Just Friends

*1*

"I don't know why you love doing this so much, it's kinda boring." FP huffs as he lays beside Alice on a blanket they've spread out on the shore of Sweetwater River.

It's their spot, their own little sanctuary, the place they can escape to when their problems become too much to bear. It's been that way since they were tykes. When the inhabitants of Sunnyside trailer park got tired of listening to them yell and chase after each other, they found the hidden riverbank and made it theirs.

She rolls her eyes at him. "You just don't like anything that doesn't involve alcohol or sex."

"Well both of those are more fun than looking at the sky." He smirks.

"Are you really looking at the sky?" Alice questions, emphasizing the word.

His eyebrows crinkle as he turns to her. "I'm literally staring at it right now."

"No, I mean are you actually seeing more than just the surface level stuff. The constellations, the moon, all of the stars... They all tell their own little stories. It's so beautiful."

He watches as she stares up in wonder, smiling a little to himself. There's not many times Alice looks at peace, like really, truly at peace, with nothing bothering her or weighing on her mind. It makes him reconsider how boring he originally thought this was. So instead of complaining, he rests on his elbows and stares up, trying to see what she sees. "You really like this stuff, huh?"

"I love it." She answers with a cheeky smile. "Sometimes you can even see comets, or shooting stars. It's rare though."

"A shooting star? Like the kind in the nursery rhymes that you make a wish on?" Alice nods, her eyes glued to the sky. "So you still believe in magic stars and you're a space nerd. No wonder you're single."

She elbows him. "I'm single by choice you dweeb. No strings to hold me down or boss me around." She explains.

She had tried the serious dating thing, and it hadn't been for her. She had yet to find anyone who understood her completely, understood the space she sometimes needed, and how proud, her stubborn she was. So instead, she had sworn off of it, opting to have her fun while she was young.

"And for your information, I'm not a space nerd. I'm a sky nerd, there's a difference."

He chuckles. "If you say so."

"I'm just having fun."

"You consider screwing Jamie Reynolds, fun?" He makes a face, he's never liked the boy, ever since they both joined the football team and constantly were fighting for the same spot. Which is why he wasn't exactly thrilled when Alice told him who her latest fling was.

She laughs and shoves him down onto his back. "He's a good kid." Alice insists. "He's a good lay too."

"I'm a good lay, you wanna try?" He winks suggestively at her and she shoves him away with a chuckle.

"You wish." She drawls, scooting closer to him.

"Fine, your loss. But remember, I live just next door if you change your mind." He emphasizes the suggestive sentence with a wink.

"You've lived beside me since we were just little bastard Southside babies. Haven't changed my mind yet have I?"

A loud crack fills the air before he can respond and they both look towards the sky, watching as a flash of lightning illuminates it.

"Was that a shooting star?" FP questions.

She blinks, wondering if he's serious. "No that... that was lightning." She shakes her head and offers him a hand as she stands up. "Come on, lets go."

"No, wait," he takes her hand to yank her back down beside him. "Dad's drunk, and I don't wanna go home yet. Can we just stay here?" He pleads with her.

On one hand she really doesn't want to stay out here, especially with lightning and presumably, a rainstorm on the horizon, but she also knows that Senior is a mean drunk.

So yeah, maybe getting stuck in a downpour isn't ideal, but having to bandage FP up at three in the morning again, sounds a hell of a lot worse.

"Yeah, we can stay as long as you want." And with that, she presses herself close to his side, and rests her head on his shoulder, awaiting the upcoming lightning show.