"It's always been you, Phoenix. You are the one who makes me the happiest. Just being in the same room as you gives me god damn butterflies. Hearing the sound of your voice makes me feel safe and protected. And when you left for college, home didn'...
"No," I gave her a half-smile. "Let's go over to the pond."
She slowly nodded in agreement.
Down our road, we have a pond that's hidden by a bunch of trees. Our parents built us a little dock off of it when we were kids, and we would go swimming there all the time.
The walk over felt a little awkward because neither of us were talking. She stood beside me but a couple of feet away. It was like she was afraid to get close to me, which made me feel like shit. Luckily, it wasn't that long of a walk.
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Once we walked down the worn grass path, we decided to sit at the end of the dock. Scar pushed her sweatpants up to her knees so she could dangle her legs off the edge.
As we sat, her arm brushed against me, making me feel happy that she at least wasn't so far this time.
"It feels like forever ago that I was here last," I looked around the pond.
Her toes made ripples in the water below us. "It was a few days ago for me."
"Yeah?"
She looked over at me and nodded. "Jack, Luke, and I come out here a lot to just chill and talk about shit. It's also where I come to think about things." Her eyes suddenly left mine and wandered off the other way.
I softly smiled as her cheeks turned a shade darker. "Fourth of July was always my favorite out here. Shooting fireworks off and making a fire pit."
"And throwing me in the pond when my hair caught on fire from a sparkler," She added with amusement.
I let out a loud laugh. "Oh my god, how could I forget that? Everyone was always so apprehensive about giving you one again every year after that, but you loved your sparklers."
She smiled sweetly but as fast as it appeared, it faded away. "I wish we could go back to those days sometimes. The ones where we were so innocent and happy. No worries or a care in the world...and you were still around."
My brows knitted together. "Shortcake," I tried speaking in a gentle voice.
And just like that, her bright eyes were on mine once again. "Why do you call me that?"
"What?"
"That's something you call someone that's like a child to you."
I shook my head. "No, it's because you're short and as sweet as a cake. Although, recently, you have been a little more on the sour side..."
She rolled her eyes as I smirked. "Why am I here, Nix?"
A deep breath escaped her lips as her brow raised up at me. That's when I started to feel my nerves creep up again. Fuck, that damn face of hers always makes me lose my train of thought. "I..uh..."
