𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫 || 𝐋𝐨𝐮𝐢𝐬 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐠𝐞

𝟐𝟐

Illıllı

"I'm just confused." I put my fork down and he quickly made his way to the piece of cake in front of us. Sitting at a small round table outside as we waited for our parents, it would be a while and that's why Jaden bought something small for us both. "Why would you hide the fact that you had all this money?" I looked at him as he pushed back his hair. Man, now I remember the wishes of my freshman self, remembering the way he would mess around with me as we were playing in the courtyard one day, but it all ended as he disappeared and came back out of nowhere with a new demeanor and a new attitude. Inside I guess I could tell that he was the same guy, but I still didn't know.

"You don't understand, money is the thing that ruined my parent's marriage." He leaned forward against the table and looked at me closely, "I hid it because all the kids at school would look at me the way you are now." I nodded my head as I leaned back in my chair. I was silent a bit as we watched a couple cars park and the couples inside go into the restaurant. He looked over to me and pointed to my legs, "Pull your dress down." He said it in a kind of whisper as a group of older men passed us by. I looked over to him and quickly put it down, Jaden took a gulp of his drink as his eyes were only on the middle-aged men. "Thanks." He nodded at my comment and ate another bite of the cake.

"I've never seen you in a dress by the way." He pointed to the one I was wearing, "That purple is a nice color." What was he doing? Why was Jaden being so-well mannered?

"Thank you and it's lavender if you want to buy another one of those fancy polos in that color."

He laughed at my remark and looked at me again with those same glowing eyes, "Sorry about your neck." He clutched onto his own hand, embarrassment filling his face. "I didn't think I had done that, it's just-"

"You had to act tough in front of Honor?"

He nodded his head and slightly looked over to me. His eyes grazing lightly over my lips and then back at my eyes, "So how do you feel about Steven and your mom?"

"Are you kidding me? I couldn't be happier." I was being sarcastic, and he caught on with it. His eyes seeming to wander back to the road of nice cars and streetlights that weren't really working. It was dark out as we sat there, and I was more aware at the fact that it had been about an hour that we had been out here than on the fact that my mom was looking at another guy with the loving eyes she used to give my dad. "How about this?" He got me out of my thoughts and brought his hand out like he was going to shake it. "I'll stop acting like a douche in front of you, if you admit you sent me that letter in sophomore year when they were having the candy gram thing for Valentine's Day." I had forgotten about that, of course it wasn't me. Well maybe an ounce of it was me, I told Evanie to do it for me and then send it in as anonymous, so she did. I was fully aware that it was my idea, but if I told him now that I did do it then my only secret would be revealed. "Fine, I didn't do it."

He rested his arm on his leg to prop up his head, a smirk playing on his lips and I found it so funny that he was acting this way, "Who'd you tell to do it?"

"Evanie." I wasn't going to bother to lie anymore.

"Ahhh so the mystery is over, thank god." He took another gulp and then put the cup down carefully making sure not to drop it. "I thought it was maybe someone else for my junior year but other than that I was pretty sure it was you."

"Did you want it to be me or something?" It was my turn to take a sip of the drink in front of me. "(Y/n), just know that I was too busy looking at you to think I would want it from anyone else."

I made a confused face, "Wait what-"

I was interrupted by the same waiter from before coming out of the restaurant, his shift must have been over. "Oh hey, seems like you survived."