The Truth in a Dare

Chapter 10

Purple and peach streaks twisted across the sky as the fire added flying embers to the mix. I sat up from in between Evan and Alec and reached for a s'more. 

"Is that your third one?" Evan interrogates me and I plaster on the most innocent smile I could come up with.

"Maybe?" I answer cautiously and Alec chuckles.

"You should've seen it, one summer she ate ten s'mores and was still able to play all of the, very active, night games," Alec tells the story I was hoping he wouldn't and I cringe at my own history.

"You're kidding, right?" Evan wonders and I nod vigorously in response as I stuff the s'more into my mouth. My head flickered from Alec to Evan as Evan roped his arm around my shoulders. He was doing well with casually making it look like we were a couple. He was a better actor than I thought he would be.

"Not even in the slightest," Alec chuckles as he looks at my death glare and Evan joins in.

"You don't look very threatening with all that marshmallow and chocolate covering your lips. Just wanted to let you know," Evan teases me and I roll my eyes exasperatedly. I try to lick all the marshmallow off my lips and that's when Evan leans in a little too close.

"I could help you out," he whispers as his voice drops to a very eery husky level. 

"We're in front of my family," I gasp out, finally speaking up for myself out of all this so very cruel teasing.

"We could use the practice. I plan on rubbing it in in front of Patricia," he whispers even lower, so Alec couldn't here. And that's when my eyes flicker up to his and we both stop in our tracks. His blue eyes seemed to glow from the firelight and the embers looked as if they became a part of his hybrid blue eyes. They had a flicker of yellow in the middle that almost made you think they were part green from farther away. But when you were this close, you could tell they were an amber yellow. 

His eyes dash from my lips to my eyes and then back again. Which made me nervous as to what he would do next. His eyes hold mine for another surprisingly electric moment and then he leans back and acts like nothing happened, while I'm still reeling from what the hell just happened.

"I'm going to go use the restroom," I lie and excuse myself for a moment to just breathe without inhaling the scent of Evan's cologne. That scent was suddenly repulsive at the moment. I walk towards the house and then take a quick swerve and head towards the pasture.

My phone begins to ring in my pocket and I pick up the call to hear Kayden's voice.

"Hey! Why didn't you take me with you?!" he whines, causing me to laugh as I trudge through the tall grass towards the middle of the pasture.

"Sorry, Kayden. My family met Evan the other night and they insisted that he come this year," I apologize, beginning to imagine what it would be like if Kayden were here instead.

"It's okay. Just wanted to give you a hard time. How is it with you and Evan? Is the family accepting him their own?" Kayden asks shyly. As if he were afraid of how I was going to answer.

"Oh, just great. He's actually much different than when he's around his friends. It's kinda shocking," I inquired. It was actually true. He was much less up front and confrontational when he was away from all of his friends. 

"Very cool," Kayden replies drably. I let out a sigh as I imagine his face right in front of me. And what it would be like to have him here walking with me instead.

"I guess so. Alec and Luke miss you a lot,"  I add in hopefully. I could practically hear Kayden smiling through the phone.

"Of course they do! I've been there every year for the past six years!" Kayden exclaims and I laugh at his exasperated tone. 

"I know, I know. I get it," I state calmly as I hear Kayden sigh on the other end.

"Well, I gotta go but I just wanted to check in on how your new boyfriend was doing with your crazy family," Kayden says softly, like he was afraid this moment of silence and peace would break if he spoke any louder.

"Yeah," I reply, not knowing what else to say to that when I really wanted him here instead of Evan.

"Don't eat too many s'mores, Mar," he ends with my nickname, which causes me to almost melt on the inside, and then hangs up the phone with a sigh. 

I finally look around and notice that I had made it to the highest point in the pasture and I could almost touch the stars. Or at least it felt like it. And there were probably millions of them! They covered the sky as if a toddler had spilled a bottle of multi-colored glitter all over a piece of navy blue paper. This was my all time favorite spot. And I always used to come up here with Kayden. And when I turned around to do a spin, I spot Alec grinning as he comes up the hill.

"Hey there star catcher," Alec greets me as he bridges the gap between us and wraps his arms around my shoulder from behind. 

"Hey," I say softly, watching as the lights of a plane slowly glide through the field of stars. 

"We're heading down to the waterfall tomorrow morning. Wanna join us?" He invites as he rests his chin on my shoulder and lets out a warm sigh that tickled my chest.

"Only if we do a sleepover out here tonight," I grin as the idea pops out of my mouth and Alec chuckles.

"Definitely," Alec answers happily.

"Ooh! Look, it's Orion's belt," I say as point out across the sky at the three stars all in a row.

"And there's the big dipper," Alec tilts my whole body as he outstretches his arm and points towards the western sky.

"Damn it. You're always the first one to find that one," I moaned softly and Alec chuckles, his chest rumbling against my spine.

"Well, maybe you should be a bit more observative than, huh?" he whispers as we sway like the grass in the pasture underneath the sheet of stars.

"I've missed you too, Alec," I see right through his statement and he scoffs.

"I never said that," he reminds me, laughter rolling across our lips as even he already knew that he was busted.

"But you see, I'm psychic so I can read your mind," I jest and he laughs even harder.

"Yeah right, you're pure crazy Mar," he corrected me with even more laughter. I chuckle along with him until we both grow silent.

"Fine, I missed you Mar," he finally blurts softly and I smile knowingly.

"See, that wasn't so hard, now was it?" I already know the response he's going to give me and so I lightly pinch his arm.

"Hey! I didn't even say anything!" he exclaims as he rubs the spot where I pinched him.

"Oh, but I knew what you were going to say," I countered and he chuckles, releasing me from his grasp.

"No, you didn't," he retorts and I roll my eyes, deciding to give him a chance to get out of this.

"Fine, what were you going to say?" I give him his chance and he grins mischievously.

"It almost killed me!" he moans. I roll my eyes and he cackles at my sassy eye roll.

"You're the biggest idiot I've ever known," I grumble and Alec continues to laugh.

He walks back over to me and gently wraps his arms around my torso, pulling me closer to him.

"I will always miss you when we're apart, Amara. It's what having a family causes you to do."