Kissing My Ex ✔

12)Fish and Frostbite

"Good choice," she adds before her eyes pop open wide. "Oh, sexy kitty cat!"

She grabs the costume and ushers me towards the cash register.

With our bags in hand, we wander out of the shop and into the rest of the mall. Sadly, most of the stores are closed down and the open ones have barely any customers. It won't be long before they shut the entire place down.

R.I.P. mall.

The only place that has any real activity is the food court. Smells of spicy, sweet, and tangy foods fill the open area, making my mouth water. I haven't eaten all day and refuse to do anything else until I do.

Ava and I get some food and steer through the small groups of people. Some, like us, are trying to find somewhere to sit while others scope the various culinary options to choose from.

"Can't believe you eat raw fish." I pretend to gag as we eat near a water fountain.

"You can get cooked sushi."

Shoving a gravy covered french fry in my mouth, I mumble, "Pass."

"Wow, you are so ladylike."

"Thank you!"

"So, how's Derek?" A asks out of nowhere before taking a delicate bite of her food.

I'm unamused and she can tell, even if she won't look at me.

"What? You make fun of my lunch, you get questioned about the boyfriend." She nods like that makes perfect sense.

"Not my boyfriend."

Ava shrugs. "Still waiting for an answer."

Chewing on the same bite for a whole minute my eyes scan the food court. The people talking animatedly among themselves, the gross outdated green tables, and the missing fishtail on the water fountain statue.

What is with this place and weird fish?

"Lexi," Ava pushes.

I hang my head and sigh. "Derek gets back from his trip tomorrow."

He's only messaged me thirty times to remind me. I'm looking forward to seeing him, really I am, but I'm starting to question more and more what we're doing. Derek's more invested in this than I am. I mean, at one point I thought I'd get past my hang-ups and we could be happy together, but now I'm not so sure.

This feeling of uncertainty makes my stomach twist. Just thinking about Derek makes me feel sick with guilt, and sadly, thinking about ending things brings me momentary relief. Last thing I wanna do is lead him on and he deserves someone who doesn't have to constantly question how she feels about him.

"You two finally gonna put a label on things?" Ava asks, unknowingly reading my thoughts, or maybe she just heard my unsettled stomach.

"I don't know." I shake my head, staring at my food like it has all the answers. "I don't think so."

"Cause of Jace?"

My head shoots up. "What? No!"

She doesn't have to say anything, the tilt of her head, and the arch of her brows already speaks volumes.

"Jace and I are just friends. Shit, we might not even be that right now, but that doesn't matter. Even if Jace and I never talk again, I can't force feelings for Derek that aren't there."

"I thought you liked him."

The corners of my mouth drop. "I did, at one point, but...it's just not there anymore."