ELIAS' POINT OF VIEW
*****
It had been two weeks. Two weeks since Daisy had broken up with me. Two weeks since I'd last felt her touch, heard her laugh, seen her smile.
I knew that I'd ruined her trust, but I was determined to gain it back. I didn't just want her. I needed her. She made life better... easier... happier.
Today, I'd decided to skip school in order to fix up her car. Back when we were together, I remembered that she'd been complaining about it for weeks. I knew she didn't have the money to take it to the shop, so I figured this was the least I could do to lighten the load on her just a little. With my sleeves rolled up, a grease-stained rag in one hand, and a determined look on my face, I continued to fiddle with the engine as I finished up with the last touches.
"What do you think you're doing?"
She was here. School had probably just ended. Immediately, I felt like jumping for joy. It was honestly embarrassing, how badly I craved her presence.
"I'm fixing your car," I replied calmly, not looking up from my work. "You've been complaining about it for weeks, and I thought I could help."
My eyes flickered up to finally meet her own. For a moment, everything around me disappeared.
Her clear, dark skin was slightly dewy from walking underneath the scolding sun, and her curly hair had been tossed into a high bun which accentuated her heart shaped face. She was so effortlessly beautiful, and if she'd let me, I would stare at her all day. I saw as her eyes slightly softened after my words, likely touched by the kind gesture. However, she quickly cleared her throat and cocked an eyebrow.
"You think you can buy me over by fixing my car?" she said, voice uncharacteristically cold.
My face fell, and I sighed, putting down the rag. "I'm not trying to buy you over, Daisy. I care about you, and I just wanna help."
She folded her arms across her chest, meanwhile my eyes carefully inspected her every move. "Help? This doesn't solve anything. We still had a fight, and you can't just fix things with gifts or favors."
I stood up, frustration now evident in my voice. "Do you even know what today is?"
Confused, Daisy slowly shook my head.
"It's our one month anniversary," I replied, before adding, "or, at least, it would've been."
Daisy looked taken aback for a moment. As my words sank in, I knew we both felt a sense of longing for what could've been. For what should've been. Nonetheless, Daisy cleared her throat, and I could visibly see her resolve harden again.
"Yeah, if only you didn't have to ruin everything," she said, before turning on her heel and walking onto the front porch of her house.
I adamantly followed after her, my exasperation growing. She was so stubborn, even more so than me. "Quit playing innocent. I'm not the only one who's lied before."
"That's not the same and you know it."
"Isn't it?" I challenged. "You lied to me about how your father died, and if it weren't for Heather exposing you, I wouldn't have even known the truth."
From the way Daisy pivoted around and the stunned look on her face, I knew I'd struck a nerve.
"You know what?" she shook her head. "You're right, Elias. I did lie to you. But after everything finally came to light, you had the chance to come clean too. Instead, you chose to continue lying, even after we promised not to keep secrets from each other. Even now, you're not exactly rushing to tell me the truth, are you?"
I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing came out.
"Exactly," Daisy scoffed before slamming the door in my face.
Running my hands through my hair, I cursed underneath my breath. She wasn't only angry, she was disappointedâand rightfully so. Nevertheless, I was going to win her back, no matter what it took.
*****
The next day, the setting sun cast a warm, golden glow over the football field as practice came to an end. Being the team's captain and star quarterback, I knew I needed to keep my emotions in check, especially with the playoffs coming to an end. However, it was hard to remain focused when Daisy had been there the entire practice, coaching the cheerleading squad on the sidelines.
It was a constant struggle to keep my eyes off her while simultaneously concentrating on my responsibilities to the football team. Her captivating smile and energetic movements drew me in like a moth to a flame. I couldn't help but admire how she effortlessly commanded the attention of the cheerleaders, guiding them through their routines with grace and passion. Dressed in the team's colors, her cheer uniform hugged her curves perfectly, and if my teammates noticed my occasional lapses in focus, they never said a word.
As the team trudged toward the locker room, the air was filled with a mix of exhaustion and anticipation for the upcoming game. However, I noticed a couple of teammates snickering and whispering among themselves. Their conversation caught my attention as I overheard one of them, Jake, talking about Daisy.
"Man, did you see Daisy today? She looked smoking hot in that cheer uniform," Jake snickered.
My blood began to boil. He wasn't wrong at all, but still, jealousy began to gnaw at me. How dare this guy think he can talk about my girlfriend like that? Or, rather, my ex.
"Chill, that's Elias' girl," another teammate warned, "he'll fucking kill you."
"Nah, bro, haven't you heard the rumors? They broke up," Jake boasted.
I began to approach the scrawny tool, whose back was turned. A few teammates began to shoot Jake nervous looks, warning him to shut up. Unfortunately for him, he failed to take the hint.
"I'd do anything to get a piece of that," Jake continued. "Who knows. Maybe now that she's single, she'll let me tap that aâ"
Jake immediately fell silent once he turned around and saw that I was standing right behind him.
"E-Elias," the kid stammered, face turning ghostly. "I'm sorry. I didn't know you were right there."
I clenched my fists, trying to control my emotions. "Shut up. You think it's okay to talk about her like that? She's not some object for you to pursue just because she's single now."
"So, the rumors are true then?" Jake completely disregarded what I said, straightening up with hope. "She's single now?"
Clearly, he didn't value his life very much, because he was practically asking for me to strangle him at this point.
"How dare you ask me that?" I seethed, latching onto Jake's collars.
"Chill, man! It was just talk. You know how it is," Jake squeaked out a half-hearted apology.
His words only served to fuel my anger, and before I knew it, I had swung a punch at Jake, causing him to stagger backwards into the lockers.
Quickly enough, he shoved me back and a fight managed to break out. The locker room erupted into chaos as our teammates rushed in, attempting to separate us, but I was relentless. The pain in my heart had manifested into a fierce anger, and I felt a strange sense of release with each blow I delivered. Suddenly, the locker room door swung open, and our coach stormed in.
"What on earth is going on here?" Coach bellowed.
Jake and I were forced to break apart. The room fell silent as the coach assessed the situation, disappointment etched on his face.
The coach's expression softened as he looked at me. "Elias, I get that you're hurting, but this is not the way to handle it. You're the captain, and you need to lead by example."
My anger began to subside as the weight of the coach's words settled in. I nodded, knowing that I had let my emotions get the best of me.
"I want you both to shake hands and settle this like adults," the coach continued, his voice firm but compassionate.
With hesitation, Jake extended his hand towards me. However, the piece of shit didn't deserve my respect, especially after hearing the crude way he spoke about Daisy. That being said, I completely disregarded Jake's hand before glancing at coach and saying, "I want him off the team."
With that, I stormed out of the locker room, my teammates ogling at me as I left.
I spotted Daisy standing at a distance, talking to Chelsea, as well as a few other cheerleader friends. My heart skipped a beat at the sight of her, and despite my aching hands, I quickened my pace to reach her.
"Daisy!" I called out, my voice tinged with both desperation and regret.
She turned towards me, her eyes widening in surprise and disappointment as she took in my bruised and bloodied knuckles. Meanwhile, the other cheerleaders giggled and shared looks before walking away and leaving the two of us to our lonesome.
"What happened to you?" she softly asked. I could see it in her eyes. The concern, that was. She still cared?
I swallowed hard, struggling to find the right words to explain myself. "I... I got into a fight."
"I can see that," Daisy replied. "But, why?"
I tried to explain, but the words got caught in my throat. How could I justify my actions when I knew how much she hated violence? Instead, I hung my head, unable to meet her gaze.
"It was over me, wasn't it," she quietly said.
Daisy realized that she was correct once I remained silent. Her disappointment was almost tangible.
"Some douche in the locker rooms was saying some gross things about you. About how he wants to get with you now that you're... single," I spat the last word harshly.
It didn't feel right, to address her as single. She was mine. And not in a weird, possessive way or anything. She was simply mine, the same way I was her's.
"Elias..."
"Don't," I snapped without meaning to. "Don't tell me I shouldn't have done that or that you could have dealt with it on your own."
She gave a small, breathy laugh through her nose. "Actually, I was going to say thank you."
My eyes flickered up in shock, and I felt a small glimmer of hope. Before I could even muster a response, Daisy turned away and began to retreat, leaving me standing there. Although, it didn't matter. I'd already gotten what I wantedâa sign that she was still there.
*****
"Is it true you punched Jake Salvatore in the locker rooms after yesterday's football practice?"
I gave Malcolm a look as he leaned next to my locker, peering at me with his creepy blue eyes while awaiting my response.
"Word gets around fast," I mused.
"So it's true, then," Malcolm gasped. "What'd the guy do?"
"He was talking about Daisy."
"Ah," Malcolm hummed, before observing, "you look uglier than usual."
"Thanks?"
"You're welcome. Have you been sleeping?"
"Not really," I admitted, rubbing at my eyes. "Do you know what it's like, to feel madly in love with someone, only for them to want nothing to do with you?"
"Nope," Malcolm grinned, "but it sounds pretty shitty."
I rolled my eyes. I didn't know why I even bothered attempting to confide in Malcolm. He wasn't going to understand. It was times like this, that I wished I was still friends withâ
"Hey, Andre," Malcolm interrupted my train of thought, waving at Andre.
Andre was indeed passing by us in the hallway, walking with his new friends, some losers on the soccer team. He slightly nodded his head at Malcolm, and pretended not to see me, before continuing to walk with his friends.
"I don't know why you bother saying hi," I scowled. "Don't you see? He's got new friends now."
"There's no way he enjoys spending time with those knuckleheads on the soccer team. They're all so stupidâand that's coming from me."
I cracked a smile. "Still, Andre made his choice. And it's not us."
"You can't seriously believe that," Malcolm snorted. "Andre's just hurt becauseâ"
"No, don't made excuses for him. You were there when he said all those horrible things to Daisy, weren't you?" I questioned. "I mean, he called her a murderer. He really hurt her."
"Just like you really hurt her?"
I froze. "That's notâ"
"The same? Yeah, I figured you would say that," Malcolm rolled his eyes. "Both of you douchebags owe Daisy a massive apology. And, for the record, I still wanna know what you did to make her break up with you."
With a sigh, I slammed my locker shut and decided to come clean. "We were in the middle of making out and then my father walked in."
"Oh, fudge," Malcolm winced, knowing all too well about my family history. "That sucks, but... is that it?"
"I told her my father was dead."
Malcolm's eyes widened, before he clapped a hand on my shoulder. "You fucked up."
"Big time."
The school bell rang, and with that, the pair of us separated, heading towards our respective classes.
*****
QOTD: would you rather be the richest person in the world or the smartest?
AOTD: smartest
Quick lil chapter in Elias' pov! Raise your hand if you want him and Daisy to make up. Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed, thank you for reading!!
Love, Emmanuela
08/06/2023