His body is stiff nodding, but his grip doesn't loosen. Isa comes to a slow stop along with Marisol who has one hand on the handle of her dark green four-wheeler, holding Fiona's hand with the other.
"You're so petty!" She huffs crossing her arms. "You could have flipped over, I swear I saw your back wheels rising."
"Look how you scared your pretty boy," she points to Lucas and it's like he finally realizes he can get off.
I offer him a helping hand and he steps off with wobbly legs. "I'm fine," he says weakly.
"Don't think you're getting out of our bet," I look at Isa and she sticks her tongue out and Marisol laughs. They untie their cooler from the back and Fiona straps on her book bag. I take our bag of food and towels before heading up to the spot where Marisol and I would spend most of our childhood.
I lay out the towels and Fiona takes a bottle of red wine from her bag and Marisol takes a beer out of the cooler.
"Nope." Marisol and I go to take the beer out of Isa's hand.
"But why?" She whines.
"Because you're a child and I said so," I say sternly and she frowns letting it go.
Lucas shines a broad smile up at the trees, the leaves shading us from the hot sun over the water.
"I forgot how pretty it is here. Why haven't I come sooner?" Lucas says as I step into the cool water trying to find a good balance.
I glance at Fiona hugging Marisol's back as they lower down into the water, Isa floats on her back with her large cherry sunglasses.
"Probably because your girl didn't let you," Isa mumbles, and Marisol snikers. Lucas tries splashing water at her and she flips him the middle finger.
The water slowly rises to my chest and my body tenses as I try and move my arms and legs, Lucas tilts his head with amusement in his eyes.
"Shut up."
Panic rises in me and I look at him wide-eyed, he grips my arms bringing me to his chest.
I breathe out shakily feeling the warmth of his skin. "Are you standing?"
He nods and starts pushing me down, I instinctively wrap my arms and legs around him which almost made us both dip in.
"Trust me," he slicks back his wet hair.
He gently lowers me down and my hand slides down his chest, I feel something hard and sharp under my toes.
"Careful, it's slippery." He looks down at me making me swallow.
"Wait!" Marisol's voice makes me look away, "You're still with her Stick?"
"Please don't call me that."
"Shrimpy?"
Fiona giggles and I'm guessing Marisol knows the story behind the name.
"I don't have a small..." He glances at Isa then whisper-yells, "I was sixteen! It was cold and-and I'm a man now. Twenty-one!" He deepens his voice saying his age puffing out his flat chest. I laugh at his attempt to flex his arm and he pushes me, my heart drops and he swiftly pulls me back to him.
I can feel his nipple under my fingers and my body yearned for his.
"Okay, okay," Marisol lifts her hands trying to hold back a smile. "Big man...! With a little willy." She jumps out of the way at Lucas's splash.
Fiona flinches bending upwards from her back coughing, Marisol's threatening eyes making him instantly apologize.
"Oh god, what if it breaks?" Isa blows out tying her red hair into a bun at the top of her head.
"Just don't let go."
"But what if..." she looks down at the water which looks further down than we both thought.
I narrow my eyes, "Are you scared?"
She shakes her head fixing the straps of her pink polka-dot bathing suit and I give her the wooden handle. It's attached to a rope that's tied to a thick branch above.
"You got this Isa!"
"You got this girl!"
Marisol and Fiona clap from the towels down below as they stuff their mouth with my moms' cooking. Turns out Fiona is as much of a foodie as Marisol is.
"If you want out of the deal, fine," I shrug. "But that'll mean you're a chicken--"
"I'm a bad bitch!" her voice squeaks and she's running off, swinging her legs up. Her short and small arms flexed with her grip on the handle.
"I would have never guessed she'd actually--" Lucas gets cut off by a high-pitched piercing sound.
She's falling down screaming into the water head first, I run to the edge. My nails dug into the soil seeking her red hair.
"Isa!"
With my heart in my throat, I jump.
The water slaps me cold, pricking at my skin as it drags me in deeper. I kick and kick, my eyes burn and my lungs are begging for air. I reach for something red and scream taking in water as pain strikes me, I feel like I'm drowning.
Something pulls me and I gasp for air, Lucas slicks my hair out of my face wide-eyed.
"Are you okay?!" He hits my back as I clutch my chest coughing.
"I got you good," I hear Isa howl. "You should have seen your face."
Gasping I grip onto Lucas and he helps me out of the way, I feel something churning in my stomach and nausea rising.
"Arlo?" Her laugh dies down.
Holding my hand to my chest I don't look at her. My vision blurs as I force myself to slowly breathe through my mouth and nose.
My body trembles stepping onto the ground, I turn away from their eyes as Lucas continues rubbing my back.
"I was just joking," she half-chuckles un-humorlessly and my head snaps to her.
"What the fuck!" I roar, my chest heaving up and down and her eyes go round.
"I CAN'T EVEN FUCKING SWIM!"
"I thought you were..." I scream stomping my foot. "I thought you were drowning, dying."
I step forward and she cowers into herself, "Don't you ever fucking do that again or next time I'll drown you myself!"
I turn to storm past Lucas but he grabs me, I push at him with teary eyes and he holds me to his chest.
"Just breath."
YOU ARE READING
Painful Desires || COMPLETED ✔️
Romance"You said I've always been yours." Arlo Castro is a 19-year-old sophomore at Grand Ridge University who's been in love with his best friend Lucas Cheng since high school. He can't help wanting to stare at his beautiful sharp monolid honey-brown eye...
