Chapter 7: The Exchange
I got a ransom note today in the mail. According to this letter, if I do not comply with the actions specified I will never see my overnight bag again. I laughed right out loud when I got it.
Well at first I was a little confused but after I figured out it was from Justin and he was just fooling around…. I laughed right out loud.
He wants me to meet him at the docks near his house. I have to bring him a bag of Oreos in exchange for my stuff. He is quite strange.
I still have three days worth of grounding left so I really shouldn’t go. I might get caught and then I would get another two weeks added to my sentence. I know I shouldn’t go….but does that stop me? No. I not gonna stay long though. I’m just gonna grab my stuff and leave. He’ll understand. I told my mom I was going to library for a few hours to work on a project for English class. You see what Justin does to me?
He brings out the liar in me.
Okay so I’m at the drop off spot. I’m not seeing anyone. Where the heck is he? I don’t have all day here. I scan the area taking in the beauty of the place. I love the ocean. This is one of the many joys of growing up in California. The salty smell warms my senses and the humid air wraps around my body like a blanket. I close my eyes and smile when my dad appears. He’s walking down the beach with my mom smiling and laughing.
“Hey,” A voice whispers breaking me of my thoughts. I open my eyes and slowly turn around to look in the face the one and only Justin Timberlake. “What were you just thinking about?”
I smile wider and take a step towards him. “My dad; we used to go to the beach all the time when I was little. It just brought back a lot of memories; good memories.”
He laughs a manly laugh that gives me chills. Stupid bodily reactions! “You got the stuff?” He asks and I can’t help but giggle.
I nod and hold up the brown paper bag that contains his cookies. “You have my stuff?” He holds up my duffle bag. I hold out my hand and order him to hand it over.
He’s grin turns mischievous. “Mmmm….not yet.” He answers walking towards the dock.
“What do you mean not yet?” I call after him. When he doesn’t stop I run after him; that’s just what he wanted me to do isn’t it? “I’m still grounded. I’m not even supposed to be here.”
Way to sound cool Elli….
“I thought you might be hungry.” He says once I finally catch up to him. I watch dumbly as he jumps into a sailboat and pulls out a picnic basket. “What do ya say?”
Oh boy….what do I do now? I should just say no and demand that he give me my things. I should just turn around right now and go straight home. I should run home. Sure my mom won’t be home until late tonight and the chases of me getting caught would be very minimal. But I should go home.
“Okay.” Why don’t I ever listen to myself? I think my mouth has a mind of its own.
~*~*~*~
This is not a date. I just invited Elli to go out with me because I just bought this new sailboat and none of my other friends were available to go out with me. Don’t look at me like that; it’s the truth.
I know the ransom note thing was kind of lame. Don’t tell anyone I did that okay; it’s embarrassing. I thought it was creative at first but now it’s just….lame.
“So the port-side is on the left?” She asks with a furrowed brow. I’ve been trying to explain to her the basics of sailing but I think I’m just boring her.
“Right.” I smile sitting across from her and letting the wind do the work.
“Right I’m right or right is really on the right?”
“Right your right.” I laugh.
“Good,” She says laughing along with me, “this sailing stuffs not so hard.”
“So should I just let you take over from here?”
“Oh no. I wouldn’t want to deprive you of that joy.”
“Right.” I reply sarcastically. “So you’re dad used to take you the beach a lot.”
“Oh yeah,” She says her face brightening. She must have been really close with her dad. “We used to go all the time. My grandparents own a house on the beach. So my dad grew up around the ocean. He would take us whenever he could.”
“What happened to your dad?” I hope I’m not being too personal. Her smile flatters but never fully leaves her face.
“He died when I was eleven. He had a heart attack.”
I reach across the way to take her hand in what I hope is comforting. “I’m so sorry.”
She gives my hand a squeeze. “I’m okay with it now. I mean it’s been six years.”
I can’t imagine how difficult that must have been for her. I would literally die if I lost any of my parents; step parents included. She really does seem okay with it though. She’s a strong girl.
“Is he were you get that voice of yours from?”
“Yeah,” Elli’s smile is back full force now. “Well my mom and dad. My parents met at a club. My mom was singing and my dad was part of the band.”
“So you grew up around music?” She nods. “I guess we have something in common then.”
We both take this moment to realize that our hands are still entwined. Is it wrong that I want to kiss Elli right now? We both lean forward slowly. Just as our lips are about to touch Elli loses her balance and, you guessed it, falls over. The poor girl.
As she gets off the floor of the boat I realize just what I was about to do. I was about to kiss Elli. Underage, seventeen year old Elli. F**k! What is wrong with me? I need to get my mind off this; off her.
After making sure she didn’t like give herself a concussion or something I begin to unload the basket I packed earlier this morning. It’s nothing fancy; just turkey sandwiches and fruit salad. That’s about all I can make. I never really had the time to learn how to cook. Hopefully she won’t hold that against me.
“Did you make this?” I don’t think Elli has stopped smiling since I first saw her. She looks absolutely adorable. I say this in a purely platonic way. She just….she dresses modestly and I know she’s not trying to impress me and…..well that impresses me.
“It’s just sandwiches.”
She tilts her head to the side and if possible her smile grows. “Are you blushing?” I shake my head no even though I know I am. I feel like such a girl. I am not normally like this; let me assure you of that. It must be the sea air. “You are! I can’t believe I made you blush.”
“You want to steer the boat.”
“Don’t try to change the subject.”
Okay so she caught me. She made me blush and then I desperately failed at trying to change the subject. You see what this girl does to me? I’m not my usual cool, smooth self.
“Okay, okay, let’s break out the Oreos.”
She bits her bottom lip”I’ve always found that sexy when any woman does that”and scrunches up her nose. “I kinda, accidentally knocked them overboard when I you know...fell.”
I forgot how much of a klutz this girl is. I assure her that it’s alright but I can tell she’s embarrassed. “We can stop and get ice cream when we back to shore.”
“Okay.” I simply nod and get up to maneuver the boat back to shore. I can't wait to see what the rest of the afternoon will hold cause the first part sure has been f**king intersting.
TBC.....
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