Splash!

Chapter Fourteen

Dinner went by slowly. Everyone was still tense from the argument before dinner. For the majority of the time, my parents attempted to direct questions more towards me. "Meet any cute boys, Lapis?"

    I poked at my macaroni with a spoon, "Nah."

Peridot opened her mouth. I kicked her under the table before she could speak. I didn't know what she was going to say, but it probably wouldn't be good.

My dad was intent on the topic so the question was asked again, this time to Peridot. "No. I'm more interested in girls."

My mom laughed and nodded, "Teenage boys can be too crazy to handle sometimes."

Peridot's face hardened and she went silent.

My mom continued talking. "Lapis, do you remember Coal?" She giggled. "You two were so cute together, do you still talk to him much?"

I took a bite of macaroni and shook my head. My mom frowned and nodded. "Oh," Her face suddenly lit into a smile. "Well his mom is coming to town for the weekend and he's coming too. You guys can hang out."

I nodded, my heart dropping. Today was Friday which means I had to hang out with Coal tomorrow. Coal was a pretty nice guy, but every time I saw him, he flirted with me like I was his girlfriend. Which I obviously was not. "That's going to be fun." I forced a smile onto my face. "Can I be excused? Peridot and I are going to work on homework."

My mom and dad nodded and Peridot followed me over to my room. I had some harsh comments to say, remembering how Jasper and she broke into my house. I kept my mouth shut though, not in the mood to start a fight. Peridot laid her phone on my bed. "Hey could I set my contact picture?" I asked hesitantly.

She nodded, unlocked her phone, and handed it to me. "Just take a picture and I'll set it." She paused for a moment. "Where's your bathroom?"

"First door on the left." I replied.

She nodded and left, leaving me with her phone. After I quickly entered my number, I tapped on the "notes" app. I clicked the most recent note, being from about an hour earlier when we were walking. It read:

"Kissing Lazuli was quite an... experience. I'm headed to her house at the moment to meet her parents. I think she likes me."

I stopped reading to scoff. She was the one to invite herself over. What a liar; it seemed like she just wanted to feel good about herself. I continued to read.

"Who am I kidding? Hell, I'm the one who likes her. She could never like someone like me."

Under that, Peridot had taken a picture of me when I wasn't looking. I was tempted to delete it, but then she would know I was in her personal notes.

"Maybe if I can get her parents to like me, I'll have a better chance. Should I just try to be friends with her first? I think I'll try to put on some makeup to impress her. That's what boys do with girls, right? I've never been in this situation, what do I do?"

The note ended just like that. A plea that would never be replied to. I sat down on my bed and switched the app to camera. I took a quick selfie and set it as my contact picture. It shouldn't take Peridot nearly as long as it was taking her so I stood up and walked to the bathroom door. I hesitated before knocking. "Go away." Came Peridot's pathetic reply.

Her voice seemed wavery, as if she was trying not to cry. I took a quarter out of my pocket and twisted it in the shallow dent that was supposed to be a keyhole. The door swung open, Peridot, leaning against the counter, head swung over to look at Lapis, her mouth forming an o. She had attempted eyeliner, but she had tried to take it off earlier by the looks of it. Black smudges marked her eyes and badly put on lipstick ringed her mouth. I made a 'tsk' noise and strolled over to Peridot. I grabbed my washcloth and ran warm water on it. I then gently rubbed off Peridot's failed makeup. She didn't try to stop me.