Redamancy | ✓

F I F T E E N

❥❥❥

MUFFLED LAUGHS ESCAPED my lips when I'd spotted Olivia as she gave a mouthful to the frightened boy before her who she'd caught staring at her butt. She was far from impressed considering he couldn't have been older than thirteen.

Gripping the two smoothies within her grasps, she eyed the boy that turned a few shades brighter in embarrassment and shamed him in front of the few bystanders who looked at the boy in pity but chose to stay out of the heated girl's path because she wasn't wrong to scold him.

He nodded profoundly and then went on to apologise. Olivia seemed satisfied as she stuck her nose into the air and stormed away from the line and made a bee line to the table which I'd sat down at, both of our shopping bags, sprawled across the floor, by my feet.

Two hours in the mall were two hours well spent since we'd picked up so much from all the sales which went on from store to store. I was beyond happy with my purchases and was glad that Olivia suggested we take a break since even though the two of us could practically become professional shoppers, it did become rather tedious.

"The nerve of that boy!" Olivia muttered, rolling her gorgeous eyes and crossing one leg over the other as she sipped on her smoothie and groaned in delight.

I smiled at her and wrapped my slender fingers around the circumference of the plastic cup and mirrored Olivia's actions, my throat delighted by the sudden burst of coolness. "So." Olivia began, placing the smoothie down with a clatter.

"Feels like I've not properly talked to you in forever." She placed her chin onto her palm and leaned against the surface of the silver table. "Fill me in on everything." I knew what she was referring to and realised that this was the perfect chance to fill her in.

"What started off as a plan has turned into something a little different...Don't get me wrong, Caleb is showing the right reaction to Seth and I being so close but-..." I sucked in a breath of air and watched as Olivia's eyes narrowed. "Go on."

Licking my lips, I felt a smile appear across my mouth. "Seth's the best." I could feel a wave of heat fan across me and Olivia's narrowed eyes morphed into wide golf balls. She leaned a little bit and grinned cheekily, a mischievous look in her eyes.

"No, not like that." I shook my head. Olivia then sighed. "We're best friends, right?" My brows furrowed in confusion as I nodded with a sour look on my face. "Of course! What kind of question is that?" Olivia smirked and ran a hand through her beautiful locks of thick hair. "So do you not think I know you well enough to know when you're hiding something." I was lost for words because I didn't have a clue where she was going with this.

I shrunk back into the safety of my seat and listened. "I'm not surprised, though...I mean, have you seen him? God, if I wasn't head over heels for Tyler, I'd-..." Olivia had a really dirty mind and so lifting a hand to stop her from uttering another word, I squeaked in protest. "Stop!" Olivia paused and threw her head back, a series of laughter escaping her red lips.

"Now spill everything, don't you dare leave anything out. I wanna know all about you and Seth." I quirked a shy grin and fiddled with the straw that poked out form the centre of the cups lid.

"Well...he's just...it's just that...I think...Seth is amazing. He's got that charm about him but that's not all there. He listens to me all the time and our conversations always have my full attention. He's taught me to let go of the reigns a little bit and when he's around, I can't stop smiling and he's the reason why. What we have is special he's one of my closest friends!" Olivia seemed to be on the edge of her seat the whole time until I'd uttered the last word. Suddenly, she stared at me in horror, her light brows meeting.

"Friends?" I nodded as a brow shot up. Silence enveloped the two of us and I uncomfortably shifted in my seat as Olivia looked at me with hawk like eyes. She pursed her lips and crossed her arms over his chest. "I call bullsh*t."

I didn't know what to say, especially when she swore with such certainty. Eyeing my best friend with a concerned look, I waited for her to elaborate.

"The way you were talking about him was not how people talk about their friends! Come on, Rory, you need to hear yourself! You can't stop smiling and he's the reason, He listens, He's amazing, what you have is special! Rory, it's pretty clear to me that you like him." Olivia's words sounded like utter nonsense until they finally hit me gradually and not all at once.

Seth evoked these things within me and I didn't know how or why, all I knew was that he was the reason. Seth Hunters had truly grown on me and I couldn't imagine what it would be like without him. I didn't want to.

So many questions with zero answers flooded my brain like a river. Fast and uncontrollable. I bit my lip as I thought to myself and fiddled with my fingers, it was a nervous habit which I couldn't ever seem to kick.

"Rory, how can you not see it! I certainly can. Your eyes lit up the whole time you talked about him and you smiled in a way that I haven't seen for a long time. You like Seth!"

Meeting Olivia's eyes, I sucked in a deep breath and felt my chest tighten. I didn't know what to say or what to think. I remained silent and played with the napkin placed beside my hand like a bored child. With understanding eyes, Olivia averted the direction of the conversation when she was certain that I wasn't going to talk about it.

"Moving on, what are you going to do about Caleb? Personally, I think he doesn't deserve you. He's a d*ckhead who can't see the gem standing before his very eyes. I think that you and Se-..." She paused but I knew what her next words were going to be. A part of me wanted to hear her say the words but I pushed away such a thought.

Composing herself, she spoke again. "Do you think you and Caleb will last?" My features stiffened as I searched Olivia's eyes for the answer only to kick myself because she shouldn't be the one to fix every situation of mine.

"I love him." I shrugged. "And he loves me too." The hopeful glint in her eyes disappeared all at once and I felt my chest rapidly return to its heavy state. Olivia looked away and her mouth was shut, the zipper pulled to the side, containing the words that I could see she was bursting to say.

Then she looked up and stared at me blankly and asked me a question. "Do you really?" Before I could utter my next words, I had stopped myself because with widened eyes, I realised what those very next words were and they petrified me because then it would change everything. I'm not sure.

❥❥❥