Expired With Me

Chapter Twenty

Thea

"Iris," I say after opening my door. "I thought you'd forgotten about us." She smiles.

"I could never. There's just been a lot going on lately. I actually wanted to ask you something."

"What is it?"

"Are you up for a shopping trip? My treat, of course."

"I thought we couldn't leave..."

"Don't worry about that." She takes my hands. "Please say yes. We could go down the shops in Westertown. Please. We can bring Anna if you want. Or Kaitlyn. Even the boys. I could use a change of scenery and some fresh air."

"Okay," I say. "Sure."

***

We've gathered up my friends, and now are making the trek to the Estate's underground garage. Yes, this mansion is big enough for an underground parking lot to be necessary. "Pick any car you like," Iris says, opening the door. "We may need two drivers. I hope at least one of you knows how?" I smile, holding back a laugh, glancing at Aiden. He squeezes my hand, his smile matching mine. Rows upon rows of sports cars fill the room. I watch as Aiden and Noah's jaws almost fall off. Oh no.

"Got any Challengers?" Aiden asks.

"If it's fast, probably. Feel free to look around." And so he does. We walk past red Ferraris, yellow Lamborgenies, and blue Mustangs. Aiden makes sure to point out necessary pieces of information about each. After about ten minutes, we reach the holy grail. An almost new black Challenger. He slides into the front seat, running his hands over the clean leather, untouched by the dirt roads of the track, or sticky ten-year-old hands. I sit in the passenger seat, Anna in the back. Kaitlyn and Noah go with Iris. We follow her car, a red Jaguar, out of the garage, stopping at the gate. We're allowed to pass after her, and we continue down the mountain, listening to the radio. The roads are narrow but empty, and my hand is slipped through Aiden's over the gear shift. Iris is a slow and careful driver, and I can tell Aiden's starting to get annoyed. He hasn't driven since we were home. I'm sure he wants to go fast. I roll down the window, letting the wind mess up my hair. He smiles, turning up the radio.

***

Aiden walks next to me, our hands intertwined. His bandage itches next to my arm. Noah and Anna are having some sort of argument over the best type of pasta, and Kaitlyn stands behind us, silently looking through the various display cases of the downtown. Every so often, we enter a shop, the owners and other customers seemingly frightened of Iris, none of them accepting pay. We all carry multiple bags, filled with clothes, jewelry, and other souvenirs. I can't help but think back to home.

We've been at the Society for almost a week. For all the differences, walking in Westertown is strikingly similar to the town we visited at Christmas, the one Aiden's dad was the mayor of. The only difference, really, is the tattoo worn on everyone's left arm, and the celebrity status we're receiving because of our 'friendship' with the queen. We're having so much fun that I don't even notice something is wrong until Noah convinces Anna to accompany him into a chocolate shop.

"Hey, Aiden," I say, before holding back to stand with Iris. "Make sure Noah doesn't sugar crash, will you?" Anna takes the debit card we haven't needed to use and enters the store.

"Are you sure?" Aiden asks.

"Yeah, I'm just going to stay out here."

"Do you want me to get you anything?"

"Suprise me." We kiss, I standing on my tippy-toes, and he disappears into the store. I walk over to the bench Iris has sat on. "Do you want some company?" I ask her. She jumps, then nods.

"Yeah, that'd be nice. Thank you." We watch as cars pass. Blue van. Red truck. White convertible. At last, Iris breaks the silence. "My first, well, real date with Jonas was in that shop."

"Real?"

"Yeah. It's complicated. It was the second time he kissed me. The first that I kissed him back."

"What was he like?"

"Sweet. Even against his own will." She smiles at the memory, but I can tell it's bittersweet.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

"Nothing." She wipes an imaginary tear from her face. "Politics. Fear. Hormones." She motions to her stomach.

"Sometimes all we can ask for is a day of normal."

"I don't even know what normal would be like." Iris laughs.

"Hey, at least there's not a zombie apocalypse. Or aliens coming in from the sky." She shakes her head.

"Somehow I feel that would just fit right in." The smell of chocolate fills the air again as my friends exit the chocolate shop.