Chapter 46: Under The Night Sky

🍪Ellie's P.O.V

Why do we bother drinking alcohol when we're just gonna feel like shit after all?

I groaned, pushing my face further into my pillows. My phone annoyingly ringing through my sensitive ears and pounding headache.

Moving my arm around, I tried to take a hold of my phone accidentally hitting my alarm and making it tumble down.

"State your business fast. I'm trying to get my beauty sleep and your ruining it." I grumbled groggily, pressing my phone to my ear.

Alec's soft chuckle tang through the receiver.
"Good morning indeed cookie, how are you feeling?"

I groaned."My head feels like its gonna split into tiny pieces and get sewed back without anesthesia." I complained, rolling to the other side.

"Its called hungover for a reason love and I told you to take it easy on those tequila shots." Alec pointed out, his amusement evident.

"It's your job to stop me from making rash decision." I fought back, muttering a series of incoherent words.

"If I recalled correctly, I tried to stop you but you threatened to kick me in my jewels and I had no choice but comply." He reminded me.

Last night we attended the last party for the year that was hosted by one of the jocks. The pack of skittles and I were all present, even Connor and Sage were there.

Sage, Ark, Todd, and I grew wild in the drinks. I remembered playing beer pong against Sage and Ark but lose because Todd was a little shit.

There were snippets of Alec and I dancing before the tequila shots started then everything was once again blank.

"Cookie? Are you still there?" Alec's voice snapped me out my trance.

"Present," I sleepily answered."Why'd you call? It's like nine in the morning which is way too early to wake up with a hungover." I said, opening my eyes and wincing.

"Go on a date with me?" He asks, his voice hopeful.

A smile slipped on my lips."I'd love to skittle. What time?" I sit up, rubbing my hand on my eyes.

"Someone will pick you up around 6 in the evening." Alec announces, making me open my eyes.

"Why can't you do it yourself?" I wondered out, my brows furrowing.

"It's a secret cookie. Now, get your ass out of bed and eat your breakfast. You puked all the food in your system earlier." He said, making me roll my eyes.

"Don't remind me. Why didn't you sleep here?" Sunlight was streaming in through the blinds of the window.

I glanced around my room, my party clothes from earlier was in the hamper and I wore a loose shirt underneath my shorts.

There wasn't any aftertaste of vomit and I knew that Alec brushed my teeth, some flashbacks coming back to me.

"I wasn't sure if your dad would've like the idea of me sleeping in your room." He answered truthfully.

I pressed the speaker on and placed my phone on the bed."Your right but I'm sure he wouldn't have mind. He trusts you," I stood up from the bed, doing a little stretch.

"And I wouldn't do something that would ruin his trust cookie. Don't worry, I'll ask permission in advance, next time." He said, the sound of shuffling in the background.

I found it admiring how he always take consideration into what my parents would think when it involves me.

It just shows how family-oriented he is and how Mama King did a good job in grooming him into the person I'd admired even more someday.

"Okay, I'll see you later then?" I asked, somehow feeling giddy.

"Yes cookie, I'll see you later. Stay safe and drink water, okay? bye." He ended the call.

I let out a small excited squeal and started doing weird dances, only pausing when I felt myself grow lightheaded.

Taking a hold of my phone, I quickly pressed the contact of the person and dialed the number.

It rang for an awfully long time before the call got picked up, my smile widening in complete amusement.

"Go take a shower, I'll pick you up in ten. We've got some shopping to do." I said, and ended the call not bothering a response.

"Oh god, why me? What did I do to deserve this kind of treatment? Tell me! Answer me Ellie!" Todd moaned annoyingly in the passenger seat as I drove to the mall.

I rolled my eyes."Will you shut up? I'm hungover too but you don't hear me complaining like a girl and I'm a girl." I snapped, feeling the slight throb of my head.

Other people would be embarrassed being called out but since it's freaking Todd that we are talking about he continued moaning and groaning.

"You don't understand blue, mine is in another league. It's like period, it's excruciating and like pins and needle are stabbing me although there's no ble—" Todd banged his head on the dashboard when I slammed the brakes.

Silence greeted me and I nodded, continuing to drive once more. Todd whimpered, clutching his forehead.

"Why me blue? You dragged me out of my motherfucking bed when you know all to well I have a freaking world war II going on in my hea-" He didn't finish his head again because I stuffed a random sock in his mouth.

Don't wonder where I got it, it was just randomly here in his car.

He spits out the sock."What the hell? This is the missing sock I've been looking for!" Todd sputters out, throwing it on the backseat.

"Consider this a payback when you woke me up for that makeover." I smugly said, pushing my sunglasses up.

Todd made an odd noise at the back of his mouth."I gave you an heads up the day before." He protested.

I glanced at him briefly."You didn't give me a heads up when we stalked Chase's false alarm date." I shot back, making him pout.

I couldn't help but laugh at his ridiculous face.

"Alec's taking me on a date." I told him, his eyes widening in horror.

"Absolutely not! I refuse to be the third wheel in your date blue." Todd shook his head, pushing his curls back.

I quickly parked the car, fits of laughter escaping my lips while doing so."You aren't going with us Todd, I need your help on my outfit." I explained, his mouth forming into an 'o'

He let out a snort, waving his hand."Psh. I totally knew that blue, I was just kidding with you." He lied, going out of the car.

I shake my had in amusement, taking the keys and putting it on my bag. I quickly fixed the peach printed summer dress that I wore before catching up to him.

We decided to eat in the food court since he was basically 'famished af' and 'needs food asap' on his stomach.

"Nothing is more greater than swallowing food down your throat." Todd groaned, chewing the triple cheese burger that he ordered.

"That's what he said." I smirked, pushing my hair back.

Todd gaped, his grey eyes widening."Who are you and what did you do to my innocent blue?"

"She grew up Todd." I joked, taking a sip of my sarsi drink.

"Nope, you're always gonna be that blonde chick who temporarily had her heart broken by Alec." He grinned, reminiscing the time where we first met.

I cringed, shaking my head."Ah, that was a long time ago but that was truly a shitty solution you idiot. Guess that's what made your sister take matters into her own hands," I shrugged, staring at his grey eyes.

"Hey! All I did was just go along with their plan. They're both idiots but my sister is on a whole different level for what she did to you." He grumbled, wiping the sauce on the corner of his mouth.

Todd eyes wandered around the food court before he blinked twice and stood up, placing both his hands on the table and squinting at something.

He continued to quickly chewed on his food before he gulped it down."Is that Alec?" He asks loudly.

I turned to where he looked at and almost spat my drink, it was indeed Alec. He didn't notice us, probably because of the crowd but he was there, walking alone and glancing at his watch.

He walked passed us without noticing and turned around the corner, disappearing in our sight and turned back to Todd.

I facepalm, Todd was stuffing the rest of his burger into his mouth and was gulping it down so fast that I think he'll have indigestion.

"Todd! You could end up choking if you don't chew that properly." I scolded him, pulling the burger away from his grasp.

"We have to go right? I can't waste this precious foods!" He said through a mouthful, eyeing the corner where Alec turned.

As much as I hate do disagree, I was wondering why Alec was here. He isn't the type to go to this kind of places unless he was with me or with the pack of skittles.

I sighed." Carry the burger and I'll carry the fries! Let's go!" I stood up, the large fries on my hand.

We quickly made our way to the corner he turned, carefully eyeing the against the see through glasses of the restaurants and cafe.

Todd was the one who noticed him, he was in one of the cafe that's known for delicious waffles.

"We need to take a closer look!" He whispered, looking around us.

"But how? He'll know its me in a heartbeat if he sees me." I hissed, walking past the cafe casually.

Todd finished chewing the last bite of his burger and took the fried from me, stuffing it all in his mouth and chewed quickly.

We walked pass by again and noticed Alec was seated on the far corner, his back turned away from us.

Todd placed an arm around my shoulder."I have an idea, follow my lead." He lead us through the cafe door, my eyes widening in panic.

He tightened his grip."Calm down blue, He's facing away from us and I'll make sure to pick a few tables away from him." Todd murmured, his head down.

We sat across the room from him and three tables away with his side profile facing us, he couldn't see us easily because of the seats being occupied beside us.

Alec didn't order anything and only had a drink in front of him, he was glancing at his watching a few times with his fingers gently tapping on the table.

"It looks like he's waiting for someone." I glanced at Todd who was also discreetly staring at him.

I glanced at the familiar girl who started walking towards him, my heart did a small pause when she took a seat opposite to him.

"Isn't that Stacy Jones? The humble queen bee at school?" Todd asked, glancing at me.

Yes, Stacy Jones was the humble queen bee at our school. She was kind and not rude, she helped anyone and doesn't mind the social differences.

They talked for a while, Stacy has her hands up in a weird gesture talking animatedly and I could see Alec's smiling at whatever she was saying.

I wasn't jealous, okay maybe a tiny bit because she's seeing him smile like that. What really bothered me though was the fact that he hadn't mention it to me.

I didn't even know I was walking out of the cafe until Todd caught up to me, pulling me in for a side hug.

One thing came up to my mind.

I'm so truly blessed to have a best friend like Todd Martins.

I thanked the driver one more time before sliding out of the car. He brought me in the middle of nowhere?

Tall trees were everywhere, the sun had already set and the dark was making its way known.

I wasn't familiar to this place but Alec reassured me that it was completely safe. A paper was attached to one of the trees and I walked up to it, taking a hold of it.

"Follow the arrows and it'll lead you to your skittle."

I glanced up from the paper, my eyes taking in the small trail that had arrows that were planted on the ground.

Taking a deep breath, I started to make my way through the path. I could feel my heart hammering and my nerves bundling up.

I jumped in surprise when something hit me on my foot. Placing a hand on my heart, I glanced down to see a picnic basket with a sticky note that says 'bring me.'

Picking it up, I took a hold of my phone and and turned the flash on before continuing my walk.

Along the way, I started picking up random foods like baked cookies, sandwiches, mini pizas, risotto balls, pringles, skittles, and sliced fruits.

By the time I saw the end of the path, I was excited to eat all of the food. I felt the wind hustle more harshly but my dark green turtleneck offered me warmth against it.

I could smell the scent of salty water and hear the loud crashes of waves, the trees finally thinned out before I was met with a vast clearing that had a stiff cliff.

Candles enclosed on glasses were everywhere, reminding me of part in Tangled when the lanterns were all lit up.

It was a beautiful place to star gaze, the dark sky was wide and stars were painted across it twinkling in their own world.

I felt my breath pause when I caught sight of my skittle that made the everything more breathtaking.

In the middle of it all stood Alec, a bouquet of beautiful purple lilacs in his hand. There was a blanket set up, pillows, a laptop, and even a bottle of wine were there.

I couldn't stop the smile forming on my lips, my nerves melting away at the sight of him. I walked up to him, letting him pull me in for a hug.

"Behold, a date for my beautiful cookie." He handed me the bouquet, the dinosaurs in my stomach were stomping wildly.

"They're beautiful." I commented, my hands gently brushing against them.

"And you're fucking gorgeous." He replied, placing a soft kiss on my lips.

My cheeks flushed, somehow flattered. I didn't even wear anything special just a black turtleneck tucked in a pair of high waisted jeans, and white sneakers.

He saw me at my ugliest and yet he doesn't skip a chance to tell me how beautiful I looked and always throws me compliments.

I felt a smile pull on my face."Thank you, where did you get all this idea?" I asked, making our way towards the blanket.

Taking my shoes off, I stepped on blankets with my foot socks and placed the picnic basket and bouqet down.

He gave me a shy smile."I have a few tricks up my sleeves cookie and besides, I had a few help." He said, winking at me.

I grinned."Well, I'm hungry and I can't wait to try all this food." I beamed, making him chuckle.

He started taking the food out, opening the wine with a small pop and pouring each of glasses halfway.

"Did you prepare all of these?" I asked, taking the toothpick and stabbed one of the risotto balls.

The riddle balls were delicious and very cheesy. Damn it, can't he be even more perfect?

He shook his head, rubbing the back of his neck."I had my mom teach me some of it but I sliced the fruits and baked those cookies." Alec proudly said, a toothy grin on his lips.

"You're blushing." I hummed out, chewing the food happily.

He cleared his throat."Who wouldn't? A beautiful woman is staring at me." Alec smiled, his stare making me breathless.

I rolled my eyes but my cheeks were flaming red."And You're staring at me as if I'm your world." I retort, chewing slowly.

"You are my world." He agreed before I coughed, the food almost lodging in the wrong pipe.

"You weren't supposed to agree with me!" I bit out, fanning a hand to my face.

By the end of this chapter I'd probably have a permanent blush on my cheeks. Alec let out a baritone laugh, my heart spiking up at the sound.

Alec and I continued eating, occasionally saying comments that made my cheeks heat up.

We then watched a movie, from romantic to horror to comedy and did small talks in between.

And when there were only ten minutes left on our phone before it was finally a new year, he made me stand up and close my eyes.

I felt Alec move away from me and when the loud sound of boom met my ears, I gasped and opened my eyes.

Taking in the wonderful colors of fireworks that danced around the darkened sky, it was followed by another and another.

I stood there, completely in awe at how beautiful it looked. When I turned to glanced around to find Alec, I let out a startled scream at what greeted me.

A cookie was standing infront of me?

"Cookie! Hi! It's me Alec!" He fumbled out, awkwardly waddling towards me.

"Alec? What the hell are you wearing?" I asked, my eyes widening and fits of laughter leaving my mouth.

It was a chocolate chip cookie mascot, it had two holes for his arm and a middle hole for his head, obviously.

He looked ridiculously adorable and even more at how he waddled around me.

Alec blushed before clearing his throat." Ellie Haven, you were the girl who kicked me in the balls when I stomped on your cookies. You were the girl who I tried to avoid but still can't help but coming back to you. You were the girl who managed to capture not only me but also my heart." He started off, looking at me in the eye.

Alec stopped in front of me before clearing his throat."Ellie Haven, you were the girl who kicked me on the balls when I stomped on your cookie. You were the girl that got pulled into my shitty world but didn't ran away and stayed with me. You're the only girl that managed to not only capture my attention but also my mind, my heart, and whole being." His electrifying blue eyes didn't waver for mine as he said those words.

I felt tears welling up slightly at his words, fits of giggle escaping my lips while I smiled at him widely.

"You deserve so much more beautiful and I'm doing everything I can to become the much more that you deserve every day. I'm moody, an asshole, and a skittle but everything about me is yours if you say yes."

He proceeded to open the banner that he was carrying, a hopeful expression on his face and this time, I let out a laugh at his preference.

"Ellie Haven, will you give me the honor and be the missing cookie to my chocolate chip?"

"Yes, It will be an honor my love." I grinned, stepping forward and hugging his mascot frame.

When I pulled back, I couldn't help but take a hold of my phone and grinned cheekily."I just have to Alec, now smile babe!" I snapped a picture of him.

He rolled his blue eyes, pulling me in a for a selfie."Where did you even get this?" I asked, referring to his mascot.

Alec rubbed the mascot, his cheeks turning red."I bought this from Stacy Jones. You know the cheerleader? Her dad owns a company that makes DIY mascots." He answered.

I bit my lip, somehow understanding why he didn't tell me. I wasn't doubting him but it made everything make sense.

I pressed my lips to his, wrapping an arm on his frame."Thank you for tonight, It was perfect." I smiled.

Alec hugged me back and felt him press a soft kiss on my head."It was my pleasure. Happy new year to us my love."

Both of us glanced at the sky, one more firework lighting up in a color red forming into a heart.

"Happy new year indeed." I smiled, tightening my hold on him.