The Survivor (Book #2)

Chapter 33

I stood waiting after my last class on Friday afternoon in the parking lot beside Asher, feeling oddly at peace.

The stress of a test I had taken earlier today had passed over me like a storm cloud and I was now resting in the sunlight, feeling buoyant. For better or worse, I was done with it.

"I feel amazing." I sighed, leaning up and basking in the little flashes of sun that peeked through the clouds and warmed my skin. I had chosen one of the smaller shirts I owned today; one that allowed a sliver of my stomach to peak out above my black ripped shorts.

"You look amazing," Asher quipped. I hit him, knowing he was referring to the messy bun that wasn't so artfully made and the makeup I had to forfeit putting on last minute this morning. I decided dark circles under my eyes were going to be my new fashion statement. He looked offended and shoved me playfully back. I closed my eyes and leaned back blissfully as the sun shone briefly again.

"Aren't you happy it's the weekend?" I asked insistently.

"Of course," he said. "But I'm happier that I can wait here with you while your brothers finish their classes."

I blushed at that, unsure of what to say or do. Talking to boys wasn't exactly my forte. Or people, for that matter. And I barely knew Asher... I'd only just met him this year.

"Tell me about you. Tell me something real." I pressed insistently.

"Isn't everything about me real?" he asked with an arched eyebrow.

"I don't know. Is it?" I asked, not giving him an answer before he gave me mine.

He squinted his eyes and looked up at the sky in concentration before looking back down at me. I felt a flash of a feeling that made me want to brush my hair in a pretty way over my shoulder and smile confidently like the more popular girls did. I wished furtively that I didn't have to keep the secret of my abuse or hold my cards so close to my chest in fear. I wanted to be one of those girls who wore their hearts on their sleeves without seeming to notice they kept it there.

"Okay," he agreed. "Something about me... I wanted to be a sheriff when I was a kid." He said after a moment of thought.

"Well, I could've guessed that! Your dad is a sheriff." I complained, secretly grinning at the image of him with a little plastic star on his chest.

He made a little clicking sound and gave me a half smile. "Ahh, but is he a cowboy sheriff named Dead-Eye Kelly?"

I bit my lip in surprise before bursting out into a laugh that made it hard to catch my breath. He smiled at me like I was doing something amusing. The smile lingered into something that made me feel self-conscious, so I tucked a strand of loose hair behind my ear and said "What?"

"I like seeing you laugh." He admitted as if it was a normal thing for one friend to say to another. For all I knew, though, it was. I had never had a boy be my friend before.

"It's better than my grave death-is-coming-for-all-of-us expression, isn't it?" I joked.

"Haven't seen that one yet, but gosh, I'm on the edge of my seat now!" he teased back.

I tried to think of an even wittier answer, but I couldn't. I huffed a little laugh and got up from the bench.

"Where are my brothers?" I complained to no one, resisting the urge to stomp my foot.

"I could always give you a ride home!" he offered melodiously, half-joking. He knew the Anders boys could be.

"They'd kill me," I said back, but I think he heard the question mark that went unsaid.

"You told me you like risks. Why not one more?"

I bit my lip and nodded, and he took off running to his car.

"Wait up!" I screamed, chasing after him. His laugh echoed through the parking lot while I giggled to myself.

I shot a text to Damon that I was getting a ride home. I shut my phone off then, for fear that his answer would spoil the good time I was having. Asher opened the passenger door for me, and I slipped into his car with a thank you, sighing happily at the familiar scent.

He got in and started the engine up, before turning to me quizzically.

"How much time do you have before you have to be home?" he inquired.

"As long as it takes them to catch me," I said with a nonchalant shrug, laughing as he shot out of the parking lot and down the empty road.