Although the level of anger and confusion Justin was feeling about what they had gone through so far was concerning, Cameron couldn’t help but smile as she listened to him talk about the time they’ve spent together. It was funny – out of all the chaos, destruction, and loss they had both seen and experienced, she had become a beacon of hope for him just as he had for her, although it was hard to believe. Cameron wasn’t positive like him. Her outlook on life was bleak. She was damaged and jaded. How would someone like Justin see something so great in [i]her[/i]?

Before she could try to verbally reciprocate his sentiments, he hit her with another question. One that caused her to chuckle. “Oh, man,” she mumbled before laughing at herself. “I don’t think my heart has the ability to feel fluttery. I had, uh, [i]flings[/i]. Nothing substantial. After word got out about the attack, half the eligible candidates wouldn’t even look me at me.” She rolled her eyes, as if to convince both Justin and herself that it didn’t bother her. Her life in Chesapeake had made her cold and distant towards men in general, which made it so strange to be around the men of Omega, who seemed to have no ulterior motive for their kindness.  Although suspicion of them was a natural thing to Cameron, she was slowly but surely letting her guard down. At least, with Justin.

Based on how spiritual Omega seemed to be, she was curious how they viewed things like relationships and intimacy. Her knowledge of what they believed in was very narrow, but until she learned, Cameron decided to keep how she viewed the whole dating and waiting-til-marriage thing to herself for now as to not upset him. 

“How ‘bout you?” her raspy voice asked lightly. “Were there any Mrs. Plances on the horizon?” After the words came out, she realized that if he did have anyone, the likelihood that she was killed in one of the multiple attacks on Omega was high, and she scratched her forehead and squeezed her eyes shut. Though, would Justin have really asked without expecting the same question in return?

Why [i]was[/i] he asking anyway? Cameron assumed they had moved past the point of small talk. Was he asking for another reason?

The thought made her cheeks flush a bit, but her inner voice spoke up before her mind could ponder it any further. [i]”He’s just being nice, Cameron. Chill out.”[/i]