in my element → brad simpson | ✓

twenty

"Because you're so in love with me and you don't know it yet," he smirks, flipping them over so that he's on her and she lets out a huff of air as she comes in contact with the floor.

"You wish," she scoffs. "You sleep next to me for one day and suddenly you are in love with the idea of me loving you. Sorry, Brad, but I'm not interested."

"Not yet," he corrects her and she rolls her eyes as he climbs off of her, helping her up. "I say I won that fight."

"I would disagree," she pushes his shoulder with hers gently, teasingly. "I definitely won, you were too busy distracting me, though."

"Which is why I won—because you were distracted," he justifies and she shrugs. "And I wasn't joking, I do think Connor likes you. You should talk to him about it."

She looks down, rubbing her arms as she begins to get colder and Brad notices instantly, placing his hands on her arms to warm her back up.

"I can't see him—or any of you boys, for that matter—as more than a best friend," she sighs, letting Brad hold on to her so that she'll warm up.

He rests his chin on her head, "You might want to tell Connor that."

"Tell Connor what?" Connor's voice echoes throughout the training room as he walks down the stairs. The first thing he sees is Brad holding onto Cassandra with his chin on her head and Connor frowns.

Brad looks down at Cassandra who looks awkward and startled and he bites his lip before turning to his friend, "I proposed the idea that you might like Cassandra to her and she said that she can't see us as more than friends."

"You what?" Connor snarls at his friend.

"You heard me," Brad says and Connor moves over to Brad, causing the curly haired boy to let go of Cassandra so that she doesn't get hurt. He hears her teeth chattering but is too focused on keeping Connor calm that he doesn't do anything. "Connor, don't do anything stupid because we both know I'll beat your ass before you even think about what punch to throw."

"You told Cassandra I liked her," Connor pushes Brad back but Brad just accepts it. "You're such a shit-stirrer. Was this your plan? Befriend her and try and make her not friends with us anymore? You're so sly—!"

"I haven't got a stupid plan, Connor. I didn't mean any harm by it, I swear."

"Of course you didn't!" Connor puts his arm up in fake surprise. "Brad, Cassandra might not be able to see through your games but I sure can."

"I'm not playing any games!"

Connor throws a punch at Brad's face, causing Brad to retaliate and push Connor down to the floor.

"Don't fucking touch me," Brad says. "I'm your best friend Connor, remember that. Because at the moment, you're being annoying as fuck and I'm not gonna stand for it anymore."

Connor stays silent.

"If I had told her and then she'd professed her undying love for you, then this would've been a different story. Don't get mad at me because she doesn't like you back."

Connor was about to argue back when he heard a thud from behind Brad, only to see Cassandra against the floor, her lips blue and shivering. Brad reaches down to her and picks her up, her body freezing, even against his warm touch.

"What did you do?" Connor growls as he gets up off of the floor.

"That's your first question?" Brad scoffs as he walks out of the training room. "What have I done? I've done nothing, but you should be asking if she's okay, what's wrong with her, where we should take her."

Brad ignores Connor's snarky comments and brushes some hair out of Cassandra's face as he walks up to Joe, shouting his name. He was scared for the girl as her face turned paler and paler and frost started to gather on her.

"Brad, what's wrong?" Tristan follows him up the stairs. "Is that Cassandra?"

"Yeah, she just fell," Brad says, going up to the attic where Joe was. Joe looked over, alarmed and cleared somewhere for them to rest Cassandra.

"What happened?"

"She was freezing all day and she was fine until Connor came down and started arguing and then she fell," Brad explains and Connor scowls at him.

"Of course its my fault for coming to the training room," Connor rolls his eyes.

"I'm not saying that—"

"You implied it, didn't you?"

"Guys!" Tristan shouts over their bickering. "Stop arguing for two damn seconds and realise Cassandra isn't okay right now! If there's something wrong with her then we need to work together to make her better."

Brad looks over at the girl and everyone could hear how loud and fast his heart was beating and he didn't even know why.

unedited.