Not good for you

21;

The summer sun burned overhead, casting long, lazy shadows across the streets and houses. We finally reached my birthday; it slipped into my life like an old friend—expected yet strangely distant. The heat pressed in like a warm embrace. I should have felt excited; I should have felt different, older, wiser. But the day was just another mark on the calendar, another sunset fading into the restless warmth of July.

"Happy birthday, Heddy!" Leigh exclaimed as I walked into the living room.

Leigh and Emilia were in the kitchen, moving around excitedly. When the aroma of muffins reached me, I couldn't help but smile.

"Thank you." I smiled as they gave me a group hug. "What's that?"

"Typical, pig." Emilia pushed me away playfully.

"Always thinks of her stomach first." Leigh rolled her eyes.

"And we allow that." Austin walked into the house, holding a small bag. "Happy birthday, girl."

"Thank you." I grinned as he hugged me tightly.

"How old are you again?" he asked after pulling away. "Fifteen?"

"Sixteen now, get your facts straight." I joked, and he nodded.

"Sorry, my bad." Austin smiled. "You know I've always struggled with numbers."

"Yes, I remember you almost failing Math right before graduation." I laughed, and he frowned. Austin loathed Math and avoided studying for tests since he despised numbers and functions. He knew he wouldn't need them after high school, and his mind resisted absorbing any formulas. While he wasn't entirely wrong, we still managed to struggle through the exams together.

"That's not funny. I was terrified for my life that I had to repeat senior year," Austin said, lowering his tone. "I wouldn't have survived that."

"I would have been, too, if I'd spent all year crushing on the secretary instead of doing my homework," Leigh cut in from behind, and Austin turned his head to look at her.

Leigh blew him a kiss, but all Austin did was groan and roll his eyes.

"Why is she here again?" he asked, and I felt a familiar buzz coursing through me.

After what Austin had just said, I immediately thought of the close but also teasing friendship between Perkyn and Cornell. I suppose we were all a bit like strangers we'd never met.

"Because Heddy and Emilia love me." Leigh lifted her chin and began to play with her hair.

For a moment, Austin was lost in thought.

"That's two against three."

"I don't count at all?" Leigh asked with disbelief in her voice. "Are you serious now?"

"Since you are the subject, then definitely not," Austin admitted.

"Jerk."

Austin ignored Leigh's comment and raised his hand, showing the bag he was holding, which I had already seen when he walked into the house.

"Is this for me?"

He let his hand fall and glared at me.

"No, it's for the neighbors, and I just want you to sign it."

"I never knew you could actually be kind to neighbors," I teased him, and he let me take the bag from him. "I guess people can always change, huh?"

Last year, Austin got into a huge fight with his neighbor, who was only a few years older than us. He hated everything and everyone who lived on that street. As young as he was, he acted like a retired Karen with too much time on his hands. He constantly threatened Austin by saying he would call the cops whenever his dog barked, or they had a BBQ party in the backyard.