downpour / mileven au.

twenty-one.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE;
NO MORE LIES.

eleanor tossed and turned relentlessly all through the night, never once drifting out of consciousness. her slow-falling tears kept both her cheeks and pillows wet, no matter how much she wiped them. sleep was no match for the mike-sized hole in her heart.

as sunlight finally started to peek through her curtains, she flipped over to glance at her alarm clock which read '6:17 am.' she sighed, tossing the covers from her body. 

her feet slid against her carpet as she approached her mirror. she wasn't surprised to find red, puffy eyes and tangled brown locks looking back at her. inhaling deeply, she grabbed a tissue and rubbed the dampness from her cheeks. she carelessly combed her fingers through her hair, cringing in pain but not letting up.

just before she turned away from her reflection, her gaze landed on the red-tinted mark which adorned the base of her neck. as her fingertips swept over the hickey, her thoughts drifted back to hours prior.

the memory of his lips on her skin only made her chest ache, knowing how royally she had screwed up. everything was in pieces. she had made a terrible mess of things, and she had absolutely no clue how to fix any of it. 

she huffed before rummaging through her drawer of makeup, mostly full of things she never used, but she finally found the item she was searching for. she tugged off the lid and applied a generous amount of concealer to the bruise, covering the only trace his mouth had left. she then found a pair of pajama pants before leaving her room and jogging down the stairs to the kitchen. 

at the sound of her intrusion, her father lowered the newspaper he was reading. "uh, morning?" he greeted, shocked that she was up at such an hour. she didn't even wake up this early for school.

she offered him a half-hearted smile as she opened the fridge. "morning, dad. where's will and joyce?" she asked, grabbing the milk. 

he put down the newspaper completely, turning his attention to his daughter. "well, they're asleep, kid. it's only 6:30. i can't believe you're up," he replied, watching as she made herself a bowl of cereal.

she shrugged. "i didn't sleep very well last night. i think i might be sick, actually," she lied before sitting at the table beside him. 

"sick?" he echoed, raising an eyebrow. 

she nodded, taking a spoonful of cheerio's in her mouth. "mhm, i think i might have a fever or something," she continued, not really caring that there was food in her mouth.

"well, if you're sick, maybe going with dean's family to the lake isn't such a good idea," he suggested with an ulterior tone. 

she sighed softly, relieved by her father's obliviousness to her lie. "i think you might be right," she agreed, resting her chin on her palm to fake distress. 

he lifted his hand to her forehead. "kid, you're as cool as a cucumber so, stop lying," her eyes widened at the suddenly assertive tone. "you suddenly don't want to go to the lake with your boyfriend's family the day after mike wheeler climbs up the side of my house to your room in the middle of the night, and you expect me to think you're sick?"

her mouth went dry, and she was thankful to have not taken another bite of her breakfast or she'd likely be choking on cereal at that moment. her mouth gaped as she struggled to form a reply, "i- uh, well, i-"

he rolled his eyes before resting his elbows on the table with a huff, "how long are we going to keep doing this?"

her eyes grew wider, "do-doing what, dad?"