Sweet Like Honey

13.

"Lennen! You're back!" Her friends practically yell when she steps foot into the school. It was the day after she had gotten back from Thailand and was still working on the whole jet lag thing, something she's still not accustomed too, despite the hundreds of flights she's been on. Though, what she was missing most was the warm weather and being able to spend hours on the beach. She drove to school in the pouring rain, which she would normally enjoy, but not after being in the sun for the past four days.  

"Tell us everything! And can we talk about the total uproar you caused at school by posting that picture on Instagram?" Ellis says excitedly, knowing that the other two were also keen to hear about what happened on her trip.

"What do you mean uproar? How did I cause an uproar?" Lennen was confused as how one picture could cause an uproar. After all, it was just a simple picture, and the only picture she had posted during her entire trip. Lennen was the type to look back at the pictures saved on her phone and remember all the good memories that went with them, rather than showing them to everyone on the internet. 

"Well, the entire school knows that you were supposed to go on a date with Jonas last week, but instead you posted a picture of yourself in Thailand with your ex-boyfriend, who most everyone at this school knows." Lennen looked at Sawyer confused and why people were concerned about who she was hanging out with.

"I've been friends with Duke and his family for almost seven years, and we have always traveled together. Why are people so concerned about who I hang out with? And yes, I know I was supposed to be on a date with Jonas, but I can't help when my family travels. I called him the night I left and explained to him what was going on. We rescheduled our date for today, so I'm sure everyone will be happy to know that." With North Shore being such a small school, she got really tired of everyone knowing every detail of her life. 

"We know you and Duke are just friends, but some people think you guys are going to get back together," Margo tells her. Margo was sympathetic toward her friend, knowing that Lennen despised being the center of attention.

"They can think whatever they want, but they're wrong. There are no feelings between Duke and I. I like Jonas, and I would like to finally go on a date with Jonas." Lennen walked away from her friends, tired of hearing everything wrong about being friends with her ex-boyfriend. She headed straight to her locker, to find Jonas waiting for her. 

"Welcome back," Jonas says, and wraps his arms around her, squeezing her tight. He wanted to tell her how not being able to talk to her during APES for five days was dreadful, especially having to deal with Sawyer and Holden acting all couple-y. 

"Thanks for everything last night," Lennen smiled up at him, happy to be back in his arms, though the last time was only yesterday. She had arrived home yesterday in the late afternoon, and waiting at her door was Jonas, who hadn't been there long since Lennen had told him what time they would be arriving. With Lennen being gone for six days, Jonas didn't want another day for their date. He took her to her favorite pizza parlor and the two sat there for hours, talking and laughing, enjoying each others company. After dinner, they took a walk on the beach, despite it being cold. "I had a great time."

"Do you still want to do something tonight? I was thinking that maybe we could go bowling or we could go see a movie." Last night was the best date Jonas had ever been on, and he knew that the main reason was because he was finally with the right girl. 

"If we go bowling, I think we should invite our friends. It's more fun if you have a large group," Lennen responds. 

"Whatever you want," Jonas says, and let go of Lennen so she could put her books and whatever else into her locker. When she was done, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and they headed toward her first class, AP Government.