The Story of Scömìche Part 3 (Completed)

Chapter 10

A/N
I feel like this story is going down hill really fast, in terms of the plot and how well it's written. Is that a valid concern or am I being paranoid? Sorry for the short chapter again. I've been sick and not up for writing much.

"Let's go back to North Carolina. We can still spend another day there." I say over our reordered Chinese food.

"What about Mitch?"

"I-I think he's a lost cause."

"Scott-"

"No. Listen. I love him. So, so much. But if I keep dwelling on this and chasing him to places he might not even be, only to get sent a picture of him with a gun pressed to his head... I would rather give up on us than have him lose his life." I stare down at my food, pushing at it with my fork.

"If you want to go back, we can." she says with a sigh. We make plans to leave as soon as possible, and we quickly start the long trek back up the coast. When we pull up into the driveway of the beach house, the sun is starting to come up, and my eyes are heavy with exhaustion from driving the whole night with no sleep, food, or stopping. I nudge Kirstie awake and say, "We're here, again." Every blink feels like it takes a million years and the idea of standing up, unloading the car, and walking up stairs and into the house without collapsing exhausts me even more. Luckily, I don't have to think about it for long before my door is flung open and my seat belt taken off.

"Good morning!" Alex says, grabbing me by the hand and pulling me out of the car and into his embrace. I lazily put my arms around him and lean my head on his shoulder, completely overcome by exhaustion.

"It's not morning." I mumble.

"I know, but you look really tired so...I don't know. Come on." He basically drags me up the stairs and to the deck, then into the house.

"I think I'm gonna take a nap." I say, barely able to form sentences let alone do anything physical.

"Okay. See you later." Alex finally releases me and I go back to the bedroom I claimed several days ago when we first arrived. I collapse onto the bed and fall asleep almost instantly.

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I wake up to the sound of crashing thunder. Once my eyes are completely open, I don't feel even a little bit tired. I stand up, stretching, and walk over to the sliding glass door that leads to the deck. I see Alex laying on his back just outside the door and smile, knocking on the glass. His eyes pop open and he meets my gaze with a smile. He sits up and moves out of the way to let me out. I leave the room and go out into the warm, salty air and sit next to him. For the first time in the few days that I spent in North Carolina, the sun is gone and nearly black clouds are where it was. Lightning is illuminating them from the inside, giving the sky an eerie look. The air smells like ozone and feels thick.

"Does it rain a lot here?" I ask.

"No, but when it does, it's usually a bad sign. However, thunder and lightning are a common occurance. Aw, look at the small children abandoning the ocean." he says with a laugh and a nod toward the beach. I turn and see several young kids running out of the water and up the dunes.

"It's probably for the best. Long rods of electricity from the sky and water don't usually mix well."

"Guys, I'm hungry." Kirstie says, showing up as usual. Her hair is sticking out in several directions and the bags under her eyes are apparent.

"Of course you are. Get used to it, hun." Alex says, standing up and towering over her. "When do I get to meet Avi?"

"Whenever you come to New York." He groans and picks her up.

"Hey, jackass, put me down!"

"Now, now. Do you want your child to learn words like that?" he says with mock authority, holding her gently over his shoulder. I bite back a laugh.

"Right now, I don't really care. Oh, God, I think I'm gonna be sick. Put me down. Please. Please!" She starts pounding against his back with her fists and he drops her on her feet. She instantly takes off running into the house.

"Oops?" he says, sitting back down next to me. "Hey! You should come to my house for dinner tonight. You and Kirstie."

"I'm good with that. Obviously you would have to talk to her but I would love that."

"Let me call my parents and ask if that would be okay." He stands up and jogs to the other end of the deck. A few seconds later, I hear, "Scott! Come here!" I stand up and run over to where he is crouched in a panic.

"What? Are you okay?"

"Look! Look look look look look!" He points to something between the bars of the deck and I follow his gaze. At first I don't see anything, but then I see a small turtle moving onto the dune. He takes out his phone and zooms in as much as he can to get a good picture. "Isn't it beautiful?" he breathes, staring wide eyed at the small creature.

"Mhm. Gorgeous." But I am not referring to the turtle. As usual, I am thinking about Mitch.