Status: Slowly coming back to life.
It Is Just A Child's Game
Chapter Thirteen
Her long red hair was fixed in a very loose side-ponytail. She stood akimbo while she balanced the phone between her ear and shoulder. Her bright blue eyes watched her guest lie down on the couch in her living room. His long body took up the whole couch. His sea green eyes watched her talk in the phone, and he let out a sigh out of boredom.
“I am sorry, Kennedy.” She spoke into the receiver. “I really can’t go out today. I really have to finish paper. I am lucky I still have a chance to pass it in.”
“Fine, okay. See you soon, Kay.” Kennedy replied, sadness evident in his voice.
“Yeah, bye, Ken.” Cahlen said before hanging up.
“You don’t actually think I am going to work on the paper today, right?” John said as she put down the phone.
“No, we have to. It already is late as is!” Cahlen exclaimed as she began to set up her laptop on the desk without sitting down.
“See, we are already late! What’s the point? Besides, it is so hot!” John exclaimed, sitting up as he did so.
“John! We are working on this!” Cahlen practically screamed. She ran her hand through her hair, slightly tugging on it out of frustration. She furiously tapped her keyboard but knew she was just typing none sense.
She suddenly jumped as she felt arms wrap around her waist. She felt a chin rest on her shoulder. She turned her head slightly, and saw his green eyes pleading at her.
“Please, Annabelle.” He begged.
“No, John! Why do you call me that anyway?” Cahlen asked as she turned her attention back to her laptop.
“Because it is your name, Ms. Annabelle Cahlen Anderson.” John said. Cahlen felt him move, and thought that he was going to go back to the couch. Instead, he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. “Too bad, Annabelle. We aren’t doing the paper.”
“John, put me down!” Caheln yelled as she slammed her fists on his back.
John ignored her. He walked through her house, and found his way to her backyard.
“John, where are we going?” She yelled but he continued to ignore her.
They reached the edge of her swimming pool. John slid of his slippers, careful to not drop Cahlen. She was about to yell something again, but she was already underwater.
“JOHN!” Cahlen shouted as her head broke surface.
John pushed water in her direction and it hit her in the face. John burst out laughing but Cahlen began making her way out of the pool.
“Come on! You are already in the water. You might as well enjoy it.” John said as he got a hold of her wrist.
“John, we can’t go swimming right now! Besides, we aren’t even in the appropriate attire for swimming!” Cahlen said, exasperated.
“I am!” John replied, pointing down to his black board shorts.
“Well, I am not!” Cahlen huffed as she pulled her wrist out of his grasp.
“Wait, come back!” John said, pulling her towards him.
“What?”
“I’ll teach you a game!” John said as he wrapped his arms around her so that she couldn’t escape.
“John, seriously?”
“Yeah! Give it a try.”
“Uh, no.”
“I’ll make you a deal.” John said and Cahlen raised an eyebrow. “Learn the game. If you don’t enjoy, we can back in.”
“Fine,” Cahlen said.
John released his grasp and placed some space in between them. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a coin.
“Okay, so basically, we’re both going to close our eyes and then flip the coin into the water. After, we open our eyes and the first person to find the coin, wins.” He explained.
“That’s all?” Cahlen asked, waiting for more.
“Yeah,” John said with an innocent smile on his face. “I used to play this game all the time with my brothers.”
“Okay. I don’t find it fun. Let’s go.” Cahlen said.
“You didn’t even play it once!” John exclaimed as he crossed his arms.
“Fine.” Cahlen said. “Let’s get this over with.”
“Okay, close your eyes!” John said.
He put his hand over her eyes, to guarantee that she wasn’t peeking. He closed his own eyes and tossed the coin into the air. He heard a splash as it sunk to the bottom, and only then did he open his eyes and uncovered Cahlen’s.
John immediately dove into the water. He opened his eyes underwater to look for the coin but instead he noticed that Cahlen was just standing still. He swam towards her and then stood right in front of her. She jumped and accidentally splashed him. His mouth formed an ‘o’ as she began to laugh. A devious grin replaced his shocked expression. Because she was laughing so hard, Cahlen wasn’t able to prepare herself for what happened next.
John pulled her down and both of them were submerged underwater. They remained under for a few seconds before both of them went up for air. This time it was John laughing uncontrollably. Cahlen splashed him with water to shut him up.
He stared at her and for a moment, she thought he was going to kill her. Soon, a smile that matched the one he wore earlier appeared on his mouth. A stroke of panic hit Cahlen and she started to run as fast as she could in water. John was right behind her, with his hands outstretched. They ran in circles around the pool, alternating between who was chasing whom. They continued to splash each other and eventually John was able to catch Cahlen.
She leaned against the wall of the pool as she was caught in between his two hands that were on either side of her head. His eyes were staring into hers. His face was so close, she could feel his breath. Their noses were touching, and then so were their lips.
Her hands moved to wrap around his neck as his held onto her hips. This caused them to move even closer together. It got even more heated when Cahlen wrapped her legs around his waist without breaking the kiss. She ran her hands through his hair and all over his back. John let out a groan as she pulled on his head a little bit too hard and that brought Cahlen back to reality.
She broke the kiss and untangled herself. She quickly got out of the pool but John was too shocked to react. He treaded through the water slowly but always kept his eyes on Cahlen who was waiting for him by the door. When he got to her, she wouldn’t look at him.
“Let’s just get into dry clothes and then work on the paper.” She mumbled before hastily entering the house.
“Wait! I don’t have anything to change into!” He called after her.
She stood still for awhile, staring into space as she thought of a solution. She then motioned for him to follower her upstairs. John diligently followed, bringing water in with him. He stood at the top of the stairs, unsure as to where Cahlen disappeared to.
She came out of the room that was across hers. She motioned for him to come inside and he obeyed.
“Here, these are some of my brother’s clothes.” She said as she handed him a pair of basketball shorts and a plain white tee. “They might be a little small because he’s eleven. You can change in his bathroom.”
“Okay, thanks.” John replied and they both went their separate ways.
John went inside the simple bathroom and took of his wet clothes. He pulled on the grey basketball shorts. They were snug around his hips and stopped four or five inches above his knee. The white shirt was tight but John didn’t mind. He carefully folded his clothes and exited the bathroom. He swung open the bathroom door and noticed a yellow post-it on the other side.
‘Downstairs’
John slowly went back downstairs and saw Cahlen sitting at a table with her laptop in front of her. Her flaming red hair was fixed into a sloppy bun. She wore a Guns ‘n’ Roses shirt that was at least two sizes too big. Although he couldn’t see what she was wearing below, he guessed she was wearing denim shorts.
“Are you ready to work now?” Cahlen asked, her voice soft.
John nodded in response and set his wet clothes on the table. He got his bag of the floor and grabbed a handful of papers. He put them on the table and threw his bag back on the floor. He sat across Cahlen and began organizing his papers.
“I can put your clothes in the dryer if you want.” Cahlen offered after some silence.
“Okay,” John replied and Cahlen reached over and got it before he could hand it to her.
She left the room and came back after awhile. They worked on the paper silently. They only communicated when they needed each other’s notes. They would speak in soft voices and short sentences.
John didn’t understand the change of mood from the pool and could barely focus on his share of the work. The silence was more than he could bear.
“What the fuck, Cahlen?” John exclaimed breaking the silence.
“Huh?” Cahlen said, completely dumbfounded.
“What just happened?” John said, angered. “We were having a great time in the pool, and then you get all moody on my ass. What are we even doing now?”
“WE ARE DOING OUR PAPER, JOHN!” Cahlen yelled. “Or at least, I have.”
“I have been too but it isn’t like I can get anywhere because we aren’t even really helping each other out.” John yelled back. “If I remember correctly, the only reason you didn’t do this by yourself was because you actually needed my help. It doesn’t seem that way!”
“I don’t even understand what you are trying to say!” Cahlen yelled, exasperated, then her tone turned sarcastic. “Sorry for wanting to get the paper done! I just thought it would actually benefit the both of us.”
“There’s more to it than just getting this paper done.” John pointed out, not accepting her reasoning. “This has something to do with us.”
“What us?”
“Don’t play stupid, Cahlen. It is already January! This thing between us has been on-going for over a month! You can’t pretend it doesn’t exist.”
“I didn’t know there was a relationship involved! You clearly said that it changes nothing!”
“That’s not what I am trying to get at! Why did we stop?”
“Because I wanted to do the paper! We need to do it!”
“Why?”
“Seriously, John? For our grade! It is pretty important!”
“I don’t understand why you care about grades so much! Do you aim to get high just so you can flaunt it in front of everyone?”
“No! That isn’t why!”
“Are you sure? Because it feels like you just use it to make everyone around you feel degraded and below you.”
“I do that? I don’t mean to.” Cahlen said, sitting down again.
“Yeah, you do.” John said, his voice soft as he sat beside her.
Cahlen ran her fingers through her hair, causing her bun to fall. She held her head in her hands as she mumbled something incoherently.
“What?” John asked.
“I just want to get out of this town.” She repeated. “I don’t want to stay in this small town in Arizona. I want to get out there and see everything. I want to experience something different.”
“What’s that got to do with this?”
“It’s the reason I work so hard on my grades!” She said. “It’s my only ticket out of here. I need it if I even want to have a chance to get a scholarship for Oxford.”
“Oxford?” John asked. “As in the one in England?”
“Yes, John.” Cahlen replied with a slight laugh in the end. “It’s my dream.”
“Okay,” John replied, prolonging the second syllable. “But why do you have to get all moody on me then?”
“John,” She said, looking straight into his eyes. Her bright blue ones held so much intensity that John wanted to look away but he just couldn’t bring himself to. A deep breath escaped her lips before she continued. “You are my worst distraction.”
“I am sorry, Kennedy.” She spoke into the receiver. “I really can’t go out today. I really have to finish paper. I am lucky I still have a chance to pass it in.”
“Fine, okay. See you soon, Kay.” Kennedy replied, sadness evident in his voice.
“Yeah, bye, Ken.” Cahlen said before hanging up.
“You don’t actually think I am going to work on the paper today, right?” John said as she put down the phone.
“No, we have to. It already is late as is!” Cahlen exclaimed as she began to set up her laptop on the desk without sitting down.
“See, we are already late! What’s the point? Besides, it is so hot!” John exclaimed, sitting up as he did so.
“John! We are working on this!” Cahlen practically screamed. She ran her hand through her hair, slightly tugging on it out of frustration. She furiously tapped her keyboard but knew she was just typing none sense.
She suddenly jumped as she felt arms wrap around her waist. She felt a chin rest on her shoulder. She turned her head slightly, and saw his green eyes pleading at her.
“Please, Annabelle.” He begged.
“No, John! Why do you call me that anyway?” Cahlen asked as she turned her attention back to her laptop.
“Because it is your name, Ms. Annabelle Cahlen Anderson.” John said. Cahlen felt him move, and thought that he was going to go back to the couch. Instead, he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. “Too bad, Annabelle. We aren’t doing the paper.”
“John, put me down!” Caheln yelled as she slammed her fists on his back.
John ignored her. He walked through her house, and found his way to her backyard.
“John, where are we going?” She yelled but he continued to ignore her.
They reached the edge of her swimming pool. John slid of his slippers, careful to not drop Cahlen. She was about to yell something again, but she was already underwater.
“JOHN!” Cahlen shouted as her head broke surface.
John pushed water in her direction and it hit her in the face. John burst out laughing but Cahlen began making her way out of the pool.
“Come on! You are already in the water. You might as well enjoy it.” John said as he got a hold of her wrist.
“John, we can’t go swimming right now! Besides, we aren’t even in the appropriate attire for swimming!” Cahlen said, exasperated.
“I am!” John replied, pointing down to his black board shorts.
“Well, I am not!” Cahlen huffed as she pulled her wrist out of his grasp.
“Wait, come back!” John said, pulling her towards him.
“What?”
“I’ll teach you a game!” John said as he wrapped his arms around her so that she couldn’t escape.
“John, seriously?”
“Yeah! Give it a try.”
“Uh, no.”
“I’ll make you a deal.” John said and Cahlen raised an eyebrow. “Learn the game. If you don’t enjoy, we can back in.”
“Fine,” Cahlen said.
John released his grasp and placed some space in between them. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a coin.
“Okay, so basically, we’re both going to close our eyes and then flip the coin into the water. After, we open our eyes and the first person to find the coin, wins.” He explained.
“That’s all?” Cahlen asked, waiting for more.
“Yeah,” John said with an innocent smile on his face. “I used to play this game all the time with my brothers.”
“Okay. I don’t find it fun. Let’s go.” Cahlen said.
“You didn’t even play it once!” John exclaimed as he crossed his arms.
“Fine.” Cahlen said. “Let’s get this over with.”
“Okay, close your eyes!” John said.
He put his hand over her eyes, to guarantee that she wasn’t peeking. He closed his own eyes and tossed the coin into the air. He heard a splash as it sunk to the bottom, and only then did he open his eyes and uncovered Cahlen’s.
John immediately dove into the water. He opened his eyes underwater to look for the coin but instead he noticed that Cahlen was just standing still. He swam towards her and then stood right in front of her. She jumped and accidentally splashed him. His mouth formed an ‘o’ as she began to laugh. A devious grin replaced his shocked expression. Because she was laughing so hard, Cahlen wasn’t able to prepare herself for what happened next.
John pulled her down and both of them were submerged underwater. They remained under for a few seconds before both of them went up for air. This time it was John laughing uncontrollably. Cahlen splashed him with water to shut him up.
He stared at her and for a moment, she thought he was going to kill her. Soon, a smile that matched the one he wore earlier appeared on his mouth. A stroke of panic hit Cahlen and she started to run as fast as she could in water. John was right behind her, with his hands outstretched. They ran in circles around the pool, alternating between who was chasing whom. They continued to splash each other and eventually John was able to catch Cahlen.
She leaned against the wall of the pool as she was caught in between his two hands that were on either side of her head. His eyes were staring into hers. His face was so close, she could feel his breath. Their noses were touching, and then so were their lips.
Her hands moved to wrap around his neck as his held onto her hips. This caused them to move even closer together. It got even more heated when Cahlen wrapped her legs around his waist without breaking the kiss. She ran her hands through his hair and all over his back. John let out a groan as she pulled on his head a little bit too hard and that brought Cahlen back to reality.
She broke the kiss and untangled herself. She quickly got out of the pool but John was too shocked to react. He treaded through the water slowly but always kept his eyes on Cahlen who was waiting for him by the door. When he got to her, she wouldn’t look at him.
“Let’s just get into dry clothes and then work on the paper.” She mumbled before hastily entering the house.
“Wait! I don’t have anything to change into!” He called after her.
She stood still for awhile, staring into space as she thought of a solution. She then motioned for him to follower her upstairs. John diligently followed, bringing water in with him. He stood at the top of the stairs, unsure as to where Cahlen disappeared to.
She came out of the room that was across hers. She motioned for him to come inside and he obeyed.
“Here, these are some of my brother’s clothes.” She said as she handed him a pair of basketball shorts and a plain white tee. “They might be a little small because he’s eleven. You can change in his bathroom.”
“Okay, thanks.” John replied and they both went their separate ways.
John went inside the simple bathroom and took of his wet clothes. He pulled on the grey basketball shorts. They were snug around his hips and stopped four or five inches above his knee. The white shirt was tight but John didn’t mind. He carefully folded his clothes and exited the bathroom. He swung open the bathroom door and noticed a yellow post-it on the other side.
‘Downstairs’
John slowly went back downstairs and saw Cahlen sitting at a table with her laptop in front of her. Her flaming red hair was fixed into a sloppy bun. She wore a Guns ‘n’ Roses shirt that was at least two sizes too big. Although he couldn’t see what she was wearing below, he guessed she was wearing denim shorts.
“Are you ready to work now?” Cahlen asked, her voice soft.
John nodded in response and set his wet clothes on the table. He got his bag of the floor and grabbed a handful of papers. He put them on the table and threw his bag back on the floor. He sat across Cahlen and began organizing his papers.
“I can put your clothes in the dryer if you want.” Cahlen offered after some silence.
“Okay,” John replied and Cahlen reached over and got it before he could hand it to her.
She left the room and came back after awhile. They worked on the paper silently. They only communicated when they needed each other’s notes. They would speak in soft voices and short sentences.
John didn’t understand the change of mood from the pool and could barely focus on his share of the work. The silence was more than he could bear.
“What the fuck, Cahlen?” John exclaimed breaking the silence.
“Huh?” Cahlen said, completely dumbfounded.
“What just happened?” John said, angered. “We were having a great time in the pool, and then you get all moody on my ass. What are we even doing now?”
“WE ARE DOING OUR PAPER, JOHN!” Cahlen yelled. “Or at least, I have.”
“I have been too but it isn’t like I can get anywhere because we aren’t even really helping each other out.” John yelled back. “If I remember correctly, the only reason you didn’t do this by yourself was because you actually needed my help. It doesn’t seem that way!”
“I don’t even understand what you are trying to say!” Cahlen yelled, exasperated, then her tone turned sarcastic. “Sorry for wanting to get the paper done! I just thought it would actually benefit the both of us.”
“There’s more to it than just getting this paper done.” John pointed out, not accepting her reasoning. “This has something to do with us.”
“What us?”
“Don’t play stupid, Cahlen. It is already January! This thing between us has been on-going for over a month! You can’t pretend it doesn’t exist.”
“I didn’t know there was a relationship involved! You clearly said that it changes nothing!”
“That’s not what I am trying to get at! Why did we stop?”
“Because I wanted to do the paper! We need to do it!”
“Why?”
“Seriously, John? For our grade! It is pretty important!”
“I don’t understand why you care about grades so much! Do you aim to get high just so you can flaunt it in front of everyone?”
“No! That isn’t why!”
“Are you sure? Because it feels like you just use it to make everyone around you feel degraded and below you.”
“I do that? I don’t mean to.” Cahlen said, sitting down again.
“Yeah, you do.” John said, his voice soft as he sat beside her.
Cahlen ran her fingers through her hair, causing her bun to fall. She held her head in her hands as she mumbled something incoherently.
“What?” John asked.
“I just want to get out of this town.” She repeated. “I don’t want to stay in this small town in Arizona. I want to get out there and see everything. I want to experience something different.”
“What’s that got to do with this?”
“It’s the reason I work so hard on my grades!” She said. “It’s my only ticket out of here. I need it if I even want to have a chance to get a scholarship for Oxford.”
“Oxford?” John asked. “As in the one in England?”
“Yes, John.” Cahlen replied with a slight laugh in the end. “It’s my dream.”
“Okay,” John replied, prolonging the second syllable. “But why do you have to get all moody on me then?”
“John,” She said, looking straight into his eyes. Her bright blue ones held so much intensity that John wanted to look away but he just couldn’t bring himself to. A deep breath escaped her lips before she continued. “You are my worst distraction.”
♠ ♠ ♠
I know this isn't the best of chapters but it is pretty important for the development of this story. I have this story planned out pretty well so there are a lot of hints and clues and every chapter, just saying.Anyway, the next eight chapters are already planned out and just need to be written so please stick around and comment!