Mom had called Sam and me down to eat breakfast. That meant that when I walked out of my room, I stumbled right into my twin. She may already be a bitch on the regular but in the morning, she was an even worse mega bitch.
“Ew, can you please warn me before you come into the hallway?” Sam hissed. I swore she can never speak without sounding cruel.
“Go back to your room, because clearly you need more beauty sleep,” I responded with a wink.
“Oh, whatever Isabella.”
I sighed and followed her down the stairs. It honestly bothered me how much we disliked one another. More than anything, I just wanted to be able to walk through the house and feel safe. Instead I felt like I always had to watch my back.
“Girls.” Mom smiled once we reached the kitchen. In her hand were two cups of steaming coffee. Quickly, I ran over and grabbed the blue mug and began drinking.
“What is the coffee for?” Sam asked with caution. Her hand gradually reached out for the drink.
Slowly, I took the coffee away from my lips. Sam was right. Mom never made us coffee; we always had to make it for ourselves.
“It’s Halloween!” Mom exclaimed. A smile was plastered on her face.
Sam and I exchanged a look.
“We know,” Sam said.
“Am I going to make you two a costume?” Mom threw her hands up in excitement.
I let out a sigh. “Mom, we don’t need costumes anymore.”
“Yeah, and besides I’m going to a party,” Sam said. “I’m going dressed as a cheerleader.” She shrugged.
“How creative,” I mumbled and Sam sent me a glare.
“Okay, well, what about you Ella?” Mom smiled. She wanted to make a costume so badly, even though she honestly sucked at making them.
I shook my head. “I’m going over to Caleb’s house to watch a movie.”
“Cheating on Aspen?” Sam snorted. That made me give her a glare.
“What was that Sam?” Mom asked.
“Nothing,” I quickly said. Mom and Dad wanted me to tell them the instant I began dating Aspen, but I really didn’t want to tell them. Could it just be my secret?
“Okay.” Mom frowned. “So, no costumes?”
Sam and I shook our heads.
“All right then.” Mom looked between us. “Then no coffee for you!” she yelled and seized the mugs.
“Mom!” Sam and I both shouted.
“It’s only going to stunt your growth.” Mom waved us away. “It’s really bad for you,” she explained as she drank from the cups.
“Thanks,” I said to Mom as I left the room.
“Love you two,” she said, laughing.
Sam and I bounded back upstairs to enjoy our sleep once again.
Once Mom was out of earshot, Sam asked, “So, you’re seriously not going to tell Mom or Dad about you and Aspen?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. Not now at least.”
“They’ll be happy for you.” Sam smiled. “I think you should tell them.”
Narrowing my eyes, I looked at her. “Why are you being an actual person?”
Sam laughed. It sounded bitter and harsh. The laugh didn’t sound human at all. I waited for her response but she just kept strolling along until she reached her room.
Right when her door closed, my phone buzzed in my pocket. Pulling it out, I noticed it was Caleb.
“Hello, Caleb,” I said once I clicked ‘Answer’.
“You only have seven days to live.” His voice was muffled on the phone.
“Darn it!” I yelled with a smile while walking into my room. “I have plans next Sunday. Do you mind changing it to eight days?” I giggled.
“You know what?” His voice had gotten deeper. “I’m changing it to five days now.”
“That’s actually kind of a blessing,” I whispered. “I have a soccer game Friday that I’m willing to do anything to skip, even die.”
“How about I change it to six days and have you die after the game? That way you still suffer through a horrible soccer game and then die afterwards.”
“You know, I don’t particularly like that option.” I tapped my finger along my cheek as I paced around my room. It was fun playing with Caleb.
Caleb let out a grunt. “You would be a hard victim to kill, you know that?”
“Perfect! Then I don’t have to worry about being dreadfully murdered by a psychotic serial killer.” I laughed.
“You got a point there, El,” Caleb said and I smiled. “So, when are you coming over today?”
“I was thinking I’d get ready now and head over.”
“Can’t wait.”
“Great, see you soon.”
***
Despite it only being 11:00 in the morning, I decided to stop at the grocery store to grab some snacks and soda. Movie days just weren’t complete without popcorn and M&Ms. While driving, I noticed a couple of families already out trick-or-treating. Mom was most likely already sitting by the front door, excited to hand out candy; this was her favorite holiday. Every year she attempts to make us our costumes. And every year, Dad would end up taking us to the store right after Mom made the outfits and buy us new ones. It had become a family tradition.
In the store, I noticed Vincent working behind the checkout counter. I immediately went to his line.
“Hey, Ella.” He smiled when I walked up to him. A green hat covered his black hair as part of his uniform. The green color emphasized his dark skin.
I returned the smile. “Hi, Vinny.” He was one of Aspen’s best friends. Spending so much time on the soccer field formed friendships on most teams, but not on the girls’ team.
“Heading over to Aspen’s?” Vinny gave a seductive look.
I laughed. “No, I’m heading over to my friend Caleb’s house,” I explained and raised the popcorn. “Scary movie marathon.”
Vinny nodded, but now he was frowning. Something about his look made me nervous. “So, you aren’t coming to Taylor’s party tonight? Aspen said he was bringing someone.”
My eyes narrowed in confusion. “I don’t know anything about a party,” I said, shaking my head.
“Well, that’s a shame.” He shrugged and rang up my last item. “Aspen was looking forward to showing off his girl.” He said, winking at me with his dark brown eyes.
“Sorry, Vinny,” I said and took my bag. “I haven’t talked to Aspen since yesterday.”
Vinny just nodded and watched me leave. When I reached the sliding doors, he called out to me. “Don’t be afraid to stop by tonight.”
I gave him a smug smile and kept walking. It didn’t make sense why Aspen wouldn’t tell me about the party, or why he would have tell people I was coming when I really wasn’t. He knew that I was planning on spending the day at Caleb’s.
To clear the air, I decided to call him and figure out what really happened.
“Aspen,” I said once he answered.
“Hey Branson! Happy Halloween!” he shouted.
I smiled. “Happy Halloween to you as well,” I responded.
“What’s up? Are you at Caleb’s yet?” He remembered my plans. That warmed my heart, but I had to focus. I was calling for an important reason.
“I’m heading there now actually,” I said quietly. Throwing my bags into the back seat, I climbed into my car waiting for Aspen to respond, but he didn’t. “Are you going to Taylor’s tonight?” I asked and began tapping my foot.
“Yeah.” He sounded confused. “You were going to Caleb’s, so I figured I would go to the party with the guys.”
“Oh, okay,” I whispered. It bothered me just a little that he didn’t even ask me. Sure, I had plans already, but being invited would’ve felt nice.
“Did you want to come?” he asked. “I just figured that you wanted to spend time with Caleb. You guys haven’t had some one-on-one time in a while.” He knew how much Caleb meant to me, and that made me so happy. Usually, a boyfriend would be jealous of his girlfriend hanging out with another guy, but he
knew the real score between Caleb and me, that we were only friends.
“I know.” I sighed. I honestly didn’t know what I wanted from the conversation. Now I felt stupid for calling him in the first place.
“What’s going on, Ella?” Aspen asked.
“Do you mind if I join you tonight?” I asked, feeling embarrassed. He’d probably say no. He had an entire night planned to party with his buddies, and now I’m going to ruin his night. Maybe I shouldn’t have asked. “Actually, forget it. You can have fun tonight without me. Don’t worry about it.” Great! Now I sounded like I was mad. Why couldn’t I just talk like a normal human being?
“Ella.” Aspen sighed. It was coming. He was going to ask me not to come, and that maybe being girlfriend and boyfriend was a mistake. That we weren’t ready for a relationship. That I wasn’t ready for a relationship. “Of course, you can come with me tonight. I don’t know why you would think that you couldn’t. Wherever I go, I expect you to be invited.”
“Really?” I croaked. He was being so sweet to me, and I was acting like a crazy obsessive girlfriend.
“Yes, Ella.”
We remained quiet for a little bit after that. It sounded weird, but I enjoy hearing the sound of his breathing. It felt as if I was with him.
“So, I’ll pick you up at eight?” Aspen finally spoke.
“That sounds perfect,” I said, and I meant it. Caleb would be a little disappointed, but he would understand. At least I’ll get to see him for most of the day. Aspen was my boyfriend. I should’ve been spending time with him.
“Cool, I’ll see you then.”
Chapter 18
Someday My Prince Will Come
I arrived at Caleb’s place on time. In front of me, their one-story house loomed with appropriate decorations for the season. Artificial cobwebs were strewn around the palm trees that surrounded their house and the gutters, and a few toy spiders hung from the roof. If I were a little kid, I would definitely think the spiders were real.
Having no other floors in the entire house meant his room was right next to the kitchen, which was perfect considering he loved to eat. Their backyard was large, and it had a pool. You would think that all houses in Florida had pools, but unfortunately, they don’t. Our house didn’t, so Caleb’s house was always the place to be when it was hot out. I noticed his parents’ minivan wasn’t in the driveway, only Caleb’s Honda. That was when I remembered it was only 11:30 in the morning. His parents were still out working.
“Welcome!” Caleb threw open his red front door with open arms.
“Is the killer here?” I shouted, still at my car. Surprisingly, Sam let me have it today. She said that her friend Amelia was going to pick her up for the party she was attending.
“Nah.” Caleb shook his hand. “I just got rid of him a few minutes ago.” I laughed and walked over to him heaving the heavy bags that were our snacks. “Don’t tell anyone,” Caleb whispered as I reached his front stoop, “But he’s buried in my backyard.” He nodded his head toward the back of his house.
“Are we going to have to build a gazebo to hide suspicion?” I giggled and scooted past him into the house.
“Of course!” Caleb yelled, and I laughed. He eyed the white plastic bags. “What’d you bring?” He offered a hand, and I gratefully dropped the bag onto his open palm. He laughed at my weakness and tossed the bags onto the counter, eager to find out what was in them.
“Candy and popcorn,” I said. “Oh, and there’s some Coke and Sprite.”
“You’re the best.” Caleb smiled and kissed my forehead, his arm resting on my shoulder.
“I’m glad to hear you say that,” I said and nuzzled out of his grasp, “because I actually have to leave tonight at 8.” I watched him, waiting for a reaction.
Caleb only shrugged, though. “That’s cool,” he said and took out two cups from the brown cabinet. “I can only imagine that Mrs. Branson has huge plans today, considering it is her favorite holiday.”
I sucked in my breath. My heart practically stopped beating. He would not be happy once I told him my reason for leaving. Eyeing me, Caleb began pouring our drinks. I didn’t know if I had it in me to tell him I was leaving to be with Aspen. Caleb had to understand though, right?
“I have plans with Aspen, actually.” I took the candy and began walking to the living room quickly. Honestly, I didn’t want to deal with Caleb’s rage. When he got mad, he got really mad. There was always screaming—very loud screaming.
“Hey, that’s totally fine by me.” Caleb nodded as he followed behind me with the cups. He rested them on the wooden coffee table.
I looked at him with full-on confusion. This wasn’t the type of response I was expecting. I would’ve imagined him yelling and drinks spilling. Instead, he was acting totally normal. Caleb always overreacted. Do I have to mention the punch he threw at Aspen for not bringing me home? Yeah, Caleb becomes a full-on maniac when he was angry.
“Really?” It didn’t sound like him at all.
“Of course.” He smiled and took a seat next to me on the couch. It sucked both of us in from our accumulated weight. “After all, he is your boyfriend.” I was quiet as I watched him, waiting for the outburst to happen. Caleb only continued to look toward the TV as he turned it on. “We better get started right away on the marathon then or else, we might not finish them all by the time Aspen comes.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “We better get started.”
Before he could change his mind and be mad or upset, I snuggled into his side and pulled the Twizzlers to my chest.
We watched a marathon of Halloween. They were pretty bad quality, but somehow, they still got me scared. Scary movies weren’t really my thing. They scared me way too easily. My dreams would only consist of terrors. Caleb loved them though, and for him, I would do anything, even if it meant sitting through a whole day of horror movies.
Around 7:53 p.m., the doorbell rang. Caleb sighed and took his arm away from me. As he stood, he rubbed his palms against his dark jeans. He extended his hands toward the front door.
“Your prince awaits,” he said and tried to smile, but I could tell that he was disappointed.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered and walked over to him. “His friends really wanted to see me.”
“Your friends really wanted to see you,” Caleb said.
I frowned. He was using the guilt card. “Caleb.” I sighed. “Why don’t you go hang out with Becca?” I smiled. “I’m sure she’d be happy to see you.” Nudging him, I gave a wink.
“I’d rather just sit at home.”
“Fine,” I said and put my hands on my hips. My eyes narrowed. “But don’t be mad at me that I want to go out, while you just want to sit here and mope. It isn’t my fault that I want to go have fun for a change.”
I regretted what I said right after it left my mouth.
Caleb looked at me with wild eyes. I had pushed him to the limit. But I was mad at him. He couldn’t just expect me to spend all my time with him. He should’ve been spending that time with Becca, not me.
Before Caleb could lash out at me, the doorbell rang again. Quickly, I walked over to his front door and yanked it open. Aspen was standing there, looking smoking hot. His costume was a prince, and I heard Caleb give a chuckle from behind me. Aspen wore a navy suit with a sword tucked into his belt loop. A red tie was fastened around his neck, and to top the look, he wore a golden crown that was slightly crooked on his head.
“Your Highness.” I smiled and bowed to him.
“Please,” he said with a smirk. “Call me Aspen.” He kissed the back of my hand and my heart swooned for his endless glory.
I giggled, which made me feel way too girly. “I didn’t realize I was supposed to wear a costume.” I frowned.
This made him grin. “Good, because I actually bought you this,” he said and brought out a bag from behind him.
“You got me a costume?”
“Well, I figured we could go as a couple.” He shrugged, bu
t still held his smile. “Every prince needs his princess, after all.”
“Aspen.” I sighed. This was seriously making me way too happy. “This is so sweet!” I exclaimed and jumped into his arm. My lips met his, and I almost melted, but then I remembered that Caleb was standing only feet away.
I jumped away, feeling a little embarrassed, but not much. Aspen was the best boyfriend ever, and I needed to show that. At the sight of my blushing face, Aspen laughed.
“I’ll go put this on,” I said and kissed his cheek. “Be back in a second.” Quickly, I turned around and rushed to the bathroom. When I passed Caleb, he mumbled something which I didn’t quite hear so I decided to just keep heading to the bathroom. More than anything, I wanted to see what Aspen had gotten me and put it on.
My breathing nearly stopped when I took the dress out of the black bag. The dress was red, and it went all the way down to the floor. There was even a pair of navy blue slippers that matched the dress perfectly. The gown, once on, hugged my body perfectly. It wasn’t necessarily a princess dress, but boy, did it make me feel pretty. The dress was perfect for the party that we were going to. It showed that I tried, but not too much. Aspen and I would look perfect at the party, as we were matching perfectly. My boyfriend knew how to coordinate an outfit.
Walking out of the bathroom, I heard a sigh.
“Damn,” Aspen said when I reached the boys at the front of the house. “You are hot!”
I hid my face to hide my blush.
“You look beautiful, El.” Caleb tried to give me a smile, but he knew that our fight wasn’t over that easily. I was still pissed that he got mad whenever I wanted to hang out with Aspen. That wasn’t fair. Aspen was my boyfriend.
“Thanks guys.” I flashed them both a smile, and my eyes landed on Aspen.
“May I accompany you to the ball, princess?” He bowed.
My face felt like it was burning. “Why certainly.” I smiled and extended my hand. Aspen accepted the hand gracefully.
Try and Catch Me: A Young Adult Fiction Page 11