Chapter Twenty Three
(Tuesday). Days like this were days Robin cherished. The sky was clear, but the sun wasn't beating down her head. A breeze circulated the air and her hair participated with her that morning because it wasn't too humid nor too hot. The birds whistled through the trees and other indistinct creatures whispered throughout the bushes, carrying on secret animal messages for miles that only animals could conceive. The part about the animals was what River liked most about these days. He connected with animals of every kind, and if he could have a spirit animal, it would be every single living creature known to mankind.
Today felt like one of those days because Robin had dodged a bullet that was aiming right for her. Long story short, after her irrational breakdown in front of River, her mother had asked her who he was. The same chill running through the air outside in the school courtyard where Robin and her friends were eating lunch had ran through her body then and there.
She had gone completely stiff, but in a strained voice, answered that he was a boy who went to her school and she was just dropping off his textbook that he needed for homework that night. She also plead that he was just a touchy-feely person and that he was so glad Robin had found her textbook. And, just for the cherry on the top, he was also gay, which meant her mother wouldn't have to worry about either of them pursuing any kind of interest for each other.
To this completely bulled story, Robin's mother contemplated, scanning Robin up and down until she smiled warmly and pulled Robin in for a hug. She had patted her on the back and crooned,
"I believe you honey, you're smart."
Robin was drifting off into the distance, detached from her friends' rowdy conversations and the hustle and bustle of the courtyard around her as more students filed outside with their homemade or otherwise cafeteria-bred lunches. In fact, she had grown completely unaware of the jolly old time that Heather and Feldman were having while Corey watched from a safe, third-wheeling distance. It wasn't until River plopped down in the seat on the wooden bench in front of her that she realized that she was in a world of her own.
His warm body became increasingly tangible to her as he made himself comfortable, and only then did she bring herself back to the world where her mind was conscious. He slung an arm around her and it rested on her side, his big hand with clean and trimmed fingernails hanging beyond her shoulder. Robin slightly jumped at the feeling and her hand flew to her chest when she felt his cold fingers brush gently across her arm, giving her goosebumps. He made a face, and clenching his jaw naturally as all boys seemed to do, his head craned towards her, his eyes staring down at her lap and the ground beneath his Vans.
"You good?" he muttered, as if he were trying to keep the question between the two of them.
"Yeah, just tired... thinking, too," Robin replied wearily, sighing out loud and allowing her head to fall to the side so it rested on River's shoulder.
River's hand lifted up to pet Robin's head and they looked like a couple modeling for Calvin Klein at that point. Before River could respond, everyone around them were hooting and whooping immaturely. Robin glared up at them, biting at her nails.
"I see you River," Corey winked, then letting out an odd growling noise.
"Yeah, go get some!" Feldman echoed, and River sucked his teeth, balling his fists up at his sides.
"Man I'll really punch you in the face," River threatened, and from the change in his flower child tone, she could tell he was serious.
Feldman could too, because he backed off,
"Sorry, man, I didn't know."
"Know what?"
"That you were a pussy," Feldman pointed, laughing horrendously and throwing his head back.
It wasn't until Heather gave him a well-deserved smack on the face that he stopped himself. Robin chuckled quietly to herself and bit her lip, and then she looked up at River with a smile, her eyes twinkling. She poked at his chubby chin to get his attention and he looked down at her after struggling,
"What's up?"
Again she laughed and shrugged,
"Hmm, nothing."
River grew nervous about the way she was looking at him because it was different from most times when her eyes seemed devoid of emotion, even though he loved them so much. His heart began to pound in his chest because she was making direct eye contact with him and smiling up at him, and she was in her arms. It was like a movie, or a perfect camera shot. His eyes rapidly scanned her face and once she knew she'd gotten his attention, she snorted at the his wide eyes and averted her attention back to Corey, who was catapulting jello from off a spoon and hit her square in the chest.
"So uncool!" she exclaimed with a giddy smile, picking up a mushy carrot from off of River's lunch tray and throwing it at him.
This time, River and Robin took a different route home, because of the scare that Robin had had with her mom. She passed it off as her wanting to see more of the city, and River believed her as he was so naive. River stopped in her yard and Robin looked up and all around her to make sure no one was looking down from the windows of her house and made sure they were out of eyeshot. River stood in front of her and his forehead lay stacked upon her's. He gazed deeply into her eyes until they couldn't retain seriousness, and all in all ended up laughing.
When he moved his forehead away, she tried to hide a smile. But then River leaned in, expecting a kiss, and she groaned lightly under her breath and shielded herself by turning away. He pulled back and nodded slowly,
"Did I do something?"
"No, it's just, I don't want my parents seeing us. Don't want them asking questions, right?"
"Understandable... but not really, my parents are hippies," River drifted off.
"That explains it," Robin chortled, receiving a gentle shove from River.
"This is coming from the girl named Robin Skye. You sure your parents aren't still stuck in the sixties?"
"Wasn't the whole hippie thing in the seventies?"
River shrugged,
"Eh, it kinda died down in the late sixties after some band got their ass beat at Woodstock."
"I see..." Robin nodded. "Welp, see you later."
"Not if I see you first," he said, something that had almost been engraved in Robin's mind.
"For that, I'll do as you wish."
The wish she was referring to was a kiss, which she planted on River's unexpecting lips. Taken aback, he shook his head and put his hands on her hips, pulling her in closer to her. She sort of stumbled in towards his chest and he kissed her again, this time for longer, and then she pulled away after some time. Her cheeks were burning a hot red and River looked surprisingly calm. Robin thought it was strange, she'd never had such a relationship with a person. One minute they were kissing like they were boyfriend and girlfriend, the other, Robin wanted nothing to do with him, and yet everything at all.
"Can I ask why you changed your mind?" River questioned, raising his brows and running his fingers through his blond hair.
She shrugged, a small smile playing on her lips as she observed River's slightly tinted lips. She was wearing red lip gloss.
She laughed a bit at the sight and then answered,
"I dunno, I think it's really cute how you say that."
"I'll be using that against you the next time you freak out on me," River joked.
Robin's nostrils flared and she rolled her eyes, though she knew he was just kidding. Shoving him back by his chest, she muttered,
"Yeah, alright Riv."
He laughed,
"No, but really, I'll see you."
"Will you though?"
With that she pranced back in the house, leaving him with only a mysterious smile.
Shortly after she got settled in, her mom came down from the stairs. She was beaming and seemed ecstatic, and ran up to Robin. She was bouncing up and down like a little kid, and she held her fists up at her sides in excitement.
"Yeah mom?" Robin asked, making a face at her mother's odd behavior.
"You got the job, Birdy!" her mother cooed.
Robin nearly choked on her own spit,
"I what?"
No way. That interview had failed beyond failure, and Robin thought she was done for and would never get a job with the reputation she could have possibly set up for herself with her potential employer. She shook her head no, and her mother only nodded yes.
"You got the job! They want you to start work next week!" her mother exclaimed, but she faltered when she noticed the morose look in Robin's eyes. "Why so sad?"
"Oh... I'm not, I'm just tired. New job though, that's awesome. Anyway, I'm gonna take a nap. I love you."
Robin dodged the kiss her mother tried to give her, because she still had River on her lips. She was propelled back into her constant state of mixed emotions, and when she got to her room, she slammed the door.
this chapter is so short but i wrote it from like 2-3 am soooo sorry for any typos!!! i'm on my way to new jersey so i copied and pasted this from the google docs on my phone so if the format's messed up that explains it. i'll fix and edit later, love you!!!
- zuzu :)