Off to Neverland

Off to Neverland (50)

“I think someone’s upset that Eli’s already at the party with the birthday girl,” Chris teased in a baby voice, reaching over and pinching my cheek.

Jack smacked his hand away before I could. “Stop it.”

“Oh!” Chris cried, covering his mouth when he started laugh. “Jack’s jealous, even after he and Ivy have been broken up for months!”

Jack said nothing, and neither did I. This was not something I wanted to talk around my ex-boyfriend. Why did Chris have to make everything so awkward?

“Anyway,” Simon began, as Chloe pushed her boyfriend away from me so he wouldn’t grab my face again. “I have an idea for you, Ivy.”

I blinked at him, a little unsure if I wasn’t to hear this or not. “Okay.”

I looked around and everyone else in the back of the limo with me. Tyler was sitting there quietly like he always did, Chris was trying to undo the strings on the back of Chloe’s dress, who then smacked him, and Jack was drinking from a water bottle that he had gotten out of the mini fridge. I could only hope that I’d be fine with all of them hearing what Simon had to say.

“I think you should tell Eli that you’re in love with him tonight,” Simon finally announced, and suddenly Jack was choking on his water and spitting it all over Chris.

“Dude!” he called out, wiping off his suit jacket, even though the water wasn’t even that noticeable since it was black. “Gross, man! Watch where you’re spitting!”

Jack ignored him as he looked over at me, wiping the water from his chin. “You’re in love with Eli?”

I glared at Simon before I faked a smile at Jack. “Of course I’m not! Simon’s just playing around!”

Simon rolled his eyes and leaned back in his seat. “Sure, whatever you say,” he grumbled.

I shot him another glare and it was now silent for the rest of the ride to the party, which I was sure thankful for. I couldn’t afford anymore awkward conversations or my face was going to explode from blushing so much.

When we finally got to the place that the party was being told, we were escorted to the room that it was going to take place. When the door opened, my eyes widened at how many people there were. There had to be hundreds of people!

“Looks like Courtney invited all of her family and most of the school again,” Chloe sighed as she walked by me with Chris, as if it wasn’t that big of a deal at all, but the room was absolutely packed! This had to have been a fire hazard.

I heard someone call Simon’s name, and I assumed it was one of his friends from school that I didn’t know. So now it was only Jack, Tyler, and me, and none of us seemed to know what we were supposed to be doing.

“Guys!” a new accented voice called, and I almost cringed at it. That voice was way too familiar, and it belonged to someone I didn’t think I’d ever be able to face ever again.

“Hey!” Jack grinned at her like he always did, and they wrapped each other in a hug like they always did when they were together. It made my stomach twist just a little bit, but I tried to smile and act like it didn’t bother me.

When she pulled away from Jack, she turned toward me. “Hi, Ivy!”

“Emma,” I blinked as my greeting, not knowing what I was supposed to say to her. It was still weird being around her, even though she hadn’t ever done anything wrong to me. “Um… hi. I haven’t seen you in a while.”

She smiled sweetly at me. “I haven’t seen you in a while either. How are things?”

I gulped. “Good.”