miss me or not

v a c a t i o n

____________________

Eileen taps the Home button on her phone, exiting the app she was scrolling through and checking the new message that had popped up. She can't help but smile when she sees that it's Hayden who sent her a text, saying that he's already at school. Eileen's grin widens, excited at the thought of seeing him after the two-week long winter break. She's not even self-conscious of her goofy smile as she types back a reply, even when her best friend nudges her.

The blonde girl raises her eyebrows at Eileen, then asks if she's texting her boyfriend. Eileen understands that she's talking about Hayden, and pouts at her friend, correcting her and saying that she isn't dating him. The blonde giggles, her teeth showing as she opens her mouth, throwing her head back as she laughs louder. Eileen nudges her, not wanting to draw attention to themselves in the cafeteria.

Despite the delicious aroma floating from the kitchen, there's not many people lined up outside of it. There's also not many people in the cafeteria itself; it's as if no one wants to show up, especially today, the first day of classes in the New Year. Eileen looks around, trying to see if anyone's looked this way after her friend's overly loud giggling. No one's looking their way, and Eileen sighs, relieved, even as she shakes her head at her friend's crazy antics.

The blonde just rolls her eyes, nudging her and making a comment about no one paying attention to them, anyway. Eileen lets her keep rambling on about that, nodding her head as if she's paying attention. She tucks her hair behind her ear though, her eyes continuing to survey the cafeteria - more specifically, the doors - to see if anyone new comes in.

Her gaze lands on Hayden's usual table, and sees that a few of his friends are there, doing their usual thing. Eileen takes note of the fact that Hayden's best friend - her best's friend's boyfriend - isn't there either which explains why the blonde girl next to her hadn't bothered to drag her over there. She has the urge to walk over there regardless, as she already considered Hayden's friends her friends as well; besides, she doesn't mind their company.

Her phone buzzes just as she stands up. Her face lights up along with the screen as she reads Hayden's text, which tells her to meet him in the caf. Eileen's face splits into another grin, and then she swats her best friend's arm. The blonde looks up at her, whining and asking what her problem was. Eileen exhales loudly through her nose, then without replying, pulls her friend up by her arm. The blonde groans but allows Eileen to march her across the cafeteria and to the table where the boys are sitting.

From the corner of her eye, Eileen spots Hayden as well, coming in from the main door. She bites her lip, trying in vain to keep her smile from cutting through her face. When they arrive at the table, Eileen lets her friend's arm go, and the blonde frowns at her. Eileen knows she's just joking though, because soon after, the frown disappears and is replaced with a mischievous look and a raised eyebrow.

Eileen sits at the end of the table, bidding hello to the boys and asking how their vacation was. The small talk is cut short though when Hayden finally arrives sitting across from Eileen. He leans forward onto the table, his elbows bent and his phone in his hand; the screen is still on, open to a message thread.

Eileen's curiosity gets the best of her as she tries to see whether Hayden was only texting her or someone else. She doesn't why it makes her so jealous, as Hayden's never shown an interest in another girl in all the time they've spent together this year. She gets even more envious when he turns his phone upside down, his fingers covering it in a protective manner. He grins at Eileen, not noticing her irritation and then turns to his friends, saying hello and rolling his eyes when they make suggestive gestures at Eileen.

Eileen barely notices, as she's used to their teasing. It's practically a normal thing now, as everyone knew she and Hayden did have something going on - even if neither of them knew what it was. She sighed, pursing her lips and pouting a little.

Hayden suddenly turns to her though, and Eileen snaps her expression back into a small smile. She can't help but stare at him, her eyes traveling to the T-shirt he's wearing. It's a yellowish-green, and on the front is the name of the place he visited during the winter break. She notices his tan too, and she can't help but find him even cuter; the vacation clearly did some good, despite the fact that it meant Hayden was far away.

Hayden meets her gaze once, then takes in the fact that her hair looked longer, her eyes seem brighter, and she seemed even paler. Maybe because she didn't go on vacation and probably stayed inside writing music. He smiles at the notion of Eileen pouring her heart and soul into writing a new song, earbuds in, and a photo of him on her phone, inspiring her. It was a pretty picture, in his opinion.

"So, did you miss me?" Eileen finally asks, crossing her arms on the table and leaning forward. She bites her lip, smirking at him with raised eyebrows. For a moment, her eyes flick to his overturned phone on the table, the question as to what he was hiding still nagging her.

Hayden catches the movement, picking up his phone as he says, "Nope, you wish." He knows that's a lie though, as he looks back down onto his phone screen. He smiles slightly at the messages from two weeks ago, which continue up until this morning, when he texted Eileen. She doesn't need to know that he'd been rereading their conversations though, so he locks his phone and looks up at her again.

He sees curiosity - and jealousy - in her facial expression, but he doesn't comment on it. Instead, he casts a genuine smile at her and takes her hand in his; they hold hands all the way until Hayden drops off Eileen at her classroom, and jealousy escapes her mind.

____________________

Another update because today is Thanksgiving Day in Canada! You, my dear readers, are one of the blessings that I am eternally grateful for. Your support never fails to make me smile. Xoxo♡