The Consort's Will 《COMPLETE》

Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Tips of tree branches scrape against my bedroom window. I rub the sleep from my eyes and squint, expecting to hear rain or wind. There's nothing. The branches scrape against my window again, like sharp nails on a chalkboard. It's enough to pull me out of bed.

As I trudge towards the window, I notice someone holding onto the branch, forcefully causing the unruly noise to transpire. My frown of dismay morphs into a coy grin. I pull the window open, and a soft breeze gives way, curling around my neck and caressing my face.

"Well, well," I shout-whisper. "Look what the cat dragged in."

Kelly smirks and emerges from his hiding spot in the shadows. His hair hangs in disarray and falls against the sharp angles of his face. The moonlight almost makes it shine, like dark waters of the deepest lakes.

"Grab a shirt and meet me out front."

I push my head further out the window. "Wait! Where are we going?"

My best friend doesn't bother providing a response. He slinks back into the shadows and jogs towards the front of my Grandma's house, and I jerk my head back inside. Excitement pulses through me in waves. I glance at the time on my phone. It's past midnight. It's not unlike Kelly to coerce me to sneak out, but it's usually on the weekends. Not my finals week of my senior year.

I rustle through my pile of clothes and pull out a clean t-shirt. My hesitation only lasts a second before I grab my phone and stuff it in the low hanging pocket of my basketball shorts. It might be finals week, but it's becoming more and more rare for my best friend to break away from his college life to pay me an unplanned visit.

I'm not passing this up.

My grandma's soft snores cut the silence of the night. I chew on my lip as I eye the floorboards. It's like a human game of Jenga, attempting not to step on the pieces that will creak beneath my weight. When I reach the front door, I let out a sigh of relief.

Success.

Kelly is waiting for me at the bottom of the porch, hands in pockets, and leaning against the rickety wooden post. I close the door gently behind me and skip down the steps to join him.

"What's going on?" I whisper. "Where's Fiona?"

Kelly's grin reappears and his arm slings around my shoulders. "It's been far too long since I took you out for a night of best friend shenanigans. Just the two of us."

I can't stop the grin from spreading across my lips. Don't get me wrong – I like Fiona. I really do. Since they started dating, though, I've had to adjust to Kelly's attention and time being spent elsewhere. It isn't just the two of us anymore. Now it's usually the two of them... and me. The perpetual third wheel.

"Really?" I ask, and the hopefulness in my voice is embarrassing.

Kelly squeezes me into the side of his chest. "Yea, bud. And I know you have finals tomorrow, so I won't keep you out too late, but I'm thinking some fried food, beer, and fishing by the lake sound like a pretty good way to enjoy this evening."

"Hell yea!"

Of course, the two of us never end up fishing when we get to the lake. Kelly baits his hook but doesn't cast it into the water. Instead he gets distracted and pulls out his guitar. My fishing pole never even makes it out of his truck.

The night wraps around us as Kelly strums out the notes of all his newest songs for me. I, in-turn, just lay out in the grass and stare up at the blanket of stars splayed across the night sky. I alternate between bites of pizza and sips of beer, enjoying every moment.