Chapter twelve| Pink Slushie

Chapter twelve| Pink Slushie

I moved my eyes away from the window and the passing by the scenery. I gave Elias a long look as he drove with concentration. "Tell me," I asked for the tenth time, feeling annoyed.

Elias just ignored me and kept humming along with the song playing on the radio. He was terrible at catching the tune.

It was clear he was avoiding any conversations as the moment, distracting himself from the nervous tension filling his body.

I rolled my eyes and turned the radio off. He scowled my way and tried to turn the radio on, but I swatted his hand away.

"Ouch, woman. Why are you hitting me?" he said with over-exaggeration.

I huffed and crossed my arms. "I wouldn't if you tell me where we are going." My words were curter than I wanted them to be.

"I told you already," he said, shying away from the answer.

"Yes, you told me about your special place. But what place is exactly your special place?" Raising a brow in question, I waited for him to elaborate.

"For all I know, it could be some wacky warehouse where you might murder me." I added as an after thought.

He went silent once again, making me huff in frustration. We had been traveling in this car for the past thirty minutes.

"It is a place near the camp," he blurted. "It is just five minutes away."

I bit my lip as I thought about his words. In our town, the camp was the name for a small patch of forest, safe for trekking. This was the reason why often some middle schoolers were taken there as a camp.

"Have you ever been there before?" he asked, referring to the camp.

I nodded in response as my mind went back to the previous memories. "I have been there twice," I whispered under my breath. My eyes went towards the window, watching the scenery turn.

"Once on the middle school trip, then with my parents around the same time," I continued.

My mind shifted to my parents, making me frown. It was almost a week since my father called. The short conversation between us floated through my mind, crystal clear as if it was yesterday. Now that I thought about it, it was the night before high school started when he called in, and it was around a month since I had a call from mom.

Lea barely talked to either of our parents anymore.

I couldn't help but often wonder if my family would have still been stable without my presence. After all, my birth had brought along so many problems in a once happy family.

I was pulled out of my distressed thoughts when we pulled to a stop in front of a diner, right next to the camp entrance.

"This is your special place?" I asked as I gestured towards the diner.

Elias shook his head. "It isn't, but I thought maybe we could grab something to eat?" he asked more than state.

As if in approval, my stomach groaned in response. I couldn't stop the red color rising on my cheeks. Thankfully, enough it was hidden behind many layers of makeup. The same makeup which was hiding my bags and puffy eyes.

Getting out of the car, he tapped his stomach. "Well, I am hungry too."

Silently, I followed him inside the diner, pushing past the glass door.

The diner was warm, a bit too warm for sticky August heat. Elias didn't even glance at the menu as he stopped on the counter.

"Hey, Elias. What can I get you?" the girl behind the counter said as she beamed at the sight of Eli.

She was a gorgeous girl with straight bangs resting in front of her face along with pin-straight black hair pulled into a pony. She was wearing glasses that glinted under the artificial lights of the diner.

She was the exact opposite of Andrea with pale skin and bright green eyes. She looked a bit older than us, maybe a college girl.

Elias smiled in her direction, mirroring her enthusiasm. "Hey, Kim. Can I get a hamburger, fries, and pink watermelon slushie?" he paused for a second. "What do you want, Cynthia?"

His voice brought me out of my thoughts. I stopped critically scrutinizing the girl's appearance and expressions and turned towards him.

"Huh? Same?" I asked, rather than answer his query.

I couldn't help but notice the girl's smile dimmed a bit when looking at me. She gave me a forced smile and turned towards Elias.

Looks like he got an admirer. I concluded.

"So two hamburgers, two fries, and two pink watermelon slushies?" she said, repeating our order. "No onions for you, right?" she said, pointing at Elias.

He nodded his head and fished out his wallet.

"I can pay for mine," I said, jumping in and handing her the card. "Please make it a takeaway." She gave a shocked look and then swiped my card.

I rolled my eyes as Elias huffed behind me. "Stop acting like a child, Elias." My voice was monotonous.

After a few minutes of waiting, our order was ready. The girl and Elias shared small conversations here and there, with almost no customers in the diner. Grabbing the bag, Elias flashed a smile towards Kim, short for Kimberly. "Have a pleasant day, Elias," she called out as he turned towards the door.

"You too," he called out over his shoulder.

Gazing at the love-sick expression on the girl's face, I couldn't help but scoff. As her eyes met mine for a moment, her eyes flashed momentarily hurt before she smiled at me too.

We were soon out of the diner, and I was thankful for it. The ugly head of jealousy was too annoying to handle, especially when nothing was going on between Elias and me.

"Come on this way," Elias said as he pointed at a worn-down path leading into the woods. Wordlessly, I followed him through the dirt road. Stopping in front of a rusted gate, he gestured for me to get in.

I pointed at the old worn-out sign hanging on the barbed wire around the area. "It is private property," I hissed, leaning closer to him.

He gave a mock gasp. "Oh, I didn't see that. Good to know you can read."

"What if someone shoots us?" I said a bit scared as he pulled me along with him in the area.

"Then we die," he answered nonchalantly. At my horrified expression, he laughed loudly.

"I was kidding. No one will shoot us as I know the owners, and currently, like most of the year, this area is empty. Second, our state doesn't have 'stand the ground' laws."

He yelped as I kicked his shin. "Stupid," I hissed, making him curse under his breath. I had almost dropped our drinks in haste to get away from him.

"Sorry," he cheekily said in a nonapologetic tone.

I huffed in response and followed the path. I couldn't bear to look at him for a moment as heavy emotions clogged my throat.

A few minutes later, the path opened to a clearing with a dirty pond in between. It wasn't a picturesque sight, but something was enchanting about the silence of this area.

The pond was surrounded by trees all around, providing a sense of solitude and peace.

"Welcome to my special place. It is soothing on both mind and soul," he said, pointing at the surrounding area.

Settling down in a dry patch of grass, he patted the spot next to him. Ready to be done with the conversation, I quickly took the seat next to him.

"How did you find this place?" I asked, still absorbing the details.

"I got lost," he said, trying to recall. "I don't remember how, but it was around the end of my freshman year."

We sat in silence and ate our food. I bit on fry and turned towards him with a question.

"Fo what were you faying?" I asked through a mouthful.

He gave me a look and shook his head. "Sorry, but I don't speak alien."

I rolled my eyes and turned away from him. I was still angry on the inside, but spending more and more time with him was making it disappear.

"I was asking, what were you saying?" I kept my voice impassive, along with my face.

He was silent for a moment, staring at the pond. "I-I don't know how to start, but I am sorry, Cynthia."

I nodded as he kept his eyes fixed at a spot. "I didn't mean any of it. You are not a backstabber. Certainly not a whore. I-" Elias bit his lips, feeling a loss of words.

A moment passed as I processed his words. "I am sorry too. You are not the only one at fault here," I whispered, tears shimmering in my eyes. I kept my eyes focused on the pond, refusing to meet his icy eyes.

With a sigh, Elias stumbled closer to me and wrapped his arms around me. Both of us whispered our apologies as the air turned colder with a brewing storm.

"You are so much more than just the Queen Bee face. So, much more," he whispered as I clutched his shirt in my fists, taking in his unique earthy scent.

"You too," I whispered, placing my head on his chest. His heart drummed below my ear in a calm lull, enough to almost send me to sleep.

We sat there in silence for a few moments, playing with our thoughts.

Realizing that I was still tucked in his arms, I pushed away from him. Taking my previous spot on the grass.

"You will try for the athletics team tomorrow. It will help you gain that sporty streak and might help with your muscles area. Girls usually like someone muscled." My hands discreetly wiped away my tears. "Our athletics team is already short of a person, and I have seen you go for a run every other day. You will do good."

"Do you like muscled guys?" he asked, referring to my statement.

I gave him a cheeky smile. "I do. I mean have you seen Jason Momoa? If I had a guy like him, I wouldn't-" I stopped realizing my statement was most r-rated. Changing the topic, I cleared my throat. "It will look good on your college application too."

He was silent for a moment.

When I looked up from the green grass, I found him staring at me intently. Under his keen observation, I felt bare, and that scared me the most. So, in a haste, I averted my eyes.

"Since it is the weekend now, we will work on another step. It will be a confident interaction," I said, trying to divert his attention from me. "I am hosting a party tomorrow night, so you have been there."

He cringed at my words. "Can't we skip this step to last?"

I shook my head in response."One thing girls like most about bad boys is that they make them feel special," I explained. "Bad boys are the ones who are popular and wanted by many, and when they give the girl's attention, the girls feel special."

He thought for a second, humming. "So basically bad boys are a trophy because they are enigmatic enough so that everyone wants them, and when girls have them, they feel wanted," he concluded as I nodded along at his simplification.

"Exactly, that is why you need to interact more and be a bit popular."

"Why exactly are you scared of parties?" I asked curiously.

He bit his lip and scrunched his face. "Let's say my first party experience wasn't good, almost borderline traumatizing."

I know I was clearing a line, but I couldn't contain my question. "What exactly happened?"

He sighed, and his shoulders slumped. His expression fell, and his feet started to fidget in front of him. "Someone put some drugs in my drink that night. It was a blur, but I was badly bruised by the morning because I got into a fight and they leaked my naked pictures all over the internet."

I gasped, and a memory flew through my mind. In freshman year, some guy's nudes were leaked from our first party on the internet. I didn't know it was him.

"Someone posted my nudes online. Students mocked me. It was disturbing. I never told my parents. With the help of some friends, I removed the pictures online but bullying went on. Connor was there to help, while Navya barely knew about it." He added as an afterthought.

A heavy silence loomed over us, making my heartache. Leaning forward I just pulled him in my arms. He didn't cry or say anything. Just melted in my arms.

"We don't have to do this if you want," I offered. His fingers played with the ends of my hair. He knew I was talking about the party.

He shook his head vehemently. "I want to do this," he drawled. "I can't hide away forever, right?"

I smiled at him and nodded. "I will be there with you."