《just pretend》.15
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"I'm getting pretty fucking good." Leo smirks as he walks Poppy through the stable doors. I follow behind, grinning to myself at his cockiness.
"Yeah, sure," I snort sarcastically and I pull my phone from my pocket. "Did Mia mention something about the drive in or was that tomorrow?"
"I think she was able to borrow her uncles truck for tonight. Is it just us three?"
"I don't know. What about Liv?"
"I can't think of anything she'd be doing so I can imagine she's going."
As Leo untacks Poppy I text Mia.
"She says Liv is with Aleks," I say.
I find it interesting how our friend groups have kind of merged. We don't hang out all together but we've become friends.
"Okay when I'm done this we'll head to mine?"
"Yeah but don't tell Kea because I told her I was busy tonight and she'll wanna drag her ass along," I say. "I'll be in the house grabbing my keys. You good with Poppy?"
"Yeah," he calls out.
I'm surprised I trust him alone with a horse. I'm not gone very long though.
Once I make it back to the stables he's ready to drive back to his. The drive isn't as long because we chat and I wait in the kitchen as he showers.
I get bored and walk to the garage. I make sure to be quick because I know he hates people in here.
Pencils and sketchbooks litter the place. It's a chaotic mess of art supplies and I can't imagine he ever finds things easily.
I recognize one of the sketchbooks. The cover has the year written on it.
I pick up the sketchbook and flip through the pages. A lot of them are faces of people I don't know and random sketches of people on buses or somewhere random.
I keep going till I stop at one I feel I recognize, when I look at the date at the bottom corner I know what it's from.
Me laying on the dock with my feet in the water while we waited for the others. I flip the the next page which is me floating in the water at night.
I flip back to the first one remembering one thing I was thinking.
Just pretend we never have to go back.
Figuring he would never notice I write really small, Just Pretend. In the corner before snapping the book shut and heading back to the kitchen.
I just read on my phone for a bit.
"You brought a hoodie right?" I hear Leo's voice before I see him.
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"No?"
He stands in khakis and a T-shirt, his wet mop of hair dripping on his shirt. "It's going to be chilly. Let me grab you one before we go. Mia will be here in a minute."
He leaves the room and I don't notice when he's back till I feel a hoodie being thrown at my head.
I go to call him a shitbag or something but someone knocks on the door.
"That would be Mia," Leo says moving towards the other room.
I pick the piece of clothing off my head to look at it. It's a grey hoodie with paint and marker stains all over it. It's also appears to have charcoal stains and is literally just a mess.
"That was my only clean sweater," he says when he returns with Mia.
"Clean?"
"Oh shut up it's clean."
"Oh you gave him that sweater," Mia laughs.
She sits down at the counter next to me and chats with Leo for a bit before we all decide we should leave.
I sit in the back assuming Leo would want shotgun but he sits next to me in the back. Mia of course, is driving.
"You grabbed snacks right?" Mia asks before we leave.
"Yes," Leo says to Mia.
The drive is a bit far but we just chat and listen to music obnoxiously loud.
At one point when Leo is readjusting his foot he kicks me and so I kick him back which leads to ten minutes of us just subtly kicking each other while he continues to chat with Mia.
"Yeah I'm not too sure what's going on between them," Mia replies to whatever Leo just said. They're talking about how much time Liv and Aleks have been spending together.
I try to muffle a laugh when Leo kicks my foot again.
"I mean I think we all know," Leo laughs.
"They would never actually date. He'd be too embarrassed."
Leo sighs.
I go to kick him but when Mia swerves the car I never fully retreat my foot.
"Fucking hell, sorry there was a rabbit on the road."
"You didn't hit it right?"
"No Leo, the bunny is fine but jeez. If I crashed this thing my uncle would have my head."
For the rest of the ride I'm painfully aware that my foot is on his and I never move it, he never tries to and it just stays like that.
When we get there Mia parks the truck and goes to get popcorn. Leo and I put the blankets and pillows in the back and wait for Mia to return.
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The air is starting to get chilly so I throw on Leo's hoodie.
"I don't even know what movie they're playing," I say sitting down and getting cozy. He sits on the edge of the truck.
"Stand By Me."
"Oh thats old."
"Good movie though. Have you seen it?"
"Like the second half of it. I was at somebody's house and it was playing so I watched it." He nods his head and looks around at everyone else.
It's dark out now and people around us get cozy in their trucks or lawn chairs. Leo has become a silhouette from the bright screen and all I can really see is his shape and curly hair.
Mia returns with two bags of popcorn in hand. "Pop is in the passengers seat."
She hands one bag to Leo and one to me to hold while she grabs whatever else she wanted to grab.
When she returns she sits on the opposite side of me and says, "Leo you're in the middle." He climbs under the blanket in the middle of Mia and I.
Forever goes by and I'm bored out of my mind. I could probably fall asleep.
I haven't been paying attention much of the movie. More or less distracted by how close Leo is beside me.
"Mia is sleeping," Leo whispers in my ear. The feeling of warm breath on my neck sends chills down my spine.
I turn my attention to the movie again. The kids are all covered in leeches, panicking about getting them off.
"I'm pretty tired too," I admit. I could probably fall asleep right here.
"Then sleep. Want my pillow?" He goes to grab the pillow he's leaning on.
"No it's fine."
I sigh before leaning my head on the rim of the truck staring off into the black nothingness. Just country land.
I can hear the movie, people talking, Mia snoring and Leo's breathing.
I almost fall asleep and I don't realize how much time passes by before Leo softly says, "Andrew."
"Mhm?" I groan lifting my head.
"The movies done."
"Shit," I laugh rubbing my eyes. "I watched none of that."
"Yeah and Mia is still knocked out."
I look past him to where Mia is drooling on her arm, knocked out.
"Mia, Mia wake up," I say. She doesn't stir.
She wakes up when Leo lightly shakes her.
"Aw fuck I fell asleep," she groans. She sits up and fixes herself. "Okay we'll leave in a bit let me wake up a bit."
"I don't want to go home," I mumble.
"Me either," Leo sits up straight and looks to me.
She climbs off the truck and stretches a bit. "Know any twenty four hour diners around?"
"There's a wimpy's not far from my house that's open twenty four hours," I say.
Mia nods her head. "Okay sounds good. I might order some fries or a milkshake."
Leo and I seem to hold eye contact till Mia is snapping to grab our attention. I didn't even notice.
"Hey you two, clean up all the blankets I'm going to throw out the garbage."
I nod my head and then she's gone.
I want to ask where Keanu is but I figure he wouldn't know. Sometimes I find it weird that I'm dating his sister, other times I completely forget.
"You're going to have to get off," I say tugging at the blanket.
He moves to get off the trunk. "You will too." He tugs at the other end on the blanket. I groan before hopping over the side.
We fold the blankets and throw them and the pillows in the back.
We all climb back in the truck. This time Leo takes shotgun and I sit comfortably in the back with the blankets.
"Did you just unfold those?" He groans turning around to look at me.
"Yes and I'm comfy."
He snorts a laugh before turning back around in his seat.
I just stare out the window into the black abyss as we drive the country roads back home. Leo gives Mia directions via his phone.
Every five minutes I yawn and nearly fall asleep a few times but we eventually make it. By that point I'm so tired I want to go home but I deal with it.
Before we walk in the diner I notice my mother calling, I ignore the call and walk inside behind the others.
"I've decided I want ice cream," Mia says as she looks at the menu on her phone.
"I want fries and a milkshake but not both," Leo groans.
"Same."
"Just share," Mia looks to us. "What? Oh get over it Liv and I do it all the time."
You two also kiss when your drunk enough, I want to say but I don't.
I shrug and look to Leo. "Only if we can get a chocolate milkshake."
"Okay."
We sit down at a booth in the empty diner before a waitress takes our orders and we just chat.
My phone rings again but I ignore it.
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