Enemies

23. "Jealous?"

At this moment of writing this, I'm not too sure whether there will be a chapter next week or not.

I'm sorry for the delay and I hope that you enjoy this chapter.

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Gillian's POV

The sound of the rustling leaves meet my eardrums as they tumble to the west of my destination. The wind that accompanies this movement is gentle yet still chilling to the skin.

Around a yard to my left rests a long river with numer-ous rocks poking out of its clear stream. If I listen hard enough I can hear the calming whistle that this river provides. Not even a foot away from this river are two brown wooden benches that are unoccupied at the very moment.

Though these sights stand no chance to the one that stands before me.

A few feet in front of me stands a large, elderly tree that holds more memories than my own brain does. The tree itself is made of oak and bark, its branches extending out over our heads. The green leaves that are attached to said branches providing a nice shade from the beaming ball of light in the afternoon sky.

My brown eyes do not part from the tree, more specifi-cally what's messily carved into it.

'C + G'

"Do you like it?" Comes Courtney's nervous voice.

"Why did you bring me here?" I ask, not removing my eyes from the tree as memories from the last time that we were here flood my mind.

"Do you remember it?"

"No, I don't." Courtney shakes her head.

"Are you sure?" My smile wavers a little before completely falling.

"This used to be our favorite spot in middle school. Hell, we came here so much that we literally carved our initials into the tree! See, there it is right there."

"I don't remember that, Gillian."

"Come on, Courtney! How do you not remember this place?" I press further.

"We literally used to come here everyday. I mean-"

"Oh my god! Grow up, Gillian! It's just a stupid park!" She snaps.

"Sorry, I just- I'm sorry."

"We, uh, we should head back." Courtney awkwardly suggests, looking everywhere except my eyes.

"Yeah, we should."

The sound of a camera lens clicking pulls me out of my daydream.

I finally pull my gaze away from the tree and instead aim it at the blonde-haired girl who is now holding a light pink disposable camera in her hands. The camera lens itself being aimed at the carving on the tree.

It takes everything in me not to smile at how cute she looks right now.

Courtney lowers the camera from her face before walking up to the tree, running her fingers along the carving.

"Do you want to know the reason why I was so upset the last time that you brought us here? The real reason?"

"Of course I do." I almost scoff.

"It's kind of a long story. So, be prepared." She warns, not once looking back at me.

Courtney's POV

"Where are you taking me?" Gillian's words are practically hidden behind her uncontrollable giggles.

"Shh, we're almost there." I tell her as I continue to weave through the multitude of trees in my path.