laconic (adj.)
expressing much in few words
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AS soon as school let out, Eli dragged me to the parking lot with the intent of forcing me into his car.
Ever since I had revealed that I was scared of driving in the snow, he had been weirdly overprotective of me and offered to drive me everywhere. It was a sweet gesture, but I felt weird about him being my chauffeur; he had better things to do than drive me wherever I needed to go.
In the school parking lot, we had our first squabble in months about me wanting to drive separately to the diner. It was only sleeting, and I'd be fine alone, but Eli was concerned about me. I ultimately won, but he tailgated me the entire way to Mo's.
"You survived," he exclaimed as we met on the sidewalk.
"Yes, I survived. I'm not an incompetent driver, just a scared one."
He muttered something that sounded an awful lot like "my neighbor's mailbox disagrees."
"What'd you say?"
He shoved his hands in his pockets as we walked in the door. "Nothing."
"Good answer," I deadpanned.
He took me by the hand and dragged me to the corner booth by the jukebox—the same booth Ben and I sat at during our weekly lunches. I felt my lips curl into a smile as I slid into the familiar worn-down booth.
"What's so funny?"
"Hmm?"
"You're smirking." He folded his hands on the table and leaned in. "What's so funny?"
"Oh, uh... nothing, really. I just saw something that reminded me of one time Ben and I came here."
"You went out with Ben? Alone?"
"Yeah. A few months ago."
He pursed his lips, a sour look marring his face. "I didn't know you hang out with Ben."
A few times a week, but he didn't need to know that... "So, what are you getting?" I asked, trying to distract him with the prospect of food.
"Oreo milkshake, obviously," he grinned.
Mission accomplished.
I set the menu down. "I guess I will, too."
"Good, 'cause I was gonna order you one regardless."
"So, uh, I have something to tell you," I began, fidgeting with the sugar packets on the table.
"Shoot," he said, leaning forward in anticipation.
"I, uh—"
"Hello, my name is Betty," our waitress interrupted me. "I'll be taking care of you guys this afternoon. Can I start you off with something to drink?"
"We're actually ready to order. Two Oreo milkshakes and a large fries to share, please," Eli said.
"Alrighty," she replied, scribbling on her notepad. "I'll bring them out as soon as it's ready."
Eli turned back to me. "So, what were you saying?"
I took a deep breath in preparation for his reaction. "I got an email. Well, I got two emails. From Copley and Revere, that is. But you already know about the Copley one. I didn't tell you about the Revere one. And I'm rambling, so you probably know where this is about to go."
The light in his eyes dimming, he bit his bottom lip. "Good news or bad news?"
"Uh, I'm not sure. There's actually something else I need to tell you that's good or bad, depending on how you look at it," I said, referring to the Southern Golden State University acceptance I received ten minutes prior. I thought they were supposed to be released in March, but SGSU must have really wanted me. It was exciting, but also severely complicated my life. "Do you want the Revere news or the other one first?"
"Revere," he quickly decided.
"Uh, I was waitlisted."
"I'm sorry," he frowned, reaching to grab my hand.
I smiled and weakly returned his reassuring squeeze. "Don't be. It's not something you can control."
"I know... But at least it's not a rejection? I mean, there's still a chance that a spot will open up and you'll be able to go. I know how much you wanted to."
I shrugged. To be completely honest, since my talk with my mom, my desire to go to Revere with Eli plummeted. I definitely wanted to go to school near him, but the other schools I applied to were much better. If I chose Revere over Copley or SGSU, I would be doing exactly what my mom made me promise not to do. She really opened my eyes and made me realize that I wanted to go to Revere for the wrong reasons.
Taking my silence as despondency, he grabbed my other hand and looked into my eyes. "Hey, don't worry about it. You got into Copley, which is amazing. You should be proud of yourself."
"I know, I am. It's just that you might hate me for what I'm about to say."
"I could never hate you."
We'll have to see about that, buddy.
I decided to not beat around the bush any longer, "I also applied to Southern Golden State University. In Los Angeles, California... I didn't tell you because I wasn't sure if I would get in, but I, uh, did." My voice was a mere squeak at the end.
Our waitress skated over and delivered our food as his jaw dropped.
I reached for my shake, giving him a few seconds to overreact.
As I assumed, my movements shook him out of his melodramatic stupor. "I'm sorry, what the fuck did you say?"
"You heard me right," I munched on a fry. "I got into SGSU."
I had no clue where this sudden confidence came from, but I was loving it.
"And you didn't tell me?"
I flinched at the bite in his words. "Well, I found out like fifteen minutes ago, so..." I shoved another handful of fries into my mouth.
He pinched the bridge of his nose and leaned back in his seat. "I mean, why didn't you tell me that you applied? Did anyone know? Why the secrecy?"
"It was a longshot, so I didn't tell anyone. Um, except Ben." I whispered the last part into my milkshake.
"Ben?" he asked incredulously before muttering unintelligible something to himself.
I hesitantly nodded.
"I'll just pretend that didn't sting," he grumbled.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt anyone. I thought keeping it a secret would spare everyone from hurt, but apparently, that was a shitty idea."
"Are you going?" He awaited my answer with a bated breath.
"I don't know. I'm going to wait to hear back from Revere before making any final decisions. There's a chance they'll accept me, so I don't want to decide anything yet. But just based on the journalism program strength, SGSU is the front-runner."
As the gravity of my words sank in, the bad-tempered look on his face deepened. "So you're going."
"I didn't say that. It's just a possibility."
Why was he getting so mad? I thought he'd be over the moon for me.
I guess detonating the l-bomb wouldn't be a good idea. Oh well, it could wait another day or two. Maybe a few weeks...
He swept his untouched milkshake to the side and leaned forward. "Charlotte, I beg you, please stay in Boston. There are so many opportunities here for you. Copley would be a way better fit, too. Just think, Aubrey's going. You'll already have a friend and a possible roommate... Ben, Ethan, and I are all going to Revere. I don't remember where Delaney's going, but it's somewhere nearby."
I slammed my milkshake onto the table as the metaphorical dam withholding my rage burst. "Are you seriously trying to tell me what to do right now?"
He recoiled. "No, I didn't mean it like that. I was just trying to say that you need to stay here. You'd be much happier close to us. Close to me."
"I can't believe you're being serious right now."
"I'm dead serious," he said evenly. "You're gonna leave, just like that?"
"I never said I was!" I couldn't stop myself from raising my voice. "Look, Elliot, I know that you're trying to be nice and give me advice, but you sound like an asshole right now. Newsflash: you don't own me. We are friends. I can do whatever I damn well please without asking you first. Get over yourself."
"Friends," he spat. "I know we're just friends. You don't always have to fucking remind me. I fucking get it—we won't ever be more than friends."
"You know what, Elliot?" I spat right back at him, "I'm not sure if I even want to be your friend right now. The way—"
"Um, excuse me," a timid voice interrupted me. I looked up to see our waitress standing there with a strained smile. "Hi! So, there have been quite a few complaints about your, um, argument. My manager has requested that you guys leave. Feel free to take the milkshakes with you; we don't need the glasses and spoons back."
Horrified, I looked around to find the entire diner watching us. Some people were even eating their fries like popcorn at the movie theater, entranced by the free show we were giving. I hastily stood up, took my milkshake and coat, and jogged outside into the pouring rain.
"Charlotte, wait!" Eli called out, holding his coat over his head like an umbrella.
"What do you want?" I shouted across the parking lot, not caring that I was getting soaked.
"Are you still mad? You're kinda overreacting."
Taking a deep breath to compose myself, I flipped him the bird and ran to my car.
Of course, he chased after me, but I was faster and had a head start.
In record time, I unlocked my car and drove off, leaving him standing alone in the rain.
Glancing in my rearview mirrors, I got a perverse sense of satisfaction watching him slip and fall in a pile of mud.
Served him right for being a jealous ass.
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A/N: Please don't hate me lol. E&C haven't fought since chapter 20, so I thought it was time for another one. Plus, who doesn't love drama?
Thanks for reading, as always! Don't forget to vote and comment! 💚
QOTC: what's one place you've always wanted to travel to?
My Answer: I've always wanted to go to Greece or Iceland or the Maldives. But pretty much everywhere is on my list haha