SOMEBODY ELSE ⇢ LUIS MENDOZA [2]

ten

Hailee ended up ditching school to go to the carnival with Charlie and Fulton.
The minute she entered the school, she was dragged into the supply closet by the boys and they told her they all deserved a day off.

So here she was, attempting to get Luis and Adam out of her mind.

"What do you say we do the coaster? Fulton asked Charlie and Hailee.
"Forget it, man. We're too old for that." Charlie replied, taking a bit of his snack.

"Who says we're too old?" Hailee smirked.
"Yeah, come on, man. It'll be fun." Fulton nodded in agreement.
Charlie sighed. "Alright."

Fulton agreed to sit on his own for the ride, so Hailee sat with Charlie at the front.

They held their arms up on the ride and cheered.

After the ride, they got another snack, but Hailee passed on that one, since she was beginning to feel a little sick.

"Chocolate-dipped bananas!" Charlie heard a man at a stall announce.
"Oh man!" Charlie said, with a mouthful of food.

"What can I get you?" The man asked.
Hailee laughed. "More food, Charlie?"
Charlie nodded and smiled, with his face full of food.

After that, they went on ride, after ride, after ride. So Hailee wasn't surprised when she found herself stood beside the boys, who both had their heads inside the trashcan, vomiting.

In the end, the police came to escort them out of the carnival. "Take it outside, boys."

***

"Hey, Hailee?" Charlie asked as he, Hailee and Fulton left the carnival.
"Yeah?" She replied, finishing her Coke and throwing it into the trash can.
"What did Adam and Luis mean when they were fighting?" Charlie questioned.

Hailee sighed. "I shouldn't have told Luis..."
"Told him what?" Fulton raised an eyebrow.
"I broke up with him. After seeing him with that blonde cheerleader and him acting as if nothing was wrong around me, I couldn't take it anymore."

Charlie almost choked on the last of his chocolate-dipped banana. "Luis cheated on you?"
Hailee nodded, brushing her hands through her hair. "But it felt so great to be taking charge, and the day before the game, Adam wanted to talk to me about it-"

"Wait, backup," Charlie interjected. "How early on before the game?"
"Before you guys even started your 'mini-war'." Hailee replied, using her fingers to put 'mini-war' in quotation marks.

"So throughout all of that... you kept it quiet?" Fulton asked. Hailee nodded.
"Damn..." He mumbled.
"I couldn't keep it quiet. And I have to admit, I enjoyed seeing the look on his face."

Charlie forced out a laugh, after a long moment of silence. "Wow..."
"Pretty mean, I know. But it's crazy that I'm still in love with him."
"Luis?" Fulton asked.
"I hate the fact that I was the reason Luis stepped into the fight." Hailee sighed. She was getting upset just talking about it. "Can we change the subject, please?" Her voice croaked a little.

"U-uh, yeah." Charlie stammered, trying to think of something to say. "This sure beats school, huh?" Charlie asked as he, Fulton and Hailee walked down an alleyway.

Hailee nodded. "This really is great."
Fulton grumbled, still feeling a little uneasy.

"Hey, listen, tomorrow will be more fun." Charlie said, running up the stairs.
"Yeah, but after that, I mean, what? We can't do this forever."
"Yeah," Hailee agreed as her and Fulton followed Charlie up the stairs. "I thought we were just missing today."

"Yeah, I know. See, the way I got it figured, we go to public school for a couple of years, then we just go play juniors in Canada. You only gotta be 17." Charlie told them.

"Man, Charlie. I don't even know if I could make Juniors." Fulton sighed.
"Are you kidding me? With your shot? Come on." Charlie laughed.

"I mean, I don't know if I want to play hockey for the rest of my life." Fulton admitted.
Hailee and Charlie exchanged glances for a second, before staring at Fulton.

"I'm sorry."
"You're going back." Charlie said.
"We can deal, man. The Ducks are there."

Charlie laughed and shook his head. "Dude. Fine. Just get outta here then. I don't care! I don't need you, go!"
"Charlie-" Hailee began.
"No," Fulton cut her off. "I get it. I'll go."

Charlie and Hailee watched as Fulton walked off. Charlie tugged at his hair and Hailee sat down beside him. "C'mon, Charlie. That was harsh. If he doesn't wanna play hockey for the rest of his life-"
"Don't tell me you're quitting on me, too." Charlie said with gritted teeth.

"What's gotten into you lately?" Hailee questioned.
Charlie shook his head. "You better go too, Hailee. Besides, I think you've got some stuff to sort out." He said, coldly.

Hailee knew exactly what he was talking about. She used her hands to push herself up. Hailee brushed herself down and nodded. "Okay. If you're gonna keep acting like this, then fine. I'll see you around, Charlie."

And with that, Hailee walked back down the stairs and made her way home, leaving Charlie.