Of June

Spin Off #1

Pretty As A Picture

A bag of popsicles and chocolates swishes in my hand as I stroll out through the back exit of a snack store. The small lot outside is packed with parked cars and other vehicles of sorts, some reflecting the sunbeams that poke out from the clouds. Thanks to sporadic rain in the past few days, the crisp wind still carries with it a sensation of cold like an unspoken job.

"Quick. You should eat one before they all melt." Adam points at my bag, licking one of the popsicles he managed to sneak out earlier.

"I don't wanna make a mess in public, thank you very much."

"Ooh. Sensible as always, I see." He says. "Boooring."

I ignore his remark and keep walking anyways. For once, I find myself regretting making an offer to tag along with him on his way to some casual shopping, now that his stock of sweets is all exhausted. To heck with wanting to hang out with this twerp.

My foot pauses mid-air the moment I notice a large puddle on the ground. I scan my eyes around; to my left is an off-white convertible while to my right, a grey Honda whose model I'm not interested in. I navigate mentally through the aligned maze of vehicles, meeting a dead-end each time. Is there really no other path for me to safely walk on?

"Why'd you stop?" Adam asks with a yawn. "Just cross the puddle and move ahead."

"I can't." I stare down at my newest pair of super cute shoes. "I don't want these to get dirty. . ."

"Then why would you wear those on a ten minute walk to the store?"

I flip an angry glare towards him. Swiftly, he turns to look the other way, acting distracted as his arms tie themselves behind his back. Few seconds later he sneaks back a cautious glance my way. "I mean. . ." He adds nervously. "You can simply wash it later. . ."

"That'll be a hassle."

"Then just jump." He steps back and plunges himself forward in one smooth move, now standing on the other side of the puddle. "See? Like this."

I ease up my mood, shake my head and sigh. "You won't understand. My legs are much shorter. Anyways. . .you go ahead. I'll find some other way out."

He leaps back to my side again. "Can you hold this for a second?" He tilts his popsicle bar towards me, its ice melting all the way to the stick. My instincts force me to receive it even before I could ask him the reason why.

"Yuck." I stretch my arms away from my clothes. "Now what're you gonna-?"

Before I can finish, my feet get swept off of the ground and I find myself in his arms, princess-style.

Words are robbed out of my mouth in an instant. I shrink my neck down, closed fists resting on his shoulder for a half-hearted support. With eyes refusing to blink, I keep staring down at my lap. Who knows if I dare to look up right now how close our faces will be?

Adam takes two long strides. His first step into the muddy water soils one of his shoes, while the second one leads us to the other side of the giant puddle. Once the job is done he carefully puts me down and gets occupied with kicking extra dirt out of his shoe.

"You know. . ." He reaches out a hand to ask for his popscicle back, slightly seeming out of breath. "I take back the 'sensible' comment. You're really childish sometimes."

I stare at his hand absent-mindedly, now blinking more than usual. My gaze then shifts over to him and lingers. Gentle breeze swirls his hair in all the endearing ways, occasionally obscuring his squinted eyes. Cruel, I think to myself, he's cruel.