I wanted to shoot myself in the leg for ever thinking this was a smart choice. I wish I never agreed to this dumb bet. Now I had an even bigger disadvantage. I was never going to win this bet if he had a girlfriend.
I really fucked up on my part.
Ashton started muttering something to himself, but it was too low and too quiet that I couldn't hear what he was saying. I retreated back to the counter, quickly before Ashton noticed me eavesdropping.
I sat back in my stool, clenching a fist in my lap and sketching the last bits of detail on the rose. Ashton came over and sat down, sighing.
I didn't look up at him. I was too frustrated. Too shocked, too surprised, too much of everything, and yet my face said nothing, but blankness and emptiness.
Ashton leaned in and saw what was on my paper and I looked up at him, raising an eyebrow.
"Nice sketch. I didn't think you were an artsy person." I scoffed. "Did you think I wasn't much of an anything person? Just empty?" I asked, meeting his eyes and he turned away smirking.
"Not exactly," He protested and I continued staring at him. I furrowed my eyebrows, wanting to know what he thought. I know I shouldn't care, but I was only curious.
"I thought you were more of a music person. You always have those earphones in after school."
I turned away, fighting a smile. "Well then again, who doesn't listen to music now and then?"
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the edges of his mouth curve into a smile, being replaced from the smirk he had on earlier.
He looked over at me and I met his eyes. I was never a person who was into hazel or green eyes, but Ashton pulled them off. I cleared my throat, turning away while I could practically feel myself turning red.
I didn't know what this feeling was, never experienced it. Was I blushing? Why was I so nervous all of a sudden?
Keep in mind, we were sitting across from each other. The only way we could get closer was if one of us sat next to the other, but I wasn't about to start falling for a guy I had only just met a few days ago.
My feet were still standing inches away from the edge of the mountain and they weren't moving any further. I wasn't going to fall.
"So the project," I started, distracting myself from my thoughts. "you said you had some ideas."
He looked away and put his gaze over his sheet of paper. "Right, I was thinking of this older sister who lost her younger sister in a fire or a car crash and she found her in another world from a mirror."
My head went up at the idea. "That's good." He chuckled. "Thanks."
I started tapping the eraser part of my pencil, thinking. And then an idea washed over me.
"What if the world where her younger sister is, is a world full of entities. Evil spirit ones, demons." I said, in a dramatic suspenseful voice.
"Okay, Miss. Paranormal. Not too bad. What of the sister crosses worlds to get her younger sister and gets stuck in there."
"And she has to find her, but when she does she finds out her sister is possessed."
Ashton started writing our ideas down. "So she has to find a way to get the demon out of her while trying to get out of there before time runs out and the mirror closes forever."
He wrote that down as I gave him a thumbs up. I couldn't believe we were cooperating and not arguing. All because of my sketch of the Rose.
Hayden knew best.
I finished my sketch at the time Ashton finished jotting down notes. We both looked up and he handed me a piece of paper. I wrote down more ideas as he did the same.
It was quiet for a moment, we hadn't said anything for at least five minutes. Straight. It's crazy how everything can seem perfectly fine and then quiet in the span of five minutes or less.
Just like how a fight can turn into makeup sex.
Except that was much different.
Ten minutes went past and we already had started working on the writing portion. We didn't speak or glance at each other. We focused on the writing and only the writing.
I needed to find out more about Ashton, but the guy seemed so quiet. We would barely talk unless we were arguing over nothing. How was I ever going to get to him?
What was his weak spot?
His phone rings and my turn looks up and I see him glance at the caller and start to pack his things up and shove them in his backpack. I looked at him with confusion as he got up and heads to the door.
He turns around and notices my expression and sighs, "Sorry, I have to go." And with that he opens the door and closes it behind him.
I'm left there confused and frustrated. I groan loudly and angrily. I end up accidentally throwing the roses at a wall, breaking the vase and water spilling with roses scattered all around the floor. I pick up my things and stomp upstairs to my room as I huff.
I slam my door once I'm in it and sit on my bed, running a hand through my hair in frustration. I was never going to win this bet. Ashton barely talked to me, we rarely got along, and he had a girlfriend.
I had no chance.
I lay in my bed and a frame with a photo of my sister and I catches my eye. I pick it up and stare at the younger version of me. I was such a gently soul.
Someone who cared about things, someone who didn't understand most things in life. And here I am, looking at the person I was never going to be.
So naïve.
~•~
"Ugh!"
I threw the fifth pair of jeans I had on my bed while Blaze's eyes were glued to her phone.
"Let me guess, too small?" She asked, not even lifting her gaze up.
I groan as I throw a couple more pairs of jeans that were stuffed in my closet.
"I specifically bought ten pairs of jeans that fit my size two weeks ago, now I can't barely pull them up to my thighs!" I yelled and Blaze rolled her eyes.
"Maybe you gained some pounds."
I froze at her comment and a pain hit my chest of insecurity. How could I? I barely ate anything the last two weeks. I should be able to fit in anything that's a small.
"Then I'll work the fat off so then I won't have to go shopping for more pairs of jeans." I announced, confidently.
Blaze got up and turned off her phone. "Robin, I've been meaning to talk to you. It's about the exercising..." She trailed off, hoping I'd understand where this was going.
I did. But I didn't want to talk about it. I wasn't ready to tell her or anyone.
I furrowed my eyebrows, pretending to be confused.
"Huh?" I questioned, trying my best not to send any signals of nervousness.
Blaze was good at spotting fake things, but not as good as me. She looked me up and down and waved me off.
"Forget it." I let a breath that I had been holding and relief washed over my body as the chills went away.
"If you excuse me, I'm gonna go exercise. Wanna come?" I offered and Blaze shook her head. "I've got other plans." She looked away, gripping her phone in her hand and I knew what she meant.
A grin played on my lips and she turned towards me and I knew she saw it. "Try not to get pregnant." I stated before heading off to the garage to break off a sweat.
I heard her yell my name from my bedroom and an amused laugh escaped my lips as I closed the garage door behind me.
I started up the treadmill and began running. I plugged some music in the background and by fifteen minutes, sweat building all over my body.
I wiped the sweat off from my forehead with a towel and kept running. I boosted up the speed and ran faster as the music continued and changed to another in my playlist. I was losing this fat no matter what.
Whenever I exercise, it's one of the few times I really think about things that always go on in my head. It helps me focus on other things that I avoid whenever I think about it.
Like how was I ever going to get closer to Ashton or what was I going to do about Blaze and Parker. Or when was I ever going to break it through to Aiden and tell him how uncomfortable I get around him, especially that night he confessed.
These thoughts distracted me from the throbbing pain that burned throughout both of my legs.
Thirty minutes later and I was still on the treadmill. I ignored the pain and ran for the extra mile. The music kept blasting throughout the house and I heard the door slightly open.
I turned around carefully, almost falling and was faced with Blaze staring at me with wide eyes. "You're still in here?" She asked and I nodded.
"It's only been thirty minutes. I work out at least an hour." I stated and her eyes grew big.
Keep in mind, Blaze was naturally skinny. She worked out, but not a lot. And by not a lot, I mean like five minutes per week of running on the treadmill. She wasn't committed to working out like me. She preferred to cut carbs instead of work.
I did that, yet she seemed skinnier than me. It honestly wasn't fair. I work out and starve myself all the time and she has a thinner body from doing nothing, but stuffing her mouth with Pringles and ice cream. It was an envious feeling I had always had.
In other words, I was jealous of Blaze's figure.
She walked out the room, rolling her eyes. I turned back around, once again cautiously and pushed the speed up as I kept running.
~•~
"It's perfect."
"It's mine."
"Saw it first."
Blaze and I were in Hot Topic, don't come at me, fighting over the last type of shirt on the rack. Yes, Hot Topic. Blaze and I's favorite store to shop at.
I know I said I wouldn't go shopping, but I needed to get a few hoodies and jackets were the upcoming winter season. It was cold during October and I could use more than just a plain black hoodie to wear over an outfit.
The article of clothing we were fighting over was a mesh hoodie that had the words, not today satan, written on it in white and with my favorite font.
It was the only one left and I wasn't giving it up without putting up a fight. Unfortunately, neither was Blaze.
We had been arguing over it for the past ten minutes and some people even looked at us. I grabbed it, making Blaze groan as she walked towards another rack of hoodies. I examined the hoodie and instantly fell in love with it.
Found my new cuddle buddy.
A frown exposed in my features when I checked the size. It was a small. The jeans that didn't fit me we're a small and I didn't know if the hoodie would fit me. Usually I got a hoodie that was a medium or large to really cover my body.
I never bought a small hoodie just because it would show my figure and I didn't like that as much as I did with shirts and pants.
I jogged over to the dressing room and threw it over my head and when I looked at the mirror, I saw how nice it looked on me. Relief washed over me as I got out, taking it off. But a girl who was also shopping nearby saw me and scoffed at me.
I turned my head around, raising an eyebrow at the girl and she turned away. I rolled my eyes as I walked over to Blaze, showing her the hoodie on me and she glared at me since I was bragging about it in a way.
"You might need a large. Looks too small."
I turned around to see the same girl who scoffed at me earily examining the hoodie. I crossed my arms over my chest.
"If it was too small, it wouldn't be passing my head and hugging my curves." I said through clenched teeth.
"You'll grow out of it in a week. I can tell by the size of the thighs." She stated, smirking the whole time and I clenched my fists and turned around.
Blaze shoved me out of the way before marching over to the girl who insulted my weight and threw her hands on her hips.
"Sweetie, you're one to talk. Your body is average and by the looks of it I can see a stomach coming out. Either that is belly fat or there's a bomb growing inside of you."
The girl's eyes widened and she turned around as Blaze grinned and walked back towards me. She turned around and shouted, "Oh and why are you wearing a bra? There's no use for it!"
I almost bursted out in laughter as the girl stomped off and huffed as Blaze was dying. That insult really almost made me crack.
Blaze turned back around to face me and I hugged her tightly, squeezing her back. She jumped at my side of affection, but after a couple of seconds she threw her arms around me.
"Thank you." I mumbled before burying my face into her chest. She squeezed my back in return and whispered, "Anytime, Robin."
I pulled away, giving her a weak smile before she added, "I always got your back, you dork." I chuckled before sliding the hoodie off me and throwing it over my back.
We both walked to the cash register and I placed the hoodie along with the other clothing I had on the counter.
"And I got yours."