*** OCCURS AFTER
CHAPTER 57 ***
( nn ) ANYTHING YOU WANT;
A MATURE NUMBER
NEIGHBOR ONE-SHOT.
"poke," el chirped as she, just as she said, poked his freckled cheek with a piece of grass.
he glanced up from his phone to offer her a playful smile only to return his gaze back to the screen.
she pouted and flopped back onto the large blanket mike had brought for their picnic. it was friday afternoon, the day before her 18th birthday, and he had brought her to a series of hills and valleys she would've never imagined resided within hawkins.
despite it being late march, it was one of those rare days that could trick you into thinking spring came early. mike, with the help of karen wheeler, packed a picnic of el's two favorite pasta dishes, some sparkling grape juice, and, of course, a slice of fresh carrot cake.
they had long finished eating and were enjoying the serenity of the vacant land surrounded by trees (that el still couldn't believe he knew about this whole time and was just now bringing her) when mike received a series of urgent messages from dustin begging him to be his (along with the rest of their friends) designated driver for some party taking place tonight.
"can't you just ignore him?" she whined, staring up at the puffy clouds. upon hearing no response she propped herself up on her elbows to find him scrolling on instagram, completely oblivious to her comment. she scoffed.
the sound must've registered in his ears and he tipped his head up, "hm?"
"are you bored?"
his brows narrowed together and he shook his head once. "no, are you?"
yes, she was terribly bored of watching him watch his phone when she had put in contacts and worn her newest and prettiest purple sundress (with a cardigan because it's indiana) just for him, and he was paying her hardly any mind.
she ignored him and laid back down, her chocolate waves splaying around her head like a halo. however, the annoyance and offense writhing within her was anything but angelic.
"el?" no reply, and she finally heard his phone lock. "i'm sorry. i wasn't paying you enough attention, was i?"
she rolled her eyes, not sure he was trying to sound condescending or if she was just so bothered that she had imagined it. "oh, i'm fine," she mused with a tight smile.
he tilted his head down at his girlfriend. "oh, no. it's the angry smiley face emoji, but in person. if i were wise, i'd run," he tried to earn a small glimmer of amusement.
she wanted to smile, but fought it. "unfortunately, you're not wise," she bit.
he chuckled and leaned back beside her, looking up at the clouds with her. "what do you see?" he whispered in a yoda-imitating voice, trying to wipe that scowl from her delicate features.
she turned her head to look at him. "an ass that ignores his girlfriend when they're on a date for her birthday," she cooly replied.
he cringed. that sounded bad. granted, it was bad.
he grabbed his phone and tossed it a few feet away onto the grass, praying his need to make a statement didn't earn him a cracked screen. "no more phones, my love," he swore and her eyes returned to the sky. "baby," he whined, scooting closer to her. he kissed her cheek. "i'm sorry, i'm sorry, i'm sorry," he murmured against her skin. "i'm a terrible, terrible boyfriend. the worst to ever exist. i understand if you want to leave me, i'm awful. the absolute worst," he groveled, splattering light kisses all over her darling face.
