Back To You | complete

Chapter 04| Close, Yet So Far Away

Chapter four: Close, Yet So Far Away

O L I V I A

The blonde's eyes landed on me and widened in recognition.

"Amelia!" She exclaimed, almost in delight. Sam muttered curses next to me while I forced my lips to stretch into a smile.

"Chelsea," I acknowledged painfully, ignoring the name slip. I tried to keep my mind off the pain in my chest.

At least I wasn't gasping. Count your blessings.

"Oh, my gosh!" She sniggered. "It's so good to see you again!"

My eyebrows shot up fractionally in surprise. All I could do was nod.

"Likewise," I replied with an effort in order to uphold a polite front.

I kept the smile fixed. We looked at each other with that fake, empty gesture. The moment was such that I was frozen in it, making me unable to move, even if it was to avert my gaze. Like being stuck in a dream and being unable to wake up. It became awkward pretty quickly.

"Lara, it's your turn," Griffin reminded, thankfully giving me an opening to look away. The moment broke, the world resumed, and I faced the campfire again, finding respite in its golden glow.

The game continued as if nothing had happened.

Haha. Yeah, right.

They paused the game to add Kaison and Chelsea's names in the basket. Chelsea found herself a place beside Lara. Meanwhile, of all the spots to sit on at the beach, Kai found one behind Griffin and I. Safe to say, Griffin looked ready to commit murder and I was a bundle of nerves.

I kept staring right at the campfire. I hated the way my stomach churned and the way I wanted to cry and shout at the same time.

"Your eyes look pretty," Carter mumbled drunkenly, stealing my attention. Some tension in my body eased at the slur in his voice, replaced by mild amusement.

"Cart, why don't you have some water, hun?" I asked him, opening my bottle and offering him a drink. He miraculously obliged, letting go of my hand and sitting up straight. I passed him the bottle and he gulped down a few mouthfuls. He gave me back an almost empty bottle and I chuckled. "Good job."

He nodded sloppily, his shoulder slouching a little bit as he sat cross-legged. He was turned towards me instead of the center of the circle.

"Hey, man," he said. I realized a beat later who he was talking to. "You're Kaison, right?"

Oh, no.

"Carter-" I began to interrupt, feeling it difficult to breathe again.

"Yeah," he replied over me, obviously not noticing. "And you're Livvy's ex-boyfriend, right?"

I didn't miss the emphasis.

"Kaison," I warned, ignoring my heart twisting at the address.

"Yeah, and you too!" Carter beamed stupidly. "Same pinch, bro."

I rubbed my face with my hands, noting belatedly that they were coarse from the sand grains. I grimaced. Great, add that to the list of things that weren't going right.

Breathe in, breath out.

"Are you drunk?" Kai questioned. A hand slipped a handkerchief on my lap from behind me and I froze. I have to get out of here. Before Carter could open his big mouth, I did.

"Yes, and he needs to sleep it off," I declared shakily, standing up and dusting myself. The small piece of cloth fell onto the sand and I ignored it with all my might. I resisted how I wanted to pick it up, smell it, and keep it for myself. I was afraid that if I stayed there a moment longer, I would all three. "Let's go, Carter."