Seven Twenty-Eight

29.

Mary nodded her head.

"Where is my baby brother anyway?" He asked, looking around the party curiously.

"Why don't you hop in the pool? I'll grab you a drink," Mary intervened, placing her hand on his bare chest.

"Is your friend joining us?" He asked, glancing over at Elisa. He chewed on his lips as he admired her, his eyes piercing her skin as he stared intently.

She palmed her hand into his chest, pushing him away from her gently. "Jay-"

"No," Elisa told him, "I have to go find Oliver— He— uh— He asked me to meet him after I got ready."

Jason cleared his throat, "I hope I can see you again later," He smirked, causing her to smile awkwardly.

"Mhm," She hummed, turning away from him.

"Come on, blondie," Elisa could hear him telling Mary as she walked away, "Where's that drink you were telling me about?"

-

"Hi," Elisa peeped, poking her head into Oliver's room.

He turned around and gave her a weak smile, "Hey."

"Are you okay?" She asked, bouncing into his room.

"Mm," He hummed, "Mhm."

She smiled softly, closing the distance in between them. "You're not a bad liar," She told him, "But you aren't a good one either."

Oliver chuckled quietly, amused by how well she knew his honesty. "I'm doing alright."

She latched onto his hand, turning him around as she boosted herself onto his desk. "What's wrong?" She asked, wrapping her arms around his neck to play with the messy hair on the back of his head.

He smiled back at her, feeling secure under her touch. "They always come home today," He told her, "All my siblings— Even my mother. I'm just overwhelmed, I guess."

"Mhm," She amused him, "I met your brother."

"Aaron's here already? I didn't expect him to get in for a few more hours."

"No," She smiled up at him sadly, "Jason— I met him downstairs with Mary."

He blinked at her, displeased with the knowledge that his older brother had interacted with her.

"Oh."

Elisa frowned, still oblivious to the clear feud between the two. "Not that I would know," She teased him, "But he seems okay."

"Hm," He hinted, turning his head away from her hands.

She sighed, catching his arm before he could fully walk away from her, "But, I'm respecting that that's something you need time on," She told him, "I can only assume it's buried deep in there-" She poked his chest, "Wherever the reason you and Kara broke up is."

She huffed when he turned his head away from her, despite the close grip he had in her hands. "Besides, Jason is very— Um— Intense-" She paused, squinting her eyes as she picked for the right words, "He reminds me of Jack, sort of."

Oliver's eyes went dark as he snapped his head up to look at her. "Why do you say that?"

She shifted on top of his desk, feeling it wobble under the unknown weight. It was clear she had triggered a flame inside of him, and she wasn't quite prepared to put it out. "He's just-" She hesitated, unsure of how okay he'd be with her talking down on his brother, "He's sort of-" She closed her eyes, searching for the words.