Cory
Life hasn't been so bad down here. I wonder if it will last long though. Or if they start to catch on. Catch onto to the 4 dead bodies, the disappearances of Tyler and Dean. The party we went to the other night. It all should be kept private, for now it is anyway. But what would ever happen if that goes out into the public.?
"You drive around a Porsche dude" Jake smacks my shoulder in line for coffee. "Yeah" ... "I know" I say and he rolls his eyes. "What?" ... "since when did you have the time and money for a Porsche" he asks and I smile. "Cory" he crosses his arms. "Hiro made me okay" i sigh. "Hiro. Hazels dad, he got you a red Porsche."
"Believe it or not, but yes ... he did. It's his money not mine." We both know that I could never afford such a rich car. Such a powerful, reckless car. The thing is ... Hiro has been offering me his money for ages now. I wanted no part in it until the car. Now, if I need something I usually just get it or the money for it. This is due to Hiro probably feeling sorry for me like Amanda does. Or, could be because of many other reasons."
"So, another mention" Jake sits beside me by the table at the cafe we're in. "What?" ... "Ellie and I did it again" he pauses, "last night" and I chuckle. "Brilliant, do I need the details" i tell him and he nods his head. "No seriously, this is definitely not as bad as we thought it would be." "I imagined it being this awful version of home" he continues and all I do is listen. "It's not though, it's a little better" he smiles.
"The only thing I'd change is school" i tell him and he nods his head again. "Fuck yes" ... "Why would anyone want to be apart of summer school. I don't get it." Is all i say before he steals the show again. Jake has a habit of doing that. He has a habit of butting in and being himself, this brooding guy who knows it all too well.
"I wish there was a way to rid that place" Jake sighs and drinks his black coffee and i drink mine while thinking. Maybe there is a way to do that. Maybe there are ways in which we could not go to school. Calling in sick won't do. We need something extreme. Something that will definitely throw them off their rocket. Of course, I'm not saying that I'll do anything drastic ... but after all, I am a cold hearted person. So maybe, just maybe ... something drastic it would have to be.
—
"You set the fucking school on fire" Haze whisper yells. Ellie remains put beside her and watches the school in flames. "It's not that big of a deal" Jake buts in and i turn him away. "Listen, now we can actually have a summer. We don't have to now go to school, for no reason and now we can do other things. Cool things." Ellie, she smiles to herself ... "we can go to the beach, you can teach us how to swim." Jake hits the back of my head gently but I turn to face him.
"What?" ... "don't tell them that" he yells. "What, that we can't swim? But we can't, we don't have beaches down the bad side. We have shallow lakes, we can walk in them... nothing else" i tell the girls and Ellie now faces us. "You best hope that you don't get caught" she pauses, "your also lucky that no one got inured" she says. "How did you even manage to even set the place on fire?" Haze tilts her head and I smile to the floor ... "long story".
I covered the toaster in the kitchen and the heater in the principles office. Then, I run down the corridor left the gloves to be burned with the walls and set the alarm off. Now, I'm here ... standing beside Jake and he seems ever so happy. "Told you" ... "there was many ways" i say. He chuckles and looks toward me, "like setting the whole fucking school on fire" ... "because how did I never think of that?"
The fireengies and fire-people do their best but they can't save the school. So, now ... summer school is over. We are back at Hazes house and sat around the table for no reason. "Well there isn't much to do now" Hiro pauses, then checks the newspaper. "You guys don't have school no more" i smile, "why on gods greens earth would someone burn down a school" he says to the newspaper and I turn to face him. "Wait" ... "someone burned down the school" I ask, but he shakes his head then gives me the paper.
I sigh and take a nose at the bold headline ... "yep" i whisper, "this is surprisingly accurate" ... "does that mean that we can get the summer to ourselves now" Haze adds to her own excitement, "like beaches and have fun elsewhere" she smiles. Hiro nods his head and then takes a call causing him to then go back to his own home. A house in which I haven't been invited to yet. Maybe he doesn't have a basement?
—
But he's back again in the night time. I went for a walk to clear my head and on my way back come across two police men outside the door. Hiro is standing out and rambling on and on. Shit! "Yeah" he pauses, "there is nothing to worry about." "I can't assure you that we do not have any links to what happened to the school, nor the disappearances of Tyler and Dean."
I creep around the corner trying not to get caught, if I do so ... it's game over. When I finally make it to the back door and run down to the basement real quick. The door slams and Hiro shouts "your good". I sigh and remove my jacket before heading back up and i whisper "thank you" before he nods his head and faces Amanda who's just come downstairs. "Who was at the door?" She asks and Hiro changes the subject. Typical Hiro ... but then yet again, I'm one lucky young man.
—
The sand. It feels weird. Really, really weird. The ocean looks light blue but then it looks dark blue in the distance. The waves are white, they constantly crash onto the shore and I'm walking beside Jake. Who is also a tad bit uncomfortable about being on a beach. "I can't believe you've never been to a beach before" Haze smiles ... "not even one". Ellie, she spins around in the shallow and Jake cracks another smile. "We don't have beaches on the other side" i pause, "we have shallow lakes is all".
Jake walks toward Ellie, his arms beside him and he high knees to get where she is within seconds. Ellie giggles. "Jake, the waters not going to kill you" ... "people drown ya know" he pauses and then grabs onto her arm, "besides it's cold". I chuckle and decide to follow Hazel. She isn't going in the water just yet. So instead, we walk the beach and talk about many things. What the plans are after summer, future carers and random stuff just like that. I speak the truth ... though I can lie, I chose not too.
I walk a few steps ahead of Haze and then turn back. Her face red, her mouth gaped and I sense that she isn't okay. "Are you okay?" ... with no answer, I look around to see if anything could spot my attention for why she is completely frozen. Stunned even. Then, I finally see it. Another man, handsome, is on one knee purposing to a heavy pregnant young lady on the beach. This young man ... being Hazes ex partner.
"Hey" i pause, turning toward her ... "it's going to be okay". "Just follow me okay" ... she nods her head and then walks beside me as we head away from the scene. However, I then have a light bulb moment. So, I turn back and she sighs and comes toward me. "Can we just go" ... i stand in the same spot i was in and then face her. She seems confused ... perfect! I go down on one knee after taking her hand, bringing a sea shell to her ring finger and pretending to purpose also. When she tags on, she smiles and then giggles.
The attention is now on us. As I immediately stand from my knee and spin her around in a hug. She giggles some more as many clap and cheer around us, the biggest smile on my face. The other couple walk away before I put her back down. We share eye context for what seems like forever, but it was only for a few seconds. While we were nose to nose and then she decides to head to the ocean. I follow her into the water and within a matter of minutes ... now I get where Jake was coming from. The water is freezing!
"Is the water this cold in the bad side?" Haze asks and I shake my head. "No" ... "it's much much better" i tell and Ellie finally starts swimming around us. "You cant get much better than this" she smiles floating in the water. Jake manages to go in further and is used to the temperature now more than me. Who is still standing in place rubbing my arms together. Jake then starts splashing around and Ellie retaliates until they both have a wave fight in front of me and Haze.
Haze, she just sits in the water before grabbing my leg and using all her force to take me down with her. Which, she does so. I'm now splashing around in the water and despite me being in blind panic. I'm aware that I'm drowning. So is Jake, who drank too much ocean water for his own liking. "Shit!" ... Haze tries to grab my arm while Ellie helps Jake. "Jake, come on" she yells having him flop over her shoulder before walking out of the ocean. Haze, she still struggles... "stop moving" she pauses, "your panicking to much, okay. I've got you" she tells. Before, finally dragging me out of the water.
"What happened?" ... "we can't swim remember" i choke out and Haze covers me with a towel. Jake is warming up wrapped in another towel beside me. "Really" Haze gasps and Jake manages to let out a deep breath that he's been holding in. "I thought you said that you have lakes" ... "yeah, shallow ones" Jake yells. "There too small in width too swim, you can just stand in them and walk in them" he sighs. Elle nods her head, "i didn't know" ... "yeah well, it's fine we were never taught also so".
"Wanna get taught?" Haze questions and me and Jake both shake our heads. "Another time" i fall onto the the sand and watch the blue sky. Deep breaths Cory Stevens ... deep breaths. Jake, now stands and heads toward the car and I forgot until now that I'm driving. Great ... just great! So I make my way toward the red Porsche and once there give the keys to Haze. "Wanna drive" i ask and she smiles toward me. "Wait" ... "really" she takes the keys. "Yeah, I'm too in shock" I admit. I'm used to being a cold hearted 'monster' ... a serial killer but when it comes to my own fears. This, being one of them ... I'm worn out already. So I am not driving.
Haze was confident enough to drive Ellie home, Jake back to the junkyard and us back to her house too. I'm surprisingly proud of her. She parks and then finally gets out while talking pictures of the car, the car that I'm still inside of. "What are you doing" ... "taking pictures" she giggles and I smile, "why" ... "of how good I can park a damn car".
I get out and then cross my arms and shake my head with another smile. "Feeling better" she pauses, "you seem very smiley this afternoon" she taps my chin and I take her hand and then lead us back into the house. Both of her parents aren't there ... this is new.