A1: The Don (GirlxGirl)

Chapter Twenty-Five

I took a puff from the toxic cigarette sitting in between my fingers as I leant against a tree bark. Sitting a couple of yards away and relaxing on a picnic blanket were Delaney and Camilo. After nearly getting into a gunfight with him a couple of days ago, Delaney wanted me to meet him formally. I was supposed to meet them at this f-cking park, sit, chat, eat, drink and be merry. It sounded like a horrible f-cking idea. Especially since I still hadn't cooled down from the other day. I've been spending more time with Delaney, but she still lied to me. I wasn't over it or over the fact that Camilo was in a 'crew.' I didn't trust him. I didn't trust anyone in the same line of work as me except for my best friends.

When I caught eye contact from Delaney, I flicked the cigarette to the ground and stepped on it. As I mashed out the cigarette, I noticed Delaney walking up to me with a small smile on her face. I rolled my eyes playfully when she approached me. "You need to stop smoking. It's not good for you," she told me before pulling into a hug.

I kissed her forehead. "I switched to lights, darlin'. It's a little bit better than what I used to smoke."

When she pulled away from the hug, she looked back over to Camilo who was texting on his phone. "He's excited to meet you again. This time under a less stressed situation."

"I'm not as thrilled," I responded honestly.

Delaney frowned for a second but then she gave me a soft, reassuring smile. She straightened out my shirt as if I was about to meet someone of big importance. It was obvious that she really wanted me and Camilo to get along. I wanted to make her happy and like her brother, but how could I when he could be planning some stupid sh-t against me and my gang? He couldn't be trusted at least not until he somewhat proves himself.

"Well, you're here now. He's waiting. He's playing Drake songs and he had his wife make us tamales. So, you're going to be good and chill and get to know him. He's a good guy. I promise." I gave her a half-hearted smile and she laughed as she took my hand. "Please, promise you won't act crazy. He's really chill."

"I'll try."

When we approached Camilo, he stood up swiftly and offered his hand out to me. "Andy! Nice to see you again. We first met at a misunderstanding, but I promise there's no hard feelings." He gave me a charming smile but I knew not to trust a pretty smile. I learned that lesson from my ex and many girls from my past. My face remained stagnant but I took his hand and gave it a firm shake. He chuckled awkwardly. "Wow, you have a strong grip."

I ignored him and continued to hold on to his hand as I stared straight into his eyes. They remained focused on mine, unwavering despite my cold stare. "Pleasure to meet you again, Camilo," I said flatly as I finally let go of his hand.

We sat down on the picnic blanket and Camilo offered me a basket full of tamales. "Want a tamale," he asked generously.

"No. I'm not hungry."

"Since when? You can eat whatever whenever," Delaney joked as she nudged me. I laughed because it was pretty true. The tamales smelled amazing and I really wanted one, but I wasn't going to give Camilo the satisfaction by being too friendly with him.

"Well, suit yourself," Camilo shrugged as he sat down the basket.

I looked around the park and avoided any more eye contact with Camilo and Delaney. It was just too awkward. I told Delaney this was a bad idea. No one knew what to say. There wasn't too much to say. At least, I thought there wasn't until Camilo spoke up after a long silence. "So, um, Andy, once again, I'm so sorry about what happened the other day. I don't want any problems with you or the De Palma family. I haven't been totally honest about some things," he said as he looked over to Delaney.