third time's a charm

sneaking, hunting, and bullying

chapter sixteen: sneaking, hunting, and bullying

Saturday, December 16. 1:42 pm.

"Driving to your house makes me feel sneaky." I laughed quietly at Jamie's words as I opened the passenger seat door. "I'm serious; Vales could see me at any second. There's no guarantee of safety."

"Shouldn't that make you feel... scared?" I asked, thinking he was foolish. I got into his car as he responded:

"Well, it's a thrill—a sneaky thrill," Jamie explained, doing his best to clear up his meaning. Once I was settled, I looked over at Jamie to see him smiling widely. "Fuck, you're pretty."

"Shut up," I said as my cheeks filled with color and began to burn.

"I will not shut up," he told me, shaking his head as he continued to smile. "Eloise Bosley, you're beautiful."

"Thank you, Jamie," I told him, honestly meaning it.

"I'm glad you're coming with us," he told me, leaning over the middle console to get closer to me. "Can I have a kiss?" I nearly cooed at him as he asked—realizing how cute he was—but I composed myself as I simply nodded. I kissed him gently, and he kissed me back. His breath was minty, and I could tell he was freshly showered; he smelled like a dream.

"You know... no one's ever actually told me that," I spoke once we had pulled away; Jamie had finally started to make his way out of my driveway.

"What?" Jamie asked, confused as to what I was referring to.

"That they thought I was beautiful," I told him, looking down at my hands that were playing with the end of my sweater. I felt especially pretty today, for no reason in particular, and having Jamie compliment me had made my confidence grow even more in mere seconds.

"Well... it's the truth," Jamie told me, leaning over and placing a kiss on my cheek as he stopped at a stop sign. I turned the radio on in Jamie's car as a comfortable silence found its way in the car. A station playing Christmas music is what Jamie had been listening to last, so that's what we listened to. We both quietly sang along to the music, and I couldn't help but smile at Jamie's voice; he genuinely sounded good.

"Is there anything you can't do, Jamison Burnside?" I asked, deciding to tease him.

"Huh?" he asked, seeming confused.

"Basketball star, talented artist... a grammy award winning vocalist?" Jamie's eyes playfully rolled as I clarified, and he glanced over at me.

"I am pretty talented at just about everything," Jamie was being cocky, but he was only joking. "Except I'm sort of shit at cooking, I suck at math and science, I can't flip bottles without injuring myself, I'm bad at using scissors, and I personally think I'm not very good at rapping. It's a skill I simply don't possess." I laughed loudly at Jamie's final statement. "Hey, I'm serious! It's an insecurity of mine."

"You're so dumb," I said, shaking my head as I continued to laugh. "You can't use scissors?"

"I can... I just don't really cut in straight lines. It's really difficult for some reason." Jamie's shoulders shrugged, and I laid my head back against the seat, a smile on my face. "You know, you're one to talk, Little Miss Harvard."

"I am not going to get into Harvard," I told him, thinking it was silly of him to bring up. Jamie's right hand left the steering wheel and traveled over to my side of the car; his hand found mine, and I smile as our fingers intertwined.

"You don't know that," Jamie said. "Anything is possible... and it sounds like you work your ass off, so I'm positive you're a prime contender."

"I don't even think I want to get into an ivy league school. Finishing my applications for those school was satisfaction enough." I was being honest with Jamie. It wasn't necessarily a dream of mine to go to a really challenging private school. Education was important to me, so I wanted to go somewhere that would be worth my time, but I didn't need to go to an ivy league to accomplish that. I looked over at Jamie to see him smiling to himself. "What?"