"I can't believe you're actually going," Mia complained as she leaned back against the head of my bed. I pulled on another dress and gave her a blank expression. It was a peach coloured dress this time. It was simple, and loose, which I guessed was good for a beach party.
"It's not like you're going. I'm only asking you to help me pick a dress," I pointed out.
"Yeah, but after what she said to you, I would be avoiding her like the plague," Mia said.
I was legitimately considering it, but what could I do, Beth apologised and said she didn't mean it. I wanted to believe her.
"I'm trying not to cling onto things people say only once," I replied.
I didn't want to jump to conclusions. I thought I was beyond that, but wow, it was hard not to. I wanted to hate her, yet a side of me wanted to forgive her. I felt so conflicted but each time I saw her, I felt angry or annoyed.
"Yeah but what Beth said isn't acceptable, even if she didn't mean it. It was wrong and an apology isn't going to cut it."
I couldn't bring myself to say anything. Deep down, I agreed with her. Even if Beth apologised and that she took all her anger out on me, she still said it.
"Whatever. You do you," Mia sighed. "I'm only here to help you pick out a dress for your date with Kyle."
I furrowed my brows. "I'm not going on a date with Kyle. We're just going together as friends," I corrected awkwardly.
"Good." Mia didn't seem like she believed me. But that was the truth. Although I would be lying if I said I hadn't wondered about it. Was this a date with Kyle? And if it was, was I okay with it? Kyle was nice. He was sweet, and it didn't seem like he believed what other people thought of me. He didn't treat me like I was rude or horrible like Daniel did, and he didn't think I was lame like Mia did. I should be excited if this was a date. I should be excited that I'm hanging out with him in general.
But it felt wrong. I promised Daniel that I wouldn't even speak to Kyle outside of school. Daniel made it abundantly clear yesterday that the deal was still on so that meant the terms all continued to apply. I interpreted that as he still didn't approve of Kyle and me. Strangely though, it didn't upset me the way I thought it would. Instead, I felt bummed out that he still didn't approve of me with his friend.
"What is up with you and Kyle anyways? I know that you don't like him, but you act like you want to murder him," I asked.
"I don't want to murder him," Mia rolled her eyes. "But I do wish I never have to see his face," she added casually, looking at her hands as though it was the most interesting thing in the world.
"Kyle isn't a bad guy, Mia. You should give him a shot. He's nice and sweet," I advised.
Mia's eyes flicked over towards me. Her expression was almost cold. "He's only nice to you because he's into you," she stated. "To everyone else, he's a snob."
"He is nothing like that."
"Seriously, Ellie. What makes you think you know everything about him from one term in one class. You've spent majority of your high school life ignoring people and to be frank, you're not that socially smart. You don't really see the hints."
"What hints?"
"He's obnoxious and selfish. A lot of people see his confidence as being charming, but he's so entitled. He's the type of guy who expects things in return when he's nice when nobody asked him to," Mia explained softly. She looked serious and genuinely concerned.
"I can handle myself."
"I know," Mia smiled sadly. "But this is meant to be the best year of your life. I don't want you to get hurt during it."
I never really viewed Kyle as obnoxious or arrogant. Sure, he was confident. I only saw him embarrassed once and it made me jealous how one could be so confident. But does that make him obnoxious and selfish? Did he really think so highly of himself? The irony, however, was that Mia didn't approve of Kyle for me. Just like how Daniel didn't approve of me.
I tried on another dress and when I showed Mia she shook her head with disapproval. I tried on another, and another, until Mia finally nodded.
"You look really pretty in that dress," she said.
It was a light green dress that reached my knees. It was comfortable and soft, perfect for a beach party I guess. Mia told me to have my hair up, said it would look nicer with the outfit. When I was done, Mia tilted her head to the side.
"Does Daniel know about your date with Kyle?"
"It's not a date," I corrected.
"Okay fine. Does Daniel know about your 'not-date' with Kyle? I mean, was he okay with it considering your deal?"
"I may or may not have told him."
Mia was trying to withhold a laugh but rolled her eyes instead. "Daniel may or may not kill you tonight," she replied.
"Well, if you are so worried about my wellbeing, why don't you come with me?"
"Ew. Why would I want to go to Beth's party?"
"Because you love me."
"Not enough of a reason to be in the same car as Kyle and be in the same vicinity as Beth."
"Well, Josh will be there," I noted. Mia has a major crush on Josh, and she had been trying to ask him out for a while but never had the courage to see through it.
"That won't work on me," she said. I could tell she was lying.
"Okay then. I guess I'll have to play cupid."
"What are you talking about?"
I smiled mischievously. "Well, if you're not brave enough to ask Josh out yourself, I guess I'll have to put you on his radar."
Mia's eyes widened. "You wouldn't."
"I would."
Her eyes searched mine. I noticed a tinge of panic in her eyes as though she was believing my bluff. In fact, I think she believer my bluff.
"You are so conniving," she complained, shaking her head. "I have to admit though. I'm a little proud."
"Ellie, your friend is here," Dad called out abruptly, causing me to flinch.
I turned to Mia who sighed hopeless. "Fine, I'll come with."
I smiled proudly and we leave my room together to find Dad talking to Kyle. I was half expecting to find Kyle nervous. Dad could be pretty full on at times, and I think he does it intentionally to figure a person out. But Kyle looked fine. Confident even. The expression on dad's face, however, was a lot different from the way he speaks to Daniel. The only other guy friend I have that dad ever spoken to.
It was weird. I wondered if it was weird for dad too.
"Hi Kyle," I greeted.
Kyle's smile widened when he looked at me, but then it faltered slightly when he spotted Mia behind me. Mia grunted a hello and Kyle responded with an awkward hello back. "Is it okay if Mia comes along with us? I'm sorry if it's last minute."
"No, that's okay," Kyle said. I don't think it was.
"Great, thank you. Bye dad," I said, kissing dad on the cheek.
"See you, kid. Don't have too much fun. Remember what I said last time. If you take one sip of any alcohol, I will send you to a nunnery."
Did he have to say that in front of Kyle?
"Yeah, okay," I mumbled softly.
When we left, Mia whispered to me, "I wouldn't be surprised if your dad makes you do a breath test when you come home." If I were being completely honest, I wouldn't be surprised if dad made me do a drug test either. In fact, I felt like he was looking forward to it.
The drive to the beach was long. It felt like hours when it probably took thirty minutes. I was nervous the entire ride mostly because Mia was sitting scarily quiet in the back and Kyle's muscles looked tense at the front. Mia really didn't like him, and I was assuming Kyle was bothered because it wasn't just us. I mean, what other reason would he have?
When I got out of the car, I smelt the strange mix of salt water and alcohol. I heard people chatting, laughing, and yelling. It definitely sounded and smelled like a party. When we got closer, I could see everyone. There wasn't as many people as there was in Beth's other party. There had to be at least a couple of dozen people here.
We were only a couple of feet away from the crowd when Kyle told Mia and I to wait while he went to get us drinks. The music wasn't too loud, so it was easy to hear each other. I turned to Mia and I could see how uncomfortable she was, but her eyes were searching the crowd. Probably looking for Josh.
"So, it looks like you decided to come after all," I heard a familiar voice spoke behind me. I turned around and saw Beth smiling at me with lip glossed pink lips, her blonde hair styled in a French braid.
I forced a smile. Her outfit was very different from mine. She wore a white jean short and a see through shirt where you can see she was wearing a bikini top underneath.
"Yeah, here I am." I tried to sound friendly, but I wasn't so sure if I did. But from Beth's expression, I don't think she cared.
I noticed Beth's eyes flicked over to Mia for a brief moment before looking back at me with disinterest. "Did you come here with Daniel?" she asked, arching a brow.
I shook my head, "No, we both came here with Kyle," I said, trying to get Mia involved much to her dismay. Mia, on the other hand, was trying her hardest to avoid getting involved in the conversation. Her eyes roamed the party instead, half the time her back was facing Beth. But when I gestured to Mia, it forced her to mutter a hello before she returned to looking around.
"Oh, I'm sorry—I just thought that you and Daniel," but before she could finish, Kyle came back.
"Sorry, I took so long. Ran into some friends. Oh, hey, Beth," Kyle grinned, handing me a red solo cup. I looked down at the content and only smiled back at Kyle. Dad's words kept repeating in my mind that he'd lock me up in a tower until I turned fifty.
There were so many threats after the last time, it was like he wrote these down ever since I was born, waiting for the opportunity to use it on me. Now that it happened, it was being released like a floodgate. Probably thinking that that was going to be his only chance.
"Hi Kyle, surprised to see that you showed up. You hate the beach," Beth said playfully.
"I only like it when I'm with good company," Kyle replied, his smile directed towards me. "Hey, wanna go sit by the fire?"
"Uh, sure," I smiled.
Mia and I followed Kyle nearby the bonfire. Mia would stick by close, and I could tell she rather go around and chat with the people she knew. But I had the feeling she didn't feel right leaving me behind. It was the first party I went with her.
"You don't have to stick with me," I whispered to her even though deep down, I didn't want Mia to go.
"I know," was all she said.
When we sat down, Kyle didn't seem as awkward around Mia. Mia was warming up too, but I assumed it had to do with the drinks. It was nice talking to Kyle though. He was kind and funny. He was a great guy, but I felt guilty the entire time. It was like I was leading him on.
"Hey Kyle!" Jake, from school, approached us. He looked over to me and smiled. "Hey, Adele," he added with a snicker. Jake, another guy from Kyle and Daniel's little crew.
I groaned. "Hey," I replied. When was this going to end?
"Kyle, come check this out."
Kyle looked at me, asking if I wanted to join him. I peered over Kyle's shoulder and saw a bunch of people from McKellar standing there. People I don't exactly speak to. So, I shook my head a no.
"You go ahead," I replied with a smile.
"Okay. I'll be back soon," he said.
"Eh, what time is it?" Mia groaned.
"I think it's only been twenty minutes since we got here," I said looking at my phone.
"I wish I could say time flies, but this party is so dull," Mia stated. I snickered. "But what about you? Are you enjoying it?"
"It's alright, I guess."
"At least we're on the same page."
Most of the people here were from McKellar, but I didn't recognise a good handful. Mia believed they're from the other schools or mutual friends. Eventually, Mia and I started walking around, feeling like it was getting too crowded. I lost track where Kyle went, but surely he'd find me later.
"Oh look," I leaned closer to Mia, turning my back slightly to the crowd. "There's Joshua," I noted, pointing with my head.
Mia's face flushed. "Where?"
I laughed. "Nearby the keg stand," I told her.
Mia's eyes moved to the Keg stand immediately and her cheeks turned into a deep red.
"Why don't you go talk to him?" I asked.
"Uh, no."
"Why not?"
Mia arched a brow at me. "The last time I spoke to him, I made a complete fool of myself, remember? I can't face him again. Besides, I'm here with you."
I rolled my eyes, "You didn't embarrass yourself. You were being cute. It's fine. You should go and say hello."
"But what about you?"
"I'll be fine."
"Are you sure?" Mia asked reluctantly.
"Yes, Mia. Can you just go, or I'll drag you to Josh myself?"
Mia smile. "Um, okay. I'll be back!"
I had a feeling she wouldn't be coming back anytime soon. I watched her approach Josh. His face looked like it brightened when he spotted Mia and Mia, again, blushed. It was funny to see how shy Mia could be around Josh when she was so strong willed and confident with everyone else.
I noticed that Kyle and Beth were together nearby the bonfire. There was a deep frown on Beth's face. She looked irritated. Or perhaps angry. She crossed her arms over her chest and Kyle had his eyes closed, looking down to the ground as though he was frustrated.
"What are you looking at?"
I screamed and jumped. I peered to my left and Daniel was grinning amusedly at me. I placed a hand over my chest, feeling my heart racing.
"Don't do that!"
"Do what?" Daniel asked innocently.
"Just show up and scare me to shits!" I hit his shoulder softly.
Daniel laughed. "Not my fault that you're so jumpy," he teased. "Did you think I was Jason or something?"
"You seriously need to stop with the Friday the Thirteenth references, unless you have a death wish."
I looked away from him, looking back to the party. Beth was still with Kyle, and Mia was still with Josh. No one seemed to notice I screamed bloody murder and the only people who was giving me any form of attention was Daniel.
"I didn't expect to see you here," Daniel then said.
"Didn't I tell you?" I asked innocently. I hadn't told him, and I don't know why. It wasn't like I was obligated to.
"No, I think you may have forgotten," he said. He didn't seem annoyed or angry, just amused.
"What brings you here?"
"Not sure if you forgot, but Beth is my friend. Remember? That's what people do when they have a party. Invite friends."
"Hilarious." I rolled my eyes.
"Did you come with Mia?"
"I did," I nodded before adding, "and Kyle."
We began walking down closer to the shore. I could feel the sand seeping into my shoes and under my feet. It was uncomfortable when walking.
"Oh, as a—" Daniel didn't even finish but I knew what he meant.
"As friends," I advised.
"Good then. Did he end up telling you the story about why he wanted to become a doctor?" Daniel asked.
I frowned. "No," I answered. I knew Kyle wanted to be a doctor since the first day we were partnered for Chemistry, but I didn't remember Kyle ever telling me why. "Is it interesting?" I asked.
Daniel snorted. "The opposite, in fact. But glad he didn't tell you. It looks like he's finally listening to me when I tell him that that story isn't exactly the best way to impress a girl," Daniel explained.
"Impress a girl? And why wouldn't Kyle's story impress a girl?" I arched a brow.
"It's lame. Girl's not into why you want to save people's lives and be a hero," Daniel said casually. "They hear it all the time."
I nodded as though am in deep thought. "I'm not sure about that. I mean, surely there's some who finds it very sweet and beautiful that Kyle wants to dedicate his life saving people."
"Maybe. But so far through his experience, it hasn't really been working for him."
I turned around, walking backwards along the shoreline as I faced Daniel. "Alright then, tell me. What do you do to impress a girl?"
Daniel smirked. "I don't need to. Girl's are drawn to me," he said smugly. I replied with a blank expression. "All I have to do is just ignore her and pretend that I don't notice her. Drives them crazy," he said proudly.
"How romantic," I replied sarcastically.
He shrugged. "Well, what can I say? The girls are really into bad boys."
I rolled my eyes and turned back around so I was walking straight. It was getting darker, the light coming from the streetlamps that were not too far from where we were.
"Hate to break it to you, Daniel. But you're not technically a bad boy," I advised.
"Yes, I am," he said defensively. We stopped walking. I supressed a laugh as I looked at Daniel's confused face. "I'm considered to be the school bad boy."
"Hmm, no," I disagreed. "Firstly, you have great grades. You actually do your homework, I've noticed. You're not selfish. In fact, you'd do anything for Kyle including entering into a deal with some random girl you didn't like, so he doesn't get hurt. And you're nice and funny majority of the time, except for the time when you were trying to get rid of me at the beginning of the year."
"Uh, I strongly disagree," Daniel pouted. "I always get detention and the number one proof that I'm a bad boy is being a consistent patient of the peer support club. Teachers don't like me."
"Just because teachers don't like you doesn't make you a bad boy, Sherlock. It just makes you a brat." I stuck my tongue out.
"Okay, whatever you say. Doesn't ignore the fact that girls are still obsessed with me."
I observed our surroundings dramatically. "Really? Because I don't see any girls fawning over you?"
"Says the girl who's been ignoring everyone for the past couple of years. Doubted you were interested in anything I was doing last year." Touché.
"Well, thirteen weeks has passed since the beginning of the year, and I don't see any girls." I shrugged teasingly.
"What can I say? I've been pretty busy this term with the bucket list and all."
I arched one eyebrow. "Oh, don't blame the bucket list for your inability to impress the girls," I snorted. "It's not fair to blame something that isn't even real."
"Okay, okay," Daniel said, his hands up as if in surrender as he took a couple of steps closer towards me. I stood my ground, crossing my arms smiling victoriously. But then I noticed my body felt tensed, and my heart felt heavy. Before I know it, Daniel bended down and splashed the water at me.
Instinctively, I screamed as the cold water touched me. Daniel started laughing hysterically. "Oh, that was a low blow," I said, shivering. Daniel was nodding in response, unable to withhold his laugh. "You're so dead."
I splashed water towards his direction which Daniel immediately retaliated by jumping further into the beach water and splashing back. We were too far from the party by now for anyone to really notice us. When I splashed water at Daniel for the fifth time, he tripped and fell into the water, reaching just at his chest. I immediately burst into laughter, my hands on my knees as I tried to regain by breath.
"Laugh it up," Daniel sat there defeatedly.
"Okay, okay," I stepped closer to him, "here, take my hand," I said, offering my hand.
Daniel took it sloppily and before I could pull him up, he pulled me down and fell into the knee deep water beside him. Daniel burst into laughter this time.
"Oh, that's foul play."
Daniel shrugged unapologetically. "There's no such thing as fair during war," Daniel said.
I stood up and Daniel followed pursuit. "Oh gosh, it's freezing," I shivered.
"Well, given that we're already drenched, why don't we go for a swim?" he arched a brow.
He was talking about the bucket list. Surely he was. 'Swim in the ocean', I repeated in my thoughts.
"Not the type of ocean I had in mind. This is a beach," I advised.
"Wait, you mean you want to swim deep ocean?"
I nodded as I walked back to the dry part of the beach. "Not deep, deep. But you know, enough where the bottom is too far to reach by just standing," I answered.
"Well, the beach shouldn't make any difference if we just swim deep enough," he suggested.
With no lifeguards' present, I was definitely not up for it. It was too dangerous. "No, wouldn't make a difference. Need it to be deep enough for..." I stopped as a cold wind pushed against me. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to warm myself.
"Come on, I have a towel in the car," Daniel said.
We walked back to the car park together and to his car that was parked under a streetlamp. He opened the boot and handed me a towel which I wrapped around myself.
"What about you?" I asked when Daniel closed the boot.
"Only brought one towel," he admitted.
"Oh, then you take it. You'll get cold."
He shook his head. "It's okay," he said, taking off his jacket that looked more like it peeled off him. He was completely drenched. So, was I? It was really dumb of us to start splashing around without an extra pair of clothes.
"Were you expecting to splash around the water?" I asked.
Daniel chuckled. "It's my gym towel. Always in the boot whenever I feel like going."
I cringed. "Oh, gross." I just wrapped myself in a sweat drenched towel. I shouldn't be complaining though. I was drenched myself.
"Relax. It's clean," Daniel rolled his eyes. "I have spare clothes in the car. Sit inside while I go get changed."
He opened the passenger door for me before he turned on the car and the heater. I sat patiently while he disappeared for a moment. I looked at the sideview mirror that looked out to the glowing orange light back at the beach. How long have I been walking with Daniel?
Daniel didn't take too long. After five minutes, the door on the driver's side opened and Daniel jumped back in. He rubbed his hand quickly in front of the heater. "Wow, it's cold," he noted. "Are you still cold? I have a spare shirt if you want to wear it?"
I shook my head. "No, I'm okay," I said.
I leaned my head against the window as my legs shook in hopes to warm myself. The cold was slowly going away, being replaced with the warm air but I was still drenched.
"Oh, I was meaning to tell you. There's this last minute flash sale during the winter break in June and July. You should check it out."
"Uh, okay. Yeah, I will. Thanks for letting me know," I answered awkwardly.
There was another moment of silence between us until Daniel spoke gain. "So, who are you planning on going to Gold Coast with?" he asked.
I frowned. What was he playing at? "Huh?"
Daniel acted as if nothing affected him. "I'm guessing Mia?" he said.
"I thought you wanted to go with me?" Why else would he have been looking up plane tickets to Gold Coast? Why else would he be telling me about them?
Daniel smiled, looking at my eyes. "You want me to go with you?" Oh great, now he was just being cocky. I rolled my eyes and looked out the window. I should've seen this coming.
"Well, if you don't want to you then I guess you don't need to," I said.
"I'd love to go with you, Ellie," he grinned.
"Wow, you sound like a child who got asked out on a date by their crush," I joked.
"Hardy har," Daniel said but he was smiling.
"I'm not entirely sure who else to invite other than Mia and Dina," I noted. "I don't really have any guy friends other than you and Kyle." I didn't know why I sounded so uncomfortable.
"You want to invite Mia? I mean, no offence, but your only friend hates me and my friends, and I don't want you to feel uncomfortable if I invited my other friends."
I wasn't sure if I wanted to go on a holiday with just Daniel. Sure, we were friends, but we weren't that close for it just be the two of us. I looked down at my hands, feeling suddenly nervous.
"I think it'd be fun if more people went. I'll talk to Mia and Dina. You can invite two of your friends, if you like?"
Daniel nodded solemnly. "Uh, sure. I'll have a chat with Kyle. But if Kyle and Jake go, I feel like Beth would want to go too."
"Invite Beth then. The more the merrier, I guess."
"If that's okay. I don't want you to feel uncomfortable. I know Beth can be a handful at times, but she's not bad once you get to know her. I just..." he paused.
How would he know that I'm uncomfortable around Beth? Then I remembered, he and Beth talked about me before which led to Beth apologising to me.
"Have you spoken to Beth about me?" I asked.
"Why do you ask?"
"Just curious."
"Uh, yeah, we have. You kind of acted really weird after talking to her at the last party. I realised that Beth must've said something to you that hurt you."
I frowned. "What did I do?"
"Well, you were a little wild at first. Didn't really expect that from you, but when it looked like you hit your limit, I took you home. You were clingy. I mean, you wouldn't let me go as if you were afraid I'd leave you and I have to admit, it was annoying. But when we got to your apartment, you started crying and said you were sorry. That you didn't mean to abandon me. I think you were referring to Beth."
Silence interrupted the car. I couldn't believe Daniel had to hear that. How embarrassing. I looked down at my hand repeating Daniel's words over and over again. Had I really apologised? Did I feel guilty about what happened between Beth and me?
"What did Beth say?"
Daniel seemed reluctant to answer but did so anyways. "She said you abandoned her when she needed you the most. That you told her to go away and never speak to you again."
I remembered it. It was five years ago, but I still remembered it like it was yesterday. My phone was ringing non-stop, and I wouldn't even dare to look at it. I laid in bed feeling like my soul was sucked out of me. And when I heard it ringing again, I answered it and yelled to whoever the caller was to stop ringing me and to leave me alone.
"So, did you really abandon her?" Daniel asked reluctantly.
I sighed, looking down at my hand. "I guess I did."
"Maybe inviting Beth to come to Gold Coast with us will be a good thing. You two can make up," Daniel said hopeful.
I looked at Daniel and smiled. It was nice seeing him be so optimistic. "Thank you, Daniel," I said. There wasn't much I could do but appreciate all he has done. Daniel smiled in return.
"You don't need to ever thank me."