it was perhaps the understandement of the  c e n t u r y that being back on the island wasn’t easy .  while the blonde was typically someone who simply adored beautiful places like these , the  MEMORIES  linked to this place were making it hard for her to relax .  something she figured he’d understand , that he’d feel the same but … obviously , he didn’t . it made her angry that he d i d n ‘ t   .  “ how can you chill in this god damnisland when it’s …. when it’s our island ??  “  &  there it was , the truth she was trying so desperately to keep hidden .  “  maybe you don’t care but i do !  i care because this is where we - “  she stopped , hands motioning all around the beach where just a few short months ago she felt more than with anyone else before .  “  i know it doesn’t change anything , okay ??   i know , i’m not an idiot . but i’m sorry i was just … i was pissed because you … you looked so happy  &  i know that’s selfish to say that i was trying to ruin that but i just felt … it just didn’t seem fair .  not when i’m a mess . not when being here makes me sad  &  i just can’t stop feeling like … “  it was her turn to shake her head , sucking in her lips as she looked away , struggling to find the words that would make him understand while at the same time hoping ,  PRAYING  she didn’t come off as a fool for still holding on . for n o t   moving on .  “  i’m sorry … not just for what i did on this trip but for what happened between us .  i’m sorry for what i did to you …. i’m sorry that last summer was the best we could do  .  i’m sorry i can’t …. i’m sorry i still think about it … &  i’m sorry it took me so long to say this . i guess you can say i’m sorry e v e r y t h i n g .  “    

what was her damage … for a moment , the words  HIT  her more than she was expecting them to  &  it showed ,  as it was almost perfectly manifested across her face . gulping , the blonde stood frozen as he began spouting words no one has ever said , at least , not to her f a c e .  it almost felt like a  LECTURE  , the kind her father would give her for inappropriate behavior , the kind that hurt more than a slap across the cheek .  “  it wasn’t  - “  she tried to explain that it wasn’t for her e n t e r t a i n m e n t   , but words failed her as he continued on his rampage , the same one she knew deserved .  “ can you stop - “  she began only to stop again , wishing he would stop as much as she had it coming . she never thought her actions would actually make her feel  ASHAMED , especially when moments ago she reveled in them , but they had .  “ i know it’s not my problem but you can’t just - “  it was like she couldn’t even defend herself , not when nothing she did or said made sense  &  she was finally aware of it . watching him turn around to leave her again , the blonde bit the inside of her cheek , trying to prevent herself from actually feeling the way she was right now , which was  g u i l t y  .  “  look , i’m sorry ! “  she shouted after him , unable to hold it back .    

                    ❝It’s a vibe, you give off a very ‘creepy biter person’ vibe. Maybe you should really work on that? I can’t imagine that’s good for meeting other strangers.❞ A single shoulder lifted in a quick, half-shrug towards her own joking words. ❝I have no idea what you’re talking about, I haven’t told anyone about your creepy biter vibes. That would be incredibly rude of me to do.❞ And she liked to think she wasn’t exactly a rude person. Though, maybe she was during certain moments of their conversations, without entirely realizing it. All in an attempt at avoidance. ❝Right, I promise I’m not trying to run into you. Which is different from me saying ‘I promise I am avoiding you’, they’re two completely different things, really. I think you’re just hearing things all twisted and wrong over here and I apologize for that, that’s probably all my fault. Maybe I should put it into a letter and have that one hand-delivered too.❞

lena could tell he wasn’t finding the whole ordeal as  a m u s i n g  as she did , he was practically fuming right before her , making her wonder if he were to actually explode given the arrows shooting through his dark eyes .  she should’ve been scared ,   REGRETFUL  even , but none of those feelings were present . his words nearly made her smile again , something she tried to hide by taking a sip from her coconut-shaped cup .  s u r p r i s i n g l y  enough , she hadn’t cut him off as he went off on her , that was until he was finished  &  was about to walk away .  “  or what ? “  she asked , tone as daring as ever as she found herself on her feet , staring at him .  “ what if i don’t ?  “  it was like she was purposely jabbing a lion , without any fear of him biting back even though she knew it was only a matter of time .  “  you think i’m scared of you or something ? “  she asked , at this point even smiling , despite better judgement .

he rolled his eyes in amusement  ,  but then again it wasn’t like he wasn’t planning on paying the girl back  ,  as if the whole ordeal wasn’t already embarrassing enough  .  “  yeah sure  .  “  he agreed without much problem  ,  though a low chuckle made it past his lips  .  “  hey  !  it was a dare  .  ”  he defended  ,  as if that made it a better idea  .  in fact it was because it had been such a dumb thing that made the whole thing that much of a bigger joke  .  

                    It was absurd, growing more ridiculous the longer the ‘joke’ seemed to continue. Which she didn’t mind — it avoided any ounce of a topic she didn’t want to come face-to-face with. Something she was sure was almost as ridiculous as the ongoing joke, but she didn’t seem to care. ❝I think you’re just trying to palm off your whole creepy biter thing and I’m sorry to inform you, but you can’t do that. You’re stuck with that for life now.❞ The ridiculous joking worked, simply because she had something to bounce off of, once it felt like hitting a stone wall, everything fell flat. It’s what had her shaking her head as a hand raised, gently scratching the side of her neck as she spoke. ❝I never said I was avoiding you. Just that I’m not actively trying to run into you.❞

his sudden snap slightly surprised her , as if his reaction was  c o m p l e t e l y  uncalled for  as she slowly slid her sunglasses at the tip of her nose , looking at him like he lost his mind .  a part of her knew there would probably come a moment of  TRUTH   where he came aware of her antics , but damn she be if she were to admit to them .  “  i have no idea what you’re talking about , “  she calmly stated , her lips slightly curving into a smirk even though she tried not to look so god damn conceited .  “  are you okay ?  did something upset you ? “  she continued , barely keeping it together as she continued sipping on her fourth drink since noon .  perhaps it was the a l c o h o l   level in her system already but the blonde felt excessively confident in her actions ,  which definitely showed by the way she acted .

“  wait  !   who the hell invented any words  ?!  ”  he repeated slowly like margo had asked the single most important question about the universe  .  which was if anything  ,  something he could easily debate himself if his brain cells weren’t currently playing bumper car among themseflves  .  “  i’m fineeee  .  ”  he assured the brunette  ,  even if his slurred voice wasn’t reassuring in the slightest  .  "  come on  ,  let’s lay down  .  ”  he tried instead  ,  though he found it particularly difficult to fix his body comfortably in the sofa  ,  he insisted in tugging one of her hands to bring her down with him  .  “  have you ever wondered how different your life could’ve been because of  ...  anything  ?  ”  he started  ,  humming to himself  ,  partially talking more to himself than for the girl to hear him  .  “  i do  ...  like  ,  what if i had never moved to new york  ?  or what if i had ever told you about my feelings for you or  ... oh  !  what if my dog had never ran away  ?  ”  he started to ramble  ,  interrupted only by a sudden yawn  .  

the amount of comfort between the pair had been building for years  .  from seeing each other at their lowest lows to sharing their highest highs  .  after so long margo should’ve already been used to how physical aj has always been  ,  and the fact was that the intoxicated man at the moment couldn’t care less as he buried his face on her stomach  ,  large hands resting on margo’s hips before laughing at her words  .  at least  ,  until she mentioned his smell  .  he looked up at her  ,  screwing his nose slightly at the comment before tilting his head towards himself  .  “  i smell  ??  ”  he asked  ,  his toe both slightly offended and worried at the thought  .  then again  ,  pretty much ever since he had landed in the island he had been second guessing himself  .  you could literally see the mental math in his mind at her question  ,  but no amount of squinting was gonna give him a good answer to give the brunette in return  .  “  i’m not entire  ...  enterily  ...  entire  ...  ly  ...  “  aj trailed off with a frown  ,  “  who the hell invented that word  ?  ”

                      ❝Hey, wait a second, you can’t turn the whole biting-biter thing on me now. That’s your thing, that’s not my thing, you can’t turn it into my thing.❞ Already she was confused by her own twisting words but the entire thing was really a joke, to begin with, it didn’t really have to make sense. ❝I can promise you, I am not trying to make it a habit of running into you,❞ she expressed while taking a step back, hopeful it just might push her words across just a fraction more. ❝Surprisingly, It is. I don’t know why I thought it would be less hectic.❞

alex: don't be a party pooper aj!!!!