I swear I've lived

*****

Experience is a wonderful thing. It could be a good experience, something which truly shows you how to live, or a bad experience, something which teaches you a lesson on the way out. But every experience is worth living for. Although Daniel left me before his time, I had made a promise that he would experience it all regardless. Which is why I had gently tucked the picture of Daniel and I into my bag before I headed to school on the morning of the museum trip. 

"Everyone pick a partner and get in line so I can mark attendance" the principle yelled at the crowd of students in the parking lot. Alyssa who stood hand in hand with Jacob had already found her partner which left Sira, Elliot and I. Sira stood between Elliot and I, looking between the two of us. I smiled at her, taking her hand into my own. 

"Partners?" I asked but she only grinned in reply. 

"Yeah and I'll go sit next to a fucking ghost" Elliot muttered under his breath but I caught it. I faced him hiding my smile.

"I'm sure you could find anyone to be your partner. I mean, you've got quite a line" I said pointing to the group of girls behind him. Elliot scowled but didn't manage to say something since the principle began ushering us into the bus. Sira took the window seat, so I happily sat beside her. Jacob and Alyssa had taken the seats in-front of us and Elliot the one behind. 

"So, what are you doing tonight" I heard a voice ask from behind me. I peeked over my shoulder, through the gap in the seats and saw a girl from my maths class sitting next to Elliot. 

"Melting ice" Elliot groaned making me laugh. 

"What's going on with you and Elliot?" Sira asked linking her arm around mine. I blushed red at her question.

"Nothing" I shrugged avoided eye-contact.

"Don't give me that" Sira laughed. "You're all over each other." She leaned forward slightly. "I ship it" she winked making me blush harder. 

"Shut up, Sira" I laughed. 

"Okay, but seriously. Elliot's a great guy, and he really does care for you" she smiled softly at me.

"I love you" and I truly did. And I truly did. Looking at Sira, as her hand held onto mine, it made my soul warm.  Meeting Sira and Alyssa was the best thing that could have happened to me; they came into my life and helped me see the sun where I once only ever saw clouds. They believe in me so much that I've eventually began to believe in myself. They were my people.

"I love you too, silly" she replied pulling me into a tight hug. 

"Umm, Sira. Can I talk to you? I have a spare seat?" I pulled back and saw Josh, a player on Elliot's team looking at Sira. Sira nodded telling me she'll be back before getting up to follow Josh. Watching her retreating figure, I shuffled so I was now sitting on her seat, leaning my head against the window, pulling out the picture or Daniel and I.

"I didn't realise you carried that around" a voice said from beside me making me jump. Elliot had manage to escape and took up the seat next to me instead. I shrugged at him looking back at the picture before sighing and putting it back. 

"You okay?" he asked taking my hand into his own, laying it onto his lap as if it was a normal habit of ours. I ignored the flutter in my chest as he began playing with my fingers.

"I think so" I had been feeling very hollow lately. Like I was missing something. It felt as though I had been sucked into a routine that wasn't my own. 

"Why's that?" Elliot leant his head back onto his seat looking at me. 

"This doesn't feel normal" I admitted looking at him. His eyebrows furrowed as he waiting for me to explain. What was I supposed to say? It didn't feel normal for me to love someone who I had met just over a month ago? It didn't feel normal to have my heart beat out of my chest whenever he was near? It didn't feel normal to feel a thunderstorm of emotions just from one look. 

"Being in a different country" I said instead. Elliot looked like he didn't believe me but didn't question anything for which I was grateful. The rest of the ride to the museum was spent with in silence with Elliot and sharing a pair of earphones between the two of us. 

"Right, everyone stick together. I'm not spending my day chasing down missing teenagers" the teacher yelled leading us towards the entrance. We had been in the museum for twenty minutes before Jacob spoke up.

"Who's idea was this again?" Jacob asked and four pair of eyes met my guilty ones.

"I thought we could make something out of it" I threw my hands in the air.

"Shall we sneak away?" Elliot muttered looking between the four of us.

"I'm down" Jacob answered a little too quickly. 

"We're going to get in so much trouble" Alyssa said before hesitantly agreeing. Sira and I looked at each other in question before finally saying yes. Just as we were starting to back away from the large group in front of us the teacher spoke up again.

"Right, now all of you split up into fours and have a look around. Make sure you remember to make notes" I grinned at the opportunity and immediately ran to the other side of the museum with the group. 

"What now?" Jacob asked slightly hunched over catching his breath. 

"Hide and seek in a museum?" Sira asked looking between us. 

"Let's do it." Jacob laughed. "Not it" he added. 

"Not it" I said immediately after followed by Elliot and Alyssa.

"Wait, what?" Sira looked confused.

"You, my friend, are the seeker" Alyssa wrapped her arm around Sira.

"I'm counting to 100" Sira said beginning to count with any warning.

"That's hardly fair" Alyssa laughed before running off with Jacob. 

"You coming?" Elliot asked waiting on me before we ran out of the door we had walked through a couple minutes ago. We spent a total of 30 seconds finding a hiding place between the statues on the top floor. 

"So, what now?" Elliot asked taking a seat on the floor next to me. I shrugged my shoulders keeping an eye out for Sira. 

"There's not really much we can do" I said looking at Elliot.

"I mean, I can think of my few things" Elliot smirked leaning closer. My cheeks blushed red at his comment even though I tried to hide it. 

"Like take some pictures for Instagram" he added leaning back to rest his head against the fall. "what did you think I meant" he continued to smirk making me scowl. 

"Shut up" I muttered pulling my phone out. Before I could do anything, Elliot snatched it out of my hand, standing up to face me.

"Come on then, can't get any good pictures if you just sit there like that" Elliot said turning my camera on.

"Who needs a manager when I have you" I laughed standing up looking down at my tank top and mom jeans. Wasn't the best outfit, but it would do. Elliot took a couple pics of me before he decided we needed more pictures of both of us. So here we were, balancing my phone against a stand on timer, Elliot and I both stood in-front of it being as stupid as we possibly could.

"You guys weren't even trying" Sira said startling us as she walked into the room we were hiding in, with Alyssa and Jacob in tow. 

"We still won" I stuck my tongue out at Sira picking up my phone. 

"I'll seek. Go hide" Elliot offered pushing us out the door. Elliot counted to 100 before he began searching for us. This time we all had decided to go our own separate ways to hopefully make it harder for Elliot. It didn't really work since he entered the room I was in, in a total of 2 minutes after he finished counting. I held my breath pushing myself further into the wall, hoping he'll miss me. I heard footsteps approach me before they finally disappeared. I let out a sigh of relief but all too soon a arm slipped around my waist pulling me back into a hard chest.

"Finders keepers" a warm voiced whispered into my ear. Elliot turned me around in his arms so that I was facing him before backing me up into the wall behind me. 

"Where's everyone else?" I asked trying to ease the tension.

"Hiding" Elliot replied. "Why did you think I offered to be the seeker? Gives us some time alone" he smiled at me. I didn't reply to him but instead just stared at him waiting for him to say something else. Anything else.

"Hi, pretty" he whispered looking down at me. I smiled up at him. "Hi, sweet". Sweet?  Where did that come from. Elliot froze at my words, his smile dropping slightly. Shit, was that too much? 

"What did you call me?" He asked backing away slightly.

"I'm sorry, I don't why I said that" I muttered embarrassed looking down at my feet. Elliot shuffled in-front of me before he slipped his hand under my chin, pulling my head up to meet my eyes. 

"I like it" he flashed me a gorgeous smile before capturing my lips with his own. I pulled him closer, wrapping my arms around him, kissing him just as desperately as he kissed me; like if kiss long enough, hard enough and deep enough, then the world outside could never hurt us. Kissing Elliot was something I couldn't explain, from the very first kiss, once it begun, it never really ended. Interrupted, yes. Paused, yes. But from that very moment, I knew my whole life was a breath away from kissing him again. From the night that Elliot took me to the gazebo, we had begun the delicate task of binding our souls together, creating a whole from our separate halves. Even if there was a slight chance that it wouldn't make me happy, I would risk it. Life's too short and happiness is too rare.