Jealousy - M Cameron

Cameron doesn’t like to admit to jealousy. It’s not something he’s felt often before, and he hates the way it bubbles up in his throat to leave a bitter aftertaste in his mouth.

Especially with you. Always with you.

Because, back then, he didn’t have enough backbone and was too scared to ever open his mouth. Because he couldn’t pull his head out of his ass at sixteen and realize fear isn’t an excuse.

He knows that now, though. He screwed up the best thing he’d never have before he even realized it, and now the ghost of something that never existed haunts him.

Still, it hurts despite the fact it shouldn’t. To see a guy next to you in the lecture hall, leaning down to talk to you, his arm nearly brushing yours…

Cameron wants that touch. That proximity. Anything but cold distance and harsh radio silence. An almost-friendship turned into a bitter rivalry that he never wanted.

He staring, and he realizes that when he jumps at the sudden movement. You jerk back, jaw tense, looking ready to lash out at any second.

No one else sees the sudden change. Or, if they do, they say nothing.

The guy grabs for your wrist, and Cameron can tell a scene is about to be made. That’s…that’s not good. He can’t claim to know you all that well anymore, but you hate attention. You hate the stares that go with it even more.

He slides from his seat as kids slowly file in before class, moving with haste to where you sit.

“Because I asked nicely first and you want to be an ass about it,” The idiot is saying in a low tone, his eyes narrowing as his grip on you tightens, “Do you really think anyone is believing you? My dad-“

Cameron moves before even thinking. Lightning quick, he reaches up and grabs the guy by the back of the neck. It’s something that could be misconstrued as a friendly gesture unless someone looked a little too close.

“You should go sit down,” He whispers quietly, cutting the other guy a sharp glance, “Or, better yet, drop this class.”

You’re staring at Cam, wide eyed and mouth only a few inches away from gaping. The idiot in his grasp opens his mouth again, and Cam sends a spark of electricity down his spine.

Not enough to paralyze, but Cameron feels the instant his knees go weak and he wobbles in the Chosen One’s grasp.

“Understand?” Cameron asks, his voice edging on angry.

The guy nods, stumbling from Cameron’s grasp before he’s limping down the stairs and right out the lecture hall’s doors.

The immediate aftermath is silent. Only the background chatter and shuffling breaks it, and the quiet is killing him. Your silence is deadly.

Turning to you is the hardest thing Cameron has done in months. Your expression is closed off again; cool and distant, it’s a careful wall constructed to protect you.

“You didn’t have to do that,” You say, bordering on emotionless, but Cam still hears the waver beneath the words.

His mouth twists, his gaze dropping to the side, “I did. I’m a slow learner, but I get things eventually.”

There’s a twitch in your brows, a wobble to your lips, a visible Achilles heel. You purse your lips in confusion, silently demanding an answer with eyes that haunt.

“I’ve been quiet too long,” His voice drops further, half ashamed and half embarrassed, “I’m not going to do that anymore.”

Your venom is always at the ready, however, “I didn’t ask for that.”

“You didn’t,” Cameron agrees, “And if you tell me here and now that you never want to see my face again, I’ll do my best to give you that. I won’t let them drag you through the mud anymore, though, even if I never speak to you again.”

He nearly holds his breath. You’re silent, and he thinks this might be what a spiritual experience is like. At the very least, he feels resurrected.

He offers a small smile, and he could swear your lips twitch in return. The door opens, then, and the professor walks through to sit his things at the podium up front. Cameron is almost mad at the man for a split second, but he moves to return to his seat regardless.

He glances back at you, though. You’re looking at him, conflicted, and he’s never before found so much hope in turmoil.