To The Moon And Back | ON HOLD

12 | Lesath

I was supposed to go with my band but they're all mad at me for their own personal reasons. It was a pre-celebration for securing a potential life-changing gig and also to visit my childhood friends. Now that they're being a bunch of salty bitches I have no one to go with so I figured I might as well ask my new friends."

I don't know when was the last time I've gone to Canada's wonderland. It's about two hours away from here so that's kind of like a road trip in itself. Plus it's with Xavier. . .do I really want to subject myself to such anxiety?

"Wow, happy to know that we're your second choice," Lizzie drawled out dryly. "Isn't one ticket worth like 40 dollars? Did you buy all of them on your own plus renting an Airbnb? You literally said you might as well have given it to strangers so does that mean you have enough money to throw away?" Stewart exclaimed.

"Do both of you have sticks up your asses!? Shut the hell up and let's go have some bloody fun! I'm in, give me." Alec snatched a ticket from Xavier's grip and to my utter surprise–but not really–Lizzie caved in and took one as well, a sheepish smile on her face.

She definitely did that because of Alec.

I'm gonna kill her.

"Angel, what do you say?"

"W–what?" I stammered as my eyes met his. He smiled the kind of smile that would melt your heart into a puddle. I've admired it for the past two weeks but now for some reason, it made me feel different. Why did it make me feel different? "She's going," Lizzie piped in as she took a ticket from Xavier's hands before shoving it into mine.

Stewart retrieved one as well, seeing as he doesn't attend any outing unless I'm there as well. We're the introverts of the friend group. You know what they say, misery loves company. "Good, pack your bags for the weekend, and a bathing suit, there's a jacuzzi at the Airbnb."

Such luxury wasn't new to any of us here. Our parents were well off to send us to private schools without the need for scholarships, but still, it brought excitement to them all at the mere mention of a jacuzzi. "Oh yeah, I got something for you," Xavier said as he dug his hands into his bag.

He then whipped something out that took the breath away from every mouth sitting before me. "This is the novel you're gonna be reading for the assignment. I already spoke to Mrs. Alexandrio, she approved it. It's your choice what movie you watch to correspond with it. But I promise you'll love it."

He placed a worn-out book on the table. On the front page, there was a young African girl laying on the greenest grass peering up at the sky as a glowing moon shown down onto her. To The Moon And Back scribbled across the page in cursive font. On the right hand of the page read: Xavier's property.

"What in the Bloody Mary of satanic hell?" Alec blurted out. Of course he calls on the devil, he's Lucifer's incarnate, the psychopaths! 

"A book, Ellie has to read. . . A book?" Stewart muttered in confusion, his brain not seeming to compute that fact.

"YES!" Lizzie screamed loudly in triumph as she threw her fist into the air, a giddy bubble of laughter parting through her mouth. And this was the beginning of a chaotic semester.

You've done it Nicholas Sparks.

You have failed me.

~ ~ ~

My oncologist Susan Yung wrapped her arms around mine as she assisted me in climbing down from the linear accelerator. The silence between us was deafening but that was a result of my overthinking. I'll have to do this every Wednesday until we see results, hopefully when we see results. "Dr. Yung, can I ask you something?"