Beyond Redemption

Chapter Twenty-Three

"I love you 3000."— Tony Stark, Avengers: Endgame.

Scarlet's POV

We remained in the comfort of each other's embrace for God knows how long. Unconcerned by our fellow schoolmates' incessant chatter seeping through the doors of the school, Phoenix and I were in our own bubble aloof from the rest of the world.

Suddenly, the bell rang prompting us to end the hug. Because soon enough people would be bustling through the doors, hurrying along this very hallway where we stood and I wasn't sure how I felt about people seeing us in public. Even though we were just friends, that wouldn't stop the teenage mind from jumping to outlandish conclusions before quickly turning them into rumors. One of my greatest fears.

So I reluctantly dropped my arms and attempted to step out of his clasp. But instead, I was tugged back in with great force crushing my face into Phoenix's chest.

"Just one more second." He begged.

"But Phoenix..." I opposed sheepishly.

"I know. I know." He inhaled deeply one last time before giving my body one last reassuring squeeze then releasing me from his arms. Stepping back he placed his left hand in his back pocket and raked the other through his unruly hair.

"Meet me out front in the parking lot after school." He commanded before leaning in and placing the softest kiss on my forehead. "Don't be late, Red."

He walked away, leaving me tomato-faced and tingly from the gesture he so casually dropped on me without warning.

It was etched in my mind through Mr. Shrew's demonstration of how density works. Even in Mrs. Randall's two-hour analysis as to why George killed Lennie in Of Mice and Men, my mind would casually drift to the heat of his body. And when Kristen, my AP history teacher who insisted we call her by her first name, told us to write an 800-word essay justifying Hilter's action, I'm positive the words Phoenix, Lips, Soft, Heart, and Warm appeared somewhere in the body paragraphs.

After what seemed like an eternity of school, I was finally shoving the books that I didn't need for the weekend into my locker and placing the ones I needed into my bookbag. Hurrying to get it done, I found myself having to stop and pick up items that had slipped out of my hand.

Eventually, I had everything I needed and was on my merry way to the parking lot to meet Phoenix. When I thrust the heavy doors of the school open, I was immediately greeted with a balmy gust of wind and the cozy afternoon sun. Clear skies and no rain. The perfect day.

But then my gaze wandered to the only black, expensive vehicle in the lot and the lean figure that was bent over it. The image looked it was cut out of a recent issue of GQ and was 3D printed.

And just like that, 'perfect' became a word too mundane and primate to describe my day. I rocked my mind trying to find a better word. Heavenly? Infallible? Idyllic, maybe?

Instead, I gave up on my word search and admired the man that stood before me. When was he ever not beautiful? His lower half was propped up on the bonnet of the car and his arms were neatly folded against his chest. He wore a white t-shirt that was probably a size too small but he rocked the fuck out of it. His pants matched his car, a matte black finish that didn't reflect the rays of the sun. And to top it off, his silver chain hung around his neck which threw back all the light from the sun and twinkled in my eyes.

His warm beige skin basked in the glory of the light and heat, glistening with the smallest droplets of sweat. He looked almost edible.

"Are you coming over or what?" He shouted from where he stood, cupping his hands around his mouth to make his voice louder. I looked around the parking lot to see if anyone witnessed me ogling at Phoenix a while ago. But to my surprise and relief, the area was rather empty. Only a few people lingered, either occupied by their phones, books, or conversation.