Back To The Start

Chapter 5

{Elysse’ POV}

I froze in my seat as Carlos’ hot breath trickled into my ear and I felt shivers right down my spine. His smirk was clearly felt by my skin and in a snap of a finger- his presence was no longer near me.

What just happened?

I was so confused and completely awestruck. He has never made me feel so paralyzed like how I am right now.

 This was way far-fetched to our usual ‘teasing’ and ‘bullying’ things that we do. I mean, he and I bully each other because; well… that’s how we express our hatred towards each other. But that moment between us just felt so… intimate. Wait, is ‘intimate’ even the right word? I felt this tingly feeling inside my stomach but I hastily pushed it away from my thoughts. Plus, I didn’t even understand what he said. Hell, I don’t even know how to say “hello” in Spanish. But whatever he said, it somehow affected me in a way I, myself don’t even understand. I don’t know if it was how he said it, or the way he moved while saying it, all I know that never ever has he made me feel this way.

Ever.

I opened my eyes, never realizing that I closed them in the first place and all I saw was Austin staring at me with concerned eyes. I looked back at him without saying a word, feeling too mesmerized by the sparkle that his eyes always seemed to have.

“Are you okay? You don’t look too good”, he asks, snapping me out of my thoughts. I shake my head, shrugging all my thoughts off and reply, “Yeah, sorry. I just got caught off guard with him”. He doesn’t look too convinced but he says nothing in return. Just my luck; he probably thinks I’m weird or annoying.

“So… are you two dating?”, he asks hesitantly. I widen my eyes and accidentally bang my hand under the table too hard. I yelp in pain and surprise and he chuckles at my clumsiness. Wow, today is just not my day. My face turns pink and all I wanted to do right now was hide away forever. I open my mouth getting ready to reply to his question until the sound of the school bell ringing interrupts me. He grabs his stuff quickly and stands up before flashing me a somewhat flirty smile.

 “See you later”, he says to me. And with that, he jogs out of the cafeteria and out of my sight. I sigh to myself and scratch my head in frustration as I stand up from my seat and walk away to go to my next class.

“Mom? I’m home!”, I yell while kicking my shoes off beside the door. When I realize that I haven’t received a response, I walk to the kitchen and see a note left on the table. It read:

“Going to Vegas for 2 weeks. My phones not working so don’t call. There’s money in the kitchen cupboard. – Mom”

I roll my eyes and mutter to myself, “Typical”. I grab the note, crunching it up in my hands and throw it out into the trash carelessly. I proceed my way towards the cupboard, finding $5000 laying inside there. “Seems like she’ll be gone for more than two weeks,” I grumble as I grab the money and stuff it in my bag and I make my way up to my room. I slowly open my door and take a huge leap onto my bed and just lie there, staring at the ceiling for what it felt like hours.

I close my eyes and replay the events that happened today. Starting from meeting Austin, a.k.a the hot new kid, all the way to me tripping over my own feet in front of the cheerleading squad after school. Realization suddenly hits me- today was a mortifying day.

I sigh quietly and walk towards my balcony and open up the doors as I felt a slight breeze flow into my room. I walk closer to the ledge, observing everything right in front of me and absorbing the amazing feeling I felt at that moment. I hear birds chirping, I see the sun shining, and when I looked down, I saw a couple walking side by side, seeming like they were enjoying every moment they had with each other. I smile to myself, and wondered: what was like to fall in love?