Within The Shadows.✅ (WLW)

9 | Food

After we went through McDonald's drive-thru. Ava stopped in front of what looked like an abandoned building.

"Umm, what are we doing here?" I ask skeptically. "Oh, hush. Come on I want to show you something." And with that she is out of the car, first grabbing a blanket from the back seat. Then came to my door.

"Come on Lennie, I have your food." She holds up the McDonald's bag.

"No, I am not going in there. I'd rather starve. I mean come on look at this place, it could fall any second." I tell her, even if it means that I don't get food.

"Come on, where is the Melanie I knew in high school? The Melanie who lived for the adrenalin rush." She is right, in high school I would have been the one to drag her into that building, not the other way around.

"Come on M, do you trust me?" She looks at me while holding out her hand for me to take.

"Of course, I trust you what kind of question is that?!?!?" And I do, I trust her more than I trust myself.

While taking her hand, I'm out of the car. The electric shocks flow through me again.

"Just so you know, I'm only following you because you have my food and I don't want to make you a murder victim if I die of starvation," I tell her following her up the stairs.

"Ouch, you thought I would make you starve to death?" She laughs, putting her hand over her heart, in a fake hurt motion.

"How many more stairs do we have to climb, I'm hungry and my legs are starting to hurt." We have been climbing stairs for what feels like hours.

"Oh, stop moaning, we are almost there then you can have your food. I promise it's worth it." She looks back at me, smiling.

Finally making it to the top. There is this amazing view of the whole city.

"Wow." That is all I can say. "Yeah, it's pretty cool, I usually come here to think or when I just need an escape you know." Yeah, I do.

Sitting down, after Ava threw the blanket on the roof. I'm just staring at the view. In thought. I mean do I want to marry Nate and spend the rest of my life with him? Or do I want this, sitting on the roof of an abandoned building with the girl I have loved since high school?

"Here you go, I can hear your tummy rumbling from her." She laughs breaking me out of my thoughts.

When I took that first bite of my burger, it just came out.

"I didn't know food could be a turn-on." She whispers in my ear sending shivers down my spine.

Great going Melanie, you just fucking moaned while eating a burger.

"I... uhh." I swallow a lump in my throat. Before I could say anything she just laughed. I can feel my cheeks heating up like a red tomato.

After eating, and yes, I suppressed my urge to moan every time I took a bite, we just sat and stared at the view.

We were both in thought, well Ava was. I could see it on her face. She always pulls her face in a frown when she is in deep thought.

Me? I felt free, my mind was blank. I'm not thinking about the marriage or the gorgeous girl sitting next to me. I'm not thinking about Nate or my parents. It's like I can breathe again.

But of course, nothing lasts forever, because my phone broke us both out of our thoughts.

Looking at the time I realized we had been here for more than 2 hours.

Shit.

"Hey, Nate," I answer in a friendly voice.

"Hey, I was just wondering when you are coming home?" He sounds a bit irritated at me.

"I'm sorry I lost track of time. I'll be there in maybe half an hour." It was a 15-minute drive from The Wendy House to the building and 10 minutes from my house to the cafe so 30 minutes would be enough.

Saying goodbye, I stare at my phone for a while then look up at Ava still staring into the distance.

"Nate?" She asked as if she wanted to say something else but didn't want to.

"Yeah, I have to head back. We still have to go drive back this afternoon for class in the morning." I say sadly. If I'm honest, I don't want to go.

And with that, Ava jumps up and offers me her hand to help me back up.

Back to reality.