Chapter 194
He looked up, his arms touching my waist as his body was pressed against mine. He said, "First day we met, I had no idea how much I needed you."
"Me neither," I said honestly, "Actually, I never expected you to be... you."
He placed his hands against the grass on either side of me and asked, "Did you judge me, Candace Turner?"
"I judged you so hard," I smiled, pushing him over so I was now on top, straddling him.
He guided me to a more comfortable position on him and looked up at me. "Have I told you how beautiful you look today?"
His hands loosened from my waist and traveled along my legs.
"You may have mentioned it."
I can guess what a younger Zenon expected out of his senior year. And it didn't include me. Not even a little bit.
My expectations of this year had not been as high as his. After breaking up with Kaden, I had one friend who barely wanted to see me. Turns out, that one friend was also seeing Kaden. But they deserve each other.
I hope I deserve Zenon. I feel happy and I hope we won't change.
"I'm worried for you," I rolled off him, "After what you told me today, I'm scared you're ignoring your health."
"I know," he nodded as he stood up from the grass.
He offered his hand to pull me up. I accepted and brushed the grass off my trousers. He picked up the blanket and whipped it in the air to clean off any blades of grass.
We walked back towards his car and I threw our plates in recycling. The food trucks had closed down for the night and most people had left.
Zenon opened the door for me and when he sat behind the wheel, he leant over the passenger seat to pull out a brown notepad from the glove compartment.
"I'm worried too," he answered with a kind of raw honesty I didn't expect.
I was used to seeing him behave so strong but it's ok to be scared. He opened the small book and I recognized his chicken scratch handwriting scrawled over the pages.
"I try to record my rehab exercises," he pointed to the date on the page and flicked through a few pages to show me.
He explained, "Quad stretches, flexibility stretches and strengthening exercises. I try to get thirty minutes in a day. Even though we warm up and cool down at practice, I need to do more than the standard because of my condition."
I guess he was trying to make up for the doctor appointments he kept missing and all the basketball games he was still playing.
I brought my face closer to the page until my nose almost touched it so that I could read some of the words. Zenon rolled his eyes at my melodrama and turned the heating on in the car.
I read out a line, "Minor interrogation?"
Who's he interrogating?
Zenon looked at where I was reading and corrected me, "Minor inflammation."
Well that makes more sense.
I gave up, "No offence but your handwriting is worse than a six-year old's."
"It brought us together though."
That's actually true.
When Zenon drops me off after a date, I feel like I'm in a dreamlike state. I think they call it the honeymoon phase, but why do they have to make it sound so transient?
And who are they anyway?
I'm sure I rhymed in one of those lines. Maybe I should write a poem. And then maybe my English teacher will stop giving me C's. I digress.
6 months to 2 years - that's how long the honeymoon phase lasts apparently. I'd really like to challenge them for their sources. If you've found the right person, why can't the honeymoon phase last forever?
I suppose nothing lasts forever.
~Preston Oakes High School~
It was the last day before winter break. The next time I would step foot in school, it would be the new year.
I felt some type of way about seeing Zenon in his basketball jersey. It didn't sit properly with me anymore, watching him be fawned over for a sport that was destroying him.
But what do I know? I haven't seen the doctor's orders and I haven't been through it. All I did was spend all night googling jumper's knee.
"Hey Candace, do you want to sit with us at lunch?" Khloe asked me as I packed my bag after English class.
Jake was sitting next to me and raised his eyebrows at the question.
"That's a first," I commented, hiding my yawn.
Like I said, I spent most of last night reading. Jake chucked his pen into his bag and tried not to laugh. His jaw had mostly healed and only a cut was visible.
"Is that a yes or a no because I was only trying to be nice and I don't appreciate your tone," Khloe snapped back.
"Well you can take it as a no," I said, "I'm sure you're not torn up about it."
"I'm not," Khloe assured me, "Lexi wants Cynthia back in the group and thought it would help to make peace with you."
"This does feel like an olive branch," I said sarcastically.
Jake chuckled. He was taking a long time to leave, intentionally slowing down so he didn't miss this.
"If you weren't so sarcastic, Candace, maybe it would be. I've only ever been nice to you," Khloe said, "Ever since you started dating Zenon, you think you're better than the rest of us."
No. You just ignored me until I started dating Zenon.
I didn't say anything, and Jake pushed his chair in so I could walk out without going past Khloe.
Khloe was the first person I met at summer camp and that conversation hadn't gone down as politely as she remembered.