See Me

7

As I stretched out on the beach chair in the back yard of Carter's house, I was lost in thought. Well, that's the expression anyways. I wasn't really lost in thought, my head was surprisingly empty.

I was focusing on the soft waves crashing against the dock. The whole group had left just ten minutes ago. I barely registered their curious glances at me. I just stared at them. They seemed so carefree. Is that what I usually looked like? Just a normal teenage girl, not a reasonable worry in my mind.

Maybe. I'm not sure if I've ever been that girl. At the least, I felt like I hadn't been her in a long time.

Music was playing loudly on my phone, which was resting on my stomach. It was playing at full volume, since no one was around to hear it anyways. Just me, all alone. For once, just like Olivia said. Or so I thought.

"This is the third time you've listened to this song." A deep voice came from behind me. I couldn't place it, and for a minute I thought it might be Jax. Maybe he somehow came back from the boating trip early, or didn't go at all. Which is a ludicrous thought, because I saw him get on the boat. He was hard to ignore, because he was staring at me the whole time.

I felt my body stiffen in fear, I didn't move an inch. I didn't know what the best course of action was.

"Seren?" The voice called. I heard footsteps, whoever it was was coming closer. I shot up in the chair, shifting my weight forward so that I could run if need be. A distant part of my brain registered the sound of my heartbeat thumping in my own ear.

"You good?" The voice asked me. From the change in volume, I could assume he was standing right behind me now. Still, I didn't turn. I wanted to, yet I couldn't will my body to move.

It wasn't until the person walked in front of me that I let out a sigh of relief.

"Zane. You scared me." I muttered, rubbing my eyes. Zane was standing just a few feet away, looking down at me with concern in his eyes.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to." Zane replied, scratching his chin awkwardly. His eyes were darting around my face, and I suddenly felt painfully exposed. I had taken my sunglasses off, assuming I was safe from prying eyes. As subtly as I could manage, I turned my face away from him, grabbing the glasses that were laying to the side of me and sliding them back over my face. I felt safer immediately.

"So, I was hoping we could talk." Zane sounded nervous, which I think was abnormal for him. I couldn't be sure, of course, since I didn't pay much attention to him. From what I remember, he was always confident. I sat up in my chair, briefly adjusting the small bikini top, indicating I was listening. He titled his head at me, grabbing a chair and pulling it towards my own.

Usually hearing the words we need to talk in any phrasing made me nervous, especially when I didn't know what it could be about. Surprisingly, I didn't feel nervous. I didn't really feel anything. At all.

Zane was seated now, his legs spread apart and his elbows resting on each thigh. He was leaned over, still observing my face. When he didn't begin speaking, I grabbed the bottle of vodka that I had stashed beneath my chair and took a swig.

"It's a little early for straight vodka." Zane finally spoke.

I glanced at his face again, expecting to see judgement, but the concern was still written on his features as clear as day. I stared at him as I twisted the lid back on. I could certainly see why the girls at our school were fascinated by him. No one could question his attractiveness. With a sharp jaw, full lips, and bushy dark eyebrows framing his brown eyes. He had floppy brown hair that had to be pushed back every now and then.