Back to You

05 | Chapter Five

B O N N I E

After throwing on some boyfriend jeans and a plain black cropped tee, I run out of the house and jump into Scott's waiting car. Scott and Olivia are already inside, waiting for me, singing along to the Frozen soundtrack. That's probably the only thing those two have in common. They love Disney movies.

"Let it go! Let it go!" they both scream at the top of their lungs. I burst out laughing, so glad to have them around to cheer me up, even if it makes my ears bleed. My best friends absolutely shouldn't ever expect to make a career from singing. They both suck.

"That was quick," Olivia smirks, looking in the rear-view mirror at me as I slouch back into the seat, sinking as low as I can to hide from the eyes that I can feel still watching me. Olivia turns around to study me and giggles, "Bon, what are you doing all the way down there?" she mocks. I know she has seen Josh and knows precisely what I am doing right now. I'm hiding.

"Just drive, please," I whisper, desperately wanting to get away from this street and far away from his stare. Scott backs out of my driveway, and I dare to peer up over the back of my seat. To my surprise, Josh is gone. I sit up and relax. He must've gone inside when I was too busy hiding from him.

Ten minutes later, we pull into the parking lot of our favorite local Harry's Diner. We frequent this place a lot on the weekends, especially in our times of desperation for comfort food. Our usual server, Beatrice, comes over to take our orders. We all light up at the sight of her, and she beams her warm smile back at us. "Just the usual today?" she questions, stepping up to our table.

Beatrice has been working here for as long as I can remember. She has been around to see us all grow up, and she's always greeted us the same way, with a warm smile and excellent service. As far as I know, she isn't married and doesn't have kids, which is a shame. She would be an amazing mother, at least from what I know. The only family I've ever seen her interact with or discuss is her younger sister Annie, who passed away a few years ago now.

Over the years, Beatrice's hair has grayed, and her wrinkles have grown more profound, but she is as beautiful as ever. I don't think she even realizes how much of a positive impact she has had on mine and so many others' lives.

"You know it, Trixie," Scott winks at Beatrice, who is now rolling her eyes and laughing. "Don't play with an old lady's heart like that, sweetheart," she winks back at Scott before floating away on cloud nine. I glance over at Olivia, who is frowning at Scott, for whatever reason. "Could you stop hitting on everyone you see with boobs?" she smacks his arm lightly, and Scott chuckles, spitting some of his water out onto the table. I sit back, watching them bicker and giggle to myself.

"Trixie is more than just a pair of boobs to me," Scott pouts, holding his hand to his chest, feigning innocence. Olivia rolls her eyes at him, and he winks. Watching the two of them bicker is like watching an old married couple.

"Plus," Scott starts, leaning in closer to whisper to Liv, "I wouldn't have to hit on anyone else if you'd just give me a chance, dollface," he puckers his lips, going in for a kiss. Olivia holds up her hand, blocking his lips from touching hers. She can't hide her amusement though. It's written all over her face. The giggle she is trying so hard to hide breaks through her embarrassed smile.

"You two are disgusting, seriously," I remark, pretending to gag. I swear, if they weren't my best friends, I would've left this restaurant already. Scott goes back to tapping on his phone mindlessly, and Liv watches him intently. I study her for a few minutes. She's completely oblivious to me watching her, watching him. I clear my throat, getting her attention. Her eyes shoot to me, and I smirk at her, nodding towards Scott slightly, asking her what the hell is going on without uttering a word.

She stiffens and shakes her head. I don't know what she's trying to say, but she disagrees with me on something. I take a mental note to bring this up with her later. I watch her with raised eyebrows, waiting for her to do, or say something. Her eyes dart back and forth from Scott and me before she closes her eyes, composing herself.

Liv smacks her hands on the table, startling both Scott and me so much Scott almost drops his phone, and I stare at her, completely blank-faced. She doesn't make any further moves, which is strange. She isn't acting herself today.

"What was that for?" I ask, glancing down at her hands, which are still on the table. "I have a confession to make," Liv blurts out. Both Scott and I stare at her, confused and slightly concerned. "Okay?" I question, and she sighs. Taking in another deep breath, her eyes land on me, and the look in them makes me very uncomfortable. I don't know if this is going to be a confession I want to hear.

"I may or may not have warned Josh before you kissed him it was going to happen."

My mouth falls open, and my eyes widen an inch. She pre-warned him I was going to kiss him? How did she even know who he was? "So, which is it? Did you or did you not warn him?" she shrugs, "Okay, fine. Yes, I warned him."

"How did you know it was him?" I question the anger inside boiling to a level I've never felt before. Olivia knows how I feel about Josh, so knowing she dared me to kiss him when she knew him was infuriating.

"Oh, I didn't know who he was, I swear." She holds her hands up in defense, sliding back in her chair as far as she can go. "I just saw a cute guy, and asked him to go along with it, that's all." I sigh in relief, still annoyed at her, but a little less knowing she didn't know who he was.

"You really think I'd let you kiss a stranger without letting them know first? As if I would let you do that." She sips on her water, her eyes never leaving mine. Something floating in her stare tells me she's actually hurt that I'd think that of her. But can you really blame me? Liv does crazy things all the time. Daring me to kiss a stranger is low on the list of crazy.

It wasn't entirely her fault though. I was the one who agreed and went along with her dare. At the end of the day, I kissed him. It was my choice to move one foot in front of the other and do it, so I can't blame her for that.

"I suppose you want me to thank you, then?" I question, raising an eyebrow at her. She's trying so hard not to smirk back at me, but I don't find any of this amusing. "No, but you're welcome," she grins, and I roll my eyes, sinking back into the booth and ignoring her.

We all sit in complete silence for a few minutes, but Liv breaks it first.

"So, are you excited to start as a senior tomorrow?" Olivia questions, her smile wide, and her eyes bright. This cracks me, and I beam back at her. Liv and I have been dreaming of this since, well, forever. The first day I met her, I knew she was my person, and I guess she felt the same way about me. I met her not long after Josh moved away. She wandered into my life when I needed her the most. I didn't know that then, but I do now. I don't know how I would've survived school without her.

Olivia was mostly excited for prom, that's a given, but knowing we were going to graduate high school together was always our dream. Not long after I met Olivia, we found Scott. He was the new kid and didn't have a group to sit with, so we took him in, and the rest is history. It has been the three of us ever since then, and I hope that never changes.

I don't get a chance to respond before she continues, "you have to look your best tomorrow Bon," looking down at my outfit. I don't understand what she's getting at. I look fine. Well, at least I think I do.

"I look okay, don't I?" I question, now a little unsure of myself. Olivia looks me up and down, taking in my outfit before she shakes her head ever so slightly. I don't fail to notice her eyebrows also furrowing.

"I mean, yeah," she begins, motioning her head up and down in my direction, no doubt trying to put together the words in her head to make it sound less offensive to me. "You look cute, but you could always look better." Wow. Trust Olivia to come out with a backhanded compliment like that and think it's actually going to make me feel good.

She smiles at me with a full tooth smile, but it doesn't reach her eyes. I know she doesn't mean to offend me, but I am totally offended, I'll admit that. Olivia never has had a filter, but I wish she sometimes did. I know I'm not the most fashionable person ever, but damn, I have feelings.

"Look, I didn't mean that in a bad way, I just, s**t," she sighs, stopping herself before she digs herself in any deeper. "Wear what makes you comfortable, Bon, that's all I meant. Just look cute while doing it."

I don't say anything because I know that isn't what she meant, but it's not worth the argument. I give her a faint smile and move my attention away from her. Glancing down at the menu, I ignored her unsure stare and choose to brush off the topic of my fashion sense. I need an escape from that awkward conversation, and food is always the best distraction. Scott, as always, sits there silently, not knowing what to say.

"What are you two having?" I ask, not looking up from the menu. Neither of them responds after a few seconds. So I peek up to see them both glaring behind me towards the entrance of the diner. Scowls are cemented across both of their faces. This piques my interest.

"What's wrong?" I mumble as I slowly turn back in the direction of their glares, and I understand their sudden mood change. My chest tightens, and I instinctively clutch at my chest, trying to ease the pain.

"Is he serious!" Olivia growls behind me. Before I can turn back to stop her, she's up and out of her seat, making her way over to where my ex-boyfriend Skylar is standing with a petite brunette wrapped in his arms. I can't see her face from the angle I'm sitting, but I have no doubt she's pretty.

Seeing him with another girl the day after we broke up is heart-breaking. The thing that hurts the most, though, is the smile on his face. His beautiful face lit up with pure happiness. Obviously, our breakup didn't impact his life what so ever.

I snap back to reality, noticing Scott also getting up to follow Olivia. I shoot him a startled look, feeling like my eyes are going to fall out and trail behind them to where Skylar stands."I need to get out of here. I'll see you later," I grumble hurriedly as I storm past Scott, not leaving any room for him to object.

Olivia is so close to Sky's face now I can sense the sudden realization hit him when he notices me marching past them and out the door. His smile breaks instantly, just like my heart. I don't look at him, I can't. I don't want him to see me hurting like this, even if he is the cause.

Once I'm outside, I take in a deep breath. Relishing in the fresh air to help calm down my nerves that are shaking my entire body. I let out a breath that I hadn't realized I was holding in, and a single teardrop falls from my eye. I need to get home before he can come after me, or worse, what if he doesn't even care enough to chase me?

I start off toward my house. Luckily, I don't live too far from here. Well, not too far that I won't run the entire way if it gets me far away from him. I need to keep on moving until my body hits my soft, warm, comforting bed.

But my plans are cut short when I crash into a hard body, causing me to fall to the ground. The pain shoots up from my knee to my back, and I grimace, trying not to scream out in pain.

"s**t, I am so sorry," I mumble, dusting off my knees as I go to stand. I'm wobbly on my feet, and I'm fighting through the pain, but a steady hand grips my forearm, and I still.

"Bonbon, falling for me again, already?" the condescending tone drawls. Goosebumps spread over my entire body with the slightest touch, and I slowly trail my eyes up to meet his. I know who it is even before our eyes connect.