Hearts of Gold

9.

Zea's P.O.V

Hearing slight panting behind me, I turn around from my spot on the bench across from the auto store I had been waiting at and only slightly jump at the sight of the man from earlier.

Brian.

He sends me a crooked smile with his head tilted a little to the side. "What happened? Thought you were gonna wait at the store? Kinda worried me a bit when I got there and didn't see you, I was looking for a while, y'know? Then I figured you just up and left." He makes his way in front of the bench so now he's standing in front of me also.

"Sorry," I mumble, looking up at him for a second before letting my eyes roam the area around us.

"What's all this?" I look up to see what he's referring to and see him gesturing to the bags around my feet and the bags next to me on the bench.

My lips purse to the side lightly before reaching down for the two bags at my feet and huffing slightly as I pulled them onto the bench and then holding them out to him.

He raises an eyebrow but grabs them from me and looks inside before his eyes snap back up to mine.

"You bought my stuff?" He asks quietly, as if the evidence wasn't right in his own hands at the moment. "You didn't have to do that Alaina, I just wanted-" I cut him off with a shake of my head.

"I wanted to." I say. "It's the least I could do after you helped me," I shrug.

Something gleams in his eyes while he's looking at me and I struggle once again to read the emotion- it's starting to frustrate me a little bit.

"Well I told you it was no charge, so here-" he starts to reach into his pocket for where I'm guessing his wallet is and I immediately shake my head and hold my hands out towards him.

"No! I wanted to. I don't want your money, please." I try to stop him but he's already taken out his wallet and a hundred dollar bill and is trying to hand it to me.

I exhale out of my nose, cross my arms, and look away from him. I didn't want his money.

"C'mon Alaina. I can't let you pay for all this." He tries again and holds the money out a little closer to me. I just shake my head at him, still looking away.

"Alaina.." he trails off and at the sound of his voice sounding just a little bit more stern than the already playful and nice voice I'm used to hearing him use, I glance up at his face again to see him holding the money out to me still, his eyes now slightly narrowed. "Please, take it." He nods down to the bill in his hand and I just shake my head again.

"No," I tell him. Simple as that.

"No?" He repeats my statement.

I nod again before hearing him sigh and that catches my attention so I look up at him to see him giving me a look as if he's lost in thought or trying to figure something out before his eyes roam around me and light up a little bit at the sight of my backpack and plastic bag holding the engine oil next to me.

Catching his line of vision almost instantly, I snatch both close to my chest right as he goes to reach for either. His eyes shoot up in surprise before meeting mine and I can't help but smirk up at him.

"Gotta be quicker than thattt.." I sing-song and tilt my head side to side as I do so.

A bigger smile now consumes his face and his eyes light up in a way I'm not able to describe.

"Oh?" He drags out in the same playful voice I've so far grown used to hearing from him.

A small smile now takes over my face and I nod up at him, the small amount of weed I had smoked while waiting for him now helping ease my mind before I can even comprehend that it has or even be totally aware of what's going on at the moment.