18 | Are You Sure?

74.1K 2.7K 1.1K
                                    

I DROVE UNTIL I came across a familiar cul-de-sac

Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.

I DROVE UNTIL I came across a familiar cul-de-sac. Parking in Elijah's driveway, I put my car in park and rested my head on the steering wheel. The only way I made it here without turning back was because of my irrational thoughts.

    This was not the brightest idea.

    There was no way I would go inside, come back out, and things would be the same between Elijah and me. While I had an excuse for Jayce why I needed to come, I didn't have an excuse for Elijah. His sweatshirt and pants were still in my room, and if I had remembered to bring them, that would've been the perfect excuse.

    But I forgot.

    "Okay," I said aloud, and climbed out of the car, bolting through the fence and into the backyard. "Where is that key..." I muttered, standing on my tip-toes trying to reach the ledge above the door. I was barely tall enough, but I could jump and knock it down.

    A tiny clink sounded as the brass key clattered against the concrete. 

    Before I unlocked the door, I tried turning the doorknob for my amusement, and to no surprise, it was unlocked. I looked down at the key with a blunted expression. I had jumped for nothing. I should've checked the knob first.

    Heaving a sigh, I jumped once more to put the useless key back in its hiding spot and then entered the house. Poor Elijah probably thought someone was breaking in.

    As I scaled the stairs, I thought about all the different things I would say. Hi, are you okay? Why haven't you returned my email? Are you mad at me? Do you need to talk? Yet, none of them sounded right, because I was making this about me when it most likely wasn't.

    The house was quiet.

    I stopped in front of his bedroom and waited to hear rustling or talking, but never did. Was he in there? It sounded empty, but I took a deep breath and knocked, anyway.

    Nothing.

    I knocked again.

    "What!" Elijah's voice bellowed through the wood and my eyes widened. Oh, boy, he did not sound like he was in a good mood. I didn't know if that was an invitation to come in or if I should turn around and let him believe a ghost knocked on his door.

    The latter sounded like a better option until I heard him calmly say, "Come in."

    I held the knob for a moment, then entered. His tidy room came into sight and his scent filled my nose and I hated how warm it made me feel. My heart was racing fast enough that I felt my arteries throbbing in my neck and refrained from reaching up and counting each beat.

    His bed, the desk, his bathroom were all vacant, but his window was wide open and a breeze blew his curtains awry. He was definitely in here. I heard him speak, but where was he?

The Art of YouWhere stories live. Discover now