Broken Promise

Chapter 2

Cameron let out a grunt as he slammed his three large suitcases and duffle bag on the ground. “Damn those elevators,” he growled as he bent over, hands on knees, trying to catch his breath. He was currently standing in front of his room on the fifth floor, room 509, panting heavily after climbing two flights of stairs with his luggage. He reached into his pocket to grab his room key when the door to his room suddenly opened. A tall, shaggy blonde haired boy was standing in the doorway, wearing a casual green shirt and washed out jeans. He smirked down at Cameron.

“Thought I heard a loud noise out here. Figured it must be you,” he said, his brown eyes twinkling, as he reached down to grab two of the suitcases with ease. “Name’s Michael Graham. Welcome to college,” he said with a smile as he walked back into the room.

“Thanks,” Cameron said as he caught his breath. He stood up and grabbed his remaining luggage before following the sandy blonde into the room. His eyes grew wide as he noticed the one side of the room that had already moved in. There were posters covering every inch of the left wall and they were all of the LA Lakers. The whole left side was decorated in the colors of gold, purple and white. He dropped his luggage next to the empty bed that was to be his. “Wow,” he said, incredulous. “I guess someone likes the Lakers.”

Michael gave a grin as he turned to flop on his bed. “Yeah. Probably their biggest fan. I never miss a game. You like basketball?”

Cameron shook his head. “Nah. I’m not really all that big into sports to be honest. I’m more of a reading and writing type of guy.”

“Ah, a sensitive one,” Michael said, propping himself up against his gold pillow as Cameron took one of his bags and put it on his bed, ready to start unpacking. “Is that what you’re going into- English?” Michael asked.

Cameron nodded. “Yeah. More towards journalism though.” Cameron reached into his bag and grabbed out his clothes. “What about you? What are you majoring in?”

“I’m majoring in business management.” Michael said stretching slightly on his bed. “It’s my dream to own an NBA team one day.”

“Let me guess. The Lakers?”

“Yeah! But any of them would be just fine.”

“Mmmm.” Cameron nodded in agreement as he pulled out the last few items in one of his bags. Some small square photos caught his attention and he smiled as he looked as the person in them. Closing his eyes, he smiled and reminisced about the moment they just shared.

Michael noticed Cameron’s composure and gently got up from his bed to see what Cameron had in his hands. He peered over his shoulder and saw some pictures of a girl with light brown hair and hazel green eyes, wearing a bright smile on her face. “Cute girl,” Michael said, startling Cameron out of his thoughts.

“Yeah,” Cameron replied, looking back down at the photos.

“Your girlfriend?”

“Yup,” Cameron answered as he moved to tape the photos of Nikki on his desk. “You got one?” he said, looking over his shoulder to see his roommate.

Michael shook his head. “Nah. I’ve never been much of a relationship guy. I don’t think I can handle one, especially not right now.”

“Wait,” Cameron interjected, going to pick up another piece of luggage and flop it on his bed. “You’ve never been in a relationship with someone?”

“Well, not exactly,” Michael said. “I’ve been in relationships that are non-exclusive. Sort of like friends with benefits.”

Cameron stared at Michael, incredulous and silent. Michael gave a timid smile and fell silent as well. Quietness remained between the two until Michael piped up again. “So how long have you and your girl been together?”

“Um… it’s a long story.” Cameron said, rubbing his neck slightly. “But, this time, it’s been about three months or so.”

Michael raised his eyebrows. “This time?”

“Like I said. Long story.”

“Right.” Silence feel again between them. Cameron cleared his throat slightly and turned back towards putting away his belongings.

Michael fidgeted for a few minutes before getting up and walking towards the door. “Well, I’m gonna go and let you get settled.”

“Okay,” Cameron said. “I guess I’ll see you later tonight.”

“Yeah,” Michael said quietly. He gave a nod and swiftly left the room.

Cameron gave a little sigh of relief, glad for the quietness of the room. That wasn’t awkward at all. He shook his head and picked up the last suitcase he had left to unpack. As he began to look down to focus on getting his clothes out of his bag, his eyes caught the time on the black clock located on Michael’s side of the room. 5:37. Jeez that barely gives me enough time. His eyes flickered to the photos of Nikki on his desk. He gave a grin and pulled out his black cellphone, hitting the first number on his speed dial, before turning back to his clothes sprawled out on his bed.

Nikki slowed her steps as her feet hit the pavement. The sky had gone from light blue to a rich midnight black. The stars had already formed a blanket of jewels in the heavens and the moon provided a constant source of light. Nikki shivered slightly from the cool wind blowing softly and pulled her jacket tighter around her.

There was quiet all around her as she contemplated why Cameron wanted to meet out so late. He had called her right as she and her new friends Ashley and Cassie finished putting away her stuff. His message was so cryptic that she had no idea what he had in store for her. All he told her was where to meet and what time. And now she was starting to wonder if maybe he had let college get into his head. She glanced about, looking for Cameron but all she saw were a group of students, freshmen no doubt, who were dressed nicely and looked to be headed out to a nearby party.

“Cam?” she called softly as she became tentative in her steps. Where is he? I’m where he told me to be and he’s nowhere in sight. Maybe he’s running late? She looked around again, peering the thick trees that surrounded the pathway and noticed a faint light glimmering through the trees. She bit her lip and walked towards it. She rounded the path and stopped suddenly, giving a gasp before a smile brightened her features.

There stood Cameron, under a big old oak tree. With a blanked and a romantic picnic for two, complete with candles that were on the ground next to him. He grinned when he saw her and took a few steps toward her.

Nikki gave a short giggle and a wide smile as she walked to meet him. “Cam! What in the world?”

He chuckled slightly as he pulled her into his arms, holding her close. “Surprised you, didn’t I?”

“That’s an understatement,” Nikki said, wrapping her arms around his waist. “You had me thinking I imagined the phone call.” She looked towards the romantic setting and saw a bottle of sparkling grape juice accompanied with glasses and a plate of chocolate covered strawberries. “Well you sure know how to make a girl melt. Chocolate covered strawberries?”

Cameron shrugged. “What’s a picnic without them?”

Nikki grinned and kissed his cheek as she pulled out of his arms. “It wouldn’t be right. So, what’s the occasion?”

“Well,” Cameron drawled as he grabbed her hand and led her back to the picnic setting. They both sat down on the red blanket, careful not to tip over the candles sitting on the ground. “I figured that we needed something to remind us of our first day of college, also known as the first day of the rest of our lives. I figured a moonlight outing would be the best way to go about it.”

Nikki beamed. “How did I get so lucky to have you my life?” She took his hand and squeezed it lightly.

He grinned back. “And I thought I was the lucky one.” He gestured to the food. “Shall we?”

Nikki nodded. “Yes.” She reached out, grabbing one of the strawberries and swiftly took a bite. “Mmm. Food of the gods.”

Cameron chuckled as he reached for the glasses and grape juice, quickly pouring each of them a drink. “So… Are you all settled in?”

Nikki swallowed before she answered. “Yeah. The whole room is all set up. The only problem with it is that it’s a bit small. But it should be fine. What about you?”

“Same here,” he replied as he drank a sip of the juice before grabbing one of the strawberries. “I’m not sure about my roommate though.”

Nikki rose her eyebrows. “Didn’t get along all that well?”

Cameron rubbed his neck slightly. “I wouldn’t say that. I think we’ll get along pretty well as the semester goes on. But I felt a little bit of tension as we were talking. Like we don’t really have that much in common.”

“Like what?” He’s some kind of obsessed sports fan guy or something?” she asked as she ate another strawberry.

“Yeah. The Lakers,” Cameron said, taking another gulp of his drink.

“Basketball,” Nikki said, disgusted. “No thanks. We’ll definitely be hanging out in my room more often.”

Cameron laughed. “Yeah, so your roommate can keep walking in on us.”

Nikki groaned. “Yeah. We definitely have to come up with a system for that.”

“Speaking of roommates,” Cameron said as he reached for a strawberry. “How is yours?”

Nikki giggled as she thought about her new friends. “She’s awesome. She’s really outspoken, but there’s something very likable about her. I have a feeling we’re gonna be really good friends.”

“Good,” Cameron said, stretching his back lightly, his black shirt stretching a little to smooth over hi toned abs. “At least then you’ll have some more people to hang out with.”

Nikki rolled her eyes as Cameron gave a playful grin. “You know there’s no one I’d rather hang out with than you.” She leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the lips.

As she moved away, she stretched out her arms and yawned. “As much as I’d love to stay out here under the stars, we should probably get going. We’ve got all day orientation tomorrow.”

Cameron grimaced. “Like we really need a full day to get acquainted with USC.” He yawned slightly as well and blinked his eyes.

“I know.” Nikki started to get up and pick the dishes off the ground, but stopped when Cameron gently laid his hand on top of hers.

“Aren’t you going to eat the last strawberry?” he asked, motioning his head towards the ground.

Nikki looked back to the last strawberry on the white plate and shrugged. “Why not? It could be the best one.”

Cameron watched a big smile growing on his face as she watched her reach out and grab the strawberry.

Nikki began to bring the red fruit back to her mouth when something silver caught her eye. She furrowed her eyebrow and peered closer at the now empty plate. In the center, where the strawberry had been, was a little silver ring. Nikki’s eyes widened and she gave a little gasp, totally forgetting the fruit in her hand. Her attention was all geared towards the small piece of jewelry on the circular dish. She daintily picked it up and beamed as she saw the engraving. “More than memories. Oh Cam, it’s perfect!” She turned towards him and quickly put her arms around him, embracing him and holding him close to her.

He gently hugged her back. “Yeah. It’s not an engagement ring or anything. I think we’re much to young for that…. It’s more like a…”

“Promise,” Nikki said, finishing his sentence. Cameron nodded. She grinned again and looked back down at the little silver ring in her hand, her heart instantly melting.

Cameron smiled and took the ring out of her hand. “May I?” he asked, gingerly holding the ring up.

Nikki nodded and tears welled in her eyes as Cameron took her left hand and gently slid the ring down her finger. She bit her lip and looked up at Cameron, staring into his blue eyes. Leaning in, they kissed softly, their lips sliding together in perfect unison.

“Hey Cam,” Nikki said, pulling slightly out of their embrace. “We’ll always be together right?”

He smiled and nodded. “Yeah. Nothing’s gonna tear us apart.”

A/N: OMG!!!!! I’M SO SORRY! I can’t believe it’s been more than a year since I last updated! Time flies by way too fast. With college and work I haven’t found much time to write, and the little I wrote, I didn’t really like it. Please forgive me!!! *on knees begging*

Well, I hope the chapter was up to your satisfaction. I certainly hope the hiatus hasn’t drawn away all my readers. I’ve decided to do something different this time. Instead of relying on the reviewers for an update, I’m forcing myself to have a time limit to get the chapters done so as not to have another LONG break such as this last one. I’m giving myself three weeks to finish a chapter. So hopefully *crossing fingers* you guys will be able to read a new chapter every three weeks. Well, PLEASE REVIEW! And as always, UNTIL NEXT!