T W E N T Y - E I G H T

ARABELLA.

I had no idea what we were going to do when Alex asked to sneak out of school but I definitely didn’t expect it to be us sitting on a bench in a quiet park he drove us to.

A few children are running around and laughing with their parents not far away, along with some couples standing under the trees, doing couple things I guess.

I turn to Alex and his arms are crossed against his chest, his head raised to the sky with his eyes closed.

“What are we doing here? “ I ask and he opens his eyes. He turns his head to me. “Relaxing. “

“Relaxing?” I repeat, and he chuckles as he closes his eyes again.

“I think I wanted you around. “ He mutters and that makes my heart skip a beat.

“You did?”

“I might enjoy your company far more than you realize. “ He says, and it takes me by surprise. He enjoys my company? We rarely talk, though. When we’re together, our hands never leave each other. I guess that’s something to enjoy.

“You’re being surprisingly nice today. “ I tell him and he opens one