• C H A P T E R T H I R T E E N •

the one with
the flight: hell week day 3

The moment Veronica realized she had an irrational crush on Allen Ford was when she was eighteen. She had known him far before that; when he and Bilal came to their house along with few others. They were nineteen, and she was barely fifteen at the time and dismissed her feelings as nothing more than an effect his effortless charm created.

After properly meeting them again when she moved in with Ethan at the age of sixteen, she had grown used to their presence and felt a sort of pride to be friends (1) with college guys. It all went downhill on Allen's graduation when she was eighteen. The moment he personally asked her if she was coming to the ceremony, and she started to feel inevitably flustered, a sharp contrast to her usual carefree attitude. She labeled her feelings for him as a horrifying crush she needed to tamper.

By nineteen, it started to get worse. Not only were her feelings maturing, but he was becoming even more irresistible as time went by. She was aware of how she acted around him, avoiding him at all costs to avoid making a fool out of herself, and to prevent her feelings from further amplifying into something she'll no longer be able to control.

To her, it was just a crush.

To her, it was a mere admiration that would quickly vanish if she got to talk to him past the layer of friendly teasing.

He was nothing more than an idea in her mind. The fantasies she had about him surely didn't help ease the overgrowing infatuation. And when he came on New Year's Eve that year, he had already managed to hijack her brain in such ease that it terrified her. That night Veronica was convinced her family made a complete joke out of her. They had been all ecstatic when her mother slipped the scoop like she was the host in a morning news program broadcast. It wasn't every day that Veronica would have a crush on someone (2), and each rushed to prove they were a bigger jerk than the other by topping the embarrassing situation with a worse one.

Looking back, she hated everything about that night. Each and every bit of it. She felt utterly stupid and naïve.

And now, the feelings came rushing back to crush her self-esteem.

It was the third day of Hell Week when Veronica stepped inside the living room wearing Ethan's pajama set, the top unbuttoned where she wore a tight black tank top underneath.

Ethan's eyes narrowed pointedly. "Can't you wear your own PJs now?"

After her surgery, her mother took all of Ethan's old pajamas for her to be able to slip on smoothly. And even now that she was able to move her arm often - as long as she didn't put pressure on it - she wouldn't give up the comfort.

"Are you ever gonna wear them?" She countered with a raised eyebrow.

"No, but-"

"Then fuck off."

"Language," Chloe curtly remarked.

Veronica rolled her eyes and dropped on the stool next to Danielle, whose nose was buried in a giant book with text highlighted in all neon colors to imaginably exist. She had an exam in two hours, and her nerves started to uncontrollably jitter.

"You doing okay?" Veronica bumped her shoulder lightly, and the latter heaved a dramatic sigh without looking up.

"You mean if I'm okay with putting my quest to figure out my sexuality on hold for the sake of grades? No. I'm not," Danielle rambled, dropping her hand and jerking her head up. "I am this close to take the exam with the information I now know." She gestured at the tiny gap between her index and thumb.

"I'm assuming 'this' is exactly how much you know of the material?" Chloe wryly remarked.

Veronica pressed her lips in a tight line, cocking her head to the side despite Danielle forcing herself to focus on the words before her. "We can talk about it when you're back," She offered.

"No, honey. You're not gonna be here when she gets back." Chloe didn't even look at her, but her tone was sharp enough for Veronica to get that she didn't have a choice. She huffed loudly anyway. Veronica got a deal out of Chloe about getting back home at six after she told her Allen had a woman over. She didn't further elaborate, but Chloe had apparently been in a good mood... or Veronica figured she had been too drunk.

She noticed Chloe didn't put a mug of coffee for her like she always did. She brushed it off and made her way to grab a mug from the cupboard. There was a knock at the door, and her pulse momentarily froze.

"It's open!" Ethan yelled,

"Tsk!" Chloe clucked her tongue in frustration at him.

Allen opened the door and peeked his head inside, giving Ethan a cold stare. "Don't you have food at home?"

"And give women a reason to stay for breakfast?"

"You're such a dick," Danielle snapped. "Are you at least honest about your asshole intentions?"

"Of course." Ethan frowned, taking a sip. "I ask first. What, you think I enjoy giving people false hope and have to deal with the complication later?"

Danielle rolled her eyes, and Veronica silently shuffled around with her coffee as they argued, ears shaking at the sound of footsteps coming closer. Her cheeks warmed, and she was already cursing herself, pulse accelerating the closer Allen got to her. She lifted her head to get it over with.

Big mistake.

She wouldn't ever get over him wearing his dress shirt with the sleeves rolled at the elbows. It made him look dangerously hot with his wild curls and big blue eyes. It was only seven-thirty in the morning, and Veronica could feel the heat spreading in her entire body. Allen held her gaze as he approached her, stopping only a foot away. He hadn't seen her for the past two days, and his gut flipped at the uneasy thought that she was putting her defenses back up.

"Hey." She smiled at him, smooth and full. But her eyes were guarded. He blinked, features relaxing as he studied her.

"Hi." He breathed, unsure. The sudden twist in her mood was evident from her posture, a stark difference from the loose and bold one she had the last time they hung out.

She looked away as she held her mug of coffee and took back her seat. Allen's eyes skipped to her, and despite catching his gaze from her peripheral vision, she ignored him. Her stance was defensive, and he noticed. His eyes narrowed as he started to catch on; his gut was right.

Veronica's fingers twisted around a curly strand as she tried to compose her breathing. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing he got to her.

"So hey, about Bilal's birthday this year," Ethan began, taking a bite of his peanut butter sandwich.

Chloe's chewing slowed at the sound of his name, forcefully swallowing her unease. She had thought about telling him she did the interview so many times now, but he hadn't shown up at the pharmacy after the last time they talked.

She cursed herself. She hadn't even told Aiden yet. After their fight, they were talking out of obligation, like they were a married couple forced to act civil for the sake of the kids. But there were no kids. Which further made her question what was holding this relationship together in the first place.

"He's spending New Year's in Lebanon with his family like every year. He's never around for his birthday, so I was thinking since you're here this year," Ethan, oblivious to everyone's tensed posture, ushered at Allen, who took a seat next to him. "How about we surprise him?"

Danielle's head snapped up, suddenly interested in the conversation. Chloe's eyes widened a fraction, jaw tightening as it was becoming increasingly hard to remain calm.

"His birthday's on the second," Danielle commented. "You want us to go right after New Year's Eve at your house?"

Ethan nodded. "Yeah, if we book a flight and leave in the morning, we'll be able to make it to Beirut before Bilal even wakes up."

Allen quirked an eyebrow. "How long do you think it takes from here to Beirut?"

"Fourteen hours."

Allen shook his head. "There's no direct flight. There's a layover in France, that's the route Bilal takes. It takes fifteen hours without layover time."

Danielle's eyes cut back to Ethan. "What calculations did you do?"

"Hold on." Ethan's hand lifted up. "Give me a piece of paper." He ushered at Danielle's textbook. She tore a one and handed him a pen, Allen planting his elbows on the tile as he followed his scribbling.

"We book a flight at say seven in the morning, meaning we arrive in France after nine hours, so that means at four pm, which is..." He looked over at Allen.

"Ten pm."

"Okay, then say the layover time is an hour-" Allen snorted, and Ethan rolled his eyes. "Fine, two hours. So, we depart at midnight, and say it takes..."

"Google says four hours and a half," Danielle cut in, holding her phone.

"If you could be as interested in your exam, that'd be great," Chloe countered, and Danielle flipped her the middle finger.

"Which means we'll be in Beirut at four-thirty in France time."

"So... five-thirty in Beirut time," Danielle said after a quick search.

"Yup, and voila! Bilal wouldn't even be awake yet." He grinned then hesitated. "Well, he might, but let's hope not."

Allen stared at Ethan with a straight face for three full seconds before he spoke. "You want us to book a flight at seven in the morning?"

"Yes."

"The day right after New Year's Eve?"

"Yes."

"We have to be at the airport three hours before the flight," Allen snapped to get some sense into his head. Ethan shrugged.

"So?"

"Stop fucking around, you want us to go to the airport drunk?" Allen shot him a cold glare.

"Ah come on, we can hold our liquor for one year!"

Veronica couldn't stop the involuntary snort the moment she was about to swallow her coffee. Her drink went into the wrong pipe, and she violently coughed, face reddening and eyes stinging as she simultaneously laughed.

Ethan shot her a deep glare, shaking his head. "Sincerely, hope you choke."

Allen rolled his eyes at Ethan, and he stood to get a water bottle from the fridge. Veronica nodded when he handed it to her with the cap already screwed open. She took large gulps and cleared her throat, fits of chuckles escaping her throat as she shook her head at her brother's absurdity.

"Hold your liquor? You? Mom had to ground you last year, remember?" Veronica sneered with a strained voice, and Ethan groaned as Danielle burst out a laugh at the memory.

"Seriously?" Allen's eyebrows shot up, laughter bubbling in his throat. He looked down at Veronica, who took two more sips. Ethan started arguing about how inappropriate this topic was and insisting he could watch his alcohol consumption, but Allen didn't pay much attention to him. Veronica closed the bottle and rolled her eyes.

Her body froze the moment she felt Allen's hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him, and he gave her a small smile.

"You good?" He mumbled, and she heard him loud and clear despite the loud argument everyone got in after Ethan assured that Chloe would be the first one to break the no-alcohol rule they had just established. The pajama top she wore had slid down her shoulder when she had tried to catch her breath, and now she could feel his fingers, warm and scorching against her bare skin.

He gave her a gentle squeeze, and she realized she hadn't answered him yet. Heat spread across her neck all the way up to her ears. She nodded, throat strained, unable to respond with coherent words. His fingers were still there, and her heart almost burst when his thumb softly grazed her shoulder blade, rubbing soft circles. A hot liquid pooled down her body, and she shut her thighs tightly, the discomfort making her muscles grow tense.

Allen's eyes darkened, lips parting as he looked down at her. She was suddenly aware of every emotion she couldn't conceal, aware of her erratic pulse beating against his skin, aware of the overgrowing tension building and building-

The sudden sound of Chloe clearing her throat brought them both back into focus. Veronica twisted her entire body around, clammy palms hurriedly wiping the steam from her cheeks and adjusting her top. Allen cleared his throat and went back to his seat, suddenly feeling wired. Ethan and Danielle had been intensely arguing and only Chloe was shooting them a questioning look.

Veronica had no fucking clue how just a mere touch of his fingers managed to rile her up this much, and here she was back at square one.

"Fine, it's settled." Ethan snapped the pen against the tile in excitement. "I'm booking the flight at seven-thirty."

Veronica had a Biology final tomorrow. She was forced to choose a technical elective between that or Geology, and even though she hated both, she'd prefer to learn something about her body as opposed to the components of chalk. Skimming through the slides, she reached for her phone to check the clock.

4:30

She opened the group chats out of boredom only to find none had spoken since yesterday.

Dropping her phone beside her, she stood off the couch and wandered around Allen's place. After their encounter today, it was becoming increasingly hard to stay around without having him invade her mind. Her desperate attempts to distract herself had pushed her to finish the material early. Although she still had to repeat it thousands of times to memorize the details because biology professors didn't care if you got the content as much as remembering the details of the details of the details.

Glancing at the books on the shelves, she pulled a few books and placed them back in their place, unable to wrap her head around the fact that he really did arrange them in alphabetical order.

Damn.

She turned, and her eye caught a flyer, its corner tucked under the phone, so it wouldn't slip. What she noticed first were the colors, but when she focused on the text, her heart leaped.

Elena Durant.

The name screamed for her attention.

She reached for it, the title catching her eye.

NAME ONE HERO WHO WAS HAPPY

Veronica frowned, reading the time and date. 5 PM on January 5th, 2020. Her mind cleared when she understood: it was an exhibition. She flipped the flyer and skimmed through the content.

It was an invitation to Elena's art exhibition.

She rolled her eyes at the dark feeling that crept inside her, struggling to tamper it. But then a thought struck her. She smiled, biting the tip of her tongue.

This should be fun.

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(1) It drove Ethan nuts when she claimed that
(2) Irrelevant. She had tons of crushes. He was simply ahead of the millions of others.