Sebastian Bear (complete)

TWO

Two

Nolan Sinclair was lounging on her front porch steps when Madeline arrived home. He looked at ease, his designer shades pushing his unruly brown curls away from his forehead. Madeline felt her breath catch in her throat. Sometimes, when he was smiling at her and the weather was nice enough, it was painful being so close to him. Of course, he had no clue about how she felt. She had become a master at hiding her emotions over the years. Nolan didn't even bother looking up from his smartphone until she was casting a shadow across his screen.

"Hello Sinclair," She kicked his trendy sneakers playfully. He feigned offense, sitting up quickly to reveal a set of manually straightened teeth.

"Be careful with the kicks, Madeline." Nolan joked. "Their first editions."

"What are you doing here?" She didn't really need a reason. It was always nice to see him, painfully nice. Nolan shrugged, yawning so hard those expensive shades fell back to the bridge of his nose.

"Hungry." That was enough of an explanation. They would go searching for food at their favorite diner where grease was always on the menu. He would drive them there in his old Jeep wrangler. It was already decided because if Nolan wanted to go, Madeline would go. That was that.

Inside their favorite dining establishment, it smelled of grease. Madeline wasn't in the mood to eat, an unusual occurrence. Her sleepless nights mixed with her worried thoughts tied her stomach in knots. She ordered her usual from a surly waitress who was two hours into her shift. They would still tip her well as two high school students with no job could.

"So I was thinking maybe we could go to that new amusement park this summer." Madeline pretended to eat, dunking a golden fry in a pool ketchup. Nolan was still playing with his phone, idly texting. Madeline rolled her eyes. "I haven't been on a rollercoaster in years, not since that summer you lost your lunch after riding Armageddon." Nolan had been very sick after that wooden wonderland. They were only thirteen then.

"Earth to Nolan," there was an edge to her voice that grabbed his attention.

"Sorry sorry. What?" He pushed the phone to the side as if he wouldn't be checking it in the next few seconds. Madeline rolled her eyes.

"Who are you texting anyway?" Madeline cringed at her own tone. She didn't mean to sound like a jealous girlfriend, but there it was, at the end of her words, bitterness. She tried to correct her face, smoothing out all those frustrating lines with smooth casual flesh. Nolan didn't seem to notice or care.

"Katie Burk." He dove into his burger. Madeline noticed the way his curls tickled the sides of his face. She would reach over and push them back if it wouldn't be weird. It definitely would. Katie Burk? She didn't dare ask more. Her voice would betray her. Jealousy, it was harsh and cold in her chest. She let the fry drop to her plate. She couldn't push more food into her mouth.

"So what do you think about the park idea?" She tried to change the subject.

"I don't know. I don't know if I'll have the time." Nolan stuffed his face. He wasn't on his phone but his attention was on the condiment bottles. He grabbed the mustard.

It was their last summer together before he ran off for better things. She thought he would have plenty of time. He would have no time after that of course. Once school started, the calls would slow down. There would be less and less replied texts. There would be parties and concerts and tests and study groups and new friends with fewer attachments. He would lose his virginity to some gorgeous coed. He'd get a tattoo, start smoking cigarettes and drinking wine. He would be someone else. Madeline knew that much. He wasn't supposed to start changing so quickly.