Hello, Honeybee

by Caity H.

  “Call him!” she urged, clapping her hands.

  “No, I could never,” I said, setting the cup down. “He probably gave me that rejection number.”

  “Or his real one.” She sat up straighter, looking around the crowd to see if he was still around. When she didn’t find him, she turned back to me. “Do it for me. Call the cute boy.” She clasped her hands, sticking her lower lip out.

  “I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” She grabbed her phone from the table and started dialing. “Bethany,” I pleaded. She shoved the phone into my hands and glared until I put it against my ear. “I hate you.” After a few moments, the phone picked up.

  “Hello?” Ryan’s deep voice echoed.

  “Hi, um, it’s Olivia.” When he chuckled, I wanted to hang up and run away, hide away from civilization and accept my fate to be alone forever. Of course it was a joke. His co-workers probably put him up to it.

  “I wondered if you would notice the number. When I walked by it didn’t look like you had yet,” he told me, calming my nerves. He wasn’t making fun of me, or playing a joke.

  “Oh, yeah.”

  “I’m glad you saw it though.” I bit my lip, the smile breaking through anyways. “So, Olivia. Is there a reason you’re calling? Or did you just miss the sound of my voice?”

  “Well there was that,” I agreed, a giggle escaping my lips.

  “Understandable,” he said. “If you’re not busy right now, I don’t have anything else to do. Would you wanna hang out? I know you’re with your friend, and I don’t want to interrupt that.”

  I covered the mouth piece. “He wants to hang out.” Bethany nodded eagerly. I turned back to the phone. “That sounds like fun. When and where?”

  He whistled. I jumped, turning in my seat to see him standing a few feet away, the phone pressed to his ear. He’d changed from his work clothes into dark blue straight leg jeans, and a red t-shirt. “Hey.”

  “Hi,” I breathed, feeling familiar butterflies invade my stomach. His dark hair had been fluffed up like he had done it to regain some of the thickness he’d lost from wearing a hat all day.

  He glanced at Bethany. “I’m Ryan Newly, just by the way.” He flashed a smile.

  “Bethany Bridges,” she greeted back. She glanced my way, nodding toward him with a stealth wink that wasn’t so stealthy considering the grin the spread across his features.

  “Um, so,” I started nervously. “What did you want to do? We don’t really have any ideas.”

  “I don't know. I figured hanging out with cute girls would be a good start though.” he flirted. Bethany and I exchanged glances of amusement. “But, I’m open to suggestions. There are movies, more shopping–” he grimaced. “And food. I’m open to whatever.”

  “Movies are always fun,” I added, glancing at Bethany.

  “I’ll buy the popcorn,” Ryan offered, running a hand through his hair, leaving pieces of hair pointed up in his wake.

  “You're a smart man.” Bethany smiled. “The way to a woman's heart is through your wallet,” she quipped, a giggle escaping her lips.

  “That's just Bethany,” I clarified, standing from my seat.

  “Yes, I’m a very selfish person,” she agreed. “Let's just go see the movie. Ryan can learn about all of our bad habits later. We don't want to scare him off.”

  “I’m not an easy person to scare off, so don’t worry.” He winked. “Let’s go. Movies aren’t going to watch themselves,” he said, extending his arm in the direction of the theater.

  After the movie, we grabbed a late lunch. We talked and laughed like we’d known each other for a long time. I’d never been able to talk to someone so easily before, especially someone of the opposite sex.

  I made sure to listen intently when he was talking about himself. I learned he was nineteen, graduated the year before. He was currently saving up money for a new car and he planned to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a fireman. Most girls wanted a hero, and here I was sitting next to one.

  “Alright, I’ve got to go. I need to help my dad with some things before it gets too dark,” Ryan acknowledged, glancing up from his watch. “But I’d love to hang out again, if you guys don’t feel creeped out by me.” He gave a half-smile, like he wasn’t sure of the answer he’d get.

  “You’re pretty chill so far,” I assured him. “We’ll definitely be calling to hang out.”

  “Awesome!” he cheered lightly, standing up. We followed his lead and all walked to our cars. He smiled, waving as he drove off.

  As soon as he was out of the parking lot, Bethany turned to me. “What’d you think?” she demanded.

  I laughed. “I just met him. Give me some time to let it sink in,” I brushed off the question. I wasn’t sure what I thought of him, honestly. He was cute, and seemed like a nice enough guy. But I knew it would be stupid to get in a relationship when I was still in love with someone else. It wouldn’t be fair to Ryan.

  “Are you serious?” she deadpanned. “He’s cute, funny, and nice. What else do you need?” she threw her arms up in exasperation.

  “You can go after him if you want, Bethany,” I giggled.

  “He likes you, I could see the way he was looking at you,” she murmured, turning toward the car. Frowning, I headed after her. And I saw the way you looked at him.

  Chapter Six – Monday Madness

  I walked into class Monday morning, hoping the day would go by quickly. Bethany, Ryan, and I planned another outing after school. The weather was perfect for a trip to the beach. He planned to pick us up after school and then we’d all drive to the beach together and meet up with some of his friends. I was nervous to meet them, but he assured me they were cool and that we would all get along smashingly.

  Lex and his friends had gotten together over the weekend at his house. They played loud music and yelled a lot. I assumed they were killing each other in video games. He had called to try and talk with me, but I refused when Mom told me who was on the phone. I didn’t want to talk to him. Something had changed, and I knew whatever had changed wouldn’t make my life any easier.

  The teacher came in and we got to work on clauses, one of my least favorite parts of English. I sighed and turned my attention back to the front. I needed to know this stuff. I had a quiz coming up.

  After class, I walked down towards the lunch room, found my normal table, and sat down. I pulled my lunch out of my bag and began eating, waiting for Bethany. She usually got out of class a little later than I did.

  The sound of footsteps caused me to look up. My heart jumped in my chest. “What do you want?”

  “Can we talk?” Lex asked. People glanced across the room curiously. He usually didn’t talk to me unless there was a crowd.

  “I was pretty sure I made myself clear when I refused to talk to you all weekend,” I muttered, taking a bite of my peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

  “Come on. I need to talk with you,” he continued.

  I shook my head. “No. I'm not going to talk to you. Not after what happened.”

  “Honeybee, please.” He whispered to me. His dark green irises almost looked sincere. Almost.

  I wanted to believe him. But the heartache I felt wouldn't let me. I couldn’t set myself up for more heartbreak. Doing so without realizing it was one thing, but to knowingly walk back to him would kill me.

  “Please leave, Lex.”

  “Not until you say you'll talk to me.” He held his ground.

  “I'm asking nicely,” I pointed out.

  He scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest. “I obviously don't care. I want to talk with you.”

  “Not now,” I growled.

  “Later then?” he questioned. I threw my hands up in exasperation. He sure was persistent.

  “I'm not promising anything. I have plans for later,” I answered.

  “I'll come over tonight,” he told me. “See you then.” He left the table just as Bethany came over. I felt a weight on my shoulders. Why couldn�
��t he just leave me alone?

  Bethany glared at his retreating back before sitting down. “What was that about?”

  “He wants to talk,” I pouted, glaring at my sandwich.

  “I hope you said no.” She frowned.

  “I did. But he said he's coming over later, anyways,” I grumbled.

  “Don’t let yourself be sweet talked into forgiving him,” she warned. I nodded. No way was I letting him sweet talk his way back into my heart. “A few more hours and we’ll be leaving for the beach.”

  “I literally can’t wait.” I glanced up as I saw someone make their way over towards us. “Don't look now, but your fiancée is coming over.” She turned and glanced at Jeremiah as he walked over. He set his food down next to her and smiled over at me.

  “Jeremiah,” she said less than enthusiastically. She wasn’t sold on the idea that he actually liked her. Part of her still felt he was just doing it to watch her fall. “Hey girls,” he turned towards Bethany. “Where did you go on Friday?” he asked.

  “Olivia and I had plans,” she told him. “I'm sorry I couldn't wait longer.” She gave a small smile.

  “No worries, I was just worried when you were gone,” he replied.

  “That's so sweet,” I cooed. Bethany shot a glance my way.

  “I’m a sweet guy,” he chimed in, an arrogant grin on his face. Yeah, maybe not. He turned back to her. “Anyways, I still have that thing for you. I can bring it to math class.”

  “Sure.” She nodded. There was an awkward tension between the two of them, but it didn’t look like Jeremiah noticed that.

  “Want to walk to class together?” he winked, resting his arms on the table.

  “Not today,” she replied easily. His carefree smile dropped from his face. “Olivia and I have to talk a little longer.”

  “Oh,” he sighed, his eyes dropping. “I’ll let you guys talk then…” he trailed off, standing and moving away from the table.

  “You’re such a heartbreaker, Bethany,” I chided, clucking my tongue at her.

  “It happens to the best of us.” She shrugged. She glanced at the clock on the main wall. “I really should get to class.”

  “Same.” I picked up my garbage. “I’ll see you in homeroom,” I told her. She nodded, walking off. After throwing my garbage away, I went to my next class.

  After school ended, I waited outside for Bethany. Ryan had texted me saying he would be there soon. He was picking up a few other people. That part made me even more nervous. I didn’t like the idea of making small talk for an hour long drive with people I didn’t know.

  The warm breeze caressed my skin, bringing a wave of calm to my mind. Part of why I loved California was because the warm weather had a way of calming my mood. I was ninety percent sure that if I was to move somewhere cold and wet, I would suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder.

  A dark green car pulled up to the curb. Ryan was in the front seat, another boy and girl were in the car with him. The girl was in the backseat, and the other guy was riding shot gun. The engine turned off and Ryan got out of the car. He waved over the hood before walking over to me.

  “Hey,” I smiled up at him.

  “Hey, cutie.” He winked. “Where is your friend?” he glanced around.

  I chuckled, standing up. “Probably trying to get out of her math class.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “Trying?”

  “She gets held up a lot,” I explained, pulling my backpack over my shoulder.

  “We should go find her then,” he decided, nodding his head as if to answer his own question. He glanced at my backpack. “Want to put that in the trunk?”

  “Sure.” I followed him over to the car and deposited my backpack in the trunk. A door opened and the boy stepped out of the car. He was tall, and kind of lanky. Sunglasses hid his eyes from view, and his red hair blazed in the sun.

  “Oh, right.” Ryan snapped his fingers. “Billy, this is Olivia. Olivia, this is Billy.” The car window rolled down, and the girl stuck her head out. Gray eyes smiled up at me, and brown bangs covered her forehead. “And this is Grace.”

  She smiled, sticking her hand out to me. “I’m Billy’s twin sister.” I did a double take. They both had pale skin, but that seemed to be the only thing they had in common. “Not identical,” she added with a laugh.

  “That makes way more sense,” I replied.

  Ryan grinned. “We’re going to go find Bethany, we’ll be back soon.”

  “Fine. But leave the keys? She’s texting her boyfriend and I have nothing to do,” Billy mumbled. Ryan tossed him the keys, and then gestured for me to lead the way.

  I walked back down the walkway, Ryan right behind me. The cologne he wore smelled fantastic. The black board shorts and green t-shirt looked good on him, showing off his tan skin and muscles.

  “So how was your day at school?” he glanced over at me, dark bangs falling into his eyes.

  “It was okay,” I replied, shrugging. He nudged my shoulder. I glanced around quickly to make sure there wasn’t a pair of ears listening that would spread rumors. “Long story short, the guy I’ve been in love with for a while is making life more complicated.”

  He frowned. “How is he making it worse?”

  I played with the ends of my hair. “He kind of kissed me while he was dating someone else, and then told me it was a mistake. Which, I mean, I guess it was, but it still hurts.”

  He dropped an arm around my shoulder. “Love hurts.” I nodded. “But don’t worry, there’s someone out there for you. If it isn’t this guy, it’ll be someone better,” he promised.

  “Thanks, Ryan,” I smiled up at him, hugging him around the waist.

  “My pleasure.”

  Ahead of us, a door opened. Bethany sure took her sweet time getting out of that classroom. I looked over with a bright smile. “Bethan-”

  “Honeybee?” Lex’s eyes moved from me to Ryan, who still had his arm around me. Lex narrowed his eyes and looked back at me.

  “Lex,” I uttered. Ryan seemed to realize Lex was the boy I was talking about, and his body tensed beside me.

  “What are you still doing here?” His eyes lingered on Ryan’s arm, still perched on my shoulder.

  “Waiting for Bethany,” I mumbled. Why did I feel guilty?

  “What’s it to you?” Ryan questioned, raising an eyebrow.

  “And you are?” Lex crossed his arms defensively.

  “I'm her boy friend,” Ryan answered easily. My what?

  “Her what?” Lex bit out. He was upset? Why would he be upset?

  “Her boy friend,” Ryan repeated, raising his eyebrows. “You do know what that means right?”

  Lex turned his glare to me. “So this is the real reason you didn’t want to talk to me?” he rolled his eyes. “And you think I’m bad,” he muttered.

  “Don’t talk to her like that,” Ryan warned.

  “Don’t tell me what to do, man. Pretty sure I’ve known her longer than you have,” Lex muttered.

  “Pretty sure that doesn’t matter right now,” he pointed out, smirking. The door behind Lex opened, and Bethany’s head appeared. “Bethany!” Ryan smiled. “We’re ready to go.”

  She looked at Ryan and me, her gaze flickering over to Lex in question. “Okay.” She walked around the seething blond and reached us.

  “It was great to meet you, Lex.” Ryan beamed before turned around and walking away. We quickly followed after him, not wanting to be caught in Lex’s anger.

  Before Bethany could ask any questions of her own, I asked mine first. “Did Jeremiah give you the gift he was talking about?”

  She glared, knowing that I was stalling. “Yeah. It was a pair of earrings.”

  “Who’s Jeremiah?” Ryan asked, slipping his sunglasses over his eyes.

  “Her secret admirer who isn’t secretive.”

  “He’s not my admirer. I’m pretty sure he’s just messing with me,” she mumbled. “Now! What was that about?”

  “I was just
being a cool dude,” Ryan assured her. “Nothing to worry about.”

  “You told him you were my boyfriend,” I blurted. Bethany’s eyes widened.

  “I did tell him that,” he admitted. “But if I had told him that in writing, all of you would’ve seen the space in between the word boy and the word friend. I bet you all feel silly for just assuming there wasn’t a space.” He winked, with a crooked grin on his face.

  I groaned. “Ryan.”

  “What, I’m being helpful. Making a guy jealous is one of the fastest ways to get them to admit their feelings, if to no one else then at least to themselves, which usually leads to telling the girl,” he told me. He looked so sure of himself. Oh if only he knew what he’d just done. Lex didn’t react the same ways other guys would have. His first reaction was to run. Or, like when we were younger, he would tell my mom.

  “He’s not going to get jealous and tell me he likes me. He’s going to get angry and tell my mom.” Ryan’s smile dropped.

  “Seriously?” I looked up, startled to see Billy leaning against the car, not only listening to our conversation, but adding to it.

  “Yeah.” I sighed.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” Ryan apologized. “Maybe I can fix this.”

  “There’s not much you can do now anyways. I’ll just ignore my phone until we get home from the beach,” I told them.

  “A day at the beach fixes everything,” Billy smiled, sliding back into the car. Ryan shot me one more look of regret before he moved to the driver’s seat. Bethany and I got into the car, sitting in the back with Grace.

  Hopefully Lex wouldn’t fall into old ways, and the beach would wash away my worries. There was far too much drama in my life for someone who didn’t have that many friends and had never been on a date.

  Chapter Seven – Pillows M.I.A

  At the beach, we met the rest of Ryan’s friends. There was a couple; Rick and Noelle. Rick was blond, with light blue eyes. His height loomed over Noelle, who was short with brown hair and eyes. There was also Aaron, who was dating Grace. He had dark brown hair, and looked like someone who went to the gym a lot.