Playing With Fire

CHAPTER IV (4)

CHAPTER IV
Solana

   Books with good smut and good plot were hard to come by, but when you found it... immaculate.

   I was currently holding my kindle with one hand, while using the other to blindly bring my blueberry muffin up to my mouth. My eyes were glued to the screen as I watched the suspenseful scene happen, and I was so sure it would end up with someone dying or having sex.

   It was three in the afternoon the following Saturday, and I was sitting at the bus stop near my work because I needed to get home for Jon's game. Even though he has been ignoring me since his last game, it was an unspoken rule to try to make an appearance at his games.

   But his silence made me feel more reckless, so when the bus pulled up minutes later, I made the decision to stay seated for an extra thirty minutes.

   Just as my butt hit the seat, my phone rang from my shoulder bag, and I forcefully peeled my gaze away from my kindle before grabbing my phone. I barely looked at the contact name before answering.

   "I'm reading," I deadpanned.

   "Sucks to suck," Mera chirped on the other line. "Now you're talking to me."

   I rolled my eyes but cracked a smile before slowly closing my kindles case. "What do you want? Besides annoying me."

   My head twisted towards the window to my right, and I watched with a soft exhale as everything moved quickly. Mera responded a few seconds later, just as the bus stopped at a red light.

   "You think I'm annoying? Imagine having an older sister that's treated like a baby," she exasperated. "She is the reason why I moved away from home. And my parents. They all deserve each other."

   I frowned and gripped my phone tighter, still staring outside. Although, I softened my voice. "What did they do now?"

   "They want me to go to a party to find arrangements for someone to marry me. But not Aliya, even though she's doing nothing except learn from mom how to cook."

   "Is it your mom or dad who wants you to go?" I asked, already knowing my answer.

   She snorted instantly, and I could already see her pacing in her two bedroom apartment she rented with one of her classmates, Zoe. "Mom. Apparently having two unwed daughters at this age is embarrassing for her."

   "Any guy would be lucky to even talk to you, Mer," I reminded her dryly. "Don't let her get to you. I say you throw Aliya under the bus and say you'll only get married after she does."

   She was silent. "But I don't want to get married. At all."

   I inhaled, but didn't reply right away, because I knew what deterred her from even considering the idea of marriage. She hated her parents and their toxic relationship and feared it would be the same way for her.

   "Give yourself time," I tried to say comfortingly. "For now, you can just say you're focusing on your studies."

   Mera scoffed harshly in my ear. "That won't stop them. She still thinks me going to school is a waste of time and money."