Chapter 41 Marcus
Oliver whipped out his phone and dialed up Camilla.
"Hey Camilla, how's it going? Got something to chat about..."
After he laid it all out, Camilla went quiet.
Oliver could tell what was bugging her and jumped in, "Camilla, chill. This one's on me. Just a friendly meal, and I swear, no Leopold."
"Alright," Camilla finally said.
After hanging up, Oliver just shrugged.
He said that, but if Leopold just happened to show up, well, that wasn't on him.
Marcus piped up, "I'll hit up Leopold."
"Cool, it's a plan!"
Oliver was stoked. If they patched things up, he'd be the hero of the day.
The sun was blazing, and the sky was clear.
Oliver had snagged a table at their old haunt.
Camilla knew the place well. As soon as she walked in, Oliver was already waving like a maniac.
The waiter led her over, and she plopped down across from him.
"Camilla, heard you aced your grad school exams. Congrats!"
"I ordered all your faves. Let's toast to that later!"
Oliver's family background was not as illustrious as Leopold and the others, but he was a chill dude with a great vibe.
He'd helped her out a few times, and their friendship just grew from there.
Camilla said, "Thanks, Oliver. You've always been so kind."
Oliver laughed, "Come on, Camilla, don't get all formal on me. We're buds, right?"
He snapped his fingers, and the food started rolling out.
"Oliver? What a surprise," a deep voice cut in.
Oliver looked up, and his grin froze.
He glanced behind Marcus, thinking, 'Where's Leopold? What happened to our "accidental meetup"? Why's it Marcus?'
"Hey, what a coincidence!" Oliver recovered, forcing a smile.
Marcus asked, "Mind if I join?"
Oliver had a million questions but just said, "Sure, why not."
Before Oliver could say more, Marcus had already plopped down and gave Camilla a casual look. "What's the celebration?"
Oliver forced a smile, "We're celebrating Camilla."
Then he shot Marcus a look that screamed, "Where's Leopold? You were supposed to bring him!"
Marcus just smiled and turned to Camilla, "Oh? What's the occasion?"
Camilla, not wanting to be rude, said, "I just finished my exams."
Marcus thought for a sec, "Grad school exams?"
Oliver was speechless. 'Who's he trying to kid? He actually pulls it off, too.'
Camilla nodded.
"Which school?"
"Harmony College."
"And your major?"
"Bioinformatics."
Marcus said, "That's the mix of biology, math, and info science, right?"
Camilla looked at him, intrigued, "You know about it?"
"I took a few electives, but I'm no pro. Always wondered what the deal is between Applied Life Sciences, Bioinformatics, and Biology."
Camilla got all serious, "Applied Life Sciences is about using biomolecules in stuff like anthropology, chemistry, biology, and physics. Biology's just the big picture of living things. Bioinformatics's using computers to dig into biological data. It's kinda complex."
Marcus thought for a sec, then said, "So, like, Biology's the big umbrella, Applied Life Sciences is the hands-on stuff, and Bioinformatics is all about crunching numbers and data to solve bio problems?"
Camilla looked at him, impressed, "Yeah, you nailed it."
"Really?" Marcus grinned, eyes twinkling. "That's 'cause you explained it so well. I just dumbed it down."
Camilla started seeing Marcus in a new light.
She always saw him at bars and clubs, pegging him as a party guy. Didn't think he knew squat about biology.
Never judge a book by its cover.
She'd been with Leopold for six years, and he didn't even know her major, let alone talk about it.
Most of their time was spent either partying with his crew or getting busy in the bedroom.
So, hearing Marcus drop those bio terms was a shocker.
Oliver, sitting next to them, was totally lost, his head spinning from all the jargon.
After the meal, Oliver quickly went to settle the bill.
Marcus watched him go, a sly smile on his face. He turned to Camilla, his gaze deepening.
As they chatted, Marcus glanced at his phone, "Oliver said something came up and asked me to take you home."
Camilla checked her watch; it was getting late, "No worries, I can grab a cab."
"As a gentleman, I can't let a lady go home alone after dinner. Plus, I was asked to."
Camilla sighed, "Alright then."
"My pleasure."
They left the restaurant, and Marcus took her gloves and opened the passenger door for her, "After you."
He really did seem like a gentleman.
"Thanks."
During the twenty-minute drive, they didn't talk much, and the car was quiet.
Marcus drove smoothly, barely any bumps, letting Camilla get lost in the scenery—the streets, snow-covered branches, and the crisp, cold wind.
Marcus glanced at Camilla now and then.
She was super quiet.
Just sitting there, she had this subtle, elegant vibe.
A delicate nose, refined nose tip, small red lips...
Lost in the scenery outside, she looked adorably innocent and cute.
She used to have long, curly hair, which didn't suit her. It was pretty but lacked character.
Now, Camilla had straight hair, casually tucked under her scarf, looking stunning without any effort.
A fleeting smile crossed Marcus's face.
He kept his eyes on the road, looking all focused.
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