Chapter 3 - Eliza Cleaver

When I arrived at my apartment, I directly ran into my room and continued to cry there. Not knowing Gerald and Zelbert was actually in the kitchen and cooking. What the, how did they get in here? Oh I forgot, they were here before I left, so I stopped crying and wiped my tears.

"William? Are you okay buddy?" Zelbert while knocking the door in my room.

"Ah yes, I'll be out in a minute, let me change". I respond.

"We made extraordinary porridge, of course it's from your stock. Come and eat it before it gets cold". He added. 

God they're messing up with my kitchen again, I hope it's a good porridge this time. After I changed, I immediately went to the kitchen, there they are eating while watching some random videos on YouTube.

"Hey, how's it going? You seem pretty early" Gerald said while eating the porridge 

"Well I expected that you won't last long in that funeral" Zelbert added.

"I just went there to pay my last respect on my Uncle who doesn't even know I existed." I replied. I tasted the porridge they cooked, at finally it's good compared before.

"Hmm, finally you made it perfect, who cooked this?" I asked.

"We both did, cooking porridge is actually easy, just don't follow what's written on the cooking books, they're just fooling us with the steps." Gerald replied. The three of us laugh in agreement.

The following days is another day, class there, lecture there, projects there, deadlines and many more. A normal life of a college studs, in the middle of my thoughts, I remembered Eliza Cleaver, the girl who comforted me few nights ago, I wonder where she lived, is she even studying, but wait, her name is familiar, Cleaver?? I think met a Cleaver before. Anyway..

I'm leaning on a tree at the campus' massive studying ground full of trimmed grass, fresh air, clean and oh shit, there's this a couple beside me, they're not studying at all, are they allowed to kiss on the public? The boy noticed me staring at them.

"What are you looking at? You like my girl?" he asked with pride.

"No, she's all yours" I sarcastically smiled at them. This boy is obviously impressing his girl, pretending that he'll protect her no matter what.

Zelbert surprised me at the ground in his arrival.

"Have you seen Gerald?" he asked

"I think he's still at class" I replied. 

Me and Zelbert have the same course, same department and same year but we are in different class section, so we have different time slot.

"William I'm hungry, can you accompany to the cafeteria?" he begged

"No fucking way, I'm sure you'll diss me again and make me pay your bill". I replied. 

"No William, I'll treat you actually, I have money! My Aunt saw me last night at the grocery store and she gave me a thousand pounds. She said my mother missed me, if possible, they want me to go home" he said

"What you'd told to her?"

"I said I can only go home if mom and dad are fixed, I can't afford living a house like that." he said with a miserable face.

Zelbert Collins is from Glasgow, his father is a train pilot, his parents aren't divorced but they don't treat each other as husband and wife anymore, according to Zelbert, when he was at 12th grade, he saw his mother bringing another man inside the house and on the next day he saw his father naked at the room with different woman while his mother is just watching television and pretending that she didn't notices it.

They can both hear the moaning and bumping upstairs, Zelbert thanked that he is an only child, so he decided that after he graduates at High School, he will abandon his home and start to live alone. He finds a part time job and got accepted as a scholar at Cambridge. His parents never looked for him and he's thankful for it.

So he brought me to the cafeteria and grabbed something to eat there.

"William what's your plan after we graduate?" he asked

"LOL, we just stepped at 3rd year and your talking about graduation? We don't even know if we can make it till the end" I joked. "But to be honest, of course we have to take our board exams for us to become a licensed lawyer" I said.

"No, not that, I mean after we become a lawyer, we have money, own house." he added.

"Um, I don't know, I haven't thought about that yet, how about you?" I asked.

"I'll leave this country, far from my parents, to a place where they can't reach me, I'm sure someday, they'll look and be needing me, that's the day that I'll show them what they made" he replied with a very serious face.

"You're making revenge? With your own parents?" I asked.

"Not totally, I slap them with words". While we're talking, Gerald arrived with a friend.

"Hey, there you are." Gerald said with a jolly mood. "This is my classmate, Lucas Selvig, Lucas this is Zelbert and William my bestfriends" he introduced us to his classmate with a happy face, I wonder what has gotten into him today.

"Nice to meet you Zelbert and William" he greeted us while shaking our hands.

Oh this one's a poof, I can tell the way he look at me, I have to avoid an eye contact with him so that he'll be not suspicious on me.

"Um, why don't you invite your classmate eat with us" Zelbert said.

"Oh, I would love to join with you guys, but I have something to do at the computer laboratory" Lucas said with a smiley face.

"Well okay, go on then" Gerald said and sit beside me. "That's a lot of food" he added and eat.

"That's mine, I have money, my Aunt gave me a thousand pounds last night"

"That's good for you, finally someone looks after you" Gerald praised Zelbert. 

While they're talking, I looked at at the door where Lucas went out and unexpectedly, he was looking at me too, so I immediately changed the direction of my head away from him. Oh shit, I think he knew.

"William, are you alright?" Zelbert asked.

"Uh, yes, yes, I'm okay" I stumbled while replying.

"I know you're not, tell us" Gerald is witty like detectives, he can easily sense our feelings. 

So I have to lie and rewind the story about Eliza Cleaver that night.

"On my way at my apartment from Stockport, I stopped by at Milton and a girl approached me, she confidently talked to me like she already know who I am and handed me a cola". I said to them.

"Well that's amazing, you'll finally have a love life". Zelbert said with excitement. "Then what happened after she gave you the cola? Did you kissed her?" he added

"No, why would I kiss a stranger?" I replied. "I just thanked her and say goodbye that's it."

"What a cold-hearted, I mean that girl obviously has a crush on you, it's really uncommon to meet girls like that" he replied.

"Yeah, I thought about her, I wonder where she lives, I would love to meet her again" I said. "But for now, let's focus on our studies, right?" I added.

"Absolutely, I mean who needs a

girlfriend when we have each other?" Gerald added.

"Oh how sweet of you, but you ate all my food!" Zelbert shouts and we all laugh.

Night passes, I'm on a shift at the fastfood restaurant where I worked as a crew in the dining area. About pass 1AM, when my shift is about to finish, fewer customer so I'm at rest mode, surprisingly, I saw Ms. Cleaver at the the counter ordering, I'm prohibited to talk and just loitering around, so I pretended to mop the floor near the counter so that she can recognize me.

"Mr. Darcy! It's you and you worked here, how nice of you". She said with a surprise.

"Uh..., Ms. Cleaver right? We met few nights ago, and yes, I worked here". I said.

"So when will your shift ends? I'll wait for you here". That surprised me.

"Luckily, I'm about to go to the biometric attendance. And thank you. Wait for me right there". I said with a nervous voice. I can't believe I'm actually meeting her here, I ordered a float before going to her table. 

"Mr. Darcy! Here!" She called. I went to her and I can clearly see the smile on her face as I get near. 

"Hi..What a coincidence that I actually seeing you here" I said.

"I hope you're comfortable talking with me Mr. Darcy, I don't want someone being so uncomfortable with me, makes me feel a weirdo." she suggests.

"Oh sorry for that, it's just I don't usually talk with girls, and actually you're the first girl I ever talk like this". 

"Well that's interesting, that's very nice, I can tell that you're innocent, I like you." What did she just said? She likes me? Already? "I hope you won't misunderstood that" she added.

"Oh thanks" I replied while drinking the float.

"So what's your real name?" she asked.

"My name is William Darcy Jr." I introduced my name formally to her.

"How cute.. Can I call you Mr. Darcy Jr.?" she asked.

"Sure, whatever you like" I said with smile.

"I heard about your ancestors, I had read the book about them". Honestly, I didn't dared to read the books about my family in the past generations. It's gonna be weird, what if she'll ask me about those books?.

"Uhm, actually I didn't read any of those books"

"Oh really? Why is that?" 

"I'm not fond of history, especially about British period". Actually I love reading historical books, I have to lie about it, so that she'll not ask me again about my ancestors.

"Um, that night when you saw me crying, can you keep that secret between us?" I have to say that to her so that things won't get weird between us.

"Sure, even if you're not asking, I still won't tell any single soul."

"Thanks". I continue to drink my float in front of her while she keeps staring at me.

"What?" I asked then she chuckles and smiles.

"By the look of you face, it's not a girl the reason why you cried last night". I'm surprised she has a sense like Gerald.

"Huh, you bet." I chuckled. "So you lived nearby?" me trying to change the topic 

"I'm actually from Fremington, Barnstaple , but I moved here in Cambridge because of my job" she replied.

"Job? You're not studying?" I was surprised that she's not actually studying.

"Why should I? When I can start working already"

"But aren't you too young for jobs? I mean permanent job".

"And another thing is, my parents doesn't support my studies, I tried applying on scholarships but didn't get lucky, so I decided not to pursue my studies and find a permanent job instead, luckily someone helped me to got in a bar, I worked as cashier there, pretty good pays, customers give me tips, enough to feed myself and pay the rent, I've been doing this job for what, 3 years now. I like my job actually." I don't know I'll be happy for her or be sad, I can tell that she really wants to study. 

"How about you? Where you from?"

"I was born at Haverhill and raised in Hampstead, London, then when I turned 18, I decided to live separately from my parents". I think I should not tell her everything right?.

"My Grandma got me a small apartment near the campus where I studied there." I added.

"Oh you're from University of Cambridge"

"Yes, luckily I got accepted as a scholar there".

"You must be so smart, I wish I have same brain as yours" she joked.

"Hehe not really". I laugh awkwardly, then my cellphone rings. 

Dad is calling me again, what is it this time? It's already late, is he even awake this time?

"Um Ms. Cleaver, do you mind if I accept this call for a minute? It's my dad". I said to her.

"Sure, take your time".

"Dad? You call this late?"

"Uh yes, I tried to call you earlier but your phone was turned off"

"What is it now dad?"

"I just want to ask you if you want to go to your Aunt Bridget's burial tomorrow".

"I'm afraid not, I'm loaded with work tomorrow"

"Okay then. How you doing by the way?" he asked.

"I just got out from work, and I'm really really tired, I should go and sleep now."

"Wwwait Junior, about that night, I'm sorry that it offended you".

"I'm not offended at all, huh, why would I be offended?" I'm actually really mad about that. 

Then I dropped the call and went back to Eliza. 

"So, how is it?" she asked

"Nah, he's just asking about what I've been doing. Can we go now? I'll can walk you outside or fetch you into your apartment maybe". I offered to to her.

"It's okay, just walk me outside, you can't walk me from here to Milton I guess." she said. So, her apartment is at Milton.

In a road where only two of us walking around, well of course it's almost 2AM.

"You know it's nice that there is someone you could talk to" she said in a cold voice.

"You don't have friends to talk with?" I asked.

"I used to, a lot of them. But when they knew about what I've been doing these days, they started to fade away, one by one, or maybe they just found new ones"

I felt ultimate sadness for her, I can't believe she still calls them as friends.

"It comes to my realization, I think it's better to have only one friend who is true to you than having plenty but as they get to know what you really are, they'll left you like nothing's happened". She stopped walking.

"Oh sorry for that, I think I went darker" she said.

"No it's okay, well at least you told someone, must've been hurt keeping that by yourself" I hugged her a form of respect. "You'll be a good friend of mine Eliza".

"Thank you Mr. Darcy Jr." she smiled and grabbed a taxi.

"Call me if you need company" I said to her before walking away.