Chapter 401: The Legend
Olivia, who was absolutely confused, noticed the interaction between the unknown woman, Mina, and Oric, but she did not know who the woman could be even after she took in the visibly shaken expression on Oric's face.
Oric looked between Mina and Willow before turning back at Connor who wore a mischievous grin. He went to walk out of the room, but Connor placed a hand on his chest and whispered words that Oric had not expected to ever hear from the man without him being on a deathbed.
"I was wrong for what I did before. I was jealous of you, but now you have a chance to formally apologize and I will come clean as well. Don't ruin it for yourself; you need closure as much as she does." Oric had never heard Connor say anything serious in regard to Willow. The only thing he ever did was tease him about her.
"Who are you and what have you done with my friend?" Connor chuckled, knowing he was being sentimental, but the truth was that he was tired of seeing his friends chase behind Mina who ignored them both. Cylus now had Vanya, and he believed Oric needed to clear things up with Willow so he could move on as well.
It did not take too long for Oric to make his way to Willow who was pretending not to be nervous. She greeted the man, making casual small talk all while still holding Mina's hand. When Willow felt she had enough, she asked Mina to go with her back to their room and the woman promptly agreed.
"Is that really him?" Willow asked. She had not seen Oric in seven years, and when she left, he was not the person she had just greeted. Back then, he was a chubby cheeked sixteen-year-old boy, who loved to play video games and eat.
On the other side of the cabin, Oric was having a similar conversation. He started with how they found Willow, who was an expert at hiding, even from her own parents. He did not have to question if Willow was her true self, because he had seen pictures of her from time to time, so he knew how much more beautiful she had become with adulthood.
Back in the room with Mina and Willow, Mina felt her heart clench at the sight of her friend's heavy expression. Willow flopped back into the bed, clutching at her chest, talking loudly, but Mina knew the questions she was asking were not for anyone to answer. Someone knocked on the door and Mina feared it was Oric, but it was Olivia. She limped into the room staring at Willow waiting for an introduction.
"Olivia, please meet my best friend Willow West." Olivia gasped. She had heard so much about Willow, but she had never seen or met the legend herself. Willow extended her hand to Olivia who shook it almost as if she were meeting some sort of grandmaster. The women were taken aback by Olivia who quickly explained herself not wanting to be misunderstood.
From what Olivia knew, Willow lost her virginity at an extremely early age and was bullied because of it. It was why Cylus had kept her on a tight leash; he was afraid the same would happen to her, but Olivia was not worried about that. What fascinated her was Willow's reaction to being shunned.
Instead of running and hiding, she owned her mistakes and questioned whether she could even consider what had happened between herself and Oric her first time because it only lasted thirty seconds. At first Oric defended Willow, telling their parents that people spread rumors about them because of how close they were, but once he heard what she had told people, he let them talk as they pleased.
Shortly after, Willow left Pan with her parents, who had hoped that the rumors about their daughter would fade with time, and they did. People had stopped focusing on Willow and had completely turned their attacks toward Oric. When all of that had happened, Oric was on the chubby side, and in an attempt to make Willow regret walking away from him, he focused solely on his health by shaping his body into one that was coveted.
All of his efforts failed though, because when Willow returned to attend Wayvair University, she kept wholly to herself. She knew nothing about what was happening within the circle she used to keep, and she probably did not care. Willow may not have been aware, but her actions had a lasting effect on the women she used to call friends. Even Olivia, who had never met Willow envied her strength.
"I never thought I would meet the legend," Olivia said, wishing she had the same amount of courage as Willow. When the first rumors about her spread, she wished she could have done something other than cry to Cylus, but she was too weak.
"Legend?" Willow asked. She was aware of Olivia in name but had never met the woman who made tabloid headlines regularly in the past.
"Do you know what people call Oric?"
"Ori?" She asked, digging deep into the memories she once shared with him.
"Thirsk." Willow's eyes widened in understanding. She covered her mouth, trying not to laugh, but she failed.
"Why Thirsk?" Mina asked. She did not understand the sexual innuendo, but she remembered Oric being teased about a thirty second relationship and recognized the word play.
"I was angry, and I told people that Oric was quick in bed." Mina stared at Willow needing more of an explanation. "Men are sensitive about two things; size and time."
"How long is it supposed to last?" Mina asked innocently. Her sexual education was limited to 'don't do it', and although she was well versed from a biology standpoint, she was ignorant in most other aspects.
"I don't know," Willow said with a red face. "I haven't tried again." Mina looked at Olivia, but she also shrugged.
"I haven't tried at all." Unsatisfied, Mina pulled out her phone and searched for the answer, and both women scurried to either side of her wanting to know for themselves. What Mina did not know was that her search history would get back to someone else.
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Mina was hungry and knowing that she was no longer able to eat instant meals, she made her way into the kitchen, leaving Olivia and Willow to discuss the average amount of time a man 'lasted'.
Mina rummaged through the cabinets and found it well stocked. Growing up poor, she hated to see food go to waste, so she decided to cook for everyone and settled upon an easy meal that would require little time to make.
With chicken breasts in the oven, Mina began to boil pasta. She made enough to serve twelve people, which was less than the amount who had come, but she had a feeling many of the women would eat little or not at all.
Mina had begun to shred the baked chicken when someone's nose led them to her. She heard the person's footsteps and started to apologize for the meal not being ready to eat. She was still adding the spinach and dried tomatoes she had boiled in the broth from the seasoned breasts, when the person stood beside her.