Shades of Purple

Chapter 3

1 DAY PRIOR:

"Hello, you must be Marina; My brother will be down any second now. Do you want to come in," a guy Marina recognizes as Jackson Henton asks politely, motioning her into the house? The first thing Marina notices about this boy are his bright blue eyes. She can see why he is considered a heartthrob.

"Thank you," she replies with a small smile.

Marina's eyes adjust to the brightness as she walks into the house and takes in the extravagant decor. The large house is very much like her own, and she assumes her mother must have helped decorate. On the topic of her mother, Marina could not believe she has been forced by her to do this; here she is getting ready to go on a walk with a guy who she has never spoken to before. Cue the discomfort.

* * *

'Marina sets her book bag on the table when she walks into her home. Before she can turn to let Otis in, her mother stops her.

"Marina, I know you do not want to talk about this right now. I know you do not like the idea of finding yourself a boyfriend, but I have arranged for you to go on a walk with Isaac Henton tomorrow. Sophia was super excited at the idea, and I think this could be a really good opportunity for you." Amanda stops, bracing herself for Marina's reaction.

"What? Mother, that is not fair," Marina bursts out!

"Honey, you need to understand-."

"No, I do not need to understand anything! I am completely capable of perfectly understanding the situation! You went behind my back even though I told you I did not want to go on a date!"

"Try to look at the positive-."

"The only thing I am positive about is the fact that I am not going on this walk!"

* * *

"Hi. Are you ready to go?" A male voice calls out: Isaac.

"Of course," Marina replies with false enthusiasm! Too fake.

They walk outside together on a dirt path leading to the Henton Family garden; Marina feels the evening autumn breeze rippling through her curly hair and tucks a loose strand behind her ear.

She takes in his appearance. His dark brown hair looks almost black at first glance and his nose is slightly upturned. His blue eyes, while not striking like Jackson's are, are suitable for his fair skin.

"This is awkward, is it not," Isaac asks after a few moments of silence?

"What? No, not at all," Marina replies, trying to seem convincing.

He stops and raises an eyebrow at her inquisitively.

"I do not know anything about you. I do not know your middle name, or your favorite color, or your favorite food, or anything about you."

"I doubt it will help, but my middle name is Zachary, my favorite color is dark blue, and my favorite food is probably spaghetti. Is this still awkward?"

"Just a little bit. I am just not used to this kind of thing." At his look of confusion, she tries to specify, "You know, walking. Not so much walking alone per se but walking with other people."

Isaac smiles mischievously, his blue eyes twinkling before he says, "I have seen you walk with Sienna Beckett before."

Marina knows what he is doing, "Are you really going to make me say it? Okay then... I do not have much experience walking with boys."