Lightning Strike (Billionaire Boys Club #3) | ongoing

Chapter 14

Alora:

Later that day nearing the end of lunch, I'm back in the bathroom, reapplying my lipgloss in the mirror and praying that this day be over soon.

Seeing Satan's face was one thing, my locker getting jammed was another, but getting to lunch and seeing they were out of cherry coke when I've been craving it all day? I'm done.

I smack my lips together, satisfied with the way they look and then bush my fingers through my hair. The door opens and I brace myself for Lina, El or Cleo, ready to drag me back into the dining hall, but seeing that it's not them and that they took my warning to stay put and leave me be seriously, I relax.

"Oh, hey!"

I turn to my left, recognising the girl immediately.

"Rosie, hi."

"How are you?"

"I'm good. Getting through the day. You?"

"Take your answer but put a trying to in front of it and a dramatic sigh after it."

"I see." I nod, pulling my mini perfume tube out of my blazer pocket and toying with the ends when I focus back on her. "Everything okay?"

"Yep." She says, popping the "p" and leaning back against the sink. "Just..." she either can't find the words or doesn't want to say anything, so I do instead.

"I get it. Just life, right?"

"Right." She blows out a breath and lets her eyes travel to the tube. "What scent is that?"

I uncap it and hold it out for her to smell.

"Oh, that's so good. You're a vanilla girl, too?"

"All the way. Want some?"

She smiles and I spray her neck and wrists before my own and then putting it back into my blazer.

She tucks one side of her hair behind her ear and I tilt my head, looking at her a little closer.

She looks...tired.

Not just the kind of tired that you get from one night's lack of sleep or a long week but a kind of tired that I know all too well.

"Hey."

She faces me again.

"You know I meant what I said right? When I gave you my number. You can text me or call me about anything. I won't mind."

She offers a small smile. "Be careful what you wish for."

I move to lean against my sink as well. "So you mentioned a brother at the party. Any other siblings?"

"Another brother. Younger."

"So no sisters?"

"No. I'm pretty close with my brother though. The older one. We talk and hang out a lot."

"That's nice. I wish I had a sibling."

"You're an only child?"

"Mhm."

"Do you get lonely?"

It's a simple question. One I could simply answer if it wasn't for everything else.

I clutch the edge of my skirt in my hand on the side of my body that she can't see and force my lips into a smile. "It isn't too bad."

"You must get all of the attention, huh?"

I hold tighter and shrug.

"What about you? You have siblings but you're the only girl." I defer the conversation back to her.

"Maybe too much attention." She says, and I detect something in her tone that tells me she doesn't exactly like that fact.

Figuring she might not want to talk about that either, I defect again.

"What about in school? Do you have a line of boys after you?"

She lets out a small laugh. "Not really. A few here and there but I don't really entertain them."

"How come?"

"I don't have the time. I do a lot of extracurriculars and things. Besides, even if that wasn't the case, my brother would probably scare them all away."

"You mentioned he was protective." I remember.

"Mhm. He doesn't want a boy to breathe on me until the age of sixty. He's more dramatic than me at times though so that's likely only half true."

I laugh. "It sounds like you have your hands full."

"Don't get me started. Even his friends talk about keeping me under lock and key."

"His friends?"

She nods. "His best friends. They're basically brothers. So that means that they're practically my big brothers too. Five of them before but they've introduced a new member now so it looks like I'll have six more brotherly figures in my life."

"Wow." I shake my head. "How involved are they?"

"I don't see them in person a lot but even then they make sure to annoy the hell out of me with texts and phone calls. Checking up on me and even asking me for advice about how to handle situations with their girlfriends."

"So you don't have a crush on any of them, then?" I tease.

"Oh my god, no! Absolutely not. We may as well be blood related." She cringes and shakes her hands, as if swatting away the horrendous thought.

"It does seem like they care about you."

"I guess they're not all bad. They're great to my brother too. And my younger one."

"What about their girlfriends? Are you close with them?"

"Not really. I've only met one of them and that was just one FaceTime. They're recent additions for the most part. The boys have arranged a day where we're all supposed to meet and hang out together. It's to get me to breathe some air and have a little fun."

"That sounds nice." I think about it, pursing my lips and then making a decision. "We could do that too if you want. I could use some air above the surface."

"Seriously?" She raises her brows.

"Why not? We're friends now, right?"

"We are?" She tilts her head.

"Of course. So what do you say? We can do something whenever. Please tell me you like shopping." I add.

"Um, duh, I'm a girl." She says incredulously.

"Good."

The bell goes, signalling the end of lunch and she breathes out a big breath before straightening. "I think that'd be nice. Thank you."

"Text me when you have time." I tell her.

"I will." She waves and then walks to the bathroom door, leaving.

At the party, I knew that I saw a bit of myself in her, I just didn't realise how much.

I could tell that she was trying to hold back sometimes and then frustrated with herself at other times when she thought she over shared. Even when she'd trail off at the end of some sentences.

Something deeper is going on with her.

I won't pry but I do think that this will be good for her.

Maybe for me too.