Shadow Wood

Chapter Three

I almost gave a little shriek that would rival a fan girl, because this gorgeous looking jock was suddenly standing next to me. Man... I really needed to step up my game and pay more attention to people around me!  Luckily I stopped myself from fluttering my hand over my throat like I did once in a while after getting scared.  Brandon would have never let that down if he were here.  He about dies with laughter while doing handstands when I do that.  Weird I know, but you don't know Brandon.  

Benny — I mean Benjamin, smiled a little slyly with his hands in his pockets as he looked at Ellie. His entire figure towered over me, forcing me to look up. He had to be at least 6'5", and he was a lot better looking up close. Like Ellie, his face was flawless, and as I sized the two together, Ellie being maybe 5'6"; maybe I could see how awkward the relationship might have been.

"But, I do like that you still call me by my nickname, which YOU started." His smile was almost smug, but I could see hurt under the lines there.

Perfect nose. Perfect lips. Perfect cheekbones. Perfect eyes. Perfect voice. Perfect cologne. Perfect everything.

"...So you mind?" He was looking at me, questionably, expecting.

"Mind what?" What just happened? Did something just happen? I mean, I was lost in all the perfectness of what made a man . . . a man.

That's when I heard a hiss. It was coming from Ellie. So she must HAVE hissed at that girl back in the lunch line. It wasn't as dramatic as most cats when they hiss, but it wasn't normal for a human. Maybe she did it without realizing it.

"How original," she added, more like sneered, with venom in her voice.

Benny—Benjamin looked displeased, confused, maybe a little hurt, but he concealed it enough to reply. "You know, you gotta stop being mad at me Ellie. What did I do?"

Ellie never answered, and with a silent huff and an invisible hair flip, she turned on her heels and walked away. I was busy watching her disappear as the crowd parted for her.

"We used to date." I heard Benjamin say. Here I was standing with one of the hottest guys in school. I should suddenly be super nervous. I was still caught in an overwhelming cloud of confusion for me to feel much else. I should probably say something.

"Yyyyyeah," I dragged the word out a bit without meaning too, the realization hadn't hit yet, "I already figured that out." Then I turned to him.

I was good at keeping my cool, no need to shriek like a little school girl here. It's just some guy talking to me, and I was good at keeping the freak out switch off. I can do this. Be normal, be cool Alex; but what was it he said earlier?

Benjamin was still looking off into the distance where Ellie went. It took two extra seconds for him to realize I was there. That's when I understood. Finally understood. The man was clearly in love with her, and suddenly, he didn't seem as hot as he did earlier.

"I guess I should probably, um, go then." I was going to head in the same direction Ellie went, just to see if she was alright, but would that be too intrusive? Sure she went a whole different direction to where I was supposed to go, but she was my friend, right?

His hand almost fell over my arm, but only the tips of his fingers brushed from my right shoulder to my elbow. "Wait a minute."

I turned with one brow raised. If he was supposed to be the enemy of a friend, that would make him my enemy too, wouldn't it?

"You didn't give me an answer."

I found a spot on a wall to look at first; then him. "Huh?"

I'll admit, I was... being a bit obtuse here, but Benjamin seemed too determined to not let me go without an answer.