purple's our color- mileven au

FIVE

A/N: just so you guys know i wanna switch their ages to be juniors, it'll just work with the plot better!! <3

"He wanted her, she'd never tell, secretly she wanted him as well" Sk8r Boi, Avril Lavrigne

    Stories of kidnappings and robberies and death that her father would come home with every night to tell his wife scared little ten year old El Hopper more than anything. It began to worsen when she could understand what the stories meant. So there was a time where she didn't want to go anywhere, or do anything. "I don't wanna get stolen," she'd whine to her friends.

    "It's the middle of summer, we're all going to the pool! Come if you want, please please come," Max pleads. El fights back with the anxious feeling she might drown. "We'll be fine," Lucas rolls his eyes.

    "I'll stay right by you the whole time, we all will!" Mike reassures her.
    El moves her eyes from her lap to Mike, "you promise?'
    "yeah, promise."

    The minute they got there Lucas, Max and Dustin engaged in a race that Will was directed to ref. Mike was standing where Will was and El's feet dangled into the cool blue water right beside the boys. "Aw come on you can't be scared forever," Lucas called.

    "I'm not scared," the small girl giggled, "it's cold." El splash kicked Lucas and crossed her arms.

    "You'll burn to death if you don't come in," Mike warned, holding his hand out. Maybe she'd drown and her poor police chief father would have to fish her out of the bottom of the pool, but at least El could do it with her best friends. Death is guaranteed, keeping friends like these aren't. El grabs Mike's hand and jumps into the pool, plopping underwater and coming right back up laughing.

****

There was the small noise of a song neither of them recognized, keeping away from complete silence, but otherwise, there was nothing for the two to talk about. El's mind was racing. Why did she choose to take Mike's offer and leave? Why did she leave her family to be scared and look aimlessly for her? What about Max? They were all questions that she was trying to contain, although it extremely failed.

    "How far away are we going?" El asks.
    "Not far, I used to stay here sometimes with Mom and Nancy, it's near this big lake beach thing," Mike explains. The brunette beside him nods and continues to look straight out ahead of her. Eventually they pull up to a big building, painted a tacky deep purple and it seems rather unpopular.

    "Hey look it's purple," Mike comments. El scoffs and shakes her head at him, retorting that he's an awful person.  He parks close to the building and the two grab their small backpacks with barely enough packed. "Murrays kind of....weird, but we're close I guess so I'll just get a key," Mike explained.

    "You do this often?'
    "Not exactly." They walk to the front desk where a bald headed (but with sideburns and a beard) man with big glasses was humming something while looking in a key drawer.

    "Hey Murray-"
    "Michael!!" The man greets Mike with open arms, but obviously their relationship isn't like that so Mike just stands there grinning. "You need another overnighter," Murray's eyes darted between El and Mike.

    "Oh it's not like that, but can I have a key," Mike said.
    Murray's head tilts, "Are you sure it's not?" This exchange the two were having completely baffled El, having no idea of what either of them meant by their words.

    "Look, Murray, can I just give you the money," Mike flipped through his plain black wallet. The girl standing next to him played with her hands, nervous with everything going on. "One room?" Murray asks.
    "I told you it's not-"
    "Ah but I am very good with these things and I think-"
Mike shakes his head, "Sure whatever."