Chapter Thirty Five
Gaia's POV
I was so incredibly excited for the date, and when I heard the doorbell, my excitement only grew. I hadn't really been on a date since the summer began, which was truly strange for me. I had broken up with my boyfriend around the time that Arabella had gotten into her car accident, both of us mourning the end of a relationship during the same time made it significantly easier.
I bounded into the loft and peered over the banister to the stained glass windows on either side of the door, I could just barely make out the figure that was Paul, standing nervously by the door. "Coming!" I called, grabbing my purse from my coat hook inside my door and rushing downstairs, taking the steps two at a time. Paul had refused to tell me what we were doing on the date, which made my well known control issues go haywire, but something about letting go of the reins for just this one night made me at ease. It was like a test, if Paul screwed it up that would be that, but if he passed we might have the foundation for something beautiful.
I stopped for a moment, took a steadying breath, and then opened the door with a huge smile. "Hi!" I said as I reached for my purse and keys that sat on the door side table.
"Ready?" He asked with a nervous smile, both his hands shoved deep in his pockets.
"Any chance you're going to tell me where we are going?" I stepped through the door, shutting and locking it behind me.
"Nope!" He laughed, loosening up slightly. "Watching you try to figure it out is half the fun."
"Oh you monster!" I joked back, earning a light chuckle before we both stepped off the porch and walked to the truck. Paul drove an old diesel, but you couldn't pay me enough money to learn something about a car to tell you more than it was a dodge, it was blue, and it had a bench seat. It looked as if I were to Google search "old dodge trucks," it would be one of the search results as a stock image. Luckily for me, I had had another final growth spurt and now stood at 5'10, requiring no assistance to climb into his truck.
None of the interactions between Paul and I felt awkward, everything was smooth, it melded time to its own will. We went on a little hike up a trail I had never known existed, then found a beautiful outcropping of rock that rested against the ocean. We laid down, my head resting against his chest, and we just watched the sunset while casually eating the picnic basket Paul had packed and hauled up the mountain. Any silence that fell between us felt natural and comfortable. We talked about everything, our lives, our dreams, our families. Things with Paul just felt right. On our way back I had him in a fit of laughter, I was recounting the unfortunate tales of Arabella and I's initial adventures when we had met one another in the fourth grade. He especially loved that those escapades eventually lead to Ari having Leah for a babysitter. "Oh my god, you guys were the ones that got Jake in all that trouble that year!?" He was holding his ribs at that point, barely able to breathe from laughter. "Oh the twins were gonna kill him! Their mom had to break up so many fights!"
"How were we supposed to know they'd be the first to walk through that door!?" I said back both defensively and playfully.
"Oh man, knowing the whole story now just makes that so much funnier." He shook his head, amused by it all.
"Well I'm so glad you are so amused by it all." I spun around to walk backwards as I spoke to him, then without missing a beat, Paul leapt forward and caught me in his arms just as I lost my footing and stepped on a small ditch off the side of the trail. I crashed into his chest, his warmth burning through me. I froze, my breath catching in my chest as I looked over his shoulder to the trees beyond. "Thank you." I whispered as Paul backed up to steady me on trail once more.
"Yeah… I just didn't want you to fall." He stepped back a fraction, his hands still on my sides. I finally moved my eyes from the trees to his eyes. The beauty that was Paul Lahote had struck me like lightning, branching into every nerve and filling my vision with blinding light.
Arabella's POV
I had gained my courage somehow, and now Angela was on her way over. I still had another week before I got to take my drivers exam, but Angela had hers at the end of July. The courage Gaia had forced me to muster was quickly dissipating, and I found myself very panicked as I ran around my room assembling an outfit that wasn't just a pair of pajama bottoms and a sports bra. By the time the doorbell rang I was half done with the quick makeup look I was tossing on. I had grabbed my staple clothes, a pair of shorts, a black tank top, and a flannel. "Shit." I mumbled, putting on another coat of mascara and grabbing my chapstick. Ideally I would have put on more than just concealer, but time was unyielding and I was forced to be more creative. At least I had accomplished doing my brows and eyeliner. At the very least I wouldn't have invisibrow for the first conceivable date of possibly many with Angela.
I hurried down the stairs as I snagged my converse, freezing only for a moment as a memory of Edward hit me in relation to the converse. I want better memories. I need better memories. I made it into the front room and felt my nerves hit me like a ton of bricks. Tossing my shoes to the floor, I opened the door and smiled, meeting Angela's smile with my own. "I'm so glad you called."
"Come in, come in!" I hugged her quickly, my heart hammering in my chest as I did so. "So I was thinking, burgers and shakes at Donnie's. Then I heard there's a Party at Ben's tonight, kinda an end of summer bash."
"That sounds like a plan to me!" She looked through the kitchen door quickly, then glanced at the living room curiously.
"Maddie's at work with dad." I laughed lightly, knowing the affinity she had grown for my dog.
"Oh… you know you get left alone an awful lot." Angela seemed to say the words before they registered in her brain, and then realization struck her face. "Oh my god I didn't mean like that… I'm so sorry, I didn't think about…" she gestured generally towards the area of my house she knew the family pictures hung.
"It's okay, honestly, I know you weren't trying to make a jab about my dead mom." I laughed lightly and sat down on the bench by the door to start pulling my shoes on. "And you're not wrong, Gaia and I always spend the night with one another because of it."
"Wait, what about Gi's dad?" Ang leaned against the wall as I laced my high tops, and that's when I finally started to take in her appearance.
"Oh, he's actually overseas right now, as you know he's a photographer, but he just got a deal with Time Magazine. He was back for a bit of the summer, but he won't be back around until Christmas." I shrugged my shoulders and sat up.
"Oh! I guess I never realized. I have such a large family… I can't imagine not having them around one day." Angela looked at me, almost sympathetic.
"I really don't mind, it's so peaceful sometimes, the mornings especially." I pushed the thoughts of what my independence really meant, of how I had already been forced to grow up too soon, of how I understood the trials of alcohol abuse in a mourning parent when I still needed parenting. All of these details felt far too heavy for the date I would be going on in just a few minutes, so I bucked up. "Now! Let's get this date going! I just gotta pour some food in Maddie's bowl so when they get home tonight dad doesn't have to worry about it." I jumped up out of the seat and rushed into the kitchen, scooping the food out carefully and filling the shiny stainless steel bowl. I checked her water, then grabbed my coat and purse, opened the door for Angela, and we stepped out the door together.
Every second of the date was perfect, Angela had me laughing the entire time, I had her holding her stomach doubled over in laughter at some points. We agreed shakes at Donnie's would always be something we did, and once we got to Ben's party, we were tired, but ready to continue the partying aspect of our night. Ben's parents were apparently out of town and this gave him the ability to have the loudest rager he could muster out of the highschool students of Forks High.
We danced, we sang, someone spiked the punch and Angela realized a little too late. Suddenly I found myself holding back her hair while she puked into Ben's neighbors bushes. "Oh my god Ari, I can't drive home like this, I can't drive you like this!"
"That's okay, I've been drinking water all night, I've got you." I rubbed her back and pocketed her keys as she heaved another one. Once she was done she collapsed down into a seated position on the grass and rested her head in her hands. "Do you think you can make it the rest of the way to your car?" I asked softly as I used my scrunchie to pull her hair back into a loose and very messy bun.
"Yeah. I think so." She heaved herself up, staggering for a moment, then steadying herself as she leaned on my shoulder. Like Gaia, she was much taller than me, but that didn't stop my ability to help her. I supported her weight as I led her down the half block to her car, helping her into the passenger seat and then quickly rolling her window down with the crank. "Wait!" Anglea threw herself half out the window as I began to walk around the car. "How are you gonna get home? Isn't your phone dead?" Her face looked a little green, but despite the obvious discomfort she would be feeling, she seemed to only be concerned for me.
"Angela- get back inside the car!" I laughed as I rounded the hood and climbed into the drivers side. "Don't worry about me, I'll leave you with your car, I can get back home just fine."
"At this hour!? Didn't you say Gaia is busy tonight too?" She scrambled back through the window and flopped into her seat.
"Yes, but I don't live that far from you, I can walk it's fine."
"But your phone is dead! My car doesn't have a charging port that works!" Her panic only made her nausea worse, and before I even got the car moving, she was hanging out the window again throwing up.
Note to self: Angela can't hold her liquor. I thought playfully, trying to make the mental note of finding out what it was spiked with, my money was on the Tito's I had seen on the top of the fridge, but it could have been the Everclear that had been pungently scenting the breath of the football team.
Angela's heaving out the window had stopped any of her questions, and left me to (illegally) drive her back home. I had little concern that if I were pulled over by my dad or Charlie that I would face any real repercussions, but I did fear what it would mean for Angela. Sure I could probably tell the truth and get away with it, but then that would mean ratting out all of Ben's party, so instead I drove as quiet and careful as physically possible, taking the longer route that would keep me from the center of town where the speed traps were typically set up.
By the time I made it to Angela's house, it was one in the morning, I had somehow managed to make what would typically be a fifteen minute drive into a thirty minute drive, and silently prayed that I would be able to sneak her past her parents and brothers. However much I prayed to a god I didn't believe in, it wouldn't work. The moment I passed through the first archeway in her house, the light flipped on and her little brother Isaac stood there with his arms crossed and eyebrows raised in the most perfect "you've fucked up" expression I could ever see a ten year old having. Just when I went to say something to buy his silence, the other half of the duo, Joshua, stepped from the dark hallway.
"Okay, what do you want?" I said in a hushed tone as I struggled to support Angela, as she had approximately four inches on me, and she was now almost entirely passed out.
"You're accusing us of extortion?" Joshua raised his eyebrows in a way that made me see every ounce of resemblance between him and Angela I could.
"You're playing dumb?" I shot back, raising my own eyebrows to match his energy.
"Touché!" Isaac snapped his fingers, still too young to realize I had already won the battle.
"So spill, or help me get your sister to bed." I readjusted her on my shoulder, wishing desperately that I had the strength to carry her either bridal or fireman style.
"Movie tickets." Joshua caved immediately, plopping down into a barstool.
"Is that all?" I felt relieved, this was something I could put off until after I had my license, and by then I could say they were making the whole thing up. Of course I could always use my pow-NO
"To an R rated movie." Isaac clarified.
"Not Magic Mike is it?" I teased back, knowing I could make them waver if I kept it up.
"Ew! No! It's a horror movie!" Joshua and Isaac said at the same time in a tone that made me freeze, fearing their parents had woken up.
"The shining?" I teased again, not being able to resist after the creepy twin moment they had shared.
"No!" They said in tandem once more.
"Shhh! Keep it down. I'll think about it, just help me get her to bed!" I swatted at them, and with one look at their sister, I saw both of them melt and rush over to help me lead her into her room, which was conveniently enough, on the first floor. Once she was settled into bed, I got the boys to agree to lie and say she had gotten home on time for curfew, as they had been asked to stay up and wait for her since both their parents had to work in the morning. With a look at the clock, with hope I could pause to charge my phone for a moment, I fell into disappointment. 1:45am. Shit. Okay I'll just walk fast so I can send the home text to Gaia. I settled myself into the decision, bid the twins farewell, and set out the door. Angela lived on Mayberry, which all but doubled the distance I rode my bike to the school, but now I was on foot. I didn't want to stray too far from the houses, even though I would undoubtedly feel safer walking through the woods. I didn't fear animals like I once did, not now that I know the real dangers that lurk behind the shadows.
Not twenty minutes into the walk, I met that danger. I knew it because I felt a chill up my spine, and the air carried a vaguely perfume scent of flowers. Each thing on its own was nothing to trigger alarm, but when paired together, I knew I just needed to pause and turn to stare at the tree line before he would reveal himself in surprise.
And sure enough, when I turned to the forest edge with raised and expectant eyebrows, the danger that lurked in the shadows came forward; as it was the only thing left that could truly hurt me.
Love.