Heads will roll

5.

The only lights around came from the moon and the houses at the end of the dirt track. Stars in the night sky glimmered peacefully.

" do you think aliens are real?" he spoke into the emptiness of the night sky. i waited a moment before speaking.

" I mean, they have to be?" he said nothing back, there was no urgency to the conversation it just kind of flowed, pouring out word after word like honey. I didn't think that this would end up being my evening. I mean usually, I get way too in my head about things and can never hold an actual conversation with a man. but this just felt weightless

"she's got to be from some kind of alien planet" his voice was still and steady.

"Who... your girlfriend?" there was no hesitation from him and he finally spat out what had been filling up space in his mind.

"Yeah, we just don't click ya know, it's like dating someone speaking a completely different language to you, you can get the gist of what it is but there's no understanding."

His head was just barely above the water now, the air outside had run cold and the cool air that entered his lungs turned to grey puffs of mist, he was cold and so was I. It didn't matter.

" I get that, Sometimes I just feel so disconnected, like everyone around me knows this big secret and I just can't get a clue."

" yes that's exactly what I mean, I think ...I have to break up with her or take a break of some kind my mind needs a rest from having to think about someone else 24/7," he said. now in a perfect world that would be the moment, the moment when I tell the tattooed boy with dark hair and dreamy eyes that he should in fact do it. Images of giddys' smiling faces came across my mind and I just couldn't bring myself to.

" think about this, don't rush it maybe it's not that she the alien but you just have to get better at understanding how she expresses how she feels, you could try that right?" regret poured over me, why didn't I just say it?

" you're right, thank you for this, and hey look could we keep this between us? I don't really want people to know that giddy and I are having problems, plus I don't think you want people knowing that you swim naked in the creek" he laughed and I hastily joined in. I cleared my throat before answering.

" for sure stays between us"

and just like that, he swam away, collecting his things from the other side of the creek and getting out of the water and out of sight. as soon as he was gone I swam as fast as I could to the creek edge, my hands trying to keep up with my legs and failing. I grabbed my swimmers from the dirt track and wrapped a towel around my body, running as fast as my wet feet could take me. I had to tell Casey about this.

the mud was slippery on my feet, once I got to the house I wiped my feet on the rug in front of the back door and ran upstairs. As I turn the corner to my bedroom Zach stood there in front of me.

" where were you?"

" Nowhere, just down at the creek"

" by yourself?"

" yes, now move I need to get into my room"

" okay whatever I just took your phone charger mine broke"

" ugh whatever give it back to me in an hour I don have time for this"

" why what's so important?" he grinned at me

" nothing I just need to get into my room its cold"

" oh sure so it has nothing to do with why your swimmers are behind your back and your unusually large grin coming up the stairs" he started to walk back down the hall, making stupid faces

" So who is the lucky guy huh?"

" don't be weird Zach you don't even know what happened"

" oh trust me I think I have a pretty good idea, and may I just say creek water is nasty"

"It's not what you think it is!!" I yelled out to him but he had already closed his bedroom door.

I continued into my bedroom and closed the door, plugging in my phone and ringing Casey. it rang four or 5 times but she didn't answer, I sent her a text instead and put my phone down, turning on my speaker to play music for my shower. after about 15 minutes my phone started ringing and I assumed it was Casey

" Heyyy"

" hey dear I know it's late but I just wanted to let you know that your flyers will be ready tomorrow"

" oh thanks um, that's sooner than I thought"

"yeah, I know that I said they would be ready by next Friday but I got so caught up in the design and I loved it so much so I just printed them early, they'll be ready by 2 pm tomorrow."

" oh great okay ill pick them up"

" okay you have a nice night dear"

" you too" strange, where was Casey? she usually answers her phone by now, I was over the moon that I had a full conversation with Riley alone, I went to bed with the thought of him running through my mind, it's so stupid of me, I just told him NOT to break up with his girlfriend.

____________

Rileys POV.

The mud was slippery on my feet, I walked up the dirt track to my car, chucked my towel in the back, and turned it on. that conversation had me feeling very confused. we talked for over an hour and not for a second did one of us think to stop. But she wants me to give it another go with giddy so I think I have to. the whole ride home was a blur, when I finally arrived at my house it was dark, the lights were all off and I was fairly certain the door would be locked. I had told my parents I would be staying t Giddys' house tonight but that didn't end up happening, I got so caught up talking to Olivia that I had forgotten to tell them to leave the door unlocked for me. I checked to see if it was in fact locked and to no one's surprise I would have to find another way in. I walked around the fence to see if there were any windows open but had no luck. My car was sitting in the driveway and I did want to sleep in my car dripping wet. Maybe Zach was still up? that idea seemed better than sleeping wet in my car all night, the summer night air was warm, and got back in my car and drove just down the road to Riley's house. A smile crept over my face when I saw that a bedroom light was still on, I sat in Zach's driveway and sent him a text telling him to let me in but there was no answer. I looked up again and the smile faded when I realized it was not Zach's light that was still on, it was Olivias. There was a ladder that was up against the shed roof, that was my way in.

I crept up the ladder onto the roof and pulled myself up to Olivia's window. She was sitting on her bed wrapped in a towel, scrolling on her phone. The window was slightly open so I crawled headfirst through the window, landing unsuccessfully on her floor.

she screamed.

"It's just me! it's just me." I said as she jumped off of her bed.

" What are you doing?! are you stupid??" she whispered to me with a deadly serious tone.

" my parents could wake up and find you in here what are you doing?"

" My fr-" I was interrupted by the sound of footsteps thumping down the hallway

" go!" She shoved me behind the door and put her hand over my mouth. she gestured for me to shh and in that same motion her bedroom door opened.

Zach opened her door and she stuck her head out to talk to him.

" Olivia are you okay? you screamed?"

" yeh yeh I'm fine I just ah, saw a..." she looked around for something to say, she must have seen the tiny spider tattoo on my thumb and went with that,

" A Spider! Yeh, i saw a spider, you know how I am with crawling 8 legged amphibians."

" man you had me thinking someone was trying to rob us. shut up I'm trying to sleep"

" Sorry" she called out down the hall

she closed the door and pulled me out from behind it

" Why are you here?"