Head Above Water

Chapter Sixteen

"Did you spend the night out here, Toby?"

His head turned back quickly to look at Lilith, shaking his head slowly in denial. "No, I- well I guess I kind of did." His head turned back to the water as Lilith slowly approached, taking a seat beside him.

"Are you okay?"

With a nonchalant shrug, Toby gave a vague answer. "Yeah, I'm as okay as any of us can be going through whatever it is we're dealing with."

Lilith placed her hand on his shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. "We're going to be okay, Toby. You'll get through it."

"And what about you?" Toby questioned, making eye contact with her.

Lilith tilted her head in confusion, not completely understanding what he was asking.

"Are you going to make it through?"

She knew his question was aimed more towards the suicidal thoughts than just family drama, and while her mind wasn't so sure how she'd end up, her heart felt confident.

With a quick nod and small smile, she found his hand in hers. She gave him a reassuring squeeze, "I'll make it if you do."

He returned the smile, changing the subject. "What are you doing over here anyway?"

"Hiding from my family. I actually went to your house to see what you were doing but then I found you here instead." Lilith and Toby held eye contact for a few more moments before Toby started to get up.

"We should probably go somewhere else then if you're trying to avoid your family. Don't they know you come out here?" Toby helped Lilith up to her feet as she nodded.

She wiped off her jeans, "You're right. Where should we go then?"

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Lilith and Toby drove around for a while before ending up in a small town square. There were white tents set up all around, and people flooded the streets. They worked together to find a decent parking spot before getting out and walking into the crowd.

They walked close together, trying their best not to bump into others. Lilith attempted to drum up some conversation, "My parents used to always bring us here during the summers when we were younger. I remember always getting our faces painted and eating whatever street food they were selling."

Toby smiled down at Lilith, pointing out some food trucks just ahead of them. "Sounds like a simpler time in life. Why don't we try and recreate that carefree feeling?" Lilith agreed, nodding her head happily.

They made their way to the trucks, splitting ways to get whatever food they were craving, planning to meet back up at one of the empty picnic tables. Lilith found some delicious fried foods while Toby brought back some tacos, which they both shared.

The two of them ate their lunches, walking around the fair while checking out the various tents filled with arts and crafts. They stopped at some of the hands-on tents, trying their skills at painting and pottery, before ending up at the face painting booth.

Toby sat across from Lilith, watching as she got her face painted up as a tiger. Lilith was having a fun time with Toby, but she was also still very curious about what had happened overnight. That moment seemed like the best time to bring it up, even with a stranger sitting in-between them.

"What happened last night that made you not go home?" Toby looked from Lilith to the person painting her face, then back to Lilith with a shocked expression. The face painter did their best to not acknowledge what seemed to be a serious conversation.