Page 13 of All Hallows' Haunt
“You want to take me somewhere?” Her eyebrows pinched in confusion. “Like a date?”
“I think we might’ve gone a little out of order, but I’d still like to spend the night with you.” Her cheeks reddened, and I swept my fingers over them to feel their warmth. “Here,” I said, standing and setting her back on the couch.
I walked to the desk and grabbed my boxers and pants, sliding them on before gathering all her clothes. I looked around the room, my eyes scanning the floor for the hair ties. I found them on the desk and slid them onto my wrist. Making my way back to Sienna, I laid out her clothes and started getting her dressed: bra, shirt, hoodie, leggings.
“Um, where’s my thong?” she asked, looking for the red lace. I straightened and pushed my hand into my pocket. The soft, stringy pair threaded between my fingers, and her eyes widened. “You can’t keep those!” She lunged, laughing as she tried to swipe them from my grasp. I caught her by the throat, cradling gently and only enough to get her attention back on me.
I love it when she looks at me like that.
“Stay with me tonight, and you can have them back after you kiss me goodbye.” My chest tightened, but I didn’t let my grin falter. Goodbye wasn’t in my plans. I wanted to see her again. And again.
“Okay, but my friends will probably bug you—”
“No offense, but I don’t care about your friends right now. I want to do things withyou, and only you.” Her eyes narrowed, but her playfulness remained.
“Fine, we can go on rides, eat all the food, and go through haunted houses.” She stuck her hand out. “We can have a little date, but I want those back. They’re a really nice pair.” My hand engulfed hers and I shoved the underwear back inside my pocket. She thought she was getting a regular night out.
Sweet Sienna, how delusional. You’re going to come and scream my name all night long.
“Turn around,” I instructed, and she did so. I moved my fingers through her thick hair, effectively finger combing what knots and tangles I could. Parting a line down the center, I divided one side into three small sections at the front. Crossing those sections, I picked up smaller sections as I continued to cross them again.
“Are you braiding my hair?” Her voice was soft and hesitant.
“I messed it up; the least I can do is fix it.” I crossed more sections until I got to where she originally had her hair up. It was too short to continue past that point. Starting the other side the same way, I heard her breath hitch.
“When did you learn to braid hair?”
“This is potentially embarrassing, but I have a younger sister. And I don’t mean just a couple years, either. I just turned twenty, but Flora will be seven in December,” I explained as I picked up extra sections and weaved them through my fingers. “My mom works really hard, and a few years ago, my parents split. My sister was about to start school and she has so much hair, it’s ridiculous.” I tied the band around her second pigtail and sat beside her. “Well, my mom needed to pick up more shifts to make up for it. Which meant she wasn’t there in the mornings for most of the week. For had a meltdown once because I couldn’t braid like Mom. While she was at school, I watched as many videos online as I could find.”
“For?” Her head tilted in confusion, and her newly-tied hair bounced with the motion.
“Oh, that’s what we call her.” I ran a hand up the back of my neck and felt my face warm. “When she was little, like toddler age,” I said, motioning with my hand just a few feet from the ground. “She was just learning how to speak, and you know kids—they always speak cute gibberish. Well, we were teaching her how to say her name, but she just kept saying it likeFora.” Sienna chuckled, covering her mouth as she moved her head back and forth.
“That’s so cute, Ev.” My chest bloomed with heat when she said my name.
“She really is. When she got a little older, she started to call me Ever. She’d run around the house singing“For and Ever! I love you, forever!”Mom would get a kick out of it, so to that little stinker, I’m Ever and she’s For.” Sienna looked at me with awe. Those crystal eyes were round and wide, a little misty in the corners. She leaned into me, her mouth just a breath away.
“Let’s get going.”
* * *
I followedSienna out of the last hallway in the clown house. Crisp breezes enveloped us; it was vastly different to the heat we created in the small office quarters. She looked at her phone and tapped on the bright glass. When her head popped back up, she started scanning the people around us.
“Vera said Cody and Shawn are finishing on the Hurl Blaster; they’re eating nachos.” Her hands dove into the pocket of the hoodie, and she looked down at the ground.
“Little Fox,” I teased, lifting her chin for her gaze to meet mine. “Don’t be shy around me, please.” The breeze moved between us again, and her shoulders shook.
“Aren’t you cold?” she asked, looking me up and down.
“You started a fire not easily extinguished. I’ll be fine.”Hopefully.
I reached into her pocket and removed one of her tiny hands. My fingers traced along hers and over her knuckles, playing with the smoothness of her skin. She giggled and twitched at the tickling sensation.
“Can we get some cotton candy? Or maybe a funnel cake?” she asked, lacing her fingers into mine and giving a little squeeze. She batted her large, round eyes.Sly little fox.
“Anything here that you want is yours. My favorite cotton candy stand is this way.” I pulled her down the exit division of the service road, running only slightly to avoid James catching a glimpse of me. Her feet clapped against the pavement, and I looked back to see the biggest smile she’d worn since I first saw her by Rocket.
Did she smile enough today before finding me?
