Chapter Two: Secrets
"So, where did you come from?" Beatrice asked the blue-eyed boy as they circled around the lonely city. Hayes was crept back into the shadows and it was a pretty sketchy sight, but nonetheless, the two decided to keep talking on a friendly manner.
The sky was beginning to lighten from a boring black to an infinite blue sky and all the stars were beginning to drift out of sight. Of course Beatrice loved the stars more than Hayes' dog, Keeda, loved peanut butter, but she was highly involved in the sky at every angle. She didn't just favor the stars by their lonesome - the clouds were like balls of cotton and the sun was a bright ball of fire; all in all, Beatrice just loved the outskirts of space.
"Well, if we're being technical, my mother birthed me," He sang in a joking manner.
Beatrice lightly tapped his shoulder as a giggle escaped her pale, peach lips. She tugged tighter on her jacket sleeves and wiggled her legs to make sure her tight-fit skinny jeans didn't cut off her circulation. "Idiot. I meant what part of America did you come from? Are you even from America? Were you just born here?"
Hayes rubbed his temples with his index finger and thumb, eyes screwed shut, and a scowl placed on his plump lips. "Do you always ask so many questions?"
Bea shrugged, not hurt by his harsh words a single bit, "Do you always reject questions? Answer my dang questions, dweeb!"
"Dweeb? Is that a thing?"
Bea rolled her eyes and it was her turn to soothe the upcoming headache this boy was giving her, "Hayes, can you just answer the question before I actually smack you upside the head?"
"I told you I was from Jupiter," His eyes widened as Beatrice lifted her hand, threatening to smack him, "North Carolina."
She smiled victoriously as she switched from a walk to a skip. "Any siblings? Pets? Books?"
"Okay, now that's way too much to answer. Um, siblings? I have two brothers: Will and Nash. Not forgetting the little devil Skylynn. She's my half sister. Pets? A pug, Keeda-"
"Keeda? What kind of name is that?" Beatrice interrupted. She was on the verge of completely tuning him out as the sun began to rise and the sky changed from a dull blue to a light pink.
"Keeda is my dog. Why are you so rude?"
"It's in my nature. It runs in my genes."
Here's the thing about Beatrice Lee Miller: she doesn't take things the hard way. She grew up not taking anything seriously and sometimes that bit her in the bum, but other times it saved her from going completely insane.
Hayes buckled over in laughter, his straight, paper white teeth glowing in the newly found sunlight above. Beatrice smiled along with him; feeling as if Hayes' laugh was contagious and she caught the disease.
"Okay, one more question," Bea said, waiting for Hayes' immensely irritating groan to subside, "Why'd you move to Los Angeles then? Living in a place your whole life seems amazing."
Hayes froze for a split second as he pulled her out of the street seeming Los Angeles was finally awake and already booming. He flipped up his hood and walked on the inside of the sidewalk. "Don't worry about that," He stuttered, "Why did you move to Los Angeles?"
The way Hayes was suddenly acting made Beatrice feel unsafe. Lots of questions began to flow through her head. Did he not like the sunlight? Was he wanted for doing something really horrible? Was he a vampire? Okay, maybe the last one was a bit ridiculous, but she wouldn't know unless she asked - she wasn't going to ask.
She just found it a bit weird when he became so secretive in less than a thirty minute time span. Maybe she was over reacting.
Beatrice began to weave her way around the walking people that ventured the streets. She was careful to stay next to Hayes and not get lost. "Chicago was a cold place and Los Angeles seems so sunny." She shrugged her petite shoulders. She wasn't lying, she hated the freezing weather and the cabs that always honked their horns in the earliest of the mornings, but she didn't exactly state the whole truth.
"True." He said, feeling a wave of awkwardness crash over them. He felt guilty at his lack of words - or better yet, his lack of truth - towards the girl that had kept his night everything but lonely.
"I have to tell you something." She blurted. Beatrice wasn't the kind of girl to keep secrets and she hated the feeling of guilt at it's prime - and right at that moment, the guilt she had was overwhelming.
"Go ahead." Screams began to be heard from further down the streets, traffic was becoming wild, and the attention of every walking person seemed to be on Beatrice - or so she thought. Hayes began to panic as teenage girls rushed across the streets making cars honk and more pedestrians avert their attention to Hayes. He quickly grabbed her hand and pulled her into a coffee shop that was mildly active. "On second thought, let's have a cup of coffee."
He walked Beatrice over to a small booth placed beside a white wall and waited for her to slide in. Instead of doing the same, he walked over to the front counter and ordered the pair something to drink.
Beatrice was beyond confused and worried for the sake of her health. She wasn't sure what to do when Hayes slid into the opposite side of the booth. Her foot padded against the white tiled floors and her filled in eyebrows pulled themselves inward. "What was that?"
Hayes shrugged, taking a long sip of his warm liquid. "Dunno what you're talking about."
"Quit the act Benjamin. What just happened?" She demanded.
Hayes shrugged once again, pretending nothing ever happened. "You were telling me something earlier. Continue."
When Beatrice knew she wasn't going to get anything out of Hayes, she began to pull her train of thought out and sort through the unsaid words. "Well, the truth about me living in Los Angeles is, I don't have a strong relationship with my mother. As soon as I turned 18, I moved out." Her lips tightened in a straight line as she waited for Hayes to say something - hopefully he wouldn't think of her as a bad person.
"Oh." Hayes didn't exactly know what to say. It wasn't because he was pointing out any flaws or silently judging her every move, he was just stumped and didn't know what to say.
"Well," The violet-haired girl stood from her spot and slid the full cup of coffee into her hands, "I should go home now. I have a roommate and I'm pretty sure she's going crazy because I didn't get to take her back with me."
He nodded his head and sent a friendly wave goodbye, sinking into the leather chair.
Instead of replying back, the only sound in the coffee shop was the bell above the door signaling she has left and Hayes was left alone to figure out his way of leaving that old, beat up coffee house.
