I see Cameron. I walked into the garden, releasing the open door. As it shut, a cloud of butterflies shot out from the trees and bushes all around me. The vibration must have alarmed them. Every butterfly in the room was blue, just as the one I had seen before. They were beautiful. They cluttered the air around me and I was so intrigued by them that I had almost forgot who I was looking for. In the corner of my eye, I saw someone standing at the other end of the garden. I looked through the cloud of blue butterflies and saw Cameron. He was in a pair of black slacks and a blue buttoned up long-sleeve shirt. In his hand, was a white rose. He began to walk towards me, as did I. We finally were within arm’s length of each other.

“You came.” He said softly

“Of course.” I smiled

He extended his arm handing me the rose, on the top of the rose, a blue butterfly had landed. We both smiled.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He said

“You look very nice.” I said

“Thanks.”

“Can I ask you something?” I asked

“Yeah, of course.”

“What if…” I began

“You didn’t show up?” he finished my sentence

“Yeah.”

“I would have looked like a total idiot standing here surrounded by a bunch of butterflies, and the money I put down to rent the place, would have been a total loss…but I was hopeful.” He smiled

“You rented the entire garden?” I asked

“Yes.” He smiled

“How could you…” I stopped myself

“Afford it?” he laughed, I nodded, “Well, that’s something I wanted to tell you. I got a promotion at work.”
“Cameron…congratulations! I’m so proud of you.” I said excitingly

“Thanks. I’m the new Senior Executive Staff Recruiter.”

“That’s great.” I smiled

We stood there for a few seconds not saying anything.

“I’m sorry.” I finally said

“No, I’m sorry. I fucked up.” He said shaking his head and looking down

“Can I make this fair?” I asked

He shrugged.

“We both messed up.”

“It’s okay. It doesn’t matter anymore. I mean, you’re with Nick.” He said gulping down the lump in his throat

“Well…technically yes…but my happiness is with you.” I admitted

“He told me that you loved him.” He said with a flatness

“That’s not true. I never said I loved him.” I confessed

“Really?” he said with relief, “That fucker.”

“I’m not sure what his motives were, but I promise you, what he said wasn’t true.”

“He said that you told him he was the best sex you ever had.” Cameron clenched his teeth.

“Also not true.” I shook my head in distaste

“Good.”

Another few moments of silence fell between us.

“I miss you.” We both said at the same time

“You do?” he asked

“Yes.” I responded

“Do you still love me?” he asked

I didn’t answer right away as I looked down at the white rose, then looking up at him into his beautiful hazel eyes, “Forever.”

He smiled and grabbed me, pulling me into a passionate kiss. I dropped the rose as I held onto Cameron, feeling his soft lips against mine again was the most sensational thing. My body quivered in chills and I melted right into his arms. I felt light as if I were flying into the clouds with him. Only Cameron was able to make me feel this way. As our eyes remained closed while we kissed, I could hear something fluttering wildly around us. The butterflies were flying over us with excitement, as if cheering for us. Was this a sign? Cameron pulled off my jacket and began to unbuckle my pants. I began unbuttoning his shirt and before we knew it we were completely naked. He shuffled off the main path of the garden and into a flower bed near the waterfall. He sat up perched against a large boulder, his erection calling for me. We used our saliva to lube ourselves up and I kneeled down and lowered myself onto him. His body flawless and Greek god-like. Quickly comparing his penis, I realized that Cameron was almost if not just as endowed as Nick. Stop thinking about Nick. I looked into Cameron’s eyes, his mouth slightly open wanting me, waiting for me, in love with me. His penis slowly entered me, feeling the fullness of the head of his penis go in first, then the veiny length of his shaft. His hands cradled my ass. I began to ride him like it was our last time ever making love. The butterflies still fluttering around us added to the serenity of our love. I threw back my head as I arched my back, moaning with pleasure. Cameron ran his hands from my neck down my chest and back around to my ass. With his other hand, he push my back up allowing him to kiss my chest and my nipple. I tilted my head low enough to taste him. His tongue massaging my mouth as I sucked his bottom lip. Using my hips, I thrusted hard on him, gyrating in a circular motion, which drove him off the wall with pleasure. His moans turned into heavy grunts, which was a sign he was about to come. I looked down at him, grabbed his head, my forehead and nose touching his. I locked eyes as we continued to grunt and moan. As if synchronized, we both came, giving out heavy breathes of satisfaction. I came onto his stomach, while he came inside me. We sat there momentarily, eyes still fixed on one another. I kissed him.

“I love you…so much.” I said

“I love you so much.” He responded

I lifted myself off him and lied down next to him.

“Ouch.” I said in pain

“What is it?” he asked concerned

“I forgot about this.” I said turning my back towards him

“What happened?” he said looking at the bandaged spot on my shoulder

“Take it off.” I said

He began to remove the bandage and gave out a slight sigh.

“Babe.” He said

He stared at the matching tattoo that we now both had.

“It’s the reason I was a little late. It’s something I should have done a long time ago.” I admitted

He leaned over and kissed me with a smile. I wanted to stay in the garden with him all day, just holding one another naked. But he reminded me that he had only rented the garden for an hour. That time was almost up. We gathered our things and began to walk out the garden. Cameron stopped me.

“What is it?” I asked

He pointed at my shoulder. It was a butterfly resting on my jacket. Cameron reached up and stuck out his index finger. The butterfly, as if trained, crawled onto his finger. We walked over to a bush and placed it gently on a branch. We smiled at one another, and walked out hand in hand.

© 2015/2016 Copyright J.M. Casas Jr. of Royalty Novels / The True Love Saga. All Rights Reserved.

All characters and likeness are pure fiction. Any resemblance is pure coincidence. Models and Actors used in marketing material for the True Love Saga were used as inspiration and to provide readers with an image of what the characters may look like.