See you soon

I breathed heavily and shivered.

Axel traced the goosebumps from my neck collar down to my arms.

"Are you cold?" he asked softly.

I shook my head even though the evidence was clear on my skin.

"You lie, Cookie."

I pull away from his touch and swim to the deeper part of the lake. I came out of the water and giggled. Axel looked at me with a mischievous grin before he dived into the water and pulled my leg down till we were both underwater.

There was something about us being naked underwater, a piece of exposure in me to him.

I lasted longer underwater than Axel. I dived out when he did.

He still had that grin on his face.

"I must tell you, Cookie, there is something about you naked underwater that is just art."

I splashed water on him when he made that sentence, which made him laugh more.

I swam closer to the shore where our clothes were; I turned to see Axel behind me.

I stayed inside the water while he came out of the water like a swimsuit model, his bare ass on display. He walked in confident.

He twisted his head.

"Try not to be a pervert, Cookie" I turned my back away from him.

I hear a ruffling sound.

"Come out of the water."

I faced him, only to see him with a long blue towel. He stretched the towel holding the two ends.

"I won't look this time" He turned his face away.

"Haha, never trust the devil," I said as I left the water and walked toward him.

"I am hardly a devil, Cookie."

He wrapped me, and our eyes connected.

I held the part of the towel which he once had.

"The devil hides behind your pretty face," I tell him and

He licked his lips slowly.

"So you think I am pretty" Axel leaned closer to me.

"Do you always a comeback for everything?" I asked, and he shrugged.

He leaves me to wear my clothes and enters his truck to put on his clothes.

I hopped into his truck, and he drove.

I thought he would drive me back home, but he stopped at my favorite pizza place. Axel had told me to wait for him while he entered the building and came out with a pizza box.

I moaned when the smell of the pizza hit me.

I rushed to get the pizza off his hands, but he raised it high.

"What do you say?" Axel teased me.

"That you are the best" I stroked his ego, and he shook his head.

"That Axel is handsome?" he shook his head again.

"That could work, but no," he replied.

I attempted again to stretch for the pizza box, but it was impossible for a 169cm girl to win against a 183cm guy.

He snickered.

"Axel is the only man in my heart."

I laughed hard.

"That's sus."

"Pineapple pizza going," he threatens me.

I say in my monotone voice, "Axel is the only man in my heart."

"Such lack of enthusiasm" He pulled out one slice of pizza and took a bite into his mouth; I salivated.

"Axel is the only man in my heart!!!"

He choked in his laughter and spilled some of the pizza out

"Gesh, woman, I didn't tell you to announce it to the world."

I extended my hand, and he placed the pizza box in my hands. So let's just say that the one slice of pizza he took was his only pizza.

"Can I ask you a question?"

Axel said when he stopped in front of my house.

"Ok," I twisted to him.

"Why do you act so different with Cleo? Isn't it better to be who you really are with your best friend?"

"Because I don't want to drift away from her. Have you ever been so different from someone you love? The things I love are the things Cleo dislikes. So I get scared that the things that brought us close would no longer don't exist, and our friendship would not survive that."

"Friendship is built on trust; lying to her about the things you like or hate is betraying that trust. Avery, you should hide who you are for anyone because you would slowly eat yourself up in doing so."

I stared at him with nothing to say.

"It's getting late, Cookie. See you soon."

Axel leaned in and opened the car door.

"See you soon too, Axel."

I stepped out of the car and slammed the door.

Immediately after getting home, the light on the stairs was turned on. My mom stood there.

"You are late" It was a statement.

"Yes"

She off the light, walked up the stair and said something when she reached the third step.

"Tell Axel to come inside the house when next he brings my daughter this late"

"Ok, mummy"