summer romance (e.d.)

twenty-five

anna

"hey, cameron," i say, lightly grabbing her elbow before she walks past me in the main house driveway.

she looks up from her phone and smiles. "what's up?"

"i just want to thank you for the hoodie."

she furrows her eyebrows and looks at me like i just spoke spanish. "what?"

"you know... the orange, limited edition tame impala hoodie? the one you gave to me?" i urge, hoping she'll catch on.

"i... i didn't give you a sweatshirt," she laughs, tilting her head and squinting her eyes.

i raise my eyebrows. "you didn't?"

cameron shakes her head. "i don't even listen to him. ethan does, though."

and with that, she walks off.

i stand there for a few moments, trying to process what just happened.

"wait..." i mumble to myself, connecting the dots. "ethan gave that to me...? why? and why'd he lie about it?"

my thought process is interrupted by a text message ding.

i scramble to get my phone from the pocket of my jeans shorts and stare at the message.

«liam» hey ;) you never answered my text last night.

i bite my lower lip nervously before responding:

«me» i was sleeping, sorry.

«liam» all good. ready for tonight? i'll pick you up @ 8 if that's cool.

«me» sounds perfect :) i'll see you then.

                                         «»«»«»

at 7:45, i'm picking out what shoes i want to wear when my window flies open.

i yelp a little before i see that it's ethan.

"what're you doing here?" i breathe out, putting a hand to my chest as he plants his feet on the ground.

he smiles shyly. "i just came to say... hi."

"hi."

he looks at the ground, then back up at me. "well, i guess i should go now—"

"you can stay," i reassure. "but liam's going to pick me up in 15 minutes. do you want a ride too?"

"no," he shakes his head. "not from him."

i motion for my bed and he sits down, watching me closely as i slip on jewelry.

"okay, i know you're probably not the best person to ask," i mumble, trying to decide between two bracelets. "but which one?"

he looks at the the thin, gold bangle in my left hand, and the small and delicate silver one in my right.

"neither," he shakes his head. "have any cartier?"

i laugh loudly, placing both back on the necklace stand. "okay. fine. i'll just wear no bracelet."

smiling, he stands up and inspects my collection. he looks to me, as if asking for permission to touch something.

i nod, and he reaches out for a small, thin necklace with a morsel of my birthstone on it.

"i like this one," he whispers, holding it up to the light.

"why?"

"it reminds me of you."

he blinks, like he just realized he wasn't supposed to say that. something in his eyes look different than they normally do, but i find it comforting.

"yeah?" i ask, taking it from his hands. "it's my birth stone. an auqamarine."

"so you're a march baby?" ethan asks, raising an eyebrow.

"how'd you know that so quickly?"

he shrugs. "i memorized the birth stones when i was younger. i always thought they were cool. what day in march?"

"guess."

"the 13th."

"no."

"the seventh."

"nope," i feel myself beginning to smile.

"give me a hint," he demands.

"ummm. 15-12+20."

he thinks for a moment, trying to do the math in his head. "hang on," he laughs, looking up at the ceiling. "i didn't take any math classes my senior year."

"march 23," he states confidently.

"wait... then i did the math really wrong because it's the 24th," i say, trying to recalculate my equation in my head.

he laughs, and i giggle along with him.

i inspect the necklace and bring it around my neck. ethan notices my attempt with clasp, but i try not to let it show that i'm struggling so much. that's just embarrassing.

after a couple moments and a frustrated sigh, ethan opens his mouth to speak.

"do you need help?"

red faced, i answer lamely, "yes."

i hear his light chuckles as he stands directly behind me and grabs the ends of the necklace. whenever his soft fingers brush my skin, goosebumps form on my arms.

ethan's warm breath hits the back of my neck, causing me to shiver a little bit.

"there," he whispers. "done."

i walk over to my mirror, touching the necklace and smiling at the reflection. "you chose a good one. i almost forgot i had this necklace."

there's silence as i check my phone and inspect the time. liam should be here any second.

"anna?" ethan asks.

"hm?"

he wanders around my room, touching things he sees. "are you... are you and liam official? my family wants to know." the words slip out so casually it almost catches me by surprise.

"i mean... i think so? i'm not really sure. i would hate to say we are and then liam say we're not," i answer honestly.

he nods. "okay. well. i'll see you soon."

"bye, ethan."

just as he slips back out my window, i hear liam's car honk from the driveway.

would it kill him to knock on my door ever?

my stomach feels strange as i slide into the passenger seat and when liam shoots me a smile.

"ready?" he asks.

i nod quietly.

on the drive there, he slowly reaches over to place his hand on my thigh.

casually, i move my leg so his grip falls.