Dealing with the matter about the consent form was not easy, but luck on my side, Eden received an urgent call and had to leave.
It was easy to deal with Ria, as I just had to say I wanted to go out to the park for some air to which she happily agreed.
When we arrived at the park, it was already alive with late afternoon chatter, kids were darting across the playground, a dog barking as it bounded after a ball, the rustle of leaves in a breeze that hinted at evening. We walked around for a while before settling down where the sun's soft and golden on us as we stayed in an unusual triangle of comfort.
Avery sat cross-legged on the picnic blanket, her sneakers abandoned nearby. She was in the middle of defending the last handful of chips, slapping at Bryan's hand with mock outrage.
"Bryan, I swear," she said, narrowing her eyes, "if you steal one more barbecue chip without asking, I'm cutting you off for life."
Bryan leaned back on his elbows, un-bothered, crunching loudly on the chip he'd already swiped. "Relax. I'm just making sure they don't go stale. Sacrificing myself for the group."
Avery gave him a look that could curdle milk. "You mean you're greedy."
I laid on the other side of the blanket on back, hood pulled up to shade my face from the sun. I didn't laugh, not out loud, but my lips twitched faintly as I couldn't quite hide my amusement.
Bryan caught the flicker of my smile and tossed a chip in my direction. It landed harmlessly on my hoodie.
"See? Even he agrees with me." Avery said.
I didn't bother to respond, as I brushed the chip off with a lazy flick of my wrist and went back to watching the sky.
The silence stretched until Avery nudged me and asked. "What are you even staring at?"
"Clouds," I murmured, barely above the hum of the park.
Bryan squinted up too, shading his eyes. "Ohhh, okay. That one looks like a dragon."
Avery tilted her head. "Dragon? That's clearly a duck. Look at the beak."
Bryan rolled his eyes. "It's a blob. A very majestic blob."
Avery laughed, loud and unfiltered and Bryan joined in, but I stayed quiet, as I continued staring at the clouds. I wasn't ignoring them, not really, I was just somewhere between them and the drifting sky.
The noise of the park swelled around them again, the laughter, footsteps, the jingle of an ice cream cart. A boy ran past, his golden retriever dragging him along, and Avery's smile softened as she watched.
"Man," she whispered, hugging her knees, "I love days like this. Just… simple. No school, no drama. Just us."
Bryan also leaned forward, arms resting on his knees. He didn't joke this time, only nodded.
It was I , surprisingly, who broke the quiet. My voice was low that it almost went unheard, "They don't last forever, though."
Both Avery and Bryan turned towards me, surprised I hardly ever volunteered to speak unless I asked directly. I kept my eyes on the sky, though, like the thought wasn't meant for them but had slipped out anyway.
For a moment, the air shifted—heavier, more thoughtful. Avery called my name, but Bryan beat her to it with a grin. "That's why we eat all the chips now. Live in the moment, right?"
I knew she was worried about me and I understand that but I was ready to talk about it so I was thankful that Bryan had intervened be it intentional or not.
Avery groaned and threw a chip at him. Bryan ducked, laughing, and just like that the weight of my words dissolved back into the easy rhythm of teasing and laughter. But the looking at Avery and knew it still lingered in her mind.
The sun dipped lower, shadows stretching long as evening came. The park began to thin out, but none of us moved. As our little corner of the grass felt separate, untouchable, for just a little longer.
*********************
Although I hated it, Monday came and I hand to go to school. Dressed in my uniform I went down to see Avery already eating her breakfast.
Ria was in the kitchen cooking, "Good morning." I greeted her.
She smiled as she raised her head to look at me. "How was your night?" She asked, to which I nodded and sat down opposite Avery.
I dished out my food when Ria brought out freshly brewed tea for me.
She sat in her seat but didn't move to eat, instead she just stared at me with a smile.
"What?" I asked swallowing down the food in my mouth.
"It's going to be your eighteenth birthday soon, would you like to have a little party?" Ria asked.
And of course, I said, "No thanks."
"Come on Adrian, just a little party, just you, Avery and your friends." She tried convincing me.
"It's not only your birthday you know, it's also mine." Avery said.
"Yeah and so?, just throw a party for yourself and leave me out of it." I said.
"Gosh Adrian, this is not just any birthday, it's your eighteenth birthday." Avery said in frustration.
"I don't see how it's any different from the rest." I said but trust me I knew what she meant. All those teenagers at school makes the sixteenth and eighteenth birthday a huge deal. Happy sweet sixteen and when they become of legal age eighteen.
"Ria, am throwing a party to celebrate even if Adrian refuses." Avery said to Ria pouting her lips lightly.
"Yes of course, you can have your parting and invite your friends, just send me your budget list. Make it as simple as possible." Ria said with a doting smile. She stared at me then signed. "Eden is planning a gift, so you guys should be expecting something big." Ria said while looking at me expecting me to change my mind but I just stood up since I was already done eating.
"I'm off to school." I said walking out.
"Hey wait for me!" Avery caught up. "I know you don't want to but a least just give Ria the joy of organizing a birthday for you. You can just come you don't have to stay to the end, when Ria leave you can also leave." Avery said when we stepped out.
I kept quiet while walking forward.
"Come on Adrian." Avery said as he held me to a stop. She stared at me with hopeful eyes.
Signing, I said, "Alright, whatever."
"Great. What do you want the theme to be. I was thinking about a masquerade party or maybe a sunny theme…" And she went on and on about the party. I thought we agreed that I just had to show up.