Breathing Blue

37. "Unless she wants me to."

"Is that—" Cami started before tugging on my arm. I nodded and smiled before walking over to Elijah and hugging him tightly.

"Hey, beautiful." He laughed as I smiled at him. I let go of him and glanced over at Cami who stared wide-eyed at the two of us.

"Dude what the hell!" She gasped before running into his arms.

"I missed you, Cami," Elijah smiled as Cami let go of him and hit him on the arm.

"Why the hell didn't you tell me you were here?" She furrowed her brows as Elijah crossed his arms and shook his head tiredly.

"We haven't seen each other in three years and you're already scolding me?" He sighed while pushing Cami's head back playfully with two fingers.

"Asshole," She smiled as he winked at her. Cami directed her gaze towards me, glaring coldly.

"Why didn't you tell me that you knew he was here?" She groaned.

"I completely forgot to, I swear! I'm sorry!" I sighed as she flashed me her middle finger.

Elijah laughed before placing his large hand on my head while bringing his own down, our faces inches away from each other.
"Hey, don't beat yourself up, moron," He smiled.

Just as I was about to answer, I felt a large hand grab me by my waist and pull me back. I let out a small gasp, caught off guard. I looked up at Aaron, his lips pressed in a tight line.

"Aaron—"

"Oh... we've met before, haven't we? You're Havoc's friend, right?" Elijah said, offering a small smile at Aaron.

"Boyfriend," He clarified in a deadpan tone.

"Boyfriend?" Elijah widened his green eyes, his posture deflated slightly before continuing, "That's great, I'm happy for you," He smiled as Aaron took my hand in his.

"Thanks, Eli," I said, shooting him an apologetic smile to compensate for Aaron's rude behavior.

"I'm Carlos, it's nice to meet you," Carlos chimed in, intentionally hoping to reduce the tension in the air.

"He's my boyfriend," Cami smiled while hopping over to him.

"I'm glad you finally found someone, Cami," Elijah grinned before directing his gaze to Carlos, "Take care of her, will you? She's like the little sister I never had."

"Will do," Carlos chuckled.

"What's Havoc to you, then?" Aaron questioned, his gaze hostile.

Elijah furrowed his brows, "What?" He asked.

"You said that Cami's like the little sister you've never had, but you didn't say that about Havoc. What is she to you?" Aaron said, taking a step forward.

"Aaron, please—"

"She's someone I care deeply about." Elijah shrugged.

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Aaron asked loudly, earning a few stares.

"I need a drink," I interrupted, grabbing Aaron's wrist and pulling him towards the bar with me. I propped myself on a tall stool, now being at eye level with him.

"Could you please stop being such an asshole to Elijah?" I pleaded as Aaron rolled his eyes.

"He gets on my nerves," He answered, watching me pour vodka into a glass. He placed his hand on my thigh, goosebumps appearing on my skin.

"Isn't that a lot? You've just poured at least four shots into that glass." He said.

"I don't think you're one to talk when it comes to unreasonable amounts of alcohol," I scoffed, unable to stop myself. I immediately slapped my hand on my mouth, a painful pinch in my chest taking over as Aaron's eyes flashed with hurt.