Early Bird | ✓

07 | crow

❁

LIZZY'S lazy Sunday was a success.  She never left her bed—Netflix, naps, and food occupied her for the entire day.  Somehow, she had even forced her brother to make her popcorn with extra butter.  She presumed that he complied because he was still shaken, like a building during an earthquake, from their family dinner on Saturday.  Lizzy was troubled as well, for she knew that Patrick was a creature of habit; he never accepted change unless it was absolutely necessary.  She wondered what her father's choice would be—would he stay resolute with his company or would he leave like Patrick?  The more Lizzy dwelled on it, the more inquires popped into her head: Why did Patrick leave in the first place?  It was all too confusing and it pained Lizzy to think about it.  Lizzy, however, unlike Logan, had learned to shove the conundrum deep in the recesses of her mind, giving herself extra space to think about other things.

When Lizzy arrived back at school on Monday, she didn't realize she had entered a warzone until she spotted Teagan alone, quiet and expressionless, almost concealed by the trashcans beside her.  At first, Lizzy was so taken aback that she didn't even realize that it was her best friend.  "T?" she asked uncertainly, her eyebrows furrowed with bewilderment.

Teagan, who was peeking over the tall trashcan in the opposite direction of Lizzy, rotated her head toward Lizzy.  She let out a sigh of relief, gesturing frantically for Lizzy to join her.  Lizzy glanced to and fro to see if anyone else was paying attention to her crazy friend but nobody was watching.  Shrugging her shoulders, Lizzy stood by Teagan and copied her tiptoed movements, attempting to observe what was dominating Teagan's concentration.  Then, she distinguished the couple and she immediately understood.

Mateo and Paisley were seated together, side by side, on a metallic bench.  The crisp, spring wind ruffled their hair and lightweight coats, the cool temperatures causing them to lean closer together like the attraction between protons and electrons.  Paisley bent over, laughing hysterically at some witty comment that Mateo made; meanwhile, he seized the moment to drape his arm across her shoulders, sly like a tiger sneaking upon its prey.  Lizzy glanced sideways at her friend who was glaring at the couple with such a fierce intensity that Lizzy flinched involuntarily.

"I'm guessing their date yesterday went well," Teagan muttered bitterly, her mouth puckered in disgust.  Lizzy's attention flipped back and forth between her two friends; she was torn between the two, stuck in the middle without any clue of how to glue back their friendship—it was all too bad that this wasn't simple arts and crafts.

"I haven't talked to him all weekend."  Lizzy trotted on foreign territory cautiously, awaiting Teagan's reaction.  "I can talk to him later today if you'd like and—"

"Stop talking," Teagan interrupted, fright exhibited in her eyes, which were still attached to Mateo and Paisley.  "They're headed this way."

Lizzy's shoulder was almost yanked from its socket as Teagan dragged her downward until they were both completely camouflaged by the trashcan.  Teagan pressed her hand against Lizzy's mouth, signaling for Lizzy to stay quiet.

The sound of Paisley's voice traversed to Lizzy's ears.  "Shut up, Mateo.  It wasn't that bad," she told him, humor laced in her tone.

"Oh god, it was fucking embarrassing," Mateo replied passionately, a laugh trailing the end of his sentence.  "Of course it was my idiotic brother who decided to egg you because he thought you were a stranger."

"Well, I don't blame him.  I am a stranger."

"Well, I am determined to make sure you're not."  Paisley giggled at his words.  Lizzy cringed at his cheesiness, hazily noticing that Mateo and Paisley were too close to the trashcans.  Teagan gagged and mimed shooting herself; her actions weren't inaudible and those slight noises stretched to Mateo and Paisley's ears, causing them to stop and listen.