Where There's Light | ?

23. Flaws

Candi grinned triumphantly, twisting a kinky curl around her finger. "Just know it's first place material."

Considering the effort she put into her school outfits, I had no doubt about that.

* * *

After woodshop let out, Nolan and I began the trek to the parking lot. We'd usually be holding hands or something couple-like, but I've been trying to limit the amount of physical contact. Instead I'd pretend like I had very urgent text messages to reply to that required both hands.

If Nolan noticed me distancing myself, he didn't let on. "We're not doing the costume thing," he stated definitively.

"What if it's a really good prize?" I asked, now tapping at my phone with purpose.

The school's website loaded. The Halloween contest was front and center, announcing the date and time of the event as well as a list of categories and rules. Most importantly there was a list of prizes.

"Eh, the prize is just movie tickets," I said, shutting my phone off and dropping it into my purse.

"For what movie?" He actually seemed interested.

I shrugged, not remembering the title. "Don't know. Something that looked really bloody."

"Those are my favorite kind of movies." I shot him a look and he chuckled, smoothly slipping his hand in mine.

Shit. I let my guard down for one second...

"Slasher flicks are hilarious," he continued. "We should go see it."

My pulse quickened at the thought of sitting alone with him in a dark theater. The Bellcreek Cinema was a  notorious hook up spot. The dark rooms gave people the privacy needed to swap spit for two and half hours.

My entire face heated up as images of Nolan's lips on mine flashed in my mind. I wouldn't survive the night with him.

"For what?" I questioned, trying to sound calm despite the hammering in my chest. "Dates are only useful if people can see us," I reminded him, but mostly myself, that we us being together was only for show.

"Right." He agreed, running his fingers through his hair. "I'll just go alone."

Did he sound disappointed or was I hearing things? Maybe I wanted him to sound disappointed. Maybe I wanted to know if keeping real emotions out of a fake relationship was as hard for him as it was for me.

His face gave nothing away regarding his thoughts. Instead it was blank, void of any indication that his heart picked up pace whenever we touched, that he thought of me even when I wasn't around.

The fluttering in my stomach made me nauseous. I needed air that didn't smell like Nolan's cologne and unrequited love.

"I'll meet you out front," I said, pulling my hand from his. "I need to get some notes from Bee."

He nodded in agreement and I took off for Bee's locker. She was there, but she wasn't alone. As I approached Gia was leaving, rambling on about candy corn until she rounded a corner. How did she talk to so much without taking a breath? I was winded just listening to her.

"I don't think I can do this, Bee." I pressed my back against the cool metal locker next to here. "I think I might actually like Nolan. Or at the very least I want to kiss him. Like, really want to kiss him."

"And it's only October." She frowned sympathetically. Well, she tried to. An uncontrollable grin won over her face.

I blinked. Here Bee was, freshly eighteen with nothing but a family dinner to show for it. Yet she smiled like she'd won the lottery.