number neighbor / mileven texting au.

seventeen.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN;
WEIRD.

"el?"

just the single, hesitant syllable of her name and she was already imagining how the entirety of the english language would sound from his plump lips. his greeting carried through the phone as a gentle rasp, causing her own lips to part in shock.

the stunned brunette desperately fumbled to form some sort of reply, but her own words were lost. she now regretted how hastily she accepted the final call, too scared she would talk herself out of it to even give herself time to think of what she would say.

"el, are you there?"

more words. it was then that she decided that his voice fit his appearance perfectly. the slight rasp matched his sharp cheekbones and jawline, but the underlying soft tone mirrored his big brown eyes and rounded lips.

she faintly sighed as a shy smile swept across her face, completely forgetting the reason for his call and the cause of her initial anger.

"you know i can hear you breathing, right?"

she wondered if he could hear the gasp that escaped her lips in response to his words. she felt panicked, too panicked to form an acceptable answer. because of this, she settled for a faulty stutter.

"i-i -- i'm -- yeah."

her eyelids squeezed shut as her embarrassment settled, despising how much of an effect he had on her by just a few words. and, as if him speaking hadn't turned her cheeks pink enough, her heart fluttered when she heard his melodic laugh.

"you're being weird."

she was well aware of that. she inhaled a shaky breath before trying to form a feasible phrase.

"and you're being rude."

again, he laughed. this time it sounded fulfilled, not a short chuckle like before. with the hand that wasn't holding her cell phone, she reached for one of the decorative pillows on her bed, placing it in her lap so she could fiddle with the tassels on it.

"i'm glad you picked up."

her eyes focused on the pattern of her bedspread, forcing herself not to smile like a giddy schoolgirl that had been noticed by her crush.

"well, that makes one of us."

she winced at her own words. of course, her tone wasn't harsh and, by the sound of his light chuckle, he wasn't offended by her response, but she still felt guilty.

el was aware of the cold front she had directed towards him upon realizing that her affections were more than just a joke to annoy him, and she felt kind of bad about it. she certainly wasn't a mean person and, while mike was easily annoyed, neither was he. from where she stood, which was an estimated 130 miles away, he was perfect. the only thing she could think to change was the fact that he didn't return her feelings.

"oh, so you weren't kidding when you said you're scary when you're mad."

she didn't even try to bite back her giggle. she'd actually forgotten she was upset in the first place, but his words reminded her.