Stalemate // The Queens Gambit //Benny Watts x OC

Twenty one: Goodbye

    The place I had decided to come was my mother's favorite spot as a child. She grew up here with her parents, them also having grown up here. She considered staying here, keeping the family in one spot, but the city had always called to her, and she couldn't ignore it anymore.

From elementary school up until she left for college, she would come here to the same old Oak tree that sat in the center of a small park, which I guess wasn't a park anymore. She used to take me here, too, when I was little and we'd visit family. It was gorgeous then, lush and green and full of nature. Now it seemed sad. Almost like her dying had taken all the memories from it. I weaved around garbage cans that had tipped over and parts of the dilapidated fountain, walking up to the Oak.

That was the one thing that had stayed standing all these years, but it was also the saddest looking thing in the park. It looked lonely. I ran my fingers along its bark and stared up into its dark leaves.

"Is this an old friend?" A male voice came from behind me and I yelped, turning quickly. I placed a hand over my heart and let out a breath of relief when I saw it was only Benny.

"Could have warned me you were lurking." I spat, he just chuckled and walked up next to me, looking at the tree with curiosity.

"So why are we here?" He asked, looking to me with a slight frown.

"I am here for my own reasons, why are you here? Were you following me?"

"No! I'm just, you know, checking out the.." he scanned the empty street, the small town was on the verge of becoming a ghost town, "Bakery." He settled on. I raised an eyebrow and folded my arms.

"Oh yeah? Well It's right over there, bye." I didn't wait for a reply and sat with my back to the tree, sighing and closing my eyes. Neither of us spoke for a minute but then he crouched next to me, letting out a sigh of his own.

"Adelaide, what are you doing here? Seriously?" His tone had changed, much different from the sarcastic playful one he favored.

"I wanted to be alone. Obviously that didn't work." I opened my eyes and glanced at him, he was staring at me with a look of concern. I suddenly felt bad for being so rude. He didn't deserve that. "I'm sorry. I just.. this used to be her favorite spot." He nodded slowly and sat.

"Ah.. so you just wanted to visit or..?"

"I honestly don't know. The wake was just getting kind of unbearable, but I didnt want to go home either, and this was the first place I though of." I shrugged.

"Yeah, it was kind of stuffy in there."

"You were there? I didn't see you. Actually, I didn't see you the entire funeral, were you at the service?"

He nodded and adjusted his hat. "I was there. Mostly in the back. It felt a little strange since I only really knew you and Macy. It was a nice service though."

"Oh. Yeah, thanks." Silence permeated the air and it was suddenly awkward.

"You didn't cry." Benny stated.

"What?" I turned to look at him.

"At the funeral. The whole time, you didn't cry."

"Yes I did."

"Barely, after your mom's boyfriend spoke but besides that, not at all."

"How would you know?"

"I was watching you."

I frowned, not knowing wether to be flattered or creeped out by this, so I just brushed it off instead. "Why does it matter?"

"Do you think that's healthy, Adelaide..?"