AUGUST IS A FEVER

17

After Clay had helped you put on your dress, it obviously left the both of you a bit flustered. The tension between you two was somewhere between awkward and bashful. Both of you weren't quite sure what had just went down and you didn't know what to make of it. However, part of you knew you liked whatever that was and unbeknownst to you, the feeling you felt was mutual.

Your face felt hot and flushed, a different type of heat that you grew used to. It was a deeper heat as your blood rose to your face. The heat cooled off quickly until you were back to your normal temperature (that was already higher than normal) and regained your composure.

As you and Clay walked out of the clothing store with your backpack on your back and a content smile on your face, the two of you made your way to the bookstore in which you camped at.

Once the two of you neared the general area of where the store was, you spotted George leaning against the wall as he waited for you and Clay to return. When the Blue heard your guys' footsteps approach, he looked up, first looking a Clay but his gaze eventually went to you. George smiled, happy to see you, you being his new sort-of friend.

"There you two are!" George said with a groan as the two of you finally got within talking distance of him. You smiled back.

"'Sup." You replied. "Did you find the comics for Nick?" It felt weird saying his name without having a face to put to it, but it was whatever.

"Yeah, I got a few. I'm not sure what he likes specifically so I just grabbed whatever and hoped for the best." George answered your question, huffing a small laugh. As you huffed a laugh along with him, George's eyes looked down to your new dress. "You look nice."

You smiled smugly. "Thank you, thank you." You said as you spun in a circle to show off the outfit. "Picked it out myself."

"Mm." George hummed with a nod, cracking a smile.

The whole time this interaction between you and George played out, Clay watched happy to see his two friends were beginning to get along. Part of him did wonder how this change between the both of yours relationship transitioned into a more friendly one. From his perspective this all happened over night - all of the sudden.

"Alright, let's get going." Clay interrupted the conversation. "We shouldn't stay here for any longer."

"True." You agreed. "Let's go." You said, taking the hands of both of the boys and began to walk them to the exit. There was resonance of muscle memory still in the back of your mind; even if you hadn't been in that mall in years, you still knew your way around.

The day before, when you, Clay and George had arrived, George had blocked off the doors to the mall as you ran off to the music store, Clay running after you. How George had done it was by bringing a piece of the ceiling that had caved in and broken off of the roof, and with his telekinetic abilities, lifted and blocked off the sliding glass doors. No one could get in unless they were also a Blue.

George brought both of his hands up and with his control of the hunk of ceiling, lifted the piece into the air and away from the sliding glass doors. Now free of the ceiling leaning against it, we could see the damage it had done to the doors. The glass was mostly shattered and the walls had been dented and caved in from the prolonged pressure of the chunk of ceiling leaning on it. Those glass doors would definitely be jammed from all of that. Without much care, George blew the doors out of the way with the power of his mind. It caused you and Clay to jump, mostly you, from the sudden noise and further sound of glass crumbling off of the metal skeleton of the doorframe it was once attached to.

"That was dramatic." You said nonchalantly after regaining your cool.

"Shut up." George replied.

"I'm glad to see you still hate me, George." You told the brunette, him groaning in annoyance in return of your teasing. "Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed."

"God, I'm just gonna go look for cars to steal, alright?" George replied, fed up with your teasing - fed up of seeing the stupid amused smirk on your stupid face.

Simply humming a 'yes' in reply, you watched George storm off to inspect the cars available to determine if they were in good enough shape to hijack.

After huffing a laugh at the boy who's mood seemed to change in a fraction of a second, you looked down when you realized you were still hand in hand with Clay. He didn't seem to notice until you tried to discreetly undo the firm yet warm grip he had on your hand. Once the warmth of your hand was stripped from his palm, that's when he looked down, eyebrows furrowing ever so slightly out of confusion which was interrupted the moment you started speaking again. He would rather pay attention to what you had to say than ponder the reason as to why you undid the temporary and unconscious embrace each of your hands had had on one another.

"Let's go enjoy the view of George having a mental breakdown, shall we?" You asked, looking up to the blonde.

"Yeah, sure." He replied with a smile, taking the initiative and began walking out of the busted exit/entrance of the shopping mall.

Clay just stood in front of the entrance as he watched the car-less road. His eyes then scanned the few scattered cars in the parking lot in front of him momentarily. As you caught up to him, he began to look through his backpack. Just as you suspected what he might've been looking for, he pulled out his box of cigarettes.

He pulled a cigarette out of the small cardboard box and he turned to you as he held his cigarette in his mouth. "Do you mind?"

"'Course not." You said with a light hearted chuckle.

With the snap of your fingers, your thumb lit up as if it was a lighter. Pausing, you contemplated doing something bold. If Clay could pull shit like what he did in the clothing store being all handsy, why couldn't you? A small smirk formed on your face.

"C'mere." You said with a playful tone, bringing your other hand to his hoodie, pulling him down gently to you. Making sure to focus on lighting his cigarette to avoid him from thinking you did this on purpose. (Because why would you? Note the sarcasm.)

As you brought your thumb up to his cigarette, you lit it, slowly letting go of your grip on his hoodie. Once you finally allowed your eyes to gaze back at his face, you saw his dazed expression. With his soft eyes half-lidded, face lax, lost in thoughts you wished you had the ability to read as if you were an Orange. His complexion was flushed, flustered. Pretending the tension between you two was non-existent, you turned away to look at the old, beat-up cars he was observing at just moments ago.

"Hmm. Maybe you should help George." You said, watching as the brunette lifted the hoods of each car to see what shape each of the cars he was inspecting were in.

"Nah, I'd rather be here with you." Clay replied. Looking back up at him, your face hot, you saw his eyes still dazed, this time he smirked.

"Quiet." You said jokingly, bumping your body into his softly in a way of scolding him.

"Yes, ma'am." Clay replied, taking a puff of his cigarette.

"Man, you really don't understand what 'shut the fuck up' means, huh?" You asked, jokingly as you turned to him.

"Maybe you could teach me." Clay said turning to you, blowing smoke into your face. His tone however was partly serious and partly playful. You swatted the thin grey clouds away from your face as it began to dry out your eyes.

"Don't be gross." You rolled your eyes that had teared up a bit.

"Hmm." Clay hummed a laugh.

There was a moment if silence, the both of you enjoying each other and the morning's company.

"Look." You said to Clay, he obeyed, turning at you. "I'm like you." You joked, bringing your index and middle finger up to your mouth to take an imaginary puff of smoke, only blowing out actual smoke that you produced with your abilites.

"Shut - Holy shit." Clay began but interrupted himself when something significant caught his eye.

"What is it?" You asked, puzzled.

"That's the same type of truck my dad used to drive." Clay said, pointing to a red beat up pickup truck in the parking lot. Clay went silent before he began to run towards it.

"Wait up!"