Nobody Like You

Chapter Five

I walk into the bedroom that Katie will be staying in the entire trip. She and Casey are laughing their heads off at something. I stand quietly in the doorway until they notice my presence. Casey wipes the corner of her eyes and sighs; I can tell she's having a blast. At least someone is having a good night.

"We were just on our way back down." Katie says.

"Yeah, we started off talking about hair products, then we got on the topic of Luca. I didn't know you guys went to the same school as us." She sounds excited.

"Yeah, Luca's in one of my classes." I nod my head.

"Must suck for you." Casey shakes her head.

Is she really talking badly about her brother? I think I like her already.

"I'm not gonna lie—it kinda does." I laugh.

"Try living with him." She chuckles. "He must still be outside, huh?"

"Yeah, I left because you guys were taking forever."

"We weren't taking that long." Katie tilts her head to the side.

"Yes, you guys were." I nod my head.

"Where's Zack?"

"I guess he went to his room." I shrug my shoulders.

"I'm gonna go check on him." She says. "I'll meet you guys outside."

Casey and I walk outside in complete silence. It's not really awkward to me because I don't know her. I don't know if it's awkward for her. I don't mind being silent. Silence can be somewhat therapeutic to me, depending on the circumstances. I guess silence is a great way to cope with anxiety. When everything is silent, you don't have to worry about anything making your nerves go all over the place—that is until you're laying down in your bedroom at night, that's when it hits different.

Luca is still sitting in the same spot I left him—only this time he is on his phone. He looks up when he hears us and puts his phone in his pocket. We take a seat at the table and Casey is the first one to speak.

"Did you know that we were gonna be here with Katie and Zakiyah?" She raises her eyebrows.

"Did you know?" He asks back.

"No." She shakes her head.

"Then, how could I?" He narrows his eyes at her.

"Don't have to be a smart ass about it." She rolls her eyes and mumbles underneath her breath.

"That was a dumb question." He throws an used napkin at her.

And this is all too hilarious to me.

I've never really seen how Luca Novak acts. This teasing altercation with his sister gives me a little insight on his character. He always seems like the type of person to be smug and cocky. He also comes off as a douchebag, but that is absolutely nothing new. It amazes me that he has a humorous side too. Sometimes I wish I had a sibling to tease and argue with. It gets lonely being an only child.

"Whatever." She flicks him off.

"So, Casey, are you a freshman?" I ask.

"Nope, I'm a sophomore." She shakes her head. "People always ask me if I'm a freshman, though."

"You look young, that's why I asked." I chuckle.

"Thanks, I guess." She laughs. "You and Katie seem really cool. I wonder why I haven't seen you guys around school."

"It is a pretty big school, Casey." Luca says in a monotone voice.

"And you are a pretty big douchebag." She rolls her eyes.

"Do you guys argue a lot?" I laugh.

"All the time." She nods her head. "Gotta still love him, though."

I look at Casey as she speaks, but I don't fail to notice how Luca stares at me. I don't like people looking at me. For the simple fact that I know he's looking at me, my heart instantly starts beating faster. I get really anxious whenever someone stares at me without saying anything. It's just the way I am. I hate the way that I cannot tell what they are thinking about me.

"Got any siblings?" Luca asks me.

"Nope." I shake my head and calm down a bit.

"Oh." He nods his head.

I think this is the most I've said to Luca without judging him in my head. Normally, I always call him names in my head, but I don't seem to be doing that right now. He seems less than a douchebag right now—well, I guess that counts as not judging him.

"I'm gonna go ask Mom and Dad when we're leaving." Casey gets up and walks into the house.

"I don't know how many times I have to tell her that she shouldn't interrupt our parents when they're doing business." He shakes his head.

"I'm guessing that's why you've been sitting out here this whole time."

"That and there's nothing else to do." He shrugs his shoulders.

"This is a beach house." I say. "There's plenty of stuff to do."

"Maybe I've just been here too many times. Nothing excites me anymore."

"How often do you guys come here?"

Wow, I'm actually talking to Luca.

"Every summer. Every spring break and sometimes on holidays." He grabs a napkin and starts shredding it to pieces with his fingers.

I don't mean to call myself an expert on behavior or anything of the sorts, but I can definitely tell that he doesn't like talking about things like this. So, I decide to shut up about it because I'm probably getting on his nerves.

"What about you?" He says after a moment of silence. "Do you have a vacation home?"

"Uh, no." I chuckle.

I look at the table and all the white pieces of the napkin next to his hands. This guy has some serious issues. I watch him as he pulls out a vape from his pocket.

"You're seriously about to vape right now?" I can't hide the disgust in my voice.

"Yeah." He shrugs his shoulders.

"Katie's parents and your parents are in the house."

"Your point?"

"That's pretty reckless."

"I'm pretty reckless." He states. "Wanna vape?"

"No, I don't do that."

"Then, stop staring." His eyes are cold.

And that's when I forget about the humorous side of him. He's still Luca Novak, the douchebag who smokes and drinks. The one who comes into class smelling like weed everyday. The one who has a small circle of fake friends that fear him. The one that appears to be a misfit in his own family.

I don't say anything to him as I get up from my seat and walk into the house. Luca never fails to piss me off, no matter what he does. I've never liked him and I never will.