This bitch. I had always known there was a screw loose in Trish’s head, but she didn’t have to prove that! And why Eva? She was the sweetest, most genuinely good person in our group. Like, seriously, the girl who would rather rescue a fly and release it outside than swat it. Okay, maybe that was an exaggeration, but not by much. At least my visit with Ryan took a bit of the tension off. After our meeting, I found myself driving around, not wanting to go home, but not wanting to go anywhere in particular either. Could have picked up an extra shift at work, but I wasn’t in the mood to deal with people. A nice drive was good enough for me. I drove through the city, nearby towns, and finally to the back roads, climbing into the hills to enjoy the sunset with a bird’s eye view. This had always been one of my favorite things to do, but I hadn’t had much time to do it lately.
I got to the top of the tallest hill at just the right time. The golden hue of the sunset filled the sky, painting the clouds gentle hues of pink and yellow, and the sky behind me lavender, then blue, then dark blue. Perfection. And no matter how many times I tried to snap a photo, the camera just never did what I saw justice. That’s alright. This view could be my little secret with the sky itself. I smiled, basking in the remaining warmth as the sun disappeared behind the horizon. Even after the sun couldn’t be seen anymore, I stayed behind, watching as the stars began to sparkle in the sky. I always saw it as the night sky waking up, with each star appearing, one by one, until the sky was full and shimmering with tiny, twinkling lights. Tonight, it was a new moon, so the stars were the only light, making it even prettier to me. I laid on the hood of my car, just gazing up at the winking stars, until I felt my stomach growl. Yeah, I had missed dinner, hadn’t I? I chuckled and sat up, feeling a hundred percent better than I did earlier in the day. Though, I still felt bad for Eva. I hoped she was doing alright. I decided to shoot her a text before taking off to grab some grub and go home.To my surprise, she was actually quite chipper. She wasn’t letting Trish’s feelings put a damper on anything, and I smiled, proud of her strength.
The ride home was quiet. I kept the music down to think about the situation, but there wasn’t much thinking needed. Despite everyone else’s forgiving nature, I didn’t think I would be ready to just forgive and forget what happened. Trish was way out of line, and if no one else was going to show her that, then maybe I would.
At home, I sat on my bed, eating my dinner and scrolling through social media. Most of our friends were just happy that school was almost over. Some people talked about taking a break before going to college, like I was. Some people were ready to move onto bigger things in life. I was not. I was ready to party it up, maybe meet a few people, but most importantly, just see where life carried me. I wasn’t looking to do anything drastic just yet, and I certainly wasn’t looking for one of my soulmates. I wanted to party it up, maybe even have a bit of fun with people who weren’t soulmates. Provided my luck went that way. I wasn’t going to sweat it though. Life had a funny way of working out, regardless of what happened along the way.
My thought process was abruptly cut off when I got a text from Ryan.
Hey man, I was thinking about what we talked about earlier. Could we swing by and chat?
I nodded, as if he could see it, responding quickly with a solid “yes.” I mean, the idea of them coming by gave me a bit of anxiety, especially the way he worded it. I felt like maybe I had done something wrong. I started thinking over the way I reacted to the Trish situation. I mean, maybe I was harsh, but could they blame me? Eva, of all people, certainly didn’t deserve that kind of treatment.
Ryan and Eva came in, and I assumed my parents had just let them in. They came up to my room and sat down. I smiled worriedly. “Everything okay?”
Ryan nodded. “Yeah, everything is fine. We wanted to talk to you about Trish.”
I knew it. I tilted my head. “What about her?” I sipped my drink as I watched them.
Eva rested her hand on my leg. “Tusk, I really appreciate you standing up for me, but I think Ryan is right. I think Trish is under a lot of stress with school ending and this weird, extreme view she has about soulmates.” She smiled a bit, almost with pity. “I would hate for our bond to break because of one little thing.”
I sighed. “But that’s the thing, Eva, I didn’t see it as a little thing. She’s like…going psycho or something, I don’t know.” I held out a fry to Eva. When she politely shook her head, I offered it to Ryan, who took it with a slight chuckle.
“We are already going to drift a bit with college coming up, and the end of school,” Ryan said, between nibbles of the fry. “I see what Eva is saying. Why throw it away now, when chances are good we are all going to be doing our own things in the next few months anyway?”
This saddened me, of course. The idea of drifting from them was certainly not the most pleasant feeling, but I knew he was right. “Damn. When you put it that way…”
Ryan and Eva both held hopeful smiles, to which I laughed softly. “Alright, fine. But if she keeps it up, no more talks like this okay?”
Ryan nodded, and Eva gave me a small frown. She and I were on the same page. We both didn’t think things would change, but Eva. Oh, Eva, always wanting to see the good in people, even if they showed they didn’t deserve it. Ah well, I was willing to give it a shot and not hold a grudge. “She’s on thin ice,” I continued, to which they both nodded in agreement.
I flopped back on my bed. “Anywho, I was thikin’ about throwing a party.”
Ryan tilted his head. “Since when?” After all, we hadn’t talked about it earlier.
I grinned. “Since right now. I’m thinkin’ some pretty ladies, some fake alcoholic drinks, we act like adults?”
Eva blushed, and I laughed. “Not like that!” She seemed relieved after I clarified. I realized how wrong it sounded. I sat up again. “I don’t know I was thinkin’ we could do something one of these weekends, invite some of the school, and I have the perfect place for it, but it’s cool if you guys don’t want to.”
Ryan shrugged. “I’m down.”
Eva nodded. “Why not?”
“Then it’s settled.” I clapped my hands. “And you two are gonna help me plan it.”
Ryan laughed. “Yeah, you want the nerd helping you plan a party?”
I smirked. “Good point. But I think you’ll do just fine, with a bit of guidance.”
Ryan chuckled and shook his head. “Whatever you say.”
Eva stayed quiet until there was a slight break in conversation. “What about Trish?”
I sat back, thinking for a moment. “I mean, if she’s on her best behavior for however long between now and the party, it’s whatev.”
She didn’t say anything else, and simply nodded, looking away. I could tell she was disappointed, given that Trish may ruin her chances of going before even being invited, but come on, I had to stand my ground somehow. I sighed. “I’ll send her a text and let her know it’s in the planning stages, but I’ll give her more info when we know more.”
Eva’s eyes lit up, and I knew I had done the right thing, even if it didn’t exactly feel right. I smiled back, picking up my phone to text Trish while Ryan and Eva began chattering about the potential party. Trish gave me a dry “thanks” in reply, which got under my skin a bit, but I pushed it aside. I didn’t want to disappoint Eva. I set my phone down and rejoined the conversation.
“I mean, we could do it at that big pavilion in the park,” Ryan was saying, contemplatively. I leaned in.
“Oh, no, no, no.” I put my hand up, shaking it along with my head. “I already have the perfect spot.” I went ahead and explained my favorite spot, up on that hill, where you could see everything, including a clear view of the sunset, the stars, everything. “It’s my favorite place on the planet, and I would love to just chill with people up there, doing our thing.”
Ryan smiled. “Oh yeah, I’ve been up that way. It’s beautiful.”
“Right?” I asked excitedly with a big smile. “What a way to go out with a bang, right? Maybe a nice bonfire, some tunes, friends, drinks. It’s perfect.”
Ryan crossed his arms, feigning frustration. “Well, looks like you don’t need a planner after all.”
I laughed, heartedly. “Maybe not, but it doesn’t hurt to have another person to bounce ideas off of. It’ll be the best damn party of our lifetime.”
Ryan gave me a smug smile. “Sure, buddy.”
I playfully pushed him, and he played along, purposely falling off my bed, onto the floor. “Ayyy what the fuck, man?” He attempted to act angry, but couldn’t hide his laughter. Eva and I laughed along. Finally, I pulled him back up.
“Why don’t you guys stay tonight?” I asked, hopeful. “It’s the weekend, and would be cool to just chill, talk about this party, whatever.”
Eva laughed. “Tusk, when have I ever been able to stay at your house? My parents would give me a fat ‘no’ about that one, for sure.”
I smirked. “You’re eighteen now. Things are different.”
She looked around, as if she were thinking about it. “I mean, sure, I’m okay with it, but I still have to at least let them know.”
I nodded. “Of course.”
Only a short time later, with plans confirmed, I pulled out a couple air mattresses I had in my closet, and the pump that went with them. While they inflated, we chatted some more about the potential party while playing cards.
“So, you promise you’re forgiving Trish?” Eva asked quietly, almost shyly.
I shrugged. A part of me really didn’t want to, but I also knew that ruining our last couple weeks with a grudge wouldn’t help anything at all. “Sure. For now.” I felt I always needed to add that. They needed to know that Trish was on thin ice with me. “But hey, let’s just enjoy the night, alright?”
Eva nodded with a smile, and we got back to playing.
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