Painkiller

Four

Ring!

Xavier jumped out of his seat, excitement coursing through his body.  He quickly gathered his school supplies and ran out of the classroom, his teachers voice in the background saying, "Have a nice day!"

He almost ran through the hallways, not being able to contain his enthusiasm. It didn't take long for him to get to his locker, which he quickly opened and shoved everything he needed into his bag. He then slung it over his shoulder and closed everything else into his locker. His eyes searched for orange hair, and as soon as he found it, he jogged over.

Eden's eyes met Xavier's as he made his way over. "Hey Xavier!" she greeted him, sounding almost as excited as him.

"Hey Eden! You ready for our little hangout?" Xavier replied, too nervous to call it a date.

Eden's lips formed a big smile as she answered, "Of course! You'll have to show me around because even though I've lived here most of my life, I don't know much about Ambler."

Xavier just nodded and the two walked out of the building side by side. Xavier could tell the amount of people whose jaws dropped when he walked by with the prettiest girl in the entire district. A proud smile took over his face as he showed her to his bus. The two sat together in the same seat in the back of the bus, where Xavier set his backpack on the floor. "So, what do you think we'll do at the park?" Eden asked, following his actions.

Xavier pulled out his earbuds as he replied, "Other than eat?  I'm not sure, he could just mess around on the play set or whatever you want really."

Eden giggled as Xavier popped his left earbud in.  On his right, Eden asked, "What are you listening to?"

"You wanna listen?" he offered, holding out his right earbud.

Eden excitedly nodded, taking the earbud. She put it in her ear as Half•Alive blasted through. "Holy shit, I didn't realize anyone else liked Half•Alive!" she excitedly told Xavier, her face lighting up immediately.

Xavier smiled at her as he explained, "Maddy and I love them, she got me into them sometime in freshman year. Probably the best thing she's ever done for me."

Eden laughed and turned her head towards him. "You and Maddy seem close. Are you two dating or just really close?" she asked.

Xavier almost immediately jumped up, quickly answering, "No, we aren't together, she's always been like my sister. I love her more than anything, but in nothing more than a family way."

Finally, the tires beneath them started to move. Xavier felt a pat on his head and looked up to see an angry short brunette looking down at him from the top of the bus seat. "Where the hell were you?" Maddy almost yelled at him.

"I brought Eden to the bus, since you know, we're hanging out today," Xavier tried to explain himself.

Maddy just crossed her arms, scolding him, "You shouldn't have left me behind. I almost missed the bus looking for you."

She angrily sat down in the seat in front of Xavier and Eden. Xavier's face turned bright red as Eden giggled at him. "She told you," she joked.

Xavier rubbed the back of his neck as he replied, "Yeah, she tends to do that a lot."

Eden just laughed as the bus continued to move.  Xavier scrolled through Instagram on his phone as the two listened to music together.  At some point, Eden rested her head on Xavier's shoulder, and he could feel himself turn pink.

Eventually, the bus stopped, and Xavier stood up.  Eden followed and exited the bus, Xavier right behind her.  Instinctively, he grabbed her hand and led her to his house.  As soon as he reached his porch, he realized he was holding her hand, and let go, suddenly twice as nervous as before.  "I'm so sorry!  I didn't even realize-" he started to apologize.