Between the Lines | ✓

Cliche 17: Air Can Be a Tripping Hazard

I waved at the protagonist as she skipped across the school lawn towards Elias and I, scarlet curls bouncing in the wind and uniform neatly pressed. She was looking exceedingly refreshed and energetic for someone who was apparently bedridden all weekend, bailing once again when Elias suggested that we meet up at the library to go study together. 

Sure, I was happy to spend my weekend in Elias's company, since being around him was a natural shot of sunshine and serotonin, the conversation stimulating yet easy, the two of us grinning as we pored over our books and snacked on Elias's home made cookies. What I wasn't happy about was the fact that Aubrey was not present for any of this, as she apparently preferred to nurse a headache at home rather than flirt with her future husband and maybe get some head in her ache. 

Aubrey smiled gently, nudging Elias's shoulder before looping her arms around the both of us.

"So, how was your study date?" Aubrey asked, Elias suddenly coughing and I gave him a worried look, wondering if he caught whatever bug Audrey had over the weekend. Elias just cleared his throat again, offering Aubrey a small smile, scratching the back of his neck. 

"It was good," Elias said, Aubrey's smile growing. "I think we made some progress. Don't you think, Alex?"

I was about to nod, since we did actually cover quite a lot of the examinable topics, but stopped when Aubrey was staring at Elias with a megawatt protagonist grin and glittering eyes, blueness speckled with what seemed to be fragments of the sun itself. 

Oh. Oh. OH. Sparkling eyes... and she's smiling at Elias like... like...

Like they have a secret.

I swallowed the odd feeling beginning to bubble in my chest, instead plastering a grin on my face and bumping Aubrey's waist with my elbow. Because God, she is so obvious, just like how she was in 'Say No to Bad Boys'. The original Xander could read her like a book and play her like a fiddle, the varied expressions on her adorable face a flashing neon sign of either I'm horny or I'm in love.

Though that was the original Aubrey from the trashy book, and right now I doubted that her character wanted her penis fly trap stuffed on school grounds by a certain main-lead 2.0's beef bayonet, the fact that she can't hide the feelings blossoming on her pretty features had not changed.

Elias stared at Aubrey as she smiled at him, a small chuckle escaping his lips, and my mind blanked out for a moment. Before my mind could reboot, my mouth moved and my arms slung themselves around the firm waist of a particular soccer captain. 

"Yeah, Aubrey, jealous you missed out on our study date?" I joked, Aubrey giggling and rolling her eyes as I felt Elias's arm in turn snake itself around my torso after a moment's pause. His hand rested on my hip, starting off light but pressing tighter as the seconds passed, hard enough that I could feel each individual finger press against my flesh. Despite all of this, Elias continued to just look at Aubrey with a coy smile, light dancing in his eyes, matching the brilliance of Aubrey's own.

God, they're literally starry-eyed for each other, passing googly eyes and romantic smiles right in front of my salad?

"Mhmm, it is truly such a shame I missed it," Aubrey said, giving Elias another one of those brilliant, sunny smiles as the bell rang, the girl quickly giving both Elias and I loose hugs before running off to get to her locker before classes started.

"That girl, I swear..." I mumbled under my breath, Elias chuckling and patting me on the back, fingers dragging across the bumps of my spine. 

"See you at lunch, Alex?" Elias asked, corner of his mouth curled up and wind blowing through his dark, curly hair.