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“Seeing if you were done. I have a surprise for you.” His eyes dance. I suppress my groan, not really a fan of surprises.
“What is it?”
Onyx laughs and points toward the cleaning supplies. “Are you done?”
I look at the cart and realize this was the last mirror in the studio needing my attention. “Yeah,” I sigh, “okay, what's the surprise?”
Onyx pushes the cart back into one of the closets and locks the door. “Do you have anything warm with you? We might have to stop back at your house.”
I look down at my leggings and t-shirt and then to him. He’s wearing dark jeans, boots, a gray hoodie and a black jacket. He looks like he’s ready to be outside. I raise my brow. “This is what I wore to clean. Are we going to be outside? I should change then.”
He nods his head before taking my hand. “We have time to stop at your apartment. Let’s go.”
I follow Onyx out of the building. I get in my car and he drives his, following behind me as we head across town. The closer we get, the more I start to notice that it’s lightly snowing out. Once I park, Onyx follows me inside. He now has a black beanie on under his hood. We must be doing something outside. He looks like he’s ready to spend time in the snow. I push down my groan and try to focus instead on being happy I get to spend the day with him.
My apartment is empty when we step in, like I knew it would be. This time of year, many people take off work for the holidays and weekend shopping trips. My mom has been taking on extra shifts and promising me we can celebrate with her tip money. She looked so happy when she told me that this morning. I hid my tears and somehow managed to smile like I was happy for her. She left and I went to clean.
“Feel free to sit. I’ll change quickly,” I yell over my shoulder to Onyx. He’s about as familiar with my apartment now as I am. We spend most of our time here, if we aren’t at Patti Tango’s.
I yank off my leggings and grab a pair of my flared jeans. Deciding to follow Onyx’s lead, I layer a long-sleeve shirt under one of my sweaters. For some extra comfort, and because I’m a huge freeze baby, I throw on some fuzzy socks before sliding my feet in my boots. “I’m ready,” I call to him. “Will this be okay?” My hand gestures to my outfit, but I stop short when I see the fire burning in Onyx’s eyes. His face is hard. “What happened?” I glance from him to around the room, but it looks the same.
“Is your mom working all day?” He gestures to the calendar on the fridge, where it reads triple in all capital red letters.
I swallow, embarrassment climbing up my chest, as my neck heats. My eyes burn. “Yes,” I manage to answer, without my voice cracking.
“On your birthday.” He says the words like he can’t really believe them.
I don’t want him to pity me. This is the life I’m used to. How things always are. “Onyx.”
“No.” He shakes his head and stomps off to my room. I follow him, keeping up. I watch as he grabs my school bag and tosses it on my bed. “Stay with me tonight. Stay all weekend, actually. I’ll bring you to school Monday.”
“On—”
“No, Jade.” He shakes his head and pulls me into his chest. I can feel his heart beating wildly in his chest, even through the layers of clothes. “You should never be alone on your birthday. Stay with me. We can celebrate and do whatever you want.” He kisses my forehead, his hands cradling the back of my head, while he stares down at me. So many emotions swim in his eyes, but none of them are pity and all of them are for me: anger, sadness, pride, loyalty, passion.
My chest feels tight, warm, and safe. I know if I say anything, I will crack and break down. Instead, I nod my head, and he kisses the top of my head in response. Onyx allows me to step out of his hold and I grab any essentials I think I’ll need, including my pajamas and a change of clothes for tomorrow. He told me to stay all weekend, but I can’t take it seriously. I’ve never even been to Onyx’s place before. I usually refuse to leave the comfort I know, even though it’s an empty shell.
Glancing around one last time, I let it all sink in. I won’t be coming back here tonight. Normally I would panic at this thought, but Onyx doesn’t let me. Instead, he takes my bags and grabs my hand with his free one. He walks confidently out of the apartment, only waiting while I lock the door. Before I can blink, we’re in the car, and before I can breathe a sigh of relief, we’re already halfway out of town. When we pass the diner, Onyx’s jaw hardens. My eyes stay on his and I place my hand on his hand. “Where are we going first?”
“Far from this town,” he answers, looking over at me. I smile and he squeezes my hand.
The ride is almost an hour long and it is peaceful. We laugh and tell stories. We plot and plan music and lyrics. Once we make it into a bigger town, I see the sign.
Gobbler Fair. “Ah! I’ve always wanted to come here.” I grip Onyx’s hand, practically bouncing in my seat.
“It sounded like fun from what I read online.” He shrugs, a huge smile on his perfect lips.
I watch the crowd and take in the people laughing and playing the fair games. The lights reflect in the falling snow. Instantly, I see the rides and my gaze wanders back to Onyx.
“Are you a daredevil?” I smirk and watch his smile turn mischievous.
“Which ride caught your eye? The coaster?” He nods to the back of the park, where the black and red rollercoaster shines brightly under the festive lighting.
I raise my brow and skip off toward the giant beast of a ride. My heart pounds the entire way, my adrenaline pumping. Onyx takes my hand, and soon, we’re in the very front cart, climbing the first drop.
“You love this, don’t you?” Onyx looks sideways at me.
I shrug my shoulders and smile. He chuckles right before the tip of the cart crests the top. There is a split moment where you feel suspended in the air. My heart lurches and my throat squeezes. It’s almost hard to breathe. Then, in the next second, we’re free falling and everything around us is drowned out by the screams, the laughs, the roar of the wheels on metal. I feel Onyx take my hand in his. It’s warm around my chilled flesh. On the next drop, he raises our hands in the air, while the wind rushes past us, carrying my scream with it.
