Page 2 of Barron's Second Chance
Eden gave a small laugh, feeling far from humorous. She bent to pick up the discarded napkins and placed them on the corner of the table. “Yeah, I know.”
“Hey,” Sofia bumped her shoulder with hers. “Forget about her. Barron likes you, I’m sure of it.”
Sofia had been insistent over the past few months that Barron reciprocated her crush. She would tell Eden of all the times he secretly watched her when she wasn’t looking.
Sometimes, Eden believed her - like their little moment before Lissa shoved her. But other times, like watching Barron laugh with Lissa as she sat like a princess on her chair, her bare, shapely legs crossed while she rubbed at her fake injury. In times like that, it was hard to believe that he would prefer her over Lissa.
“Forget ‘em! There’s Ryan; let’s go stuff our faces.”
So for the next hour, she, Sofia, and her other bestie, Ryan, spent their time laughing, dancing, and chatting with their peers.
When she peeked over at Barron, she was relieved to see that he had left Lissa’s side and was chatting away with the guys on his soccer team. There were also quite a few times when her eyes flicked up and clashed with Barron’s. He would only give her a little smirk or a wink before continuing his conversation.
As the afternoon turned into evening, Brad suddenly went from group to group, announcing that they were going to play Seven Minutes in Heaven. After checking several times that the adults were sufficiently busy upstairs with their wine and snacks, Brad quickly gathered everyone who wanted to play into a circle. Eden was a bit reluctant. Not because she was shy about kissing someone, but because she was self-conscious that if she were to be chosen, her partner would scrunch their nose up and pass on their turn. She also didn’t want to kiss anyone except for Barron.
However, Sofia grabbed her hand in excitement. “Play with me?” She pleaded.
Eden hesitated until she saw Barron take a seat in the circle, his gaze heavy on her with heated meaning. A tingle of thrill floated down her stomach at his attention. Her heart was beating almost out of her chest, and her breathing felt shallow. What would she do if she got to kiss Barron?
So without thinking, she followed Sofia to join the rest of her peers in the circle.
A movement to her right drew her attention as Lissa sat heavily down, tucking her legs beside her. Her sore ankle seemed to have magically healed itself.
A dark thought crossed her mind.Oh, god, what if Barron and Lissa were picked together?She wanted to throw up at the thought.
Brad didn't have a wardrobe in the basement where said "Heaven" could occur. Instead, he pegged a long curtain into place on a rope that hung across the rafters. It was long enough to cover head to toe, but anyone could take a peek behind and see the action.
“I’ll go first!” Brad declared as he grabbed an empty bottle to spin. “But you all have to be quiet, or my parents might come down.” Considering they hadn’t been seen since the start of the party, Eden highly doubted that.
After Brad spun and went behind the curtain with a giggling Maggie Valasquez, the turns started going around the circle. Seven minutes was declared too long, so they changed it to two minutes - hardly enough time to decide whether you wanted to kiss the other person or not.
Eden started to feel uncomfortable. She didn’t want her first kiss to be under the expectation of others. She also didn’t want to kiss anyone except for Barron.
She glanced around, looking for an opening to discreetly slip away from the circle. But just as she worked up the nerve to stand, the time came for Barron to take a spin. She was thankful that the bottle never landed on her while she waited for her turn. It was even more of a relief that it hadn’t landed on Barron yet. But Eden was sure it wouldn’t be long before it did. Another reason why she wanted to leave the game.
With her heart beating out of her chest and her palms damp with sweat, Eden watched as Barron firmly spun the glass bottle. Around and around it spun, her eyes following its movements, glancing up at each girl it quickly swung past.
She wanted so desperately for the bottle to land on her. But she would also be bricking herself with nerves if it did.
She peeked at Lissa as the bottle started slowing its movements. Lissa was sitting one person away from her. And from the actions of the bottle, the chances of it landing on herself, Maria - who was sitting between them - or Lissa were high. Lissa was staring at Barron with a sultry glint in her eye. Sickness sliced through Eden at the thought of her and Barron disappearing behind the peach-colored curtain.
But her worry was for nothing. Because as the bottle slowed down and came to a complete stop, it was, without a doubt, pointed directly at her. Her light blue eyes clashed with Barron’s hazel ones. In his eyes, she read every emotion he was feeling.
Barron wanted this. Wantedher.
She watched, still as a statue, as he stood and walked purposely towards her. Eyes intense, he held his hand out to help pull her up. As if she was in a trance, Eden wordlessly put her damp hand in his, allowing him to tug her to her feet. His hands felt warm and clammy as well. Like he was also nervous about what was about to happen.
Ignoring their classmate's ooohing and innuendos, they disappeared behind the curtain.
Eden breathed heavily as she stood face-to-face in front of Barron. Even though her classmates were just a cloth away, it felt like they were locked away in their own private cocoon.
“We don’t have to do anything if you don’t want to,” Barron softly told her, his eyes boring into hers.
Eden shifted on her feet, but not in hesitation. All she kept thinking was that the more they talked, the more time they wasted. Why had they agreed to change the time from seven minutes to two?
“Is that what you want?” She quietly asked.
Barron flicked his eyes down before meeting her stare dead on. “No. I-I’ve wanted to kiss you for a long time,” he confessed.
