I'll Meet You There

06

Colby's POV:

The next afternoon, Poppy and I met Brennen for lunch.

Brennen pretended he could hear us in the distance before we got in the car. The first thing he said was, "Spill the tea, dude. I think I speak for everyone when I ask if you and Poppy are dating. I mean, you did save her life."

I shook my head. "No, we're not. We're just friends." If that.

"You heard it here, folks. Colby Brock and Poppy Templeton are just friends."

Poppy, who had been silent most of the morning, said said, "Pizza sounds pretty good."

"Yeah, it does. I think I'm gonna go for nuggets," I said.

She rolled her eyes. "Unsurprising. You love your nuggets. And your ketchup."

"I love my ketchup. And my nuggets."

"I know. We're here. Can we stop talking and get food, please?"

"That sounds like a great idea."

Poppy walked inside, following Brennen. I laughed silently to myself.

My phone dinged, and I saw a text from Shea asking if Adventure Buddies was still happening tonight, and I told her it was. She texted that I could bring Poppy, as she wanted to meet her.

I walked inside and said to Poppy, "Would you like to do some exploration tonight?"

She tilted her head. "What sort? With who?"

"Exploring a building. Me and Shea. She wants to meet you."

"Um, okay. Why not."

Yes! "Absolutely. Don't worry, I'll do my best to keep you safe."

She nodded. "Good. Food."

I doubted Poppy even knew how amazing she was. It was everything about her, and she wasn't even trying.

Eventually, our food came, and Poppy took a bite of her pizza with a satisfied smile.

We hung out with Brennen for awhile before I picked up Shea. Poppy was sitting in the passenger's seat, and was playing some sort of folk music, which I didn't actually mind. She had pretty good taste.

We arrived and I started recording. I mentioned that people claimed it was haunted. Shea seemed to be excited and Poppy was glaring at me. "Now you tell me. Thank you so much."

Shea smirked. "I'm sure Colby will protect you."

Poppy crossed her arms. "Well, I certainly hope so. Otherwise, we're gonna have to have some words."

Shea laughed. "Well, damn. Colby, she means business."

I nodded. "Yeah, she does."

We heard a bang and Poppy jumped before whispering, "Did you hear that? Guys, I don't want to be here anymore."

I took her hand a moment and said, "It's okay."

Along the line, we heard voices, and Poppy started clinging to me like glue. Shea was a little more relaxed, but she was definitely nervous as well.

The voices came closer and I got the three of us out, but the people started chasing us. One of them grabbed Poppy's wrist and she screamed and tried fighting, but the guy had a really strong grip.

I rushed to her rescue and managed to get the guy away, and we ran to my car. The second we got in, Poppy growled and yelled, "Never again! I swear to all above, never again!"

"I'm really sorry, Poppy."

She just ignored me and put her ear buds in, drowning out the world.

Shea asked, "Are you okay?"

Poppy, after a moment, pulled her ear buds out and snapped, "Well, that was fun. Not!"

Shea gave her a small smile. "Nevertheless, it was nice to meet you. I can see why Colby likes you."

I felt my cheeks heat up and said, "Okay, can we stop talking about possible crushes? Please?"

Shea and Poppy shared a look before Poppy said, "Only if we go to McDonald's for a frappe."

"You're heartless, woman."

"Yeah, well, I think a frappe is the least you could do after tonight. Right, Shea? Colby, you're not gonna post this, right?"

Shea nodded. "Right."

I shook my head. "No, Poppy, I won't post this. It's a failed adventure. And yes, we'll get you a frappe."

She nodded and said, "Mint sounds good. I hope they have mint."

"What if they don't have mint?"

"Then I'll settle for something else and be bummed they don't have mint."

"Then we'll just have to find you mint, now won't we?"

"Yes, we will. Mint's my favorite."

God, she's adorable.

We got frappes from McDonald's, and I dropped Shea off before driving to the mansion.

I walked up to my room and closed my door. I wanted to be alone.

Poppy's POV:

After getting something to drink, I walked up to Colby's room to find his door locked. "Colby, open up. Is everything okay?"

I heard the door unlock and walked into the room. Colby was crying. I wasn't sure what to do apart from ask. "Colby, what is it?"

He looked up at me with glistening eyes. "I'm so sorry, Poppy. I didn't mean for you to almost get taken or worse. God; I was terrified. If something had happened to you, I don't know what I would have done."

"But nothing happened. I'm okay, Colby. You protected me."

"It was instinct. I don't know why, but I can't bear for anything to happen to you."

"Listen to me. I tried to defend myself, and couldn't. Thanks for saving me. You didn't have to."

"Yeah, Poppy, I did."

"Why?"

"Because you're worth saving."

I stared at him, not sure if I believed him.

Colby caught my attention by saying, "Poppy? Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"Nothing much."

"I think I know. And you can disbelieve me, but I'll spend every day helping you believe that, no matter how long it takes."

I nodded. "Are you okay?"

He nodded. "I'm okay. Hey, thanks for coming in."

"Yeah."

"Seriously. Thank you. For, you know, making sure I'm okay."

"I was worried about you."

"I'm okay, now." He studied me a moment and said, "You should get some rest. You look like you're about to fall asleep."

"I'm fine," I said with a yawn.

"Uh-huh. I guarantee that in five minutes, your eyes will be closing."

"Can I... sleep here? I don't want to be alone tonight."

He smiled. "Sure."

I laid down and as my eyes closed, a soft kiss was pressed to my forehead. I wasn't sure if I liked it, but I also did. I really hate confusing emotions.