Chapter Eighteen

Amaryllis Lexington

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Just as Rose hung up to go prepare for her family dinner, the cafe door opened and in, walked the devilish five. Weirdly, a bud of excitement sprouted in my heart and I realized I was actually glad to see them, until I found out they were four and not five. The excitement died down immediately and was replaced with disappointment.

One of them saw me and nodded at me in acknowledgement. Studying the expression on their faces, I realized they didn't look like their usual happy-go-lucky self. Instead, they looked somewhat angry. Well well.

I shifted my gaze from them before someone notices how I've been staring at them and starts to wonder if I'm a creep. I ordered a doughnut with a chocolate milkshake. Not because I was hungry anyway, but because I didn't want to go home. The ambience was not welcoming and it was really weird and uncomfortable.

The last thing I wanted to do was fight with Maya, but for the past days, her attitude towards me has had me second guessing her character. It was weird how she switched from a hundred to a zero in just one day. When she noticed her girls talking to me yesterday at lunch, she frowned at them in a manner that made me think she was Alison's boss.

I shook my head and bit into my doughnut, the sugary taste dousing the bitterness in my heart a little. I started to play fanatical basketball while I sipped on my milkshake. I bet I looked like a girl that was stood up by a date, but I couldn't even care less. My gaze shifted over to the four boys sitting opposite me and they were in some kind of conversation that seemed serious. One of them, the one who nodded at me, had so much anger radiating from him. Their anger was almost painful.

The door opened again and a couple walked in. The girl was clutching to the hand of her man like he would disappear into thin air if she dared to let go, but he didn't seem to mind. He had a happy smile on his face all through and the way he listened attentively to whatever she was saying was almost too cute for my eyes to see.

The girl's eyes finally caught mine and I looked away immediately. Talk about awkward. I didn't even want to imagine the thoughts that would be going through her head about me. Goodness, Amari, what is up with you and creeping people out?

The boredom I felt was overwhelming, so I decided not to seat around in a cafe anymore. I racked my brain for something else to do to kill time, and then decided I would take a walk around till it was around evening, then I'd just retire to my room and sleep the day away.

Just as I opened my purse to drop my bill and a small tip, someone walked in and my hands froze in motion. He was looking around for someone, probably his friends, when his gaze settled on me, and suddenly a small smile appeared on his face. Take me now, dear Lord.

He finally saw his friends and he walked over to them but he didn't take his seat. They talked for a bit and then he started to head my way. That honestly made me feel even much better than I should.

"Aren't you a little too happy to see me?" The rude idiot didn't even greet, he just sat directly in front of me, sporting a silly but totally gorgeous smile on his face. I was about to give him a smart response when I noticed the bruise forming on his cheek. My eyes doubled in size.

"Who hit you?" A shadow flickered across his face and he caressed the cheek and chuckled humorlessly.

"Oh. Some girl who didn't appreciate a comment I gave." My jaw dropped. If someone else had said that, I would have called him/her a liar, but this is Carlson Hawthorne. This was something he could totally do.

"Then you deserve it. You should learn to keep your tongue in check." He smirked and shook his head.

"You looked quite shaken when you found out I was slapped though. I know you care a lot about me, babe. I really wouldn't mind if you want to play nurse." That smirk made me want to bruise the other cheek, but I refrained myself.

"You're an idiot. I wasn't shaken. I was just sad to realize someone beat me to it. Why are you even here? You should be with your crew." He looked back at his friends, then at me, and shrugged.

"What can I say? I go wherever my heart leads me." He said silently, but proud enough for me to hear and it made my heart pound. I could feel my cheeks heating up.

"I get drawn to the lonely quite easily." The upcoming blush met it's untimely death immediately those words fell from his stupid mouth, and I wanted to bash his face in.

"Yeah, and my fist gets drawn to your face easily."

"I know you're tempted to touch my face and caress my cheeks. You can barely restrain yourself. Look at you jumping at any opportunity to touch me." My jaw dropped. I didn't even have any response or clapback to give him. I was just honestly stunned that someone could be so self centered and annoying.

"That was lame." I lied and he rolled his eyes at me. He eyed the unfinished milkshake in front of me and then grabbed it without even asking. One thing I DO NOT LIKE TO SHARE is my food.

"Give that back right now, Hawthorne. There are a million reasons why I wouldn't let you have that." Whatever I said fell on deaf ears because he blatantly ignored me and took a large sip. The fact that I just used that same straw some minutes ago made me feel a little bit mushy on the inside.

"The look on your face worries me. You seem a little too excited at the prospect of me taking your milkshake. Your words say one thing, but your eyes say another." I wonder how he saw me because his head was still bent, and the way his hair grazed his eyebrows was almost too inviting. I wanted to ruffle it like I would Oliver's.

"Excited? Not a little bit. Annoyed? Absolutely. Why would you take my food without my permission. We don't have the kind of relationship where we get to share food. That's the highest form of love a human could ever show another, and for the record, I don't happen to like you." He finally looked up and the stupid smile he shot me was too cute and irresistible.

"Well, let's consider ourselves enemies with benefits. I don't happen to like you too, but I always happen to find myself in situations where I have to get something from you one way or another." The playfulness in his eyes dimmed a little bit and a semi-serious look took over.

"You know, Amaryllis, something major just happened." The playfulness was back, with a side dish of devilishness. I couldn't help but wonder what nonsense he had on the tip of his tongue, but one thing I knew was that whatever nonsense he wanted to say, I wanted to hear it badly. I raised my brow, crossing my arms over my chest.

"What's with that pose? Are you trying to pull off some kind dangerous and sexy vibe, 'cause all I'm getting is pitiful and cute. Not that I mind anyway." It's official. I wanted this boy in a hospital bed, with his legs hung up.

"Sometimes I wonder why I even bother with you. You obviously have nothing up there in that circular box you call a skull. What's the major thing that happened?" He raised the now empty cup and assesed it intently.

"You used this straw, then I used it. Which means I just officially gave you the best first kiss you can ever have." My jaw fell apart. Not because he somehow managed to deduce the fact that we shared straws (and unfortunately saliva), but because he knows I have never been kissed before.

"How did you know it was my first? Not like we actually kissed or anything, because technically speaking, you were the one who actually kissed me and not the other way round. I used the straw before you did." His mouth formed an O and then he began to laugh. He laughed so hard and so loud, he attracted a few states in our direction.

"So you mean I was right? You've actually never been kissed before?" He let out that information a lot louder than I would have liked, and soon enough, people were chuckling and murmuring around me.

"Gee thanks, Hawthorne. Totally saved me from making a long trip to a TV station." I said, a dangerous bite to my voice and he had a somewhat apologetic look on his face.

"I'm sorry, but hey, you can't blame a guy for being shocked. I mean look at you. Who would believe no guy has ever scored with you?" Well, look who's getting a compli...

"Actually, I can believe it. Guys probably run away from you. Your temper puts a volcano to shame." He didn't wait for my train of thoughts to reach it's destination before he spoke up and sent it crashing. I've never wanted to hurt someone as much as I wanted to hurt Carlson Hawthorne.

"Having a conversation with you is a total waste of time, energy, muscle strength, and willpower, and that's to say the least." I retorted. However, I had an important question to ask myself, but he beat me to it.

"Then why are you still here? If you hate having a conversation with me that much, why don't you just leave?" Unfortunately, I didn't have an answer, so I blinked...a lot.

"I'll tell you why, Lexington. Why is 'cause I' m the total package and you can find everything you've ever wanted in a guy in me. Gorgeousness? Check, Charm? Check, Wisdom? Check, Humor? Double check, Sarcasm? I'll let you be the judge of that. You don't come across people like me everyday, Lexington, so better hold on tight." Never in my life have I ever come across someone as narcissistic.

"Why don't you go spread your awesomeness with people that actually care. In case you missed it, Hawthorne, I have everything I could ever want in a person, and I am perfectly capable of keeping myself company. I don't need validation from someone else like you do." What? Two can play the game.

He stared at me for seven seconds, yes I counted, then his face broke out into a wide grin. One would think I just complimented him. He leaned back in his chair, his eyes not leaving my face for a single moment.

"Are you going to the camp on Friday?" I wasn't expecting the drastic change of topic, but I answered anyway and he had a somewhat contemplating look on his face.

"What? Aren't you coming?" The thought of Hawthorne now being at the camp suddenly made the idea of it less fun. As much as I hated to admit it, most of the things I looked forward to doing at the camp involved him. I mean, who would I execute all my pranking tricks on? Who would I, maybe push into a river if there was any in sight?

"Should I?" He asked, catching me off guard. I looked at his for any sign of playfulness but I found none. He looked like a different person. There was no hint of smile on his face, no raised brows that only he could pull of in such an exquisite manner, no smirks.

"What does it matter what I want? I'm not in the position to want anything from you. The principal precisely said we should ask our parents for permission." Way to ruin the atmosphere, Amaryllis. He stared at me for a little longer, then broke eye contact. I knew my answer wasn't what he was expecting and I felt bad for being so harsh. But then, I was being sincere.

"However, if you come, you best believe you won't be leaving in one piece." I joked (not exactly), trying to lessen the tension that somehow built up around us. The ghost of a smile appeared on his face, but it was gone almost as quickly as it came. The guilt that was gnawing at me from the inside was too comfortable and I wanted to apologize, but I had no idea what to apologize for. Bantering is our thing and I wasn't expecting him to take it so personally.

"I should head back to the guys. See you around, Lexington." With that, he was gone, leaving his lingering scent in his wake. I didn't know what to say or think, but one thing that I did know was that I didn't want him to leave.

-

Hey y'all.

I'm glad to be back, guyss!

I know I promised to have a completed book ready for you guys. Lol.

Well, the plan was still in motion, but then I started getting so much emails and messages for the SMC fans. They really wanted the book back up, so I had no choice but to cave.

Uploads will come in weekly. I will upload two chapters every week. Sounds good, right?

Thank you guys for sticking around.

I love you so much!

Dee.