Number Eleven

Chapter 16.

Ava POV

The bitter wind rushes over my skin, an array of goosebumps covering my arms through my thin jacket as I near the end of my walk, the green Starbucks sign just feet away.

The sun is not as warm as it was a few weeks ago, seeing as it's now the beginning of October, leaving us vulnerable to the harsh temperatures that seem to always surround me when I don't have weather appropriate clothes on.

I woke up this morning with the mother of all crinks in my neck, along with half my body dangling off the couch as Oakley claimed the couch as his own, leaving no room for me.

He woke up shortly after me thankfully enough and released me from his grasp long enough for the blood to rush back through my sleeping limbs.

He didn't seem overly thrilled by the idea of me meeting Adam at the coffee shop after my classes, but he didn't really have a choice in the matter. My excuse did little to stop him from spending an hour trying to convince me to stay in bed with him all day though, and after almost giving in, I was left with twenty minutes to make it to my Addictions seminar.

Thankfully Oakley was graceful of a loser enough to give me a hoodie to wear in the cold, since me being me, ran out my house yesterday in nothing more than a long sleeve shirt and a pair of thin leggings. I can't say I'm ready to walk the runway with this look, seeing as the hoodie reaches my knees, but at least I'm semi-warm.

I reach the coffee shop and look through the glass window to see Adam sitting at our usual table with two white cups resting in front of him.

The bell rings out as I open the door and breathe in the strong coffee before making my way to our table. His head snaps up as the ear-piercing screech of my chair catches his attention.

"One grande pumpkin spice latte for the lady." He pushes the cup gently towards me before taking a sip of his most likely plain black coffee.

Usually, I would have opted for the same thing, but this fall weather does something to me.

"Thank you, kind sir. How was class?"

He rolls his eyes and blows out a loud huff before slouching back against his chair.

He's studying kinesiology, which basically is a fancy way of saying he's studying how the human body moves. It's something I know he doesn't want to pursue a career doing.

"I was too hungover this morning to pay attention to anything other than Rackham's voice gnawing in my ear for her entire lecture. That woman's voice is the equivalent of nails on a chalkboard I swear." He shivers dramatically as I start laughing, a little too loudly apparently.

The devil herself, Beth Winston, shushes me from her seat a few tables over before pushing her round glasses up her small nose and shooting me a glare.

If her looks could kill, I swear I would have died a long time ago.

I met Beth at the beginning of last year. I had just started at UBC and was in this very same coffee shop when I tragically tripped over my untied shoelace and spilled my fresh, very full cup of steaming black coffee all over her light pink sweater.

Now, of course, I apologized profusely and even offered to buy her a new sweater, but she wasn't having any of it. She shooed me away and stalked out of the coffee shop, declaring her hatred for me ever since.

To make matters worse, she's had a crush on Adam since elementary school and hates me even more for being best friends with him. According to Adam, they had gone to school together since they were in preschool and although they used to be decent friends, she never got the hint and eventually, he completely distanced himself from her.

I roll my eyes at her and like the child I am, stick my tongue out.

"Just ignore her O, she'll get over it eventually. It's not like you purposefully dumped your coffee on her. You didn't even know her and it was more than a year ago now."

Shrugging my shoulders I look away from her, turning my attention back to Adam to find him watching her questioningly.

"She seems to have gotten hotter over the summer break though. In a sexy nerd kinda way eh?" I scoff before looking back over at her.

He's not totally wrong. The waist long unruly brown curls that used to fall in her face have been straightened and trimmed, now resting at the base of her neck. Her defined cheekbones and huge boobs are definitely also new, probably courtesy of her rich daddy. The only thing that seems to have stayed the same are her piercing blue eyes. They have always been eye-catching, regardless of them hiding behind her large round-rimmed glasses.

"Don't even think about it. You've done enough damage to the girl. Plus she's pure evil."

He turns his head back with a shrug. "I was just saying. She didn't use to be that hot. Anyways, how were your classes? You had your Addiction seminar today right?"

I groan and he chuckles before taking another sip of his coffee. 

"That good hey?" he teases while I nod my head and slump in my chair.

"It was brutal. This year might kill me and to think I still have almost two years of this torture. Plus, to make it even worse I have to start looking for somewhere to do my placement next year." 

After I graduate with my bachelors in Social Work this year, I decided to take an extra two years to specialize in child welfare. That means that on top of the two years of schooling, I also have to find myself a placement in one of the specialties to go along with child welfare or else I won't be able to graduate.

"Have you decided what you wanna do? You know you still have a while to get one nailed down, stop stressing," he reassures me, knowing how in my head I can get.

"I'm leaning towards child services but I also want to work more with teens. I just want to make sure I get the spot I want and not procrastinate like someone I know," I stop to narrow my eyes at him before I continue. "Or by my luck, I'll end up with the only one I don't want."

Adam places a hand on his heart and looks at me as if I've actually hurt his feelings before pushing his bottom lip out in a pout. "Uncalled for, O. I never procrastinate."

That causes another loud laugh to jump out of my throat, earning me another shush. I turn my head and flip her the bird, watching her scowl deepen.

"Your mouth is going to get stuck in a permanent scowl if you don't smile once and a while, Beth," I smirk when I can practically see smoke shooting from her ears.

"I'd rather have a permanent scowl on my face than have to look like you, Octavia." 

Rolling my eyes, I hear Adam snicker as he tries desperately to hold back his own laughter.

"You sure about that? Cause if you looked like me it would be you sitting here with Adam. And we both know how badly you want that." 

The loud booming of Adam's laughter cuts through the tension like a knife and I watch as her anger is quickly replaced with a fake smile as she turns her attention to him.

"Oh, Adam I didn't see you there. You know there's an empty seat beside me, right? You don't have to sit beside her." 

His laughter stops immediately at her sneering tone, and his eyes harden as he answers her.

"You do know I got here before you right? I didn't see you making any move to sit beside me. Lay off Ava or leave," he snaps, his tone leaving no room for argument before he turns back to me. "Actually, you ready to go? I really don't want to be here anymore."

"Yeah sure. Let's go." I stand up from the table and throw my empty coffee cup in the trash bin before meeting him outside.

Once we get inside his Mustang he sighs. Turning his head in my direction he takes a deep breath before fiddling with the steering wheel.

"I'm sorry for how I treated you the other night. You were upset and I was a total douche bag."

"It's okay. I just don't understand what the big deal was with me telling Oakley. I hadn't even told him the whole story when he decided to come back."

Adam can be the most confusing guy sometimes. I swear he goes through PMS more than I do. Ever since David and I broke up, he's been keeping me under a watchful eye constantly and as much as I appreciate it, it gets seriously annoying sometimes.

"We know nothing about the guy other than he's a f*****g fantastic hockey player and moved from Penticton. Do you even know anything about him? Or does he just know all about you? I just don't want you to get hurt again, O."

Adam's words hurt. They hurt because they're true. How can Oakley expect me to show him every single skeleton in my closet yet I haven't seen a single one in his? I know they're there, I've seen the sadness in his eyes and how bad his knuckles looked last night...

"I just want you to be careful Ava," he gently whispers, wrapping a large hand around my small one.

"I know, thank you. Can you drive me home? I have a lot of homework to finish before your game." It's not a total lie. I do have homework to do, just not tonight.

"Yeah sure. I love you, O." He gives my hand one final squeeze before starting the car and pulling out of the parking stall.

"I love you too, A."

                                                                                            ~~~

"I'm home Morgan," I shout, closing the door behind me.

"Hey girlie! How was class?" I hear her ask from the kitchen. I join her beside the oven as she stirs something in a pot that looks kind of like macaroni?

"Don't wanna talk about it. What are you cooking? It looks...interesting." I scrunch up my nose before turning to the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water. I twist off the cap and chug it down, soothing my dry throat.

"That good? And Hamburger Helper, are you hungry?"

"Oh yeah, right! Obviously. And no, as much as I would love some of that, Adam and I already ate."

"Oh okay. More for Me!" she exclaims, shrugging her shoulders.

I decide to sneak away before she changes her mind and speed walk to my room.

Pulling out my phone, I bring up Oakley's contact before typing out a message. 

"Morgan is trying to poison me with her cooking."

Setting my phone down on my dresser, I swap yesterday's leggings out for clean ones and decide to leave Oakleys sweater on underneath one of Adam's jerseys.

I walk to my bathroom and start removing the remnants of yesterday's mascara from my stubby eyelashes before re-coating them. Brushing through the knots in my hair, I throw it up in a ponytail and head back to my room in search of my phone.

I can't help but giggle at Oakley's reply. 

"The horror. Can I drop by on my way to the rink? I have something for you."

"You have no idea. And yeah sure, we'll be here." I send the message before throwing myself face down on my bed.

                                                                                         ~~~

Half an hour later there's a knock on the door. I spring off the couch and launch myself at the door, swinging it open with a wide grin spread across my lips.

Oakley grins back at me and pulls me up into a tight hug, lifting my feet off of the ground as we spin for a few seconds.

"You look beautiful," he murmurs before planting his lips on mine in a quick kiss.

I extend my arm, turning slightly while pointing at the couch. "You wanna sit down for a minute?"

When I don't get a response I turn around to face him again.

"Are the only clothes you own Adam's?" he grumbles, glaring at the jersey I'm wearing.

"I'm wearing your sweater underneath! This is the only jersey I own," I explain, starting to get annoyed.

This caveman act is getting old.

"Not anymore." He reaches into the bag that's hanging off his shoulder and pulls out a black and red Saints jersey, handing it out to me. "Now you can wear mine."

I blush profusely as I reach out and take it from his hand.

"Thank you," I manage to mumble out, grinning up at him.

"Promise you'll wear it? I need my girl wearing my jersey in the stands or I might just lose the whole thing."

"I promise," I assure him with a giddy nod as his phone goes off. He reaches in and grabs it, pulling it out and letting out a muffled curse before looking back at me.

"I gotta go before coach benches me for real. I'll see you there baby." He pulls me into his side while wrapping his arms around me and kissing the top of my head before pulling away. I meet his eyes and reach on my tiptoes to kiss him before shoving him towards the door.

"I'll be the one screaming your name from the stands," I tease, winking at him.

"That's not the only place you'll be screaming my name sweetheart." 

I roll my eyes and see him off with a final goodbye before closing the door behind him.