"Hey guys, we're gonna go start the bonfire." Sky skips up to us with a smile on her face.
It was starting to get late and a couple of games had pass already.
Alexandra put the strap of her camera around her neck and finished taking pictures.
Everyone was headed over to the bonfire, already having packs of marshmallows, gram crackers, and Hershey's chocolate on deck. Some people were gathering sticks to sanitize for the roasting of the marshmallows.
There was music playing and everyone was vibin', but something felt off.
Where was Chester?
I looked around, but I didn't see him.
But then I spotted him sitting by the water of the lake.
He wasn't doing anything. He was just sitting there. Looking out into the water.
I grabbed some of the s'mores that I made and headed towards Chester. He didn't notice me until I took a seat next to him.
"Hey," he said.
"S'mores?"
"S'mores." He goes ahead and grabs one from me. We eat the s'mores in silence while looking towards the lake.
"Do you ever feel like your life isn't real," I ask Chester. He looks over at me, but doesn't say anything, letting me know he wanted me to explain more.
"I don't know. Like, I'd be looking at myself in the mirror and I'd feel like I wasn't real. Like the world around me was fake. I'd be sitting in class, listening to a lecture and be like 'is my teacher even real'. I'd feel as if, if I were to get ran over, nothing would happen to me. As if, it were all just a dream. As if, if I could do anything without consequence and everything bad that was happening around me, really wasn't happening."
I took a breathing break to see if Chester would say something, but he just stares at me. So, I just keep going.
"Like, why is it so hard to get into college? Why am I spending this much money on an education? Why does this world revolve around money, when really none of it matters because at the end of the day, we're all in the same boat. If the world were to stop spinning, it wouldn't matter. I bet this is all just a simulation. We'd all be de.."
I didn't finish my sentence because Chester leaned in and pressed his lips up against mines.
I was stuck there surprised. Eyes wide open and frozen. I only started kissing back when Chester started pulling me closer.
My heart was beating fast and I could feel my body shaking with adrenaline. My head felt woozy, but I couldn't focus on anything else.
It wasn't a slow kiss, but more of an urgent one. One of his hands were on my back, pushing us closer together, while his other was in my hair. I started to pull him closer to me as well.
Suddenly, Chester pulled away from me.
"Shit," I heard him whisper under his breath. He stands up onto his feet and starts to walk away.
Huh?
I get up onto my feet and walk after him.
"Chester, what's wrong?" He acted like he couldn't hear me and kept walking.
"Chester," I call out again, jumping into his walking path and pushing him on his chest to force him to stop walking.
"Look. I'm sorry, Spencer. I shouldn't have kissed you." He was staring me right in my eyes with no emotion.
"You can't just start kissing a girl and then push her away without explanation. That hurts," I admit to him.
"Well, you don't know me very well. That's what I'm known to do. I kiss girls and I push them away. Don't expect anything different."
Chester's eyes were cold. They were mean. They weren't the eyes I knew.
Chester walks right by me, bumping into my shoulder before walking in the direction of his tent.
I'm so confused. What just happened? Everything was going great and then he just turned so cold.
I could feel moisture flowing down my cheeks. I lift my arm up to wipe my face.
No, Spencer. You've cried enough for a lifetime. Your strong. Stay strong.
It doesn't matter if the boy you like just ran away from you and gave you the cold shoulder. Literally.
I wipe the rest of my tears away and make my way back to the bonfire. I look around, trying to find Sky, but she finds me first.
"Hey, girl. Where have you been?"
"Um, nowhere in particular. Could you do me a favor, Sky?" Sky was trying to study my face, but I think it was too dark for her to tell I have been crying.
"What's wrong?"
"Could you make some space in your tent for me? I don't care if I have to sleep in there with Hope." Sky looked shocked at this.
"Actually, after last night, she said she didn't want to sleep in the same tent as me because I was kicking her in my sleep. She said she found a different tent. There's plenty of space for you. What happened with you sleeping in Chester's tent?"
At the sound of his name, my heart ached.
"I woke up to him literally laying on top of me. I almost died. I would like to prevent that from happening. I'll take kicking over suffocation," I tell Sky, half lying.
"No problem!"
"I'm just gonna head there now if that's ok. I'm pretty tired," I tell her. She doesn't seem to believe me, but she lets me go.
When I get to the tent, I realize all my stuff is in Chester's tent. I was pretty cold and all my warm clothes were in my bag.
I didn't want to go back to the tent, but I wasn't going to suffer in the cold. He should be the one suffering, not me.
So, I headed towards Chester's tent, remembering which one it was.
When I got closer, I could hear muffled noises. His tent was open, so when I got closer, I could see who was inside with him.
Hope.
They were pretty close, whispering. It broke my heart how I didn't see it before. How much he really didn't care for me. He was right.
I didn't know who he truly was.
But that wasn't the worst of it. The worst of it was when they started kissing.
Am I just stuck in a trance of deja vu?
I couldn't believe what I was seeing. What the fuck? All I could do was clear my throat, which made them turn in my direction.
There was no expression on Chester's face, but I could tell Hope was enjoying this. I could tell by the grin on her face and her twinkling eyes.
They were waiting for me to speak.
"Could one of you guys pass me my bags?" I tried so hard to hide the hurt in my voice. I hid the shaking in my voice with anger.
I wasn't going to cry like a pathetic wimp like last time.
Because now, I wasn't sad. I was mad. Mad at myself. Mad that I didn't see this coming. Mad that I actually thought that there could ever be a guy I had feelings for that could actually like me back. That could actually care for me.
But then I had to fix my mind.
No, it wasn't me. It was them. Chester was the one who turned cold. He was the one who kissed me and ran.
Hope was the closest to my bag and handed it to me, but before I left, I opened my bag and grabbed something I forgot I packed.
Itching powder.
I was going to use it for a prank, but I forgot about it.
Why not use it for malicious reasons?
So, I took off the cap and sprinkled it all over them and the tent. Because one thing I was leaving here with was my pride.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING," Hope screams while Chester tries to dust off the powder.
"Itch, bitch," I tell her and turn to Chester.
"I hope you have a wonderful night," I tell him and leave.
They weren't going to be getting any sleep tonight because I wasn't going to be able to sleep tonight either. I could already tell that I was going to have one of those nights.