Sandcastles | Completed

4 | location

Elijah Baker

Zion glanced over at me when I got inside of the truck, "We ain't going to the mall again is it?"

It was a bad morning for him to try to be funny because I wasn't in the mood at all.

"The hell wrong witchu'?" He asked once he realized there was no response coming.

Again, I ignored him and began reading a message that I didn't want to reply to. It was always the same shit, the same complaint, the same-

"I was tryna' give you the stuff 'bout the lady," Zi shrugged his shoulders, "But fuck it."

"Just give me the shit."

He made no move to do what I asked, "Not with that attitude."

Taking a deep breath, I reminded myself that Zion had been my friend for as long as I could remember and that he wasn't the reason I was mad, "Give me the papers. Please."

"I'm proud of you, son." He smiled as nodded towards the glove compartment, indicating they were in there.

He never planned on letting me forget the 2 year age gap.

I slowly scanned the pages, trying to bridge gaps because it didn't really make sense, "So how they met?"

"I can't tell ya'. I barely got what's on that paper right there."

"Then why you act like you was 'bout to give me some confidential shit? I could've kept my fuckin' 'please' to myself."

I was trying to get an upper hand on the situation because everything Kensley did confused me, even after she explained it to me. Over the past 3 weeks, I tried to learn about her, from her, but she was an enigma to me.

Zi was watching me re-read, "I wish I saw what you saw 'cause this shit is crazy to me."

"It ain't for you to understand."

I knew what he meant though, because the sight of her in the middle of a room, her body glistening as she succumbed to an orgasm at the hands of whoever the other woman was, wouldn't leave my head.

It was a coincidence that I even saw her at the coffee shop, one I could thank my mama for, and it was another coincidence that I saw her at a play party that same night.

I wasn't planning on going to either one, and I ended up seeing Kensley at both.

We hadn't discussed sex at all, no small feat for me, but I was trying to understand her. I knew she wouldn't be the same person as she was in that room, outside of it, which is why I planned on trying to carefully approach the subject when we talked.

Then we'd end up talking about some other bullshit that I was strangely interested in.

"Fuck it." I stated abruptly, "I'ma just ask."

Zion didn't look like he cared at all, "You the one went to college and you still ain't got common sense."

"What's common about this?"

"You met her at the muffin place. Where you went back to when you wanted to find her?"

I laughed and shook my head, "It's a coffee shop. How you get muffin place?"

"You missing the point. Go back to where you saw her the second time."

For him to not know muffin place from coffee shop, he made a good point. The host was a friend of a friend, so I was regularly on the invite list, it was just a matter of when the next one was.

I checked the date on my phone and smiled, "This why I haven't beat your ass yet."

• • •

Kensley Parker

My legs felt like Jelly as I gingerly made my way to the car, "Jai you driving?"

"Bitch I can't even crawl. How the hell I'ma drive?"

I leaned against the car in laughter, "Man, call the bus that take the old people everywhere."

"Call the fire department and tell them you've fallen and can't get up."

This was the aftermath of a vigorous leg day, one Jailyn apparently constructed to kill us.

"Whew." She breathed when we settled into the car seats, "Why I gotta work out when it's all these surgeons ready to give me my dream body."

"So you won't look like you came outta build-a-body."

My phone vibrated against the center console, drawing my attention.

"Is that Elijahhh?" Jailyn sang.

It was in fact Elijah, making me side-eye her, "Lord, the business you gave me, somebody else out here minding it."

"What it say?" She asked excitedly, leaning towards me.

"He asked what I was doing later."

Elijah was nearly the perfect man. He was attentive, sweet, handsome, financially stable, the list goes on. But, he hadn't tried to have sex with me yet.

That may sound terrible, and while I thought Elijah would make a great partner for someone, I didn't want him as a companion for myself.

I just wanted to fuck him.

Now, I didn't know a polite way to ask, as society makes women feel as if they shouldn't be able to ask for sex. I almost asked the other night, but told myself I might as well wait until tonight.

Jai made a face, "You going with Ari?"

"Yes."

"I just don't understand why you keep giving Ms. mamas sex but not Eli."

I laughed, which turned to a sigh of disappointment, "He hasn't even tried."

"Friend, you're dead the freakiest person I know. Why haven't you tried?"

She had a point, "You think I should? I'm shy."

Jailyn made a show of putting her ear closer to my mouth, "You said the dick might make you cry? 'Cause not Kensley Michaela Parker saying she shy."

"I'm so tired of being bullied in this friendship."

My hands hovered over the keyboard on my phone as I thought about my response, "I'ma just say I'm busy. I can always see him tomorrow."

I couldn't exactly reschedule with Ariana, but it was nothing to tell Elijah that I was busy. Ignoring the sound of Jailyn sucking her teeth, I sent the message and went home to relax before tonight.

• • •

oh look. our very first cliffhanger 🙂

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