I turned the key to my house and stepped inside the disorganization that was my house. I hate going here every day, and I don’t consider it a home. I don’t have a home right now, because there is no one place that I feel truly comfortable.
“Mother, I’m home.”
As usual, no answer. I trudged my way up to my bedroom and started on homework, this time keeping my windows closed. Half an hour after I started, I heard a consistent tapping against my window. I ignored it, but I found that I would get nothing done with the consistent rapping at the window. I know I was going to regret it, but I turned to the window anyway, and sure enough, Colton Hunter was throwing pebbles at my window. He leaned over the railing of his balcony and gestured for me to open my window.
I yanked it open and growled, “If you break my window, you will be the one replacing and installing my new and improved window”
Colton’s fingers dropped its most current pebble and held his hands up in surrender.
I relaxed and sighed. “What do you want, Colton?”
Colton gaped, “What ran up your pants, Ella? You’re calling me Colton now?”
All the events of the last few days along with the state of a family rushed down me at once. I was so tired, the weight of the whole world on my shoulders. “Just… not now Colton.”
Colton immediately looked concerned. “I’ve never seen you this inanimate. What’s wrong?”
I really didn’t want to explain myself right now. “Nothing,” I muttered.
He scowled, and swung over the small gap so he stood in my balcony. “Tell me. Keeping it in won’t help anything.” He fixed me with intense green eyes.
“Nope.”
“C’mon, Ella.”
“Nada.”
“Tell me! I already know some information about you, so what’s the harm of another bit of information, huh?”
“Zilch. And no.”
I was smiling, hard, because his face was bright red.He grumbled something under his breath, suspiciously sounding like ‘princess’, ‘stubborn’, and ‘of all the mortals’. I stared at him suspiciously, and asked the dreaded question. “Are you high?”
Colton snapped his head up. “No,” he said a little too quickly.
I narrowed my eyes. “Come on. You just whipped your head up fast enough to give yourself whiplash. What is it?”
Colton blinked, then a slow smile spread across his face. “Let’s make a deal, shall we?”
My eyebrows came down. “What kind of deal?” I said suspiciously.
Colton smiled, almost giddily. “No biggie, just a small deal, you know.”
“It has something to do with the state of my condition, doesn’t it?” I said, resigned.
Colton grinned widely. “Yup. And In exchange for a question that I get to ask you about your family - that you must answer, by the way - I will answer one of your questions.”
“No strings attached?”
“No strings attached,” he confirmed.
“Deal,” I stuck my hand out, and he shook it.
“What is your status compared to those of your sisters, if you have any?” he questioned carefully.
I frowned at the weird phrasing of the question. “Ok, um, I have two step-sisters that don’t do anything. I do all the chores around the house and have to help them with their homework, even though they are older than me.”
Some unreadable emotion flashed through his eyes before his smile brightened again. “Ok, so what’s your question?”
I grinned. “What’s the word you didn’t finish that day in the car ride?”
He hesitated. “Come on!” I cajoled. “You promised.”
That seemed to push him. “Nymphus.” he muttered. “Nymphus was the word.”
I smiled. “Thank you,”
He seemed in conflict with himself over that statement. Finally, “You're welcome.” As if he had forced them out.
I blinked, confused, then shrugged. “I have to get back to homework, so please don’t distract me. See you tomorrow.”
I knew immediately that I had said the wrong thing because a slow grin stretched across his face.
“Keep your shirt on Hunter!” And with that, I slammed my window and curtains shut.
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