"This is what she had become."
=====
Cleopatra Banks' last week in the small town of New Chelsea is nothing like she would have imagined it, but nothing could have prepared her for the stinging betrayal she's faced with and suddenly the prospect of...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
My serene moment on the log and the silence I managed to acquire outside is broken when someone sits next to me. It gives a slight crackling noise indicating its fragility and I almost laugh when Ethan swears under his breath before standing up again.
I look up and give him a rueful smile.
He looks down at me before quickly looking away at the direction of the lonely open road.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to upset you," he says.
"It's okay. You were right," I reply. He looks back at me with his hands stuffed in his front pockets. "You were right about everything. I'm a mess," I continue, trying to meet the gaze behind his glasses.
"I don't know where to start or how to fix it," I whisper the words, hugging myself when a cool gust of wind blows by.
"You've already started Cleopatra, you just need...clarity," he tells me as he directs his gaze to the sky above. I follow his line of sight to where the sun is hiding behind a few graying clouds.
"We should probably get going, it looks like it'll start raining anytime soon," he says.
I furrow my eyebrows "I don't feel like going home yet," I reply, stretching my legs in front of me to further indicate that I'm not prepared to go anywhere.
I still don't know how I'm going to face my parents yet.
"Yeah me too," he replies, running a hand through his hair. I look away, because heaven knows I'll only end up staring at his bicep again.
"Maybe we could take a drive, you know...for your clarity," he responds. I look into his face to get a clearer idea of what he's up to but his expression is completely blank. Maybe I should get him to talk to Joanne again, I swear he shows like zero emotion all the time except for when he's talking to her.
"Okay, let's go for a drive," I give in, standing up from my little log and right in front of him.
"I'll just let Joanne know. You can wait by the car," he says before heading back into the shop. Instead of listening to him I follow closely behind until we're both standing in front of the counter where Joanne is attending to a customer.
Ethan gives me a look I would closely associate with a glare but I brush it off and turn my attention to Joanne as she hands over a box to a happy customer.
"Hey you two," she beams up at us once the customer has left. She mentions nothing about my dramatic little episode from moments ago and for that I'm grateful.
"Hey Joanne, I just came to let you know that we'll be leaving now," Ethan informs the elderly woman. I roll my eyes and address Joanne.
"We came to let you know that we'll be leaving," I add with a smile. She gives a light chuckle while Ethan clears his throat.
