"Sorry Wrong Window."

the end

Mia Dean

It's a cold rainy day today and no one is happy about it.

Leah keeps glancing at the boys in the back while she's driving which seems to be making Ben, who was watching out the window, anxious and Ben being anxious only adds to Toby's obvious nervousness. I tap Leah's shoulder and try to let her know she should stop. I don't think she likes it but she stops sending them worried glances and focuses on driving.

Ben relaxes a lot, making Toby relax some too. I'm pretty sure I know the line of thought behind him right now but Ben just seems so unbothered. It's tempting to laugh at the whole situation when I remember how glued to him Ben was last night.

But I get that Tobias doesn't know how much he remembers. Every time I think Tobys is about to say something he just bites his lip and goes back to watching him. Finally, Ben turns round from the window and notices Toby watching him.

"What?" He asks.

Tobias Dean

"Oh um-" I am completely blank on what to tell him so I go with trying to play it off as a joke, "Just admiring your beauty,"

I wink and he punches me in the shoulder, "Shut up,"

I try and change the focus of my attention to out the window but I can't help but realize my thoughts were not as unreasonable as I was hoping.

He hasn't reacted at all, I expected at least some acknowledgment of everything that had happened last night. Even if he didn't remember shit he would've said something. I let my attention wander back to him and he's messing with the neckline of my hoodie.

I don't know why he gets so nervous in cars, but I can't help but want to bring him closer to me to comfort him. He shoves his hands in his pockets and it seems slightly proper when it starts to hail.

I almost laugh at the coincidence until golfball-sized pieces of ice start crashing to the ground and shattering. Ben pulls his hands out of his pockets and starts to tap on his thigh he seems relieved when the car pulls into the school and he walks almost casually to the overhang where Oliver is trying to awkwardly make conversation with Andrea. Nothing he does seems to diffuse the tension.

Before I can follow him my entire fried group surrounds me.

"Toby man it's been a damn long time."

"It has man, sorry I've been so distracted but actually-" He gives no shits I want to leave because he immediately interrupts me.

"Awesome well why don't you sit with us today," He says guiding me towards where I usually used to sit.

"Um actually I'm a visual aid right now," He smiles kind of scarily at me.

"Well I guess you've gone soft," He says and as if to punctuate his point a piece of hail hits me on the back of the head, and I rub it sorely, "I mean I'm not surprised with who you've been hanging out with lately,"

I feel my expression harden and I shove him off, "Excuse me?"

I grab him by the collar and speak with as much ice I can press into my tone as possible, "Did you forget who you're talking to or do I need to remind you,"

I shove him off to the side to emphasize my point.

"Well then let's fix that visual aid issue," He says dusting off his shirt with an evil grin.

"I'm sorry did I say that was an issue," I say sitting in what was once my usual spot before I started sitting with Ben and everyone.

Cris starts talking but I don't notice because Ben catches my eye from the corner talking to Caleb he's laughing, and I'm itching to go over there and just be near him.