by Caity H.
“If we’re going to be friends, you have to be nice to the ones I already have,” I deadpanned.
“So we can be friends again?” he asked hopefully.
“Friends, not best friends. And there are going to be rules.” He nodded for me to continue. “Rule number one is that you can’t be so mean to me in public.”
“There’s a week of school left,” he said, digging a stick in the embers. “I think I can handle being sort of nice, course I do enjoy some of our fights.” He smirked.
“Rule number two is that you’ll talk to me tonight about your daddy issues.”
At this he looked up and glared. “No, I don’t want to talk about that, I don’t have issues.”
“If you really want to be my friend again, and be able to complain to me about things, you’ll talk to me about your issues.” I told him, folding my arms across my chest. “Take it or leave it.”
“Fine,” he said begrudgingly.
I smiled in victory. “I’ll start you out with only a few rules, so this is the last one I have for now.”
“I bet it’s gonna be a massive one.”
“You have to let me alter your appearance in two ways for graduation.” I beamed.
He scowled at me. “You can’t cut my hair or make me wear my socks over my pants. That Halloween still haunts my dreams.”
“That may be so, but you were the best nerd ever!” I declared proudly.
He stared at me a few seconds before slowly shaking his head in disgust. “No, I was the worst nerd ever.”
“Which makes you the best one,” I assured him.
“Your logic is screwed up,” he decided, shaking his head.
“My logic is perfectly fine, thank you very much. Now, are you going to take the deal or not? I swear I won’t cut your hair or make you wear tube socks. I will let you wear whatever you want,” I promised him.
“Pinky promise?” he asked warily, putting his pinky out towards me.
I smirked, locking my pinky around his. “Yes. I pinky promise.”
“These things are legit, so no take backs.” He released my pinky.
“That would practically be illegal,” I said, waving away the idea.
“So we have a deal then, do we not? The rules are set, we’ve pinky promised. Are we friends again?” his voice dead serious.
“Yes, we’re friends,” I said, smiling slightly. The friend I thought I’d lost forever was back.
“I think this calls for a hug or something,” he decided. A hug? Something was wrong. Maybe he wanted to right his wrongs before he died.
I gulped. “You’re worrying me, Lex.”
He rolled his eyes and chuckled. “If I was dying, I would tell you. Don’t worry, Honeybee.”
Did I really ask him if he was dying that often? Yes. “How about a handshake to start off with?” I suggested.
“Fine,” he shook my hand, then picked up another marshmallow and started to roast it. Suddenly, he dropped it. I raised an eyebrow. Maybe he had burned himself. “I have something for you.”
“What?” I murmured. He stood up and walked away. I watched as he dug something out of his bag then came back over and sat down next to me.
“Before you freak out, friends sit next to each other, and I’m not dying,” he assured me, a smirk on his lips.
“I wasn’t even thinking that,” I replied. “What do you have wrapped up under your shirt?” I laughed at the strange shape that was hidden beneath his shirt.
“What I have underneath my shirt will blow your little Honeybee brain!” he declared. “And no, it’s not my amazing abs, although, they’re pretty stellar,”
“Get to the point,” I giggled, nudging him.
“Don’t be snappy.” He nudged me back. He slowly took the object out from beneath his shirt, producing a brown paper bag, and handed it to me. “Open it.”
Inside was a plush pink unicorn. The fabric had faded, and the horn was slightly off. One of the eyes was missing, but the sight of that beaten up unicorn made my heart jump into my throat and tears well in my eyes. It was the unicorn my dad had bought for my first birthday, the one I’d named Garth after Dad’s middle name. I’d lost it not long after he died and had been heartbroken for weeks.
“I found him shoved in my closet today when I dug my bag out. I put him in the washing machine so he would smell good when I gave him to you,” Lex explained, smiling at my expression of pure joy.
“He does smell good.” I couldn’t think of what to say, I was so happy my brain couldn’t put together the words that I wanted to scream from the rooftops.
“Like lavender, right? Mom gets the good soap.” He smirked.
“Thank you.” I said, feeling tears fall down my cheeks. “Thank you so much, Lex. You have no idea how much this means to me.” I hugged Garth close to me and leaned against Lex.
“You’re welcome, Honeybee. It was the least I could do,” he returned.
“Sure it was. The least,” I replied, rolling my eyes with a laugh. I fought back a yawn.
“That’s like the tenth time you’ve yawned. I think it’s time for bed. Don’t make me drug you,” he threatened.
I smiled, watching the flames dance in front of me. “Fine, but only because we’re friends and you found Garth for me, otherwise I would refuse to listen to you.” I stood up and started to make my way over to the tent. “Get some sleep, Lex.”
“I’ll go to sleep soon,” he promised. “Sleep well, Honeybee.”
“Night, Lex. I’ll help you work out your issues tomorrow,” I whispered, slipping inside the tent. He laughed quietly at my comment. He probably didn’t think I’d be able to help, but I’d prove him wrong.
I crawled into my sleeping bag, holding Garth close to me. The day had turned out to be way better than expected.
The one thing that kept running through my head as my mind drifted off into sleepy land was that Lex and I were friends. We were going to be nice to each other. He wasn’t going to give away my secrets anymore, and he was going to trust me with his again.
This was going to be so weird.
Chapter Eighteen – Strolling with Stargazer
The sound of someone moving around, outside of the tent Mom and me were sleeping in, woke me up. I thought it was all in my head until I heard another noise. I tensed in my sleeping bag, freaking out internally. Who was outside of my tent? I didn’t want to risk waking mom for no reason.
I unzipped my sleeping bag and shivered at the cool night air against my legs. The shorts and long sleeve shirt did little to combat the cool temperatures. I rubbed my arms in an attempt to warm myself up and looked around the dark tent. I couldn’t see a thing, not even any light from the moon outside.
After tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, I crept towards where I thought the zipper was. I almost tripped over myself and then reached around until my fingers closed over the small zipper. I slowly pulled it open and peeked out of the small hole.
All of a sudden an eye appeared in front of me. I squeaked and jumped back, falling over my bag and landing hard on my butt. The eye disappeared and two hands slowly pulled the zippers apart to open the tent. I searched around wildly to find something to defend myself, fear coursing through me at a high rate. I grabbed a flip-flop and held it behind me.
Slowly the creeper became visible, but only their outline, it was too dark to see any features. The person started laughing, because apparently they could see me. They held up a light from their phone, and held it near their face. A smile on his face, Lex was laughing at me.
“Lex Diamond! You jerk! I can’t believe you just did that!” I hissed, dropping the shoe. “What is wrong with you?”
He laughed, unzipping the tent. “So many things. But since you’re up, come with me.”
“Lex, it’s really late,” I told him, even though I had no idea how late it actually was.
His hand went to his side and with it the light of his phone. “Come on.”
“It’s pit
ch black outside, and I’m cold. Can’t this wait?”
“No! Right now, Bee,” he said, sticking his hand out for me to take.
“I don’t have shoes,” I tried to tell him.
“I’ll give you a piggy back ride or something. Now hurry up, who knows how long this will last.” He brought his hands together and gave me the puppy dog eyes. I groaned and stepped out of the tent. He grinned and clapped quietly. “Hop on.” He turned, crouching down.
“Lex, no,” I said, shooing away the idea. “I’ll just put my flip-flops on,”
“Olivia Rayne Martin, I will throw you over my shoulder like potatoes,” he threatened.
I rolled my eyes, not that he would be able to see it very well. Sighing, I got on his back and he stood up, his arms underneath my knees, and my arms dangling at his chest. I leaned my head on his shoulder, still sleepy. There was a small breeze, and I shivered because of it.
“Cold?” he asked.
I nodded, tightening my hold on him as he walked. “A bit,” I agreed.
“This will be worth it,” he promised. He kept walking. I could smell the lake on the breeze and assumed that’s where we were heading.
“If you’re going to kill me and dump my body in the lake, it won’t work. Too many people know I came here with you. They all assume we’re not friends,” I yawned, closing my eyes.
“Don’t worry, I won’t kill you,” he chuckled.
“Thank goodness. Now where are we going?” I asked. He walked along the dirt path, and from the sounds of the crickets and the frogs I could tell we were moving closer towards the lake.
“The lake,” he answered.
“I know that. What are we going to see there?” I wondered, a little bit impatient.
“The rest of a meteor shower,” he whispered. “I was watching the show at the lake and decided to grab a blanket. When I heard you moving around, I thought you might want to watch it.”
“Did you grab the blanket?” I gave a sly grin.
He laughed, his foot catching on a root. I tensed, waiting for him to fall, bringing me with him. Thankfully, he righted himself before we fell. “No, I forgot. I blame you for that.”
“Of course.” I set my chin on his shoulder and looked towards the lake. “How long have you been watching the meteor shower?” I asked, looking toward the sky. The large trees blocked most of my view, only letting me a few stars sparkling against the black night sky.
“Since after you went to bed,” he said, stopping at the lakes shore. “Your seat, my lady,” he announced, gesturing to the log. He crouched down so I didn’t have to jump off. I sat down on the log and he sat down next to me, staring up at the sky. We watched in silence together as the stars would randomly shoot across the dark night sky. It was like a black canvas, and the artist was throwing streaks of white to entertain the viewers of the painting’s creation.
Lex looked enthralled with the sky. His eyes were moving back and forth trying to find the shooting stars. He had his chin in his hand and the faint traces of a smile on his lips. He looked almost innocent, like when we were younger.
“How much do you love the sky?” I asked him.
He took a moment to stop gazing in awe at the stars to look at me. “What kind of question is that?”
I shrugged. “It’s a question, now answer it. How much do you love the sky? More than chocolate? More than soccer? How much?” I asked, looking back towards where more stars were shooting around.
“Umm … that’s a tough question. Not more than soccer, more than chocolate. It’s hard to explain. I just really like watching the stars.” He didn’t look away from me when he spoke, his eyes still admiring the night.
“Why?” I asked, shivering against the cool breeze coming off the lake. The lake was glowing in the moonlight, and the trees looked eerie in the reflection.
“Why not? The sky is pretty awesome. That might sound really stupid, but it’s the truth. The sky is especially awesome at night, or during a storm. Have you ever really paid attention to the sky during a lightning storm, how the lightning travels through the clouds to the ground? It’s incredible.” The smile lit up his face, and his eyes danced with joy. He looked so happy.
“When did you fall in love with the sky?” He laughed, bringing a frown to my face. Why was that funny?
“I didn’t fall in love with the sky, Honeybee.”
“Just answer the question.” I smirked.
Lex smiled and looked out towards the lake, watching the sky in its reflection. “When I was seven or eight, my dad bought me a telescope and put it in my room. That was before his practice took off, so he would spend more time with me watching the stars, searching for planets, or looking for constellations. It was the most fun I ever had with him.”
“That’s kind of awesome,” I whispered, bumping shoulders with him. “I’m guessing that was before you and you dad started to fight more.”
He frowned, understanding the direction I was taking. “I guess you could say that.”
“Would you?”
“No. I think everything with me changing happened around the same time,” he replied, leaning down on his elbows. “High school changed me.” He shrugged.
“Do you think you’ll ever change back?” I sighed. “At least a little?”
He gave a weak smile. “I hope so.”
“Me too,” I murmured, leaning against him. He sighed, leaning his head against mine for a moment before he continued to stare at the sky. “How come you never invited me over to watch the stars?”
Grinning, he turned to me. My breath caught in my throat seeing the moonlight in his eyes. Focus!
“It wasn’t a Honeybee thing. It required too much patience. You wouldn’t have lasted an hour,” he answered, winking.
I frowned. I had patience! “Whatever, I could’ve.”
“Nope, you wouldn’t have lasted, trust me. I know you, Bee,” he assured me. I rolled my eyes. He didn’t know me, not really.
“Can I have your hoodie?” I shivered again. “I’m freezing, and someone forgot to pack my sweat pants.” I glared at him.
He looked away innocently. “I’m sorry, what was that?”
“Give me your hoodie or so help me, I’ll shove you in the lake,” I threatened. Of course, I had no intention of pushing him in the lake. He would retaliate and I would end up worse off than before.
He rolled his eyes, shrugging out of his hoodie and handing it over to me.
“Thank you,” I said, pulling it on. I took a deep breath. He smelled good.
“You’re welcome. Now be quiet, I want to watch this in peace,”
“But you know I like talking,” I protested.
“Then talk to yourself,” he laughed.
I scowled at him. Hmpf. I would talk to myself, just to bug him. “So Olivia, how was your day?” I asked myself. “Oh just great. But I’m curious about water buffalos. Do you think there are any in this lake, being water buffalos and all? I wonder what would happen if a meteorite hit the lake. Would Lex and I die? Or would I live because I ran, rather than watch as the burning rock hit the water’s surface. I think I would probably live. I’m way smarter-” A hand clamped over my mouth, and I giggled against it.
“Shush! Honestly, it’s like your chatter-box has no off button,” he muttered, his hand still on my mouth. I opened my mouth and poked my tongue out. He jumped, and ripped his hand away from me. “Honeybee! You’re so gross!”
“You’re the one who wanted to be friends again. This is the kind of thing friends’ do–”
“And you still won’t shut up.”
“I just buzz all day long.” I winked
He mock gasped. “Did you just make a bee joke about yourself? On purpose?” he wondered.
“No, I never make jokes on purpose.” I deadpanned.
“Good to know, Bee,” he chuckled.
“You know, it’s bad enough you don’t even use my real name, but now you’re shortening my nickname? I used to have a thr
ee syllable nickname, now I’m reduced to one letter. I’m a little offended,” I told him.
“I’ll stop calling you anything if you keep this complaining up,” he mock threatened, glancing back at the sky.
“That’s not very nice, taking away a girl’s name,” I muttered, burying my head in his sweater. Man, why did he smell so good? It was like a mix whatever cologne Lex wore, and the smell of rain after the weather had been dry for a long time.
“Life isn’t a fairytale,” he chided.
“I’ve noticed. Which really sucks,” I said, sitting back up. “Where’s prince charming with a blanket for my freezing legs?”
“How about Prince Lex gives you a piggy ride back to your tent and lets you get some sleep, sound good?” he asked.
“You’re a prince?” My eyes widened and my mouth dropped open.
He pushed me slightly. “Get on your feet, peasant. I’m going to give you a ride back to the tent.” We stood and he picked me up. His arms were under my knees again. I could feel his muscles pulsing against my skin. Lex stopped at the tent and let me down gently.
“Thanks for letting me in on the meteor shower.”
“You’re welcome, Bee,” he answered, ruffling my hair.
Grumbling, I slapped his arm away. “Hey, don’t touch the hair.”
“You’re not the boss of me,” he said, and stuck his tongue out like the mature five year old we both knew he was.
I frowned at him, but it was hard to keep my smile out it. “You’re a mean boy.” The moon gave his eyes a certain sparkle, like he was thinking of something devious.
“But I’m good at it, right?” he winked. I sighed. He was good at it.
“I hope I didn’t spoil your time with the sky tonight.” The last thing I wanted to do was ruin something special he had with his father.
“No, you didn’t, don’t worry. It was fun, like old times.” He smiled warmly, it reached his eyes.
“Good. Now I’m going to bed. Goodnight, Stargazer,” I yawned, unzipping the tent.
“Night, Creeper,” he whispered.
“That’s creeper crawler to you, I am a honeybee for Pete’s sake.” I smirked, turning around so I could see him.