The Girl

Chapter Twenty Two

  "Wanna stop for lunch?" Minho asks me about three hours into our run.

"Sure, why not?" I reply. We both slow down until we come to a halt. We sit next to each other and lean against the maze walls. I pull my backpack off and unzip it. I'm pushing things around to find my food when I get a suspicion that I'm being stared at. I frown and turn to Minho. Sure enough, he's looking straight at me. He quickly looks down.

"Sorry," He apologizes quietly.

"Huh?" I ask. "For what?"

"Well, for staring."

"It's not a bad thing, I'm just wondering why." I pull my ponytail over my shoulder.

"Nothing..."

"Tell me!"

"I'm good," He says snarkily. I roll my eyes.

"Would ya just tell me, shank?" I nudge his arm with my elbow. He smiles.

"I would rather keep all my body parts intact, thanks," He says.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I ask, confused. He lets out a frustrated sigh. I widen my eyes waiting for a response.

"I was staring because... you... you're just... you're really pretty, okay? But I didn't want to say anything because I like my neck and I would prefer it to not be snapped," He says, never looking up from the ground. I groan and lean my head back against the cold stone. "Did, did I say something?" He asks.

"People keep telling me that but you've only seen one girl in your life- me. How do you know I'm pretty?"

"You don't have to have a comparison to know when someone is beautiful, Beth," He says seriously. I look at him with big eyes, and he quickly realizes his word choice.

"Shuck, I didn't mean to- I mean I'm not-" Minho panics.

"You think I'm beautiful?" I ask, almost in a whisper, ignoring his comment. He sighs and swears under his breath. I can see him wrestling with his response.

"I mean, you are. But it doesn't mean anything. Never speak of this. This conversation never happened and if anyone finds out I'll leave you out here," He says, though I can sense the falseness in his voice. He wouldn't leave me out here. He wouldn't let any harm come to me. I look over to him to see his arms resting on his bent knees and his head hanging, looking quite upset with himself. I smile and quickly kiss him on the cheek. A friendly kiss, of course.

"Thank you," I say. A small smile forms on his face.

"You're welcome, princess. Now come on; let's eat and get back to running so we're not late again."