Chapter 7 #2
Colten lips thin from how hard he’s pressing them together, obviously holding back a laugh at my struggle. But thankfully, he doesn’t say anything.
Instead, he holds out his hand to help me up, and I go to take it because we’re best friends—
But then I stumble and crash into him, dragging us back into the ground. I just barely manage to twist and position Colten on top of me. I’m a lot heavier than him, after all.
We hit the ground in a tangled heap, and my breath is slightly knocked out of me. Colten is not light, not with all that muscle. For a moment, there is silence.
Then, as soon as I manage to catch my breath, I burst into laughter again.
Colten pushes himself up onto his elbows above me, his hair no longer contained by his hair tie. When did that fall out?
He laughs with me, breathless and bright like earlier. It’s even better seeing him like this up close. I really like it.
The glow is back again, faint and warm, a halo around his face with the pink-purple sunset behind him, and stronger than before.
It’s kind of mesmerizing.
I grin up at him. “We should do this more often.”
He reaches down and absentmindedly pushes a piece of hair off my forehead. It’s distractingly gentle.
“What, trespassing?” he asks, a crooked, softer version of his usual smirk tugging at his mouth.
“No, not the running-from-authority part,” I say, huffing out a laugh. “But ten out of ten, would recommend. Great cardio. Coach should add it to the team’s training schedule.”
His thumb lingers for half a second too long at my temple before he pulls his hand back, like he just remembered himself.
“Then what?” he asks, head tilting slightly, eyes searching my face in that too-intense way he does sometimes. It makes me want to squirm, just a little.
I gesture vaguely between us because words are hard when he’s looking at me like that. “You know, this. The glow thing.”
Colten’s still smiling, but his brows furrow with confusion. “…What do you mean?”
“Think about it,” I tell him, almost breathless with excitement. “You’re not dating anyone, and I’ve already dated pretty much every girl on campus, so we should help each other out.”
He goes very still. “…Help each other out,” he echoes, voice going quiet in a way that should probably concern me.
“Yeah,” I reply, tilting my head. It’s simple enough, isn’t it?
His eyes narrow just a fraction, the smile gone. “Patrick, what exactly do you mean by that?”
I frown. How is this confusing?
“You know, helping each other out,” I say patiently, wiggling my eyebrows suggestively. “You’re gay, and the spell made me attracted to you, so why not take advantage of it? It’s efficient.”
Colten’s entire body goes rigid.
Hm. Not the reaction I was going for.
The earlier lightness disappears, and my stomach feels heavier with every passing moment that Colten doesn’t relax, doesn’t understand.
“So we can just, well, you know, hook up, blow off some steam together.” The more I explain, the stiffer he seems to get. I feel nauseous as cold sweat breaks out over my back.
I was so sure this idea was perfect, but Colten looks…wrong.
His face is pale, his mouth parting slightly before he presses it shut again, like whatever he was about to say got caught somewhere on the way out.
Or like he doesn’t trust himself to say it.
“It’s perfect,” I insist, sure that if I explain it better, he’ll get it. “We’re best friends, so there’s no awkward dating stuff, no expectations. Just helping each other out until we find people we actually want to date.”
Colten suddenly stands, and I blink up at him.
His expression has completely changed, the warmth gone, and no trace of his glow left.
“What?” I ask, pushing up onto my elbows as my nausea gets worse with our sudden distance. “Colten, what’s wrong?”
He looks absolutely furious. Not annoyed, not irritated, but angrier than he’s even been with me.
The last time I saw him anywhere near this angry was when he found out about his father’s cheating.
“Are you joking right now?” His voice is quiet, too quiet, like if he speaks any louder, he might scream.
“…No?” What is going on?? Colten’s been upset with me, sure, angry, yeah, but…he’s never looked at me like this, like…
Like he’s disgusted by me.
I shiver, cold from the lack of his body heat and also because I am still not wearing a shirt.
“We’re best friends,” I say, standing up and crossing my arms over my chest, feeling oddly self-conscious. “Isn’t this like…ideal?”
Colten’s hands curl into fists so tightly they shake at his sides.
For a second, I think he might actually punch me.
“Colten?” I say carefully.
He looks at me, his eyes sharp and completely unfamiliar.
“I told you before,” he says, each word tight, controlled like he’s forcing them out through clenched teeth, “I don’t do temporary. I don’t do this sort of thing just for fun.”
“I remember,” I say quickly, stepping toward him. “But we’re best friends, so it’s not temporary. We’ll always be best friends.”
Colten just stares at me, before he laughs once, but there’s no humor in it. It lands somewhere between disbelief and…hurt.
Then he turns and walks away.
“Colten!”
He doesn’t stop.
“Colten, wait!”
He keeps going.
I think about chasing after him, but my legs still feel shaky, and my stomach is twisting painfully with nausea. He doesn’t even glance back at me.
Is he that disgusted by me? Colten seemed pretty enthusiastic about making out with me five seconds ago.
Was it something I said?
…Did I hurt him by suggesting that? But…how?
Maybe he was drunk, and the idea of being with me actually does disgust him.
The sunset behind him is bright purple and pink, even more colorful than earlier.
It should look amazing, instead it just looks…
Empty.