31. Chase After Her!
As soon as the figure got up and started to run, Chase ran after it. He wasn’t even sure if the figure was actually Krislynn. For all he knew, it could be some random girl from one of the neighbouring bungalows thinking some creep was coming after her with a machete. Actually, that was probably the more likely case, but he ran after her nonetheless. “Wait! Are you Krislynn? Stop running!”
The girl turned her head around and then quickly picked up the pace when she realized he was gaining speed on her. “Stop following me!” She screamed and at once, Chase recognized it was in fact Krislynn.
“What the hell?!” He yelled, confused as to what she was doing. “Why are you running away from me?”
Her response was as vague as her actions were. “Because you’re running after me!”
“You were the one who started running when I called your name!” His footsteps became heavier with every thud on the sand. “Are you honestly that mad at me?! I know what I said to LaCienega in the kitchen was brutal, but I promised I wouldn’t pull that shit again!”
“It’s not that,” she screamed. “I’m not mad!”
“No, you are mad!”
“I’m not!”
“You are!” His voice penetrated into the otherwise still night – so thunderous that it caused soft ripples on the surface of the water. “You get all deadpan every time you get super pissed off! I know you’re mad, but I told you I...” His words trailed off as his heart started racing faster and faster. If she wasn’t mad about what he said to LaCienega then could she be mad about... “Wait. Is there another reason you’re mad?”
“No,” she yelled again. “I’m not mad Chase. I just want to be by myself!”
Chase didn’t bother arguing with her this time. Instead, he sprinted and caught her wrist before pulling her into his arms. The back of her body slammed against his as his hands made their way to the side of her hips. In that position, he held her there, his chest pressed firmly into her spine, his heart still racing, drumming soft heartbeats between her shoulder blades. Standing still, Chase tried to catch his breath, hard pants skimming the side of her neck as they exited his mouth, causing her to shiver at their elusive touch.
“Don’t run,” he gasped. “Don’t run away from me anymore.”
Krislynn slowly wiggled out of his grasp as she turned around to face him. She peered at him closely before heaving a low sigh. “I guess...” Her gaze shifted downward at the sand before she looked back up at him through her eyelashes. “I guess I might have been a little bit upset.”
He knew he would be right, but her response still took him by surprise and he rapidly grabbed her wrist and squeezed it tightly in his hand. “At what?” He asked. Eagerness rushed through his body and he wasn’t exactly sure why her answer was so important to him, but it was. His logic couldn’t comprehend it – only felt the intense sensation of deep anticipation through his every pore. He could only grasp and understand bits and pieces from his brain – that her answer, whatever it might, was exceptionally important to his heart.
“At what?” He asked again. “What exactly are you mad at?”
Krislynn’s face projected a look of complete perplexity as she mused over it, and then, almost as if something clicked in her mind, she wrenched her hand from his grasp. “What does it matter?” She grumbled eyeing him curiously before heaving a sigh. “I was mad because... Actually I’m not sure why.” She tilted her head in a ditzy array before skipping off toward the shoreline. “I guess if I wanted to be mad, I could be mad about everything.”
Chase followed her. “But is there one specific thing that maybe stands above all?”
“Well if I had to pick...” Krislynn kneeled by the shoreline and dug her hands into the damp sand as she thought. “I guess I was pissed off that I couldn’t ride the Ferris Wheel in the end because we had to come home and check on you.”
“That’s– That’s it?” Chase’s shoulders slumped and he suddenly felt extremely disappointed. “Really? That’s it?”
Krislynn gave him a weird look before forcing her gaze back on the small molehill she was making out of sand. “Of course. What did you think?”
Well, he was thinking of a lot of things, but he didn’t know why it mattered. It wasn’t like her answer would have made a difference to him.
Taking a seat beside her, Chase joined her in her sand making. “Oh yeah. How was your stupid time at the amusement park with Jace?” His eyebrows creased together as another thought popped in his head. “Why didn’t you ride the Ferris Wheel with him anyways? You guys had enough time, didn’t you?”
“Because I wanted to ride it with you,” she said and his eyes instantly lit up at her remark. “But don’t read too into it. I only wanted to ride it with you so I can open the door and push you out when we get to the top.”
“You’re such a bitch,” he told her, but it still made him happy to hear her say that. Smiling, he rubbed his hands together to brush the sand off. “Here. Give me your hand.”
Krislynn stared at him curiously, but then followed suit and slipped her hand into his open palm. Chase didn’t waste a second and promptly turned it over to scribble on her palm with his finger. He raised his head after a moment and met her confused expression with a grin. “It’s an I.O.U.” He explained. “For the Ferris Wheel next time.”
He returned her hand back to her and Krislynn idly brought it to her face, narrowing her eyes at it as if she could make out the imprints if she tried hard enough. “Isn’t that usually in paper?”
“Yeah, but that’s sort of a waste of trees.”
“Which means you’re just too lazy to write me one.”
He laughed. “But if I write you one, you’d probably just lose it.”
“But this way there’s no account of it at all.” Krislynn wrinkled her nose before breaking into soft laughter. “Well whatever. I guess I like it this way better.” Her eyes shifted up to the sky where the full moon hung playfully amongst the shadowy clouds. “It’s almost like we’re sharing a secret huh?”
Chase shrugged and followed her gaze to the moon. “If that’s what you want us to share,” he said. A moment of comfortable silence surrounded them before he turned to her once more. “So are we good? You’re not mad at me anymore?”
“Of course I’m still mad,” she snapped at once. “Don’t think I’m going to let you off the hook for spoiling my night so soon! You have no idea when the last time I went to an amusement park was!”
“Okay, fine!” He grumbled. “What would it take for you to actually forgive me? Name your price.”
Krislynn smirked at him deviously. “Can I have anything?”
“If it’s within my power,” he replied, “I’ll give it to you or make it happen.”
“Okay.” She smiled. “How about a heartfelt apology then?”
Chase raised his eyebrows as complete shock displayed on his face. “Seriously?” He shouted. “That’s all it takes?”
“Well, are you going to do it?” She asked.
He took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. Super, super sorry for tonight.”
“For,” she pressed. “What are you sorry for?”
He had to think about that. “Well, overall for being a huge douchebag I guess.”
“But that’s not really anything new,” she quickly pointed out. “I mean, you’re an overall huge douchebag everyday and unless you’re going to apologize for your existence altogether, it’s a pointless apology and I won’t take it.”
He chuckled at her reply. “Fine,” he said. “Then I guess I’m sorry for making you worry about me when you were the one lost and I should have been the one busy worrying about you. I’m sorry.”
Krislynn only took one emotionless glance at him before she shifted her gaze to the sand at her feet. She stayed quiet for a long time after that. Maybe it was a couple of seconds or maybe it was much, much longer. It’s hard to tell time when the scenery sits so quietly that the moment lasts forever. “Fine,” she murmured after much self debate. “I guess I can forgive you this time.”
Chase laughed. “Oh good. Now can we head back to the house then? I may look like I’m holding up okay, but I’m actually really, really tired.”
“Okay,” she agreed and the two of them started to make their way back to the house.
When they got back, the house was mostly dark besides the patio light being kept lit for them. Seth had kindly left the back screen door open so they could come inside without disturbing anyone and Chase made a face when he found Pete still splayed out on the living room couch.
Quietly, they both tiptoed upstairs and cleaned themselves up before going to bed. There was a bathroom just down the hall and since Krislynn got to it first, Chase unhurriedly searched for another change of clothes as he waited for her to be done.
When Chase finally tidied up and made his way back inside their room, he was surprised to find Krislynn already snuggled perfectly in the middle of bed, and even more shockingly, when his eyes landed on the pillow and the pile of blankets on the floor right beside it. “You’re shittin’ me,” he instantly shouted and then quickly lowered his voice before he continued. “Is that what I think you’re suggesting?”
Rubbing her eyes, Krislynn sat upright and peered at him sleepily. “I don’t know,” she murmured. “What is it you think I’m suggesting?”
“That you want me to sleep on the floor tonight!” He hissed.
Krislynn smiled. “Smart boy,” she chirped before falling back on the bed. “Turn off the lights okay? Good night.”
Chase’s jaw fell and he promptly pounced on the bed before crawling over to her, one arm and one leg on each side of her body. “I’m not sleeping on the floor,” he argued, tugging at the duvet she had pulled over her head. “Tonight or ever.”
Krislynn frowned at him. “Well, I’m sleeping on the bed,” she declared. “And you’re not sleeping with me.”
“Why can’t I?” He grumbled. “We slept together last night!”
“I was scared last night. It was different.”
His left eye twitched. “Well, how about that night at the hotel,” he argued. “We slept together that night!”
“I was drunk,” she protested. “I’m not drunk now.”
Chase grew anxious. “And that night in Mexico,” he added desperately. “We didn’t even know each other and we still slept in the same bed!”
Krislynn looked at him with wariness. “Chase,” she murmured. “I was handcuffed to you that night.”
Realizing he was at his end, Chase resorted to begging. “Please!!!” He groaned. “I won’t even touch you if that’s what you’re worried about!” He made a puppy face.
“That face isn’t going to work,” she sang. Chase pouted and puffed his cheeks out like a chipmunk holding acorns in its mouth. “Get off of my bed,” she laughed and pushed him off of her.
In the end, Chase’s actions were futile and he ended up sleeping on the floor after he made a little sleeping bag out of it. Still, he didn’t go quietly and complained about how cold and hard the floor was until his mouth ran dry.
Krislynn stayed awake long after silence fell over the room. First 3 am came, and then 3:30, and then 4. She couldn’t fall asleep no matter what she did – although she was exhausted and her mind was vacant. Chase had fallen asleep long ago, and his body lay still in the makeshift bed that only took him two minutes to create. She envied how easily he fell asleep even when he was the one on the floor. She had been lying on her side, motionless in her bed for over half an hour, and still sleep was avoiding her.
She was almost preparing herself to get out of bed and find something useful to do when her name echoed into the dark. “Krislynn? Are you still awake?” Her lips parted and she almost answered him, shocked that Chase had been actually awake this whole entire time. “Hey? You still up?”
She didn’t answer him and immediately after, heard him shuffling his blankets about. “Piglet?” He whispered gently. “Are you asleep? Piggy? Krislynn?”
Again, Krislynn didn’t answer and he responded to her silence with more silence. She could even imagine him sitting with his blankets surrounding him, hair sticking up, looking around the pitch dark room, a frown covering his face, carrying a mild case of lover’s insomnia. Why else would he still be awake?
Then she heard him snicker. Her heart started to race. Shuffling. More blankets shuffling. Footsteps. And then – whoosh – she shivered as a cool breeze hit her back and then again when she felt Chase’s warm body slide right up against hers. Her body grew tense immediately. She hadn’t been expecting this kind of invasion, and Chase must have noticed because he suddenly leaned in to her ear. “Hey? Are you awake still?”
Krislynn didn’t tell him she was. She couldn’t bring herself to. That would mean kicking him out of bed.
Instead, she stretched her body and shuffled in her bed, giving out sleepy murmurs as she turned to face him. Almost with ease, she tucked herself neatly into the niche of his body and felt his arm drape casually across her side. She remembered a whisper as quiet as a ghost, “good night,” but she couldn’t remember anything after that.