Destroy Me

19 // SWAMP FLOWER FOR A SWAMP BOY

"WHERE DO YOU KEEP disappearing to?" Vincent narrowed his eyes as me.  "I went to check on you last night and you weren't in my room."

"I was with Elijah," I shrugged. I heard something in the kitchen drop, then my father appeared with a bewildered look on his face. 

"Why were you with a boy so late at night?" He demanded. 

"We were spy-" I froze and peeked at Vincent, "playing video games."

"Video games?" Vincent scoffed. "Dev, you barely know how to work the washing machine."

"Hey," I snapped, "nobody knows how to use the washing machine. It has too many buttons and dials on it."

"Do we need to have... the talk?" My dad asked.

"I would rather die," I assured him. He took a deep breath and came to sit down on the church.

"Not in my lifetime," Vincent muttered and left the room. 

"Are you... Being safe?" My dad checked.

"Dad!" I cried. "I'm not doing that."

"Well you're eighteen in December," he said. "It's about time that someone told you about this kind of stuff."

"I've taken Health and Human Development as an elective for the past three years," I told him quickly. "I really don't need to be taught."

"Are you and Elijah dating?" He asked.

"No," I scoffed. Lindsay burst into the room and then groaned.

"I missed it," she muttered. 

"Missed what?" My dad rose an eyebrow at her. 

"Don't even worry about it," she sighed and picked the remote up. The front door opened and Elijah entered. He saw us all in the living room and smiled. 

"Hey," he greeted us. Elijah was in his uniform, his rendition of the uniform anyway. Elijah's arrival meant that it was time for me to go to school. 

"Okay," I sighed. "I'll see you when I get home."

My father went to say something, but I shoved Elijah out of the house before he had the chance.

"What was that about?" Elijah demanded. "I wanted to grab an apple from your kitchen."

"Stop stealing my food," I narrowed my eyes at him. 

"Stop being such a meanie," he said and stuck his tongue out at me. I laughed and shoved him a little. "So what were you guys talking about before I came in? Your undying love for me?"

"Something along those lines," I muttered and his eyes darted over to me. 

"I was kidding," he told me.

"I wasn't," I scoffed. I told him about what had happened, but he didn't laugh the way I'd expected him to. Instead, he kept his eyes forward and had a blank look on his face. "Please laugh. If you don't laugh  then it will gross me out all day." 

"I'm not laughing because it is gross," Elijah assured me. "I was fourteen when my parents sat me down for the talk. I don't know why though, I had no interest in any girl besides you and you wouldn't look at me twice."

"Me," I repeated.

"I mean, you know how I feel about you so what's the point of hiding it anymore?" Elijah sighed. 

"Right," I nodded. "You're right. It would be inefficient to pretend that your feelings aren't there."

"Stop that," Elijah ordered me. "Don't make it awkward."