As the group walked home, Michael walked ahead of them.
He didn't feel like talking. He didn't feel like doing anything.
They had given him curious looks as he had sped up his gate to move ahead of them at the beginning of the walk, but he had ignored them.
He didn't want to think about Ari's story, but he couldn't not think about it.
He couldn't believe it. How was it possible? He had noticed that something was off with Ari, but he hasn't suspected it was something so...terrible.
There was movement next to him, cutting off his thoughts, and he saw Ari walking there.
"Are you okay?" She asked simply.
"Uh, yeah. I'm...okay. I'm perfectly fine. Everything's fine." Michael tried to sound normal, but failed miserably.
Ari narrowed her eyes at him, but didn't ask questions.
When they arrived at Michael's house, Ari saw him to the door.
"I wanted to ask you something." She smiled at him.
"What?"
"There's this old cabin in the woods by where we went to that party on Canada Day." she stated.
"Okay..?"
"And I've sort of always wanted to stay there for a night or two. Like with sleeping bags and stuff."
"Oh, I do not like where this is going."
Ari laughed at Michaels fear, but continued. "And I was wondering if you wanted to stay there with me? Like...tonight?"
"Tonight!" Michaels eyes widened. "Oh, and...cabin in the woods!"
Ari laughed. "It'll be fun, I promise."
Michael was about to outright refuse, but then he remembered.
He couldn't say no to a girl who had suffered so much, could he?
"Okay."
"Okay?"
"Okay."
"Really?"
"Yes, I said okay."
Ari smiled widely, but he could see she was still suspicious. "Okay, pack a bag. Bring long sleeved stuff, because there's going to be bugs. And it gets cold at night, so sweaters. And we're probably going to end up staying two or three nights, if we feel like it."
Michael nodded. "Okay. Where should we meet?" he peered around her shoulder at Ashton and Luke, talking with Marigold on the sidewalk. "and...are they coming?"
"I'll come meet you here," Ari replied. "and...no. It's just going to be you and me."
Michael felt his heart flutter. He may have had just a little itty-bitty bit of a crush on Ari, wether he was admitting it to himself or not.
"Okay." Michael said after what may have been a bit too long of a pause.
"Okay." Ari smiled.
"Alright."
Long after Michael closed the door and scaled the stairs to his room, he could still see Ari's smiling face.
And he was so, so confused.
---
Michael packed a bag up in his room and then searched the house for Suzanne. He finally found in outside in the backyard, working on the garden.
"Hi, Michael," She smiled when she saw him, pulling off her dirty gardening gloves and adjusting her sun hat. "Sorry if I upset you this morning when I suggested a therapist."
"It's okay," Michael, who had long come to his senses about the whole issue, assured his aunt. "You were just trying to help. So...um...I'm going to be out for a couple nights, if that's okay." He gestured to his freshly packed backpack.
"Oh, where are you going?" Suzanne asked.
"Me and Ari are going to stay somewhere." Michael said vaguely, not sure if Suzanne would much approve of his plan of she knew exactly where he was going to be staying. Sketchy cabins in the woods aren't known to be the safest places.
"You and Ari, eh?" Suzanne smiled mischievously. "Is there anything going on between you two? Do I need to be worried about letting you stay somewhere alone together?"
"Oh, no!" Michael flushed. "God, no. We're just friends. Totally...nothing going on."
"Okay." Suzanne said, but she really didn't look convinced.
"I swear, we're just friends." Michael laughed, realizing that his bright red cheeks probably weren't helping to back up his argument.
"Who's just friends?" an unmistakeable voice asked from behind Michael. He whirled around to see Ari shutting the gate behind her and stepping into the backyard.
"Um, nobody." Michael felt his cheeks heat up even more, and he wondered how much of the conversation she had heard.
"Okay," she laughed. "you ready to go?"
Michael nodded and gestured to his backpack stuffed with clothes. He then turned to Suzanne. "See you."
"Bye," Suzanne smiled. "Call me if you need anything."
Michael nodded, and then turned to follow Ari, who was already hurrying up the path towards the blue Toyota that, she explained, she had borrowed from Ashton as she didn't have her own car.
He pulled his backpack over one shoulder, and tried to get his conversation with Suzanne out of his head.
"Is there anything going on between you two?"
There wasn't, but...
Did he want there to be?
Sorry for the long wait (:
Loser_Luke
(P.S. also, sorry for the sucky authors note)
