And they tried.
The moment I started school last year, they swarmed around me like locust. They invited me to their parties, football games, you name it. Two months ago, I finally succumbed to Ronan, and I liked him. He was fun to be around when he wasn’t talking about football—he was the quarterback and all—or when he wasn’t trying to arrange a hangout with the Nightingale brothers… Okay, maybe he wasn’t as fun as I thought he was, but he was harmless.
“Is there somebody else?” My eyes snapped to his face, unease rolling through me.
“No.” Yes.
Did I feel awful about lying to him? Yeah, yeah, I did. Ronan wasn’t a bad-looking guy, and half of the girls at our school told me how lucky I was to have his attention. But his sandy-blond hair never did it for me. Neither did his blue eyes, no matter how many times I tried to forget the onyx ones.
And every time he kissed me, I imagined somebody else’s lips on mine. It wasn’t fair to him, and it wasn’t fair to me. I could see he wanted more from me, but I wasn’t willing to give him something that belonged to someone else.
“I really am sorry, Ronan.” I stood up and waited for him to say something. Anything at all, but it never came. “I’ll see you around, okay?”
I could hear the bell ringing, and I knew these bleachers would be filled with students in the next couple of minutes. When he kept staring out at the stadium with a very visible tick on his cheek, I took it as time to go.
I passed a group of cheerleaders sneering at me, and I couldn’t even imagine their behavior once word of our breakup got out. The last two months, the jocks and their girlfriends were, I could say, civil toward me, but I knew it was only because I was dating one of their own. Next year was going to hurt. I could already feel it.
I wasn’t going to dwell on that right now. I was adamant on making this the best summer of my life.
School was officially over for the year, but everybody still lingered around, talking about their summer plans, parties they were going to attend, people they were going to meet. I had no interest in any of it.
Instead, I walked by the main building of our school, heading for the cliffs overlooking the ocean. If I looked to the left, I could almost see my house down in the valley, nestled next to Nightingale Hill.
I always wondered which presumptuous prick named the house as if it were a small town in an already small town. Half of the town already had their names plastered on shops, billboards, and whatnot. Even Ava always joked that her ancestors must have been compensating for something else, if you know what I mean. In my opinion, both of our families were just a bunch of assholes controlling this town.
Hers more than mine, but still.
I took a deep breath, inhaling a familiar scent of the Atlantic Ocean, reveling in the sound of crashing waves against the cove beneath the cliff. Families were milling on the beach, taking advantage of the warm weather. June was always a tricky little bastard. It would be sunny in the morning, and then suddenly, a wave of rain would sweep through the town in the afternoon, confining everybody to their houses.
I loved both, but I preferred the sun over the clouds on any given day. Summer solstice was upon us in ten days, and half of the town would be filled with tourists, running away from their cities, seeking some sun and ocean. I still didn’t know what our plans were, but I had no doubt they involved the Nightingales and some sort of a resort for at least a week. It didn’t really matter as long as I had Ava with me.
“Phee!” Speak of the devil. I turned around, seeing a flustered Ava walking toward me. She always reminded me of Snow White, with her black hair, and round blue eyes, a complete contrast to her pale skin. Some people in school called her an elf, thinking it would bother her. If anything, she reveled in the nickname. I couldn’t recall how many times she made me watch The Lord of the Rings with her, fawning over Legolas and later on his father when The Hobbit came out.
“I’ve been looking everywhere for you,” she huffed, plopping down on the stone next to mine. “What are you doing here? I thought you were with Ronan.”
“I was with him.” I chuckled at the scowl on her face. For a person that got along with almost everybody, she hated Ronan’s guts. “We broke up, you psycho, so you can remove that look on your face.”
“Oh, thank God. I was going to punch him in the face.”
For such a little thing, she was one of the fiercest people I knew. When she loved somebody, she loved with her whole being, giving them everything. But if she didn’t like you. Jesus, just run away.
“Why do you seem sad, though?” She sobered, her eyes zeroing in on mine. “I thought you wanted this.”
“I did. Trust me, it had to happen.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
Wasn’t that the million-dollar question? What was the real problem? What started as a mere crush years ago, turned into a full spectrum of feelings I had no control over. Her brother was the problem, or well, my feelings for him.
“Is it—”
“I don’t want to talk about that, Ava. Today is really not the day.”
Not that I wanted to talk about it ever, at least not with her. She never made me feel weird about the whole situation, but I didn’t want to see that pity in her eyes, both of us knowing that nothing would come of it. I was his sister’s best friend. His friend’s little sister, and no amount of feelings from my side would change that. I just had to get over it.
“You know what?” She suddenly jumped in front of me, hauling me up. “I know what will make you feel better.”
I laughed at her excitement, “What?”
“Sally’s Burgers. And you know what today is?”
I waited expectantly for her to tell me, because truth be told, I only knew it was Thursday.
“It’s Shroom’s Day, and being your best friend—”
“Basically, my only friend,” I chuckled.
“Semantics.” She waved me off, pulling me toward the parking lot. “I know how much you love their mushroom and swiss burger. So, move your ass woman. I am hungry.”
It was almost nine in the evening when we finally pulled in front of my house, with Ava chattering about the summer days ahead, and her brothers coming back from college. My foul mood had been forgotten as soon as we’d entered Sally’s Burgers, and whoever said that food couldn’t fix anything, obviously didn’t have a nice, juicy burger in their life.
“So, pick you up at seven tomorrow?” she asked, almost yelling over the sound of the music. Doomsday by Architects was blasting at full force, the car vibrating from the sound.
“Seven-thirty,” I responded. “I need to wash my hair in the morning.”
“Fine, princess.” I smacked her on the arm, her bubbly laughter echoing around the car. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Don’t be late.”
She slapped my butt as I exited the car, the tires screeching not even a second after I closed the door. One day she would end up in a ditch somewhere with her reckless driving.
Noticing my father’s car in the driveway, the nerves I hadn’t felt for days skyrocketed. I thought he was still on his business trip with Mr. Nightingale? The foyer of our house was dark, not one person in sight. Our main maid, Cassandra, was usually here, greeting me whenever I got home. But she was nowhere in sight tonight.