NOVEL NEXT Chapter 29: The Sidekick and the Aquarium (Part 3)
I could feel something, or someone, jostling me. My natural instinct was to swat at it until it went away and quit bothering me. That didn’t happen. Instead, they re-doubled their efforts, leaving me disoriented and forcing me to open an eye to stare at the perpetrator.
“Good morning, sleeping beauty.”
“Leave me alone, Rika.”
“Fine, but people are going to start talking if you keep sleeping there. Maybe security will even get involved. That’d be a cool story to tell!”
Damn, my eyelids felt heavy, but she wasn’t wrong. I couldn’t very well sleep at the aquarium anymore than I already had. I stifled a yawn. “Where’s Nora?”
“Her and Chloe ran off somewhere. Said she got sick of taking care of you, so she had me come over. Oh, and keep an eye out for Amelia. She should be here soon too.”
Sounded like Rika’s plan to give them each some time alone with Ethan had gone off without a hitch. I pushed off of the bench and sat up, having sprawled across it at some point while I slept. I was surprised I hadn’t fallen onto the floor with how much I usually toss and turn. Nora must have prevented such a fate from happening, which would explain her annoyance.
“What’d you want to talk to me about by the way?” she asked.
Blinking away the blurriness, it took my brain a few seconds to comprehend what she was talking about. Then, I remembered. I wanted to ask her why she didn’t want to disclose she was the one who bought the present for him.
“I meant to ask you a while ago, but why didn’t you write your name on the gift we got at the mall?”
“I did. It was on the wrapping paper.”
The same wrapping paper that had been crumpled up and shoved underneath the coffee table. Ethan probably hadn’t even bothered to search for a name, assuming it was written on the card. At least, the cat enjoyed rolling around with it and swatting at it. Although I doubted that would make Rika happy.
“Somehow I feel like I owe you an apology.”
“What are you talking about?” She shook her head. “More importantly, why didn’t you tell him it was from me?”
“I thought you were keeping it a secret.”
She groaned. “Because you thought I liked him.”
“Yeah…”
“Sometimes you’re a little slow on the uptake.”
“I’ve been hearing that a lot recently,” I said.
Mainly from Nora. Rather, I’d heard it entirely from Nora. That girl could be quite mean when she wanted to be.
“What’s done is done. I’ll tell him the present was from me later. But for now, we should get you up and moving. And I got just the thing for you.”
“Coffee?” I asked.
“The touch tank.”
I wasn’t convinced, but Rika seemed dead set on her idea. Rather than arguing, and losing like always, I decided to go along with it–save myself some time in the end. Evidently, I wasn’t moving fast enough for her, though, because she grabbed my hand and held it. The warmth passing from her palm to mine sent heat creeping up the back of my neck, and I involuntarily shuddered like I had been shocked by lightning. But there was no way I could be reacting strangely to her holding my hand. I was sixteen, not six. And besides, this could hardly be considered skinmanship, considering how much Rika had clung to me in the past. I must be more exhausted than I thought. Yeah, that must be it. It had to be because I just woke up, and my mental facilities weren’t firing on all cylinders.
The large group crowding the tank had dispersed, allowing her to lunge toward it with no regard for others. Our hands broke the surface of the water, sending little ripples outward. Yet, even with the coolness of the water surrounding my hand, it still felt burning hot. It wasn’t an unpleasant sensation, but I couldn’t even look at Rika at this point. I felt something sharp prick my skin, providing me with a momentary distraction.
“These sea urchins are pretty cool. It’s like petting a hedgehog.”
“Yep.”
My one-word answer was enough to satisfy her, and she went back to proclaiming how the stingrays were still more adorable. I pretended to be intrigued by the rest of the creatures as though my life depended on it. Anything to avoid having to glance her way.
Her phone rang, blasting a tune reminiscent of an old-school rock song mixed with a hint of modern electronic music. She answered it, letting go of me and walking a few paces away. The tingling feeling reverberating throughout my body vanished, and I released a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding in. I wanted to step away myself and put a little more distance between us because this girl was dangerous for my health right now. But, I remained incapable of doing anything but standing there dumbfounded.
“Ah, Chloe… you did already? Ok, I’ll be right there.” Hanging up, she slipped the phone into her back pocket and spun around to face me. “That was Chloe. I’m going to make sure she doesn’t chicken out and meets back up with Ethan. Try not to fall asleep while I’m gone.”
“N-no promises.”
She rolled her eyes and scampered off to wherever Chloe was, while I wanted to curl up into a ball and die. Stuttering? How embarrassing. I might have been too harsh on her earlier; I was the immature one, getting so flustered over nothing.
My heart continued to pound in my ears as I dipped my hand back into the tank, dragging it through the water. I had no interest in touching any of the sea creatures. In fact, I actively avoided them, hoping the little waves I was creating would clear my mind.
“You’re going to upset the animals if you keep doing that.”
Amelia’s warning startled me out of my thoughts. “Sorry, how long have you been there?”
The girl stopped beside me. “Since she pulled you off the bench. I didn’t mean to spy, but I couldn’t bring myself to interrupt. The two of you were too cute together.”
“We’re not like that. Rika and me are friends.”
“Of course. I wasn’t implying anything else.” She twirled a strand of her golden hair around her finger. “In fact, I’m glad to hear you say that.”
What did she mean by that? I had no idea why she was suddenly intrigued about my and Rika’s relationship. Before Amelia hadn’t seemed to care, but could she be plotting something of her own?
I must have pulled quite the face since she couldn’t help chuckling at me. “Not for myself obviously, but for… it doesn’t matter. One of you will figure it out soon enough. Hopefully.” Examining the touch tank, she grinned at the sea creatures, her teeth on full display. “These little guys sure are cute.”
“You sound exactly like Rika. It’s scary.”
She laughed, but they really did share a good amount of similarities. They were both beautiful, cheerful, and outgoing around their friends. A silly idea popped into my head, and unfortunately, I was desperate enough to go along with it.
“Amelia”–the girl looked at me–“I have a super weird favor to ask you.”
“Do you now? Well, it’s not like you to ask for something, so you’ve got my attention.”
“Grab my hand for a second.” I extended it out toward her, blushing because I felt like an absolute moron for proposing such an outlandish request. “I want to test something out.”
She mimicked my action. “That certainly is an interesting request.”
This would be a good test, and Amelia was the perfect candidate. She was absolutely stunning, and I definitely found her attractive, so if I reacted to her in the same manner, then I had nothing to worry about. I was just being a stupid teenager who became infatuated with any pretty girl who showed an interest in him.
It was the perfect plan. The only issue was I didn’t feel a thing when our hands clasped together.
