Once in California

CHAPTER 7

Lydia found Stiles next to the bar. She walked to him with a very concerned look in her eyes.  She couldn’t find Emilia and it was driving her crazy.

“Please please, tell me you know where Emilia is?”

Stiles smiled at her.

“Relax, she is fine” He took his phone and gave it to her “Kit sent me a text, he took her home”

Lydia relaxed,  but she was still worried about everything,  she got her cousin drunk.

“Why do you look so worried?” Stiles asked. He took his bottle of water and took a sip. He was done with alcohol for the night.

“Because she wasn’t ok, when I left her and I feel terrible…” she looked around and then at him again. “I should go back and check on her”

“She is with Kit, he will take care of her, come why don’t we dance?” he smirked at her and she just rolled her eyes.

“Maybe you should ask Jenny to dance” she smirked back “Where is she by the way” she asked ironically, she knew where she probably was,  getting some other guy's attention.

Stiles scratched the back of his neck.

“Probably around there with the girls, I guess I…”

“You should find her” she checked her watch for the time “I’m going to head back,  I need to check on Em and see that she is alright”

“Ok,  right,  I’ll drive you, just give me a sec” He smiled

“Can you drive?” she asked, he had been drinking after all.

“What kind of driver do you think I am?” he laughed “don’t worry I’m not drunk”

He went to the dance floor, probably to find Jenny and say goodbye and in less than 3 minutes he was back.

They got to the Jeep and headed back to the guest house.

Stiles was observing her from the corner of his eyes. She looked so quiet, so sweet, definitely not the superficial girl they met a week ago.

“Can I ask you something?” he said. She looked at him and nodded. “What’s your deal with Jenny?”

She turned her head and looked out of the window

“Why?”  she whispered “Did she tell you anything?”

Stiles smiled

“Na…” he said “we don’t talk much” He looked at her again and he saw her blush. he smiled to himself  “but I can see how you look at her and it makes me wonder…”

Lydia sighed. He could see that she was struggling with telling him or not. Finally she talked.

“Jenny and I... we’ve known each other since preschool” she looked at him to see if he was listening and once she checked that, she went on “ ever since then she has always wanted the same things I have”

“What do you mean?” he said,  he was truly intrigued by this.

“You know, If I had a new Barbie she wanted the same one,  when I got a new teddy bear she asked her parents for the same and on and on” she shrugged “I guess it was ok, we were kids…”

“Until?” Stiles knew there was more to the story he could see it in her green eyes, her smiled disappeared and her eyes were sad “You don’t have to say it if you…”

She looked up again

“It’s ok, until I met Luke, my boyfriend” she closed her eyes “my ex-boyfriend actually”