Chapter 14

Wink wink.

     “Are you the slowest person on Earth?” Ellie groaned as she pulled me by my wrist down the front porch stairs.

    “I’m coming!” I whined as I adjusted my skirt, my flats slapping against the concrete of the driveway. “You woke me up thirty minutes before we had to leave!” I complained.

    “Thirty minutes should be enough for anyone,” Ellie scoffed.

    “Not for a girl.” I defended.

    “I’m a girl and I get ready in thirty minutes. Actually, probably under that.” Ellie said, her tone unimpressed.

    “You’re different,” I grumbled, still yanking at my clothes while she yanked at me.

    “Whatever excuse you want.” She hummed plainly. She stalked down the driveway, pulled open the passenger door of her car, and pushed my back gently, ushering me inside. I gave her a playful glare before lowering myself inside her car. The floorboards were littered with a couple of empty water bottles from her, causing me to roll my eyes as I picked the two of them and put them in her cup holders instead.

    “You’re a pig,” I told her as she stepped inside the driver’s side and started up her loud car.

    “You’re a brat in the morning,” Ellie retorted, reversing the car and pulling out, her engine making a roaring sound. “Where are we meeting your sister?” She sighed.

    “Bus stop. Down there.” I said shortly, pointing to the end of the road with a bright yellow side, warning of children. She didn’t respond, just pressed her foot to the pedal and turned up the volume on the radio. She kept one hand on the steering wheel while she looked in the mirror with the other, tussling her brown hair. I simply shook my head at her and heaved a heavy sigh, looking out the window for a sign of Kaylee and ignoring Ellie’s reckless driving.

    “S’ that your mother’s car?” Ellie asked as she took a rather sharp turn, one hand on the wheel, her other carelessly behind my seat.

    “In a hurry?” I asked sarcastically, gripping the handle above my head to keep in my seat. She was a carefree driver if I ever knew one. She paused for a moment and glanced over at me, her face deadpan.

    “You’ve been around my mother too much,” Ellie sighed. She reached over and unbuckled my seatbelt, gesturing her hand to the door. “Go get your bag.”

    I simply shook my head at her and pushed open the door to the car, the morning air chilly and damp against my skin. Across from me was Mom’s old car which had been gifted to Ivy, but Kaylee was the one who drove it most. She was sitting in the driver’s seat, her eyes looking tired and her hair in her rollers, like every morning. She didn’t take them down until she arrived to school, said it ‘preserved the bounce.’ I walked up and knocked on her window, making her jump slightly. Her eyes went wide and a hand flew towards her heart as she stared at me, and then she laughed and rolled down the window.

    “You couldn’t have done this any other time?” She asked playfully, reaching into the seat beside her. She picked up my sage green bookbag and handed it over to me through the window. I picked the thing up, groaning slightly at the weight of it. I always kept all my textbooks on me, in case.

    “I know…sorry,” I murmured. I slung the bag over my shoulder and sighed, pulling down my sweater vest a little.

    “It’s good,” She shrugged. “Dad wanted me to say he wants you to come home, though. You won’t be in trouble, Evie.” She said softly. I laughed in amusement at that, letting an amused breath slip past my lips.

     “Sure I won’t,” I scoffed, glancing away from her momentarily. “I don’t know when I’ll come home. But I’m fine, Kaylee.” I assured her shortly.

     “Are you, though?” She pressed, scooting closer to the window.

     “Yes, I’m-“

     “Never mind, actually. It’s fine. Just go to school.” She interrupted. Her tone wasn’t rude, but it was rather clipped, something I wasn’t used to from Kaylee. My brows furrowed as I looked at her in confusion. Her eyes scanned me briefly before she adjusted in her seat, started the car, and rolled up her window. I watched her go, her headlights casting a yellow glow through the dark morning fog.

     With a sigh, I turned back to Ellie’s car and walked back over. I opened the car door, dropped my bag on the floor, and slumped into the seat. I grabbed my seatbelt rather roughly, clipping it in place with a click. Ellie turned down the radio and turned to me with a raised brow.

     “You good?” She asked, tone curious with a hint of worry.

    “Just fine,” I said, voice clipped.

    “You’re sure?” Ellie questioned.

    “Just drive,” I murmured. She looked me up and down once more before letting out a breath and pressing on the gas as she shifted the car into drive.

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    “You’re back!” Bel chirped happily as she skipped over to me. “It’s been forever!” She said dramatically, wrapping her arms around me.

    “It’s been a singular day,” I laughed softly. I hugged her back and smiled softly at her exaggeration.

    “Where were you?” Emma asked curiously.

    “Home,” I said briefly, shrugging. “Just felt a little sick, a little down.” I said casually, a quick excuse.

    “Aw, that sucks,” Bel said as she pulled away, frowning. She held my shoulders and her eyes focused on one singular thing as she looked at me. “Is that…?” She murmured.

    “Is what what?” I asked cluelessly as I looked down at myself.

    “Is that Ellie’s tie?” Emma cut in, her voice much louder than Bel’s. I froze momentarily and glanced down, picking up the end of my tie. On the tie was the familiar striped print of a green tie Ellie always wore. Everyone knew her specific tie, she wore it because she was on the basketball team and they had to wear it on game days in particular, it was their colors, but Ellie wore it nearly everyday. Guess it was just her thing. Most of everyone else had a red one, which is what she must be wearing right now. “Did you-?”

    “Oh, that’s…sh- crap. That’s Ellie’s tie.” I murmured under my breath. Quickly, I pulled back from Bel as the girls began to laugh hysterically behind me. I scurried off in search of Ellie in the crowded hallways filled with the sounds of slamming lockers so early in the morning.

    I rounded the corner, searching for Ellie and her separate group of friends, the ones she played basketball with, in the hallway. I walked fast, somewhere between a jog and a skip, looking stupid, probably. I spotted her leaning against her locker as she spoke to two darker girls and another lighter one, who had her hand on Ellie’s tie. Well, technically, my tie.

    “Ellie,” I said, letting out a breath. She glanced over, her eyes lighting up mischievously and a smile gracing her face. “My tie.” I sighed, gesturing with my hand to her neck.

    “I know, just noticed,” Ellie chuckled as she loosened the fabric. She slipped it off from around her collar, holding the red tie in her hand for me.

    “Yeah, yeah…so did I,” I murmured with an amused laugh. She reached out, her fingertips grazing my neck as she loosened her tie around my neck herself.

    “Maybe if you weren’t acting like we were gonna die and being a brat, you would’ve noticed,” She smirked. Her hands went up to her neck and tied it effortlessly back around her collar, the green complementing her tan skin.

    “Shut up,” I scoffed, tucking the red tie in my pocket.

    “Better put that on before you get dress coded,” She teaseed. Our school was extremely strict when it came to dress code and the littlest things could get you coded. They were a bit…over the top.

    “Yeah, yeah…I know,” I said. “See you after school?” I tilted my head as I took a step back.

    “Always.” Ellie replied, tugging at her shirt briefly. I smiled at her once more and then turned, heading back down the hallway. As I went, I heard faint laughter from her friends and whispers. One that stood out to me in particular was ‘hook up.’ I’d have to look up what it meant on Ellie’s phone later.

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    I was sitting in Ellie’s room after school, awaiting her to get out of the bathroom. She’d spend forever in there just to shower and mess around. I sighed as I flopped onto her bed and glanced around, my eyes landing on the sleak black device she’d left behind. I reached over, grabbing up her phone to the lockscreen. It was a picture of in the locker room at basketball practice, flexing. Cocky…

    I swiped up and it finally worked after I fumbled for a few moments. I typed in her password 041208, memorized by now since it’s been the same practically since I had met her. I quickly tapped around, looking for the search app, clicking on the blue compass app. I typed into the search bar ‘hookup’ and waited as the internet loaded with a circle. I scrolled down a bit, my eyes widening as I saw many definition upon the lines of “a casual sexual encounter,” “sexually physical encounter that doesn’t have strings attached,” “sexual activity between uncommitted-,”

        I felt my cheeks flush as I scrolled through, eyes slowly widening more and more. Were they really talking about us? Why would they say that? Suddenly, my head shot up, and I threw the phone down onto the bed at the sound of the bathroom door opening.

    “Do you wanna go out to dinner? Mom ain’t gonna be home till late-,”

        “Yup, sounds good,” I said quickly. She gave me a raised brow as she dried her hair off and ran a hand through the layers.

        “Someone’s eager,” She said sarcastically, throwing her towel back into the bathroom carelessly.