Ask For Alexis

8. Ask for Alexis

COLLIN'S POV

Life is a series of moments. Not all of them designed to cause our hearts to flutter with joy. Still, you're grateful for worse experiences because they taught you a lesson regardless.

Moments.

A moment, where Lexy was leaning on her elbow on my windowpane, a few feet away from my bed and caught in the fixture of my gaze.

A moment, where she fought her doubts to tell me how she feels about me.

A moment, where I couldn't find the words to respond and could only ask one question:

"Why?"

"You saw me when I was invisible."

I feel my body moving closer towards her. Unable to control myself, I fold her into my embrace. Her head is resting on my chest and my breathing hitches as her heart beats with mine.

"Lexy, I can't do this." I feel her pulling her head off me. She looks at me, her eyes filling up with tears and I can't help but cup her cheek. Lexy shakes her head, taking a step backwards.

"I don't know why I told you this. I'm sorry." I walk to her, "Don't apologize." "Yes, I ought to. Only five minutes ago I told you about how your relationship beat every cliché."

"If we take this a step further that would take on an entire new meaning." I try to joke and Lexy stifles a laugh without smiling.

I hear her heart breaking.

"Lexy," she looks up at me, her arms in the pockets of her jacket, wearing the saddest smile. "If only I'd met you first."

It's like what I said was a subtext to an enormous amount of bottled emotion. Her tears ceremoniously fell down her cheeks. "I'm not crying," she sniffles, still trying to act brave. "You're not that special, you know," she continues.

"Not even close." Lexy smirks at me and there was a spark in her eyes, glistening as though it were halfway wicked.

"Let me just figure things out. You know how much you mean to me Lexy."

She nods and quietly leaves my room. Before she exits completely she looks back at me, "Collin?" "Yeah, babe?" Her voice went an octave higher after I called her that because she got all flustered and her cheeks turned pink.

"Ask for me one day."

The next day school seemed unusually eerie. Behind every smile on the faces of classmates I used to so ecstatically converse with was a curious expression, one of sorrow. Everybody flinched when I passed by them, ignoring my morning greeting. In the far distance of the corridor I see a strangely familiar girl. She's blonde and arguing aggressively with her teacher for extra credit.

Bree.

Where has she been?

She turned to walk away from the class entrance and sees me.

"Bree," I call out to her, trepidation has taken its toll and my voice is shaky, "Is something wrong?"

"No." Her tone is clipped. "Why?" "I don't know. Something feels off. I went to class at 9 a.m. and everyone was staring at me. They're all gossiping about something that seems morbid."

"Oh, you didn't hear?" Bree fidgeted with her pens, twirling her blue and red ones rather mechanically. "No. I didn't hear." My patience is finally thinning. "What the fuck is happening?"

"It's Alexis."

At that I am stumped. "But, she was just over yesterday." Bree looked alarmed, as though she didn't expect anyone to have spoken to Alexis over the past couple of days. "Well, I haven't been seeing much of her lately. She's been in such a haze, distancing herself from the world. I guess she found solace in you."