pretty eyes ~ newt

chapter 28: i'm yours

"there's holy ground beneath them, and sparks fly when they kiss"
in between, gracie abrams
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I sit on a log next to Newt and Aris as usual, eating my dinner as we all chatter absentmindedly.

"Hey Brenda, how're you feeling?" Thomas asks suddenly, through a mouthful of rice. I glance up when I hear her name, grinning widely at the girl as she sits down next to Newt. She crosses her legs comfortably, and I notice there's a new bandage covering her right ankle.

"Tommy, don't talk with your mouth full," Newt reminds him, watching the boy chew in mild disgust.

Thomas only rolls his eyes in exasperation as he finally swallows his food, and Brenda laughs lightly.

"It's all good. I'm feeling pretty healthy now, Mary's serum thing is working really well. I'm just glad she saved me before Vince pulled the trigger," she tells us with an easy smile, and I nod my head vigorously in agreement.

"Me too," I sigh, picking up a spoonful of potatoes. "Jorge would've gone batshit crazy."

"True that," Minho nods in agreement. "Did you just wake up, Brenda?"

"Yep," she responds, popping the 'p'. "I feel like I just came out of hibernation. It was great, I kinda envy bears now."

I snicker at that. "I thought you wanted to be a dragon, what happened?"

The girl shrugs. "I guess I did say that...well if I can't be a dragon, then I'd be a bear. But I'm cool with both, really."

"What kind of bear, though?" Minho demands immediately. "You can't be a golden bear, cause I took that option already."

Brenda laughs lightly, giving him an amused look. "Don't worry, wasn't planning on it. I think I'd rather be a polar bear or something."

I nod thoughtfully, lifting my cup to my lips to swallow down some water. "Good choice. Polar bears are pretty."

"Not prettier than me," Fry smirks, and I almost choke on my water from laughter. Newt slaps my back, snickering in amusement.

"Too true Fry," Minho sighs, carding a hand through his carefully gelled hair. Don't ask me where he gets hair gel from, cause I really have no fucking idea. "We're too beautiful for this world, truly."

Aris gives them both a look of disbelief, and I giggle at his incredulous expression.

"That's fuckin' bullshit," he tells them flatly, and Minho gives him an injured look.

"You're just jealous," he huffs, crossing his arms.

My eyes wander instinctively towards Newt, seeing him watch the two bicker back and forth in exasperation. His head turns towards me when he notices me staring at him, his lips curving up into a small, teasing grin.

"It's rude to stare, you know."

I smile back bashfully, my cheeks turning pink at being caught. "My bad."

He laughs, face splitting into a wide smile as he pats me on the back, "Just joking with ya, don't worry."

Newt pauses before continuing curiously. "By the way, how did the talk with Teresa go earlier?"

"Oh, it went really well actually. We talked all the shit out, and I think we're a lot closer now. She's actually really nice," I reply, my lips curving up happily at the memory.

Newt claps me on the shoulder lightly. "Good that. I'm glad, Tommy wouldn't stop annoying me about whether or not you two made up. The shuckface really cares about her, I think."