His Tutor

Chapter Sixteen

Movie night was a tad bit awkward, with the sudden realization from Christian. Though, ever since he said that he's been a bit more relaxed. He didn't force any feelings on me or even talked to me after he got that off of his chest. We sat around the table debating whether it was a good idea to light the campfire and hanging out among the stars or just sit inside by the fireplace and drink. The thought of hanging out with the stars around a fire seemed like a good idea. "I want to go outside," I said and Mercedes shrugged, "it doesn't sound like a terrible idea. I'm cool with that." She said. Jaden looked over at Dylan who wasn't even paying attention to our conversation.

He was filling his mouth with a can of whipped cream. Jaden sighed, "We can't have anything in this house." He mumbled and Dylan turned to him. His cheeks stuffed with the whipped cream as he spoke, "What? What I do?" He asked in confusion as he swallowed the rest of the whipped cream. I chuckled and looked over at Christian who shrugged, "I don't mind going outside." He added, "Outside?" Dylan asked as Jaden grabbed a few things from the kitchen drawer. Mercedes went towards the pantry and grabbed marshmallows, a box of graham crackers, and chocolate before pointing at the door.

"Go, Dylan." She said to him. He grinned taking the can of whipped cream outside with him. Jaden and Mercedes both walked behind him leaving Chris and me behind. I coughed awkwardly and started to walk out when he spoke, "I'm sorry for laying that on you the way I did," I sighed. "For someone with such a fearsome reputation, you sure do apologize a lot." I said and he chuckled, "I don't like apologizing, But I feel like it's the only way I could fix the damage between us. Like a pretty bandaid." He said and I raised a brow, "A pretty bandaid?" I questioned, "I mean ... yeah, I know it won't fix anything until you accept my apology. But for now, it's just a pretty bandaid." He said and I tilt my head to the side before a giggle escaped my lips.

I turned on my heels and walked outside. As I sat down next to Mercedes my mind started to race. Should I forgive him? "Are you going to eat?" Mercedes asked as she shoves a s'more in my face. I chuckled and grabbed the snack from her hand, "Thank you." I said with a smile. Christian walked out of the house with a small Bluetooth device in his hand. "You guys seriously thought it would be a good idea to sit outside by the fire without any music?" He said. Dylan gasped "All hail the captain of good ideas." He praised through his newly filled whipped cream cheeks. Mercedes raised her brows "I'm surprised you didn't bring your beloved girlfriend," and I choked on my food. 

My eyes widen as I looked between the both of them in shock. Mercedes was smirking whereas Christian simply rolled his eyes at the comment. "I don't have a girlfriend." He replied. Dylan gasped dramatically "You're single?" He exclaimed and I coughed. Christian looked over at me and raised his brows before answering, "Yes. I let her go," He said as he sat down next to Jaden who was on the other side of the fire. As they spoke among themselves I thought about the question I asked myself a few minutes earlier. I chewed on my bottom lip as thought about the pros and cons. I guess I was out for a while because when I zoned back in everyone was staring at me. I chuckled awkwardly, "Hi," I said sheepishly. 

"What's on your mind?" Mercedes asked and I shrugged, "It's not really important," I replied and Dylan whined, "Oh cmon, we're your best friends. You can tell us anything." He said and Jaden chuckled while shaking his head. "You can tell us when your comfortable," Jaden said and Dylan mumbled a few words under his breath that included 'soft son of a b***h'. I raised my brows at him, "That wasn't directed towards me was it?" I asked and Mercedes shifted. "I'm going to get drinks," She announced as Dylan's eyes widen in horror.

"No, I was talking to Jaden, I swear." He said as Jaden laughed. Jaden announced that he was going to grab more snacks from inside and Dylan volunteered to go with him so he could and I quote, 'Supervise him on his choice of snacks because his opinions on food are usually trash,' I laughed as they went into the house and stared at the blue and purple flames burning in front of me.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Christian said, speaking for the first time since he came out here. I shrugged, "I'm trying to think of the pros and cons that would follow once I accept or decline your apology." I said truthfully. He raised his brows and nodded slowly as he glanced at the glass door. "Any progress?" He asked and I shrugged again, "Yes, I think I'll be able to let you know by the end of the night." I replied as the door open. Mercedes walked towards us with three bottles of beer and a glass bottle of orange Fanta for me. I smiled, I loved the fact that respected my decision on not drinking. "The drinks are here," She grinned as she handed me my soda and handed Chris his beer. "Cold, you know me best cedes," He commented. She went from grinning to smirking as she spoke "Of course I do, I glad you broke up with that weird b***h bye the way. It was about time." I raised my brows and laughed before taking a sip.

Dylan and Jaden walked out with a few chips and were arguing about which brand of chips was better than the other. Mercedes took her seat near me and raised her glass bottle, "To being stupid for the weekend, or in Chris' case, being smarter over the weekend." She said and tapped bottles with the four of us. Chris let out a sarcastic laugh before taking a swing of his drink. "Honestly, it feels like a weight has been lifted off my shoulder. She was an interesting partner," He admitted and Dylan looked over at him waiting for him to continue. When he didn't Dylan sucked his teeth, "Well what happened? Don't just leave us in the dark." He complained. Chris chuckled and sighed, "Well she's a bratty rich kid and she never lets anyone forget it even though we're basically on the same level. She's kind of demanding and if she doesn't get her way she sabotages anything. She was nice in the beginning but whenever she feels threatened by someone she tries to make their lives hell. It got annoying after a while." He said with an eye roll.

"She tried to make my life hell, I beat the breaks off of her and hired Nina before she could, The victory was sweet." Mercedes smirked and Chris shook his head, "She had it coming." She added before taking a swing from her drinks. "That girl is odd," Jaden said. I looked at Christian to find him staring at me. I tilted my head and he mirrored me with a smile. That smile, though I've seen it many times before, made my heart skip a beat and made me feel a bit queasy in my stomach. This was new. I held back a chuckle before mouthing,

"I forgive you."