PICS and IT DIDN'T HAPPEN

45. The Coloring

Mr. Finnigan's dog, Toad, stretches on the grass before settling down next to the leg of the bench I'm on. I soon see Raylan.

Before I could greet him, he comes over and starts to passionately kiss me.

Toad stands up and starts barking at us.

I push Raylan away. "Get off me. You're spooking the dog."

Raylan glares at the dog. "Bad boy," he says.

"You're the bad boy. Since when you think you could just start kissing me whenever you like?"

"Since day before yesterday," Raylan says.

"I was just sad that day and needed a distraction," I say.

"Well you seem bored today so let me distract you good," he says, making me laugh. He leans into me. I cover his mouth.

"I didn't ask you here so you could keep kissing me. Don't you want to have the talk?"

Raylan moves back and raises his eyebrows. "The talk?"

I nod.

"Alright, I'm all for the talk for as along as at the end we're making out," he says.

"Depends," I say, resting my elbow on the back of the bench, "What have you been hiding from me?"

"Hiding? Nothing."

"Yesterday Victor told me he was the one who was with Iris, not you."

"That's not a secret. I tried to tell you before but you were the one not listening."

"You tried? Never mind. If Tony was only mad at you the first time because you didn't tell him about Victor and Iris, why did you keep what Lara did a secret?"

Raylan looks like the kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"Raylan?"

"I was going to tell him that day, but then you came in and showed me those photos," he says.

"So? If anything that should've prompted you to tell Tony sooner. Then I wouldn't have been able to blackmail you."

Raylan bites his lip. "And hence lies the issue," he says.

I'm confused, an emotion that I'm very familiar with, but it still amazes me how much people could still confuse me. "I don't understand," I say.

"That was like the first time you even came close to me on your own," he says.

"What are you talking about?" I say with my forehead bundling up. Are we even having the same conversation here?

He says, "You were threatening me. You said it was over, that I was in no position to tell you what to do. You said all that while holding my arms."

What is he saying? "Raylan, are you telling me you enjoyed being blackmailed?"

He laughs. "No. But I am good at baiting. It worked didn't it? Think about how many times you came to me on your own since that day. You kept calling me about every hour each day. All on your own, without me picking a fight with you first. And you did that because you thought you hit the jackpot getting a chance like that to boss me around. So you kept showing up. And I'm sure you pitied me too a little for making me do all that. That's why I couldn't stop it."

Perspective sure is a complex thingy. He and I seem to have been looking at the same thing with completely different glasses.

"Hold on. Are you saying you let me blackmail you for my attention?" I ask.

"And look where we are," he says rather proudly at the consequence of his master plan.

"You liked me since then?"

He twists his lips. "A little longer than that."

"How long? But, hold on, it doesn't make any sense. Why didn't you just come out and tell me you liked me instead of teasing me all the time? And don't you dare say it was a guy thing."

He scoffs. "Like that would've worked. You turn into a hissing kitten with its fur all standing up at just the sight of me."

"Granted I get all defensive with you, but I'm like that only because you always kept annoying me."

"Look, I'm not saying what I did was right. I'm to be blamed as well. However, I did try to be nice to you once."

Once? If it's once, I should've remembered it even better. "There's no way that happened," I confidently say.

"It did. In kindergarten. Remember?"

And as unbelievable as it is, I suddenly do remember!

It wasn't long before I started going there. At the time I didn't like hanging out with the other kids. I preferred to be left alone with only my pet stone for company.

One day this boy shows up on my desk with a large set of crayons asking if he could color with me.

I covered my sketchbook and told him no.

I did feel bad about it. Not because I told him no but because his coloring set had 36 pieces. Mine only 6.

And I know that boy was Raylan, because that same boy a week later did something incredibly terrifying.

"Are you serious?" I tell him, wide eyed, "You turned into my torturer because I said no to coloring together?" I struggle to contain my laughter while saying that.

"Not exactly," he says thoughtfully, "I'm just saying I was nice to you that day. But you just wanted to hang out only with that stupid stone of yours all the time."

I shake my head. Then a realization hits me. I look at him, more shocked than ever. "You did it on purpose! You chose Grubby on purpose!"

Raylan bites his lips to try not to smile. "Listen, I did not think you would react like that. If I did, I wouldn't have touched it. But on the other hand, finally I had your attention."

"Yeah I was very attentive at trying to kill you. How could you do that to me? Grubby was just sitting there. You threw him out of the compound wall!"

"I'm sorry," Raylan says, apologizing for the first time ever for throwing Grubby into its demise. "I really didn't think you'd start crying. I even went out there to look for it, but I couldn't tell which one was yours since I didn't take a good look at it before throwing," he says.

Grubby was only the most beautiful stone ever.

Raylan leans into me and touches my forehead with his. "How about I get you a large ass stone as an apology?"

I sigh. "It's okay. We've three kittens now, so I forgive you."

We kiss.

End of chapter

A/N - See ya tomorrow :)