Hearts, Scars & Horseshoes

Chapter 71 - Toby

I kicked my board up into my hand, my fingers clutching the tail. I had soaked through my shirt from the hot humid air and physical exertion over the past couple hours. I walked to the bench that Lars was parked on, relieved that he had been able to snag some shade.

"Dylan's on his way, he's bringing pizza." Lars said as I sat. He gestured at his neck saying, "you still got your.."

I reached up, my fingers finding the little bandaid still stuck to my skin from when I went to my check up earlier. I peeled it off, discarding the bandaid in a trash can near by.

"Is Mark coming?" I asked, the two of us wincing as we watched Perrin hit the ground after trying to land some trick.

Lars shook his head. "Nah, he said he's doing something with Tori."

"No way?"

He nodded his head, both of us still watching Perrin as he scraped himself off the pavement, inspecting himself for damages.

"Yeah, she's all he talks about now. Surprisingly less annoying than he usually is."

I laughed, "give it another week."

Lars shrugged. "I'd rather have him obsessed over a girl than his normal douchebag self. At least he's focused on something."

He had a point, Mark was the rambler of the group. He didn't have a goal, he was just floating through life letting shit happen like he had no control over it. I guess to a degree it was true but at the same time there was a level of control. And Mark needed to find some.

"You think he actually likes her?" I asked.

The question kept popping up in my head here and there. I was slightly concerned that Mark would be an ass at some point and Tori would hate him. It would eventually affect Faith and I because they were our friends. And I didn't want anything more to add to the list of shit that could go wrong between Faith and I. I was adding to it enough on my own.

"Yeah, I don't think he's stupid enough to not realize she's way outta his league." Lars looked over at me, his eyes squinted against the sun. "I mean, if you ask me, she shouldn't even give Mark the time of day."

I nodded my head in agreement. But wasn't that how it was? Faith was out of my league for sure. She was way too amazing. Yet there she was.

"Pizzas here." I announced, staring past Lars as Dylan appeared with a couple of hot and readys.

"Thank god, I'm starving." Perrin said as he walked to us, his arm raw and angry.

"Damn, that's some road rash." I commented.

He glanced down at his arm, his eyebrows knit together. "Yeah it hurts."

"Need us to call Aiden so he can come kiss your boo-boo?" Dylan asked, dropping the pizza on the bench seat.

"Fuck off." Aiden shoved him but a smile still came to his face.

"Just because Mark isn't here doesn't mean you get to fill in for the asshole." Lars scolded.

"Pass me some pizza." I called out over their bickering.

"What do I look like, your mom?" Dylan said.

"Nah you're too ugly to be my mom." I reached over Lars, pulling two pieces from the pie and handed one off to Perrin.

"Yeah, Mrs. Mack is a MILF." Aiden said.

"How would you know?" Dylan questioned.

Aiden laughed. "I'm gay asshole, not blind."

Lars shook his head, his fingers pinching the bridge of his nose like he was experiencing physical pain. Sometimes I wondered why Lars hung out with us, he'd always been the more mature one.

I slapped him on the back, laughing. He glanced over out of the corner of his eye, amusement shining through his mature exterior.

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I was leaned over the counter, running the end of a capped pen through the gouges of the wooden counter top. There was two tables in the entire cafe. One inside, Chelsea's, and one outside, mine.

"I have never seen it this dead." Chelsea said, taking a similar position beside me.

Her arm was pressed against mine, her auburn hair pulled back into a braid that was falling apart.

"Happens occasionally. It should pick up for dinner." I told her.

"I hope so." She blew out a breath, leaning into me even more. "Does Isaac hate me?"

"No, why?" I asked, looking down at her.

"He basically bites my head off every time I have to talk to him." She said quietly, she looked innocent with her wide blue eyes filled with concern.

I laughed. "Nah, that's just Isaac, the only person he doesn't do that to is Jane. I think they have thing."

"Really?" She glanced behind her at Isaac who was only a handful of feet away from us, chopping veggies at lightening speed. I cringed watching the blade flash around so close to his fingers, I had to look away. "Yeah, I could see that. I bet Jane would have his head if he snapped at her."

"No doubt." I agreed.

The front door shoved open, a feat that always disrupted the quiet in the cafe. I wondered if the door being old, creaky, and swollen in the jam was apart of the cafes charm or if the owner was just lazy. But a moment later, a blond ponytail fell through the door.

"Mina!" Chelsea squealed, causing Elijah's heart to panic in my chest. "You're here!"

The blond, Mina, righted herself, a backpack slung over her shoulder. "My class ended early but I wasn't quite ready to go home. Thought I'd take the opportunity to study and eat."

Chelsea had left the counter where we had been leaning, wrapping her friend in a hug. I decided to slip out and check on my table before finding a quite corner to text Faith.

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What is this!? Two updates less than two days. Don't get used to it. Haha. But I'm trying.