Does it always have to be like this between them; bullheaded and willful versus equal stubbornness with a generous amount of patience? Eight years of friendship spent bickering, fighting, and occasionally getting along. Once the pair entered their teen years arguments were no longer easy fixes consisting of halfhearted apologies and moving on without a care. As they got older the two pushed each other's boundaries more and more until the very limits were reached, hardly ever to be crossed in the coming years. However now at sixteen he wished they quarreled less, that she didn't always try to outdo him in every fight and that when he managed to win, she didn't act like such a child. What good did it do her to run off into a storm at night because he proved her wrong?
The rain was coming down in thick sheets, thunder booming every few minutes, pitch black save for the occasional flash of lightning, it made finding his friend hard. She wouldn't be anywhere near well lit streets or shops, wouldn't go home, wouldn't make this easy. Part of it was anger at him for being right, the other was embarrassment for what had happened. He'd tried her usual hiding spots to no avail so he went to the park. That would make it all the harder to find her, there were too many places where she could hide, not to mention she was known to climb trees. Hopefully she had enough sense not to be up a tree during a storm but this was Vicky he was talking about.
Actually neither of them had much sense, he hadn't even bothered to grab anything other than a light rain coat that wasn't doing much good. All of his clothes were soaked through and he started shivering ten minutes ago. Pushing his hair out of his face he looked around to decide the best place to start. A flash of lightning in the distance lit up some trees, one looked a bit peculiar so he went to investigate. When he got closer he realized there was a person in the branches huddled against the trunk.
"What are you doing?"
Another flash of light made red hair look like fire.
"Don't you know it's dangerous to be near trees in a storm?" Silence. "Please come down?"
A moment later the figure came down. If only he could get a read on her mood, but it was too dark. There was a pavilion not too far away that might have a light still on so he led her that way.
A light was on, dim as it was, and he made her sit on the bench under it. Kneeling in front of her, the brunette tilted her face so he could see it. She looked as miserable as he did but for entirely different reasons. Red eyed from crying at her own stupidity.
"Going to say 'I told you so'?"
"Maybe after you get back to your old self." He dared to smile a little, letting it grow wider at the sight of the corner of her mouth twitch in the ghost of the smile. "Did try to warn you though."
"I know, I know."
Well that was a shock. "Where's your fighting spirit gone?"
"Can I go home now?"
Rolling his eyes he pulled her up.
"Why didn't you bring me an umbrella?"
There was the friend he put up with for reasons unknown. Shrugging off his coat, he threw it over her head. "Happy?"
"Ecstatic. Turner?" They started walking back to his house, it being closer. "Don't let me date a douchebag again."
"Will you listen to me next time?
"No, but do it anyway."