If no one has told you this today, I love you! You are important to me! You are valid, you are loved, you are appreciated! You make this world a better place.
Happy Pride to my LGBTQ+ readers!
Please enjoy the story and as always, don't be a silent reader <3
Chapter Eighteen: Only Two Reasons
I woke up the next morning with a smile still on my face, but I was also apprehensive.
What was going to happen between Mitchell and I this morning?
I walked downstairs quietly, I had gone to bed quite late but risen quite early, and I wasn't sure who else was awake. When I got downstairs however, I was surprised to find Mitchell, Cal, and Lexi already sitting at the high top eating breakfast.
"Morning everyone," I said, still quiet, but not quite a whisper.
"Morning Hallie, how'd you sleep?" Lexi asked me, while Mitchell and Cal simply nodded at me.
"I slept fine I suppose, where's Jace? Aren't you too attached at the hip or something?" I asked back, teasing Lexi slightly.
"Jace Johnson will not wake up early in the morning for anyone anymore, not even me. He put early morning behind him when he quite soccer. Most mornings, I'm dragging him out of bed." Lexi replied shaking her head. "Lucky if he gets up before ten." She mumbled.
I laughed and rolled my eyes at my brothers antics. I sat down with my bowl of cereal across from Mitchell and next to Lexi. Cal was diagnosed to me, and he was completely caught up in his phone.
Mitchell, I noticed, was avoiding eye contact with me which I found odd considering what happened last night. I decided to ignore it and instead pick on Cal.
"So I guess a phone is more important than you're baby sister, huh?" I sighed aloud.
"Don't be like that Hallie, I'm just reading the news." Cal replied distractedly, as most of his attention was still on his phone.
"Are you seriously reading the digital newspaper on your phone?" I asked incredulously.
At this, Cal removed his gaze from the computer screen and met my own. "You act like that's such a bad thing." He replied defensively.
"Cal, you're 28 years old and reading the newspaper!" I stated, "that's like an old man thing!"
"It's an intellectual thing." Cal shot back.
"I am an intellectual, I'm going to Stanford, or did you forget? Newspapers are for old people." I reaffirmed, resisting the urge to laugh at Cal's ever reddening face. I always knew exactly what buttons to push to get my older brothers riled up.
"Newspapers are not for old people!" Cal replied, his voice beginning to rise.
"Are too." I said defiantly with a smirk on my face. By this point, Lexi had already begun to clean up her spot and leave the room, she knew what was coming and she knew just as well there was no stopping it.
"Are not."
A small smile began to creep into Mitchell's face as he glanced back and forth between me and Cal with every remark.
"Are too."
"Are not."
"Are too."
"Are not."
"Suuuure they're not." I finally gave in, though I made sure to drag out the word sarcastically.
"Hallie-" Cal said in a sort of warning. He was really riled up now and I knew it was time to see scalars the situation.
"No no Cal, I'm agreeing with you. I'm sure tons of 28 year olds read the digital newspaper on their iPhone 11's. Let me know when you get to the funnies, the only section of substance in the newspaper." I said with an innocent smile on my face, though that was the last straw for Cal.
"You-" he growled slightly, then decided to let it be and instead leave me and Mitchell sitting at the table together alone.
Once Cal left however, the light smile dropped off Mitchell's face, making me question if it had ever really been there. And even more questionable, the second Cal left the room, Mitchell got up to put his bowl in the dishwasher and began to walk out of the room.
Slowly the enthusiasm and the smile dropped off my face as the euphoria feeling from last night drained out of my body when I realized Mitchell wasn't going to say anything to me, in fact, he was avoiding me.
Instead of simply letting him go however, I decided to question it. "Where are you going?" I asked him.
He turned back to face me, "I have to get ready for my shift, starts in a bit."
"I thought you were working afternoon with Miles and I today?" I questioned. I clearly remembered this week's schedule and showing that Mitchell and I were supposed to be working noon shift on Thursday.
"Well, Wes and I switched shifts. He had the morning shift, but he requested afternoon so I switched with him." Mitchell replies and then left the room abruptly leaving me wondering what went wrong.
+++
"He did what?!!?" Miles exclaimed aloud after I told him what Mitchell and I had gotten up to last night.
"Shh, keep your voice down!" I said to Miles, glancing around at the various couples and families that turned to find the source of the exclamation.
"Hallie that's so dangerous! You know that!" Miles scolded.
"I know but I just- I don't know. But that's not even the half of it!" I told Miles. I then recounted the events of last night and how Mitchell had tried to play a trick on me and how furious I was.
"And then I was talking to Connor, when like an hour or so later Mitchell came to knock on my door, so I hung up with Connor, and then Mitchell came in my room and kissed me-"
"He kissed you?!!?" Miles asked incredulously.
"Well don't act so surprised." I said, acting offended, "I know you see me as nothing more than your little sister, but I am a viable option for suitors."
"Oh shut up, Hallie. I've been telling you for ages you could get any guy you want wrapped around your finger, I'm just surprised Mitchell had the balls." Miles huffed.
"Yeah well, that's when the good part of the story ends, and I'm not so sure about that claim." I told him.
"What do you mean?" Miles asked.
"This morning, complete cold shoulder. He hardly said anything to me, and when he did it was only because I confronted him." I informed Miles, filling him in on the rest of the story.
"That is so douche-y." Miles said shocked, "I can't believe he-"
"And it gets worse. He was supposed to work noon shift with us, but he magically switched with Wes to get morning shift." I said, finally catching him up on everything that happened last night and this morning.
"Well that can be figured out right now." Miles said under his breath but still so that I could hear it, "Wes! Come here for a sec!" Miles shouted and Wes jogged up the beach toward our tower.
"Hey man, what's up?" He asked.
"Why'd you switch shifts with Mitchell?" Miles asked, looking straight at a panicky Wes whose eyes seemed to look anywhere but Miles.
"Uh, because just felt like a change." Wes said, and then gulped.
"Felt like a change?" Miles questioned.
"Yeah, you know how I feel about getting up early." Wes replied.
Based on his fidgeting and unsteady gaze, I could tell he wasn't telling us the whole truth. "Weston, you would never lie to me, would you?" I asked sternly, causing his gaze to jolt to me and then quickly away.
"Uh, I don't think- no, I wouldn't." He said, his voice raising slightly.
Miles and I simply stared at him, giving him the classic, 'are you serious dude' look.
"Okay fine, Mitchell texted me late last night asking to switch shifts with me, and I was like sure, and then he told me not to tell anyone, not quite sure why." Wes finally broke.
"Unbelievable." I commented laughing slightly and rolling my tongue in my mouth. "Well thanks for telling us, Wes." I said sweetly.
"Yeah," Wes sighed and walked back down to patrol the beach.
"Damn Hal, that's sucky. But I wouldn't jump to conclusions yet, maybe he has a good reason." Miles offered, though it sounded more like a question.
"I don't know, Miles. Guess I got lucky Wes is the worst secret keeper on the planet, right?" My mood had considerably darkened. Just when I had begun to think that Mitchell actually cared about me. That he actually wanted to be friends, or maybe something more, and it was like we were back to square one ignoring each other.
"Hey, don't let a stupid boy get you down. I know you don't usually like these things, but I think a party would do you good to get your mind off Mitchell, maybe meet a sexy new suitor, right?" Miles said humorously.
"Someone from Tower 13 is throwing one tomorrow night, I'll pick you up at 9 and we can go to the party together, you can drink your sorrows away, I'll be DD, and we can crash at my place. Nothing a Claw can't fix, right?" Miles asked, desperately trying to cheer me up at this point.
"Let's do it, I suppose." I agreed, forcing a smile on my face for Miles's sake and turning to him, "I'm going to regret this, aren't I?"
"While you're doing it? No. In the morning? Yes, very much, probably." Miles replied with a wink.
"Oh well, screw it." I said recklessly. The words put a bad taste in my mouth however, as I remembered the context the same words were used last night.
Last night.
"Oh shit!" I exclaimed, jamming my hand into my pocket and pulling out my phone.
"What?" Miles asked.
"I forgot to text Connor back last night!" I realized, opening my messages and going to his text thread.
hey u back ?
hallie?
hallie???
guess u fell asleep
well goodnight anyways, talk to u tmrw
I quickly typed up a reply and sent it.
omgg i'm so sorry, connor
i just totally fell asleep!
"I can't believe myself." I sighed, putting my palm on my face and groaning into it.
"Hey, it's not your bad. It's reasonable to fall asleep when it's so late. Plus, what were you doing talking to Connor so late anyway?"
I forgot I hadn't told Miles that I'd been talking to Connor on the phone every night. It wouldn't make sense to him, not without exposing what was happening in Connor's family life at least, and that was something I wouldn't do to him. It was the one secret I'd kept from my best friend probably since I'd met him, but it was a secret I kind of enjoyed keeping. Like talking to Connor in the late hours of the night was our secret little thing and no one else's, and selfishly, I found myself wanting to keep it that way.
"It's complicated." I told him.
"Well whatever it is, I know I told you to take your time, but now I think you should figure out exactly who you want. You can't get mad at Mitchell for giving you the cold shoulder if you're talking to another guy, and you can't hide your relationship with Mitchell from Connor." Miles said warningly.
"It's not like that with Connor." I said quickly.
"Well then why were you calling him so late at night?" Miles shot back.
I hesitated, and he noticed. "Like I said, it's complicated."
Miles nodded apprehensively, and I hated it. I hated keeping things from him.
"I want to tell you, I do. But I promised him." I told Miles and he sighed.
"I get it, I guess." He paused for a moment, and then the corners of his mouth quirked you into a mischievous grin. "So what're you going to do if you see Connor at the party tomorrow?"
"You're terrible." I sighed laughing, "Plus, I don't even think Connor likes me. I dumped him, he's moved on probably."
"Hallie, sweetie, there's only two reasons a guy stays up into the late hours of the night talking to a girl and doesn't booty call her." Miles said, shaking his head at me.
"Oh yeah?" I asked with a laugh.
"Yes." Mitchell replied seriously.
"And what are they?" I asked humoring him.
"Either 1, he's her best friend or related to her, or 2, he likes her." Miles said with an all knowing smirk.
"Yeah, yeah." I replied rolling my eyes at him and his antics. "See you tomorrow, you big doofus."
If you've never read a newspaper, the funnies is the section with the comics ;)
Please let me know your thoughts about our ever developing love triangle between Hallie, Mitchell, and Connor in the comments ;)
Your ideas and opinions inspire me to write chapters faster <3<3 and comment chicken tenders on your team, let's see who is more popular!!
Team Mitchell
Team Connor