Somewhere Between Florida And Heaven

10~ Offer the guys some eye candy

Lauren, Emma, Joseph, Nathaniel, Marco and I were all sitting on the couch on the back porch of Marco's house. We were able to pack some clothes and school stuff for me before we went to his place where the others were already waiting for us. It didn't take long for them to squeeze all of the Preston drama out of me. So when I was done recounting what had happened at my house, they all started talking through each other. 

"See! I told you he'd come back for her!" Emma told Joseph.

"Wait. You just rejected him, even though you want him as much as he wants you?" Lauren asked me.

I was eating ice cream, legs crossed and my head laying on Nathaniel's shoulder. I didn't answer Lauren, because I, for myself, didn't know what I was doing. It felt right to move on, and that meant to forget about Preston.

We kept eating and laughing, partly listening to Joseph's stories about the people he had met at a carnival yesterday not far away from here. Emma told us about Marco who had an obvious crush on a cheerleader from school and he kept denying it with such a sweet smile carved on his face, every time he heard Emma say her name.

Without warning, Nathaniel swiftly jumped on his feet, causing me to fall back on the sofa, since I used his shoulder as a pillow. Everyone stopped talking when he cleared his throat aloud, standing on the wooden coffee table.

"So guys, as you al--"

"Nate! Get your dirty feet off my table" Marco interrupted him, throwing both arms in the air, as if he asked him if he was serious.

Nathaniel jumped off the table, pointing his finger at Marco to shut him up.

"As you all know, this Saturday is my birthday,"

"You're still going to have a beach party, aren't you?" Lauren asked excited, clapping her hands.

"Yeah, and it's going to be EPIC. There will be good ass music, delicious food," He walked around on the porch, " And a lot of girls in bikinis. So yeah, the beach party is on.".

Emma and I both rolled our eyes.

"So you're saying will be all... swimming?" I hesitated.

I didn't really enjoy swimming at the beach. I mean, it's nice to admire the scenery, but swimming is something I am- I must admit - scared of. You'd lose control, no contact to the ground, and you could even float away because of the waves.

Kind of ironic, since I live in Miami, the beach city.

"The least you could do is get into a bikini, okay? Offer the guys some eye candy" Nathaniel winked. I knew he was just messing, so I played along and jumped on his back.

"You pervert! Be happy you'll still experience your seventeenth birthday!" I pulled his ears and navigated him back towards the couch. We both fell onto it and started laughing. At first, the others just stared at us like we were some animals at the zoo, but then they joined us, cracking up.

I laid my head on Nathaniel's lap and my legs on Emma's. 

"I invited Reed" Nathaniel announced, eyes focused on the old swing we used to hang out on when we were younger in Marco's garden.

"I felt--I still feel guilty because of the whole bike thing, and he was there for you and helped you, even though it was supposed to be me to stand by your side."

"Did he say yes?" I asked him curiously.

"He said he'll think about it."

That's when something flashed my mind.

"Hey. you're not inviting Preston, are you?" I looked up to him, probably frowning. He mimicked my expression and smirked:

"Well, he used to be my friend, and I'm going to be seventeen.."

"Nate." Marco glared at him. He was sitting across from us, arms propped on the armrests of the chair.

"Kidding! I'm kidding!" 

He looked down on me, pinching my cheek.

"He's going to hell, not to my party. And just so you know: Who breaks my bff's heart is never considered to be my friend." He tensed up, ready to hurt anyone who hurts me. I pulled his head down to me and hugged him tightly, earning a little chuckle from him.

"Camille? Are you fine?" a small girly voice asked me. We all turned to the backdoor, watching Destiny slowly walking towards us. She was tiny and her voluminous black hair was tied back, her big eyes popping out of her head. She was wearing a khaki dress, complementing her soft dark skin color.

I stretched out both arms, gesturing her to hug me, and she did so.

"I'm doing great, sweetie. Nathaniel is just telling us about his birthday plans." I offered her a huge smile, since that's the only thing possible to do when there's a small puppy standing in front of you. She is literally the personification of pureness.

"So you're not sad because of your parents?". She must have overheard her parents telephoning mine.

"Yes, I am a bit sad, but I'll recover, yeah? I'll be fine."

She nodded and kissed her brother on the cheek before she left. Lauren made fun of him and then they continued talking while I was starting to trail of.

My mood darkened. Maybe it was because of my parents, or Preston. I may have build a wall around me to protect what's left, but that wall was so fragile, one wrong move and it would break so easily, it scared me. 

~~

The next day I woke up, it was Wednesday.

So much happened the last two days, it felt like a whole week.

I was laying with Marco in his king sized bed, hearing him snort. I turned to look at him, when I noticed that the sun was already shining. I began to wonder what time it was.

I groaned, looking for my phone, when I found it under my comforter. The display was to bright for my eyes. When they finally got used to the light, I looked at the time.

7:02 AM.

7:02 AM!!!!

"MARCO! MARCO WAKE UP, IT'S SEVEN!! " I shook him as hard as I could. He just groaned and pushed my face away. I then decided to nudge him out of the bed, making sure he'd be awake by now.

"God, Cam! What is wrong with you?!" 

I rolled down to the floor next to him and showed him my phone display. His eyes widened, not appearing as tired as they did before.

He stumbled onto his feet and quickly grabbed some clothes out of the drawer.

"What are doing?" He said, "Come on! Put your clothes on and hurry!"

We dressed and packed our stuff, hastily running down the stairs to the dining room where Mr. and Mrs. Wright and Destiny were already having breakfast.

Marco snatched some toast and an apple, I kissed both Wrights on the cheek, hugged Destiny and grabbed some waffles.

We headed out to his car and jumped to our seats. He drove off and after ten minutes, we parked in the school parking lot. It was fifteen minutes past seven and school started in five. 

We ran to our classes, arriving on time before the bell rang.

~~

The next days passed calmly. No Jonathan, No Preston. Only me and my friends talking about everything and nothing. My parents called a few times to check on me, but they didn't persist me on coming back home. I guess they both needed some time off as much as I did. They needed to figure things out between them, before involving me again.