𝐫𝐢𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭 || baxter radic

38.

◈ 𝒃𝒂𝒙'𝒔 𝒑𝒐𝒗 ◈

It's been a few months. It's the week of Halloween. Maybelle has been hell bent on throwing a Halloween party. The only time I get to see her is at the beach first thing in the morning and when I sneak into her room at night. She can't sleep without me anymore. Otherwise, she spends the night screaming in terror. Most of the time about me. Or so I've heard... from Summer.

The only time the screams subside is if I'm by her side, so I've spent most of my time sleeping in her bed. After the little bit of a blow out between Summer and May, I was sworn off spending the night. Summer spilled to her mom that May and I were irresponsible if we were left alone. But May and I are always gone before she wakes, she never knows I've snuck in.

Despite the nightmares—or I guess night terrors is a better term—May's dark side has been tightly wound. She's presenting herself with a perfect pretty white bow, untainted and pristine. I haven't even witnessed a slight slip of any kind, haven't heard of slips from our friends. She—for now—is good, and that I am very okay with.

I tap on her window to call her attention. She's sitting on the floor in the middle of her room, dusting make up onto her skin. When she looks at me, a white abstract line traces around her eye; a light blue covering her lid. It's like the blue sky has been placed upon her skin. The softness washing away all the harsh simmering deep inside her.

She motions toward the door, standing up off her floor and running toward the front door. An excitement trickles in her every step. I watch her with a bright smile, before rounding the house to meet her.

When she opens the front door, I'm engulfed into a suffocating hug. She jumps up wrapping her legs around my waste, her arms around my neck. She's the koala and I'm just her tree.

My face is peppered with kisses as I carry her to her room. I fight off the chuckle that wants to escape, only letting it go once her bedroom door is closed behind us. "Hi cutie." She jumps off once we're free of being caught.

"Someone is extra happy today." My focus is only on her as she drops back in front of the body length mirror leaned against her wall. I sit behind her, putting my legs on either side of her as I watch her reflection in the mirror.

"I've finally figured out what we are wearing to the party." Her voice is quiet, but way too over the top for something as simple as a costume.

"Does this makeup look have anything to do with it?" I point to our reflection, popping my head on her shoulder as her eyes shift toward mine in our mirror twins.

"Nope!" She takes a makeup wipe, erasing all the work she has put in.

"Baby!" I wrap my arms around her trying to stop her and I do. But the damage has already been done. She's giggling at my attempt to stop her though. She looked cute, and still does with that damn smile spread across her face.

"We're going to be Blair and Chuck from Gossip Girl." She turns to look at me. I'm completely dumbfounded by her option. I have not a single idea what she's talking about. But there is no disagreeing with her.

"You hate it." She pouts, but I know it's a fake pout. She doesn't let the pout last long before breaking out into giggles again. "I lied." She huffs. "I don't have an idea so I just keep painting stuff on my face in hopes that something comes to mind."

"Maybelle, I will show up in whatever you want me to. Tell me to go naked, I'll go naked. Tell me to shave all my hair off, I will."

"No!" She spins on the floor, covering my hair with her hands. "I would never let you do that ever." Her attitude is making me think she's on some sort of drug. But the only drug she's on is life. She high on the feelings planning this party is giving her.

"Stop stressing, it's going to make your face all wrinkly." I reach out and run my thumbs along the creases at the corners of her eyes. She's spent too long racking her brain over something that didn't even matter. She was wasting precious time with me over this. That I just couldn't stand for.

"I want to be sexy." Coming from the girl who lived in oversized clothing, mostly mine. That was saying a lot. I wasn't complaining because that would mean I'd get to spend hours staring at a girl I like fucking. I'd actually very much like that too much for probably anyone's own good.

"You are sexy." I pull her head into my chest. "Now can I please steal my girlfriend from party planning? I miss her."

"You miss me?" Her voice has lost its giddiness. She's gone soft in the warmth of my touch. Like I've seemingly sucked the happy drugs out of her system. She's gone normal, content again.

"Of course." I chuckle. "I'm pretty sure I tell you that every night." I kiss the top of her head.

It takes a bit of convincing but she eventually believes me. She can't fathom how I could feel anything toward her when she can't do something as simple as pick a Halloween costume. The party hasn't given her anywhere near as much trouble as finding a costume.

"I don't want to be a devil or an angel, because with the way Summer thinks, I don't need the ridicule." She stares at the ceiling, her head in my lap as she speaks. "I don't want to do anything too cliché. I don't want to do anything boring. And I want us to be sexy. Because we are sexy." Her eyes drift toward me as she finishes.

"Wear anything skintight or short and I think that classifies as sexy May." I brush my fingers through her hair as she speaks. I've found it helps calm the mess in her mind. Almost like my fingers are infiltrating and sorting through whatever disaster is inside.

"Bax you're not helping." She groans.

"We're wearing sheets over our heads." I declare. "I've made the decision we're going as ghosts because right now you're becoming a ghost because of this party. I'm done losing you to it." I look away from her before I get and evil annoyed look.

"Don't be mad at me." She tries to pull my attention back to her, but I don't give in. I wasn't going to feed into the spiral she wanted me to slide down with her. My time with her needed to be spent positively.

"I just want to spend time with you Maybelle. But your head is too trapped in picking out a costume that no one will care about but you. I would rather show up like this. Just being ourselves while everyone else dresses up just so I could have my girlfriend back. Just imagine how iconic. We show up as ourselves. We both have two versions of ourselves, the good one and the bad. No one would know which one of our two sides was showing up." I start picturing what I would love to see her wearing of mine and I get lost for a few seconds.

"Do you know how absolutely sexy it would be for me, to watch you parade around in nothing but one of my shirts, in front of all of our friends?" My eyes gaze back toward her. My finger tucking under her chin as if to beckon her toward me with on simple call.

"And what would you wear?" She sits up, sliding her legs around me as she settles into my lap.

"Not a shirt." A smirk pulls at the corners of my mouth and it's settled. We go as a rogue version of ourselves.