subject 13 // h.s. au

chapter thirteen.

"Go fish, asshole!" Oliver cackled, slamming his palm down onto his bed.

Huck grumbled unintelligibly from his spot on the floor, reaching forward to grab a card from the middle, as Quinn chuckled softly to himself.

I was playing Go Fish.

The boys had quickly gotten over their bewilderment at the fact that I had never played any card games, and they had settled on playing Huck's favorite game. 

I found it amusing that a gigantic man with a face scar and a sullen demeanor had a love for Go Fish, which I had quickly deduced was a children's game.

Oliver and I sat side by side on his bed, while Quinn and Huck lounged on the floor, and I was grateful for the distraction of this game as I tried to push away from my mind what had happened with Harry earlier.

 I knew I was going to leave soon, but while I figured out where I was going to go, I decided it wouldn't hurt to try and enjoy myself.

I was getting more comfortable around people, and even Oliver's knee occasionally brushing against mine didn't cause me to flinch away. However, a melancholy feeling surrounded me when I laughed at Huck's grumpiness, as I thought of how my siblings and I used to try to come up with games as kids. 

They were typically survival or weapons related, but I had treasured those small moments of joy from my childhood.

For the first time in years, I was actually genuinely laughing.

"I can't believe you've never played cards before!" Quinn exclaimed as he asked me if I had any twos.

"Did you teach Elias how to play any card games?" I questioned as I sorted through my cards, "Go fish!"

"He's always too busy with his girlfriend," Oliver chimed in, teasingly.

There was that unfamiliar word, again. I hadn't had the chance to ask Elias what it meant as he hadn't been in his room all day. I weighed my options and figured that it wouldn't hurt to ask the boys what it meant.

 It probably wasn't that strange of a question.

"What does that mean?" I questioned flatly, trying to act casual as I picked through my cards.

I sat quietly waiting for Oliver to start his turn for several moments before I realized everyone was staring at me.

"What does what mean?" Oliver responded, still staring at me.

"Girlfriend," I asked, the new word tripping over my tongue.

Quinn and Huck roared with laughter, slapping the floor and holding their chests, before they realized I was looking at them with a curious expression.

Huck rubbed his finger under his eye, catching a tear from his laughter, "Are you serious?"

I nodded, and the boys continued to stare at me.

"It's like your friend, that's a girl, but like, in a romantic way." Quinn stuttered, still perplexed.

"Oh, duh, yeah I knew that," I replied quickly, "your turn, Oliver," I said, embarrassed that my question had caused this level of disbelief. 

I still didn't understand what Quinn had said, but there was no way I was going to ask him to clarify.

He flashed a puzzled look my way before shrugging, "Huck do you have any fives?"

The door rattled loudly as Harry stepped into the room and the boys all began to groan.

"Every time Harry, I swear to god."