The Grim Reaper Effect

-F O U R T E E N-

Chapter Fourteen: Skinny Dipping

I stretched my limps out, enjoying the sun. It was arm outside. Somewhere in the seventies. I wasn't one to complain. I was enjoying the sun quite a bit. My best friends and I decided to spend the day at Kira's place. She had a pool in her backyard, so we'd have a nice day out in the sun. Kira was in the pool, teasing Indie about Bradley. They had a full on make out session in front of Kira and she hasn't let go of it yet. Indie was just glaring at her.

I was laying out on a lounge chair. I was in a two-piece swimsuit. It consisted of a white top and a red high-waisted bottom. I added a white floppy hat and sunglasses for the effect. Even though it was November, I wanted to convince myself it was the middle of the summer. While Indie and Kira bickered, I relaxed, letting myself get lost in my thoughts. The last two Saturdays I've had, I wasn't able to sit back and analyze the world around me. Now that I could, I realized just how much I missed out on.

There was my break up. I always thought they were supposed to be harder than that. You always see girls in movies crying for weeks before even leaving their rooms. I cried a bit and moved on quickly. I knew it was because of the way he treated me. Micah wasn't all bad admittedly. He was protective of me, but that soon transformed into him being overbearing. He began treating me like less of a human and more of his property. I hated that about him. He also made me lose my way. I wasn't myself anymore.

Breaking up with him taught me some important lessons. I learned not to give someone so much power over me. It just made me useless. I also learned to be more assertive with douchebags like him. Making decisions myself makes me feel so much more myself. Having my own voice back makes dealing with people like Taylor much easier.

Then there's the whole Griffin situation. He's so closed off but interesting in that way. Not only that, he's the Grim Reaper. Well, one of them. It was astonishing to think I was casually hanging out with death himself. Something about him really intrigued me. I didn't quite know what it was yet. Learning new things about him was like an award to me since he's not one to talk about himself. Like the small dimple in his left cheek that I've only seen once or twice. Or the way he chuckles but doesn't really laugh. And if you look closely enough, you can see the small ring of blue around his pupils. Especially the way he-

"Kenzie!" Indie shouted from in the pool. I hadn't even noticed her get in. "C'mon! You have to join us!"

I shook my head, bringing myself back to reality. I was really lost there. I shrugged, needing a break from my thoughts. I was getting creeped out by my own thoughts. They were making me anxious. The only way I could know all of those is if I watched him closely like some sort of creep. What if he caught me being creepy?

I set my hat and sunglasses on the lounger and took a seat at the edge of the pool. My feet were fully underwater, which was enough for me. The water was cold. Too cold for my comfort. I looked up and sent my friends a smile. They shared a look before racing towards me. My eyes widened as I realized what they were doing. I quickly snatched my feet out of the water and rolled away like a possessed mermaid.

Indie hopped out of the water first, being the athletic one out of us. She grabbed a hold of my feet and Kira held me by my armpits. Together they carried me to the edge of the pool. I tried getting away, struggling as much as possible. I figured it would slow them down enough for me to escape. However, I quickly discovered my plan wouldn't work, so I resorted to begging.

"Please don't do this! I'll do whatever you want! I'll go to every party you guys wanna go to! Just please don't do this!" I pleaded.

Indie glanced up at Kira and smirked. Before I knew it, I was completely submerged. I came up spluttering. My mouth was wide open when I hit the water, so I ended up with a mouthful of chlorinated water. I shot them both glares, knowing I was no match for them. I'd just have to find another way to get back at them.