Charlie opened his eyes.
He was staring up at the sky, admiring how perfectly clear the weather was. There wasn't a cloud in sight and the teenager smiled as he felt the welcome warmth of sun embracing his face. It was so comfortable and peaceful here, just lying on the grass and basking in the sunshine, so comfortable even that Charlie almost regretted volunteering for the school trip.
'Lame,' said voice behind him.
Charlie frowned and turned his attention to the one who spoke. With the powerful sun glare, he couldn't see much beyond a silhouette but he recognised the voice at once.
'What's lame?' he muttered in reply.
The silhouette laughed. 'You. Lying there. Staring at the clouds.'
The joke was lost on Charlie as he pulled himself to his feet. He was a few inches shorter than the silhouette but he sized himself up in mock challenge.
'How is that lame?' he probed.
He sidestepped to avoid the sun's glare and the identity of the silhouette was confirmed. Long chestnut hair, big brown eyes and a beaming face? It could only be Steve of course. He was definitely the tallest in Charlie's class and he loved wearing open, baggy clothes. Today was no exception as he wore cargo shorts and a blue Hawaiian shirt that was held closed by no more than two buttons. Every so often a rogue gust of wind would blow his shirt open and reveal his tanned chest. That wouldn't happen to Charlie. He was snugly concealed within a zipped hoody, and dark fitted jeans, that in hindsight, probably wasn't the best outfit for a hot summer day.
A tiny breeze swept Steve's hair across his face, reminding Charlie of those silly shampoo commercials.
'You know exactly what I mean,' Steve smiled. 'Chilling out here on your own, pretending to look all cool and mature. Like you don't give a crap.'
He chuckled and Charlie shrugged his shoulders.
'Why would I be trying to do that?'
His friend raised an eyebrow, tantalisingly. 'Emma.'
Charlie swallowed but rolled his eyes to show how silly that reason was. How dumb to suggest that he had deliberately chosen to relax on the edge of the school field to make some kind of show in front of the other students. Of course, Steve was absolutely right and even now, Charlie couldn't help but glance over to the other students, trying pick out someone in particular.
His eyes danced between familiar and unfamiliar faces, some from his class and others he had never spoken to. Finally, he stopped on a group of girls chatting amicably in the shade of a large coach bus. One of them was petite, the shortest among them, but as far as Charlie was concerned, she was prettiest girl he had ever seen. Porcelain skin, bright blue eyes and long raven hair that curled out ever so slightly. She wore a simple purple shirt and some faded jeans but Emma just stood out, even besides the likes of Sophie. Now, Sophie was the resident Queen Bee and as you could expect she had the perfect figure, immaculate blonde hair and the most fashionable outfit this season... but all Charlie could see was Emma.
Her gaze briefly turned towards the field and stupidly Charlie's heart skipped a beat. He had to fight himself from blushing but it didn't escape Steve's notice and his friend continued to grin.
'So, lame,' he said again, 'and yet a little adorable too, hoping she'll notice.'
Charlie heaved a sigh. Yes, he did want her to notice him but he didn't want to admit that now. Something else then occurred to him and he spoke up. 'You don't suppose I was just so bored waiting for you that I took a nap?'
YOU ARE READING
Our Destiny: Bearers of the Dagger
Fantasy... Emma felt the confidence start to seep away. Her earlier thoughts were not pleasant but she couldn't ignore them. 'What's going on?' the questioned burned through her mind. 'Where are we? How did we get here?' Charlie's smile vanished at once. '...
