chaptertwo

you drive me crazy; not in the good way

 

    marktuan

 

“This is a terrible idea,” Audrey announced, yet again, her arms wrapped around Kris’s waist, face pressed against his back. He didn’t even seem to have noticed he’d acquired a leech, looking intently at his phone.

 

Audrey was always clutching onto somebody, usually Kris, or as of late, Luna, throwing her arms around whoever happened to be closer. Every now and then she’d jump onto Jackson’s back, Jackson running around in circles, the two of them whooping and being generally obnoxious.

 

“This was a brilliant idea!” Luna cheered, twirling around in front of her best friend. She was decked out in a flowy sundress and a large brimmed hat, throwing her arms in the air. The two of them were pen pals turned best friends, meeting for the first time this summer after five years of emailing back and forth and Skyping.

 

The mean part of me sort of hoped things would crash and burn.

 

(It didn’t.)

 

If anything, they only got closer. Not much changed between the two of them. Luna was still lively as ever, overflowing with positivity, while Audrey was still every bit the annoying raincloud on everything.

 

There must be some truth to the opposites attract theory. It’s the only explanation as to how polar opposites could be best friends.

 

“Luna,” Audrey whined. “Chingu.”

 

“Nope! I don’t care if you use Korean on me, it won’t work this time! We’re gonna have fun!” Luna laughed and Audrey turned her face into Kris’s back again, tightening her grip around his waist. Kris patted her head, twisting his arm awkwardly to reach her, then went back to his phone, shuffling towards the cars parked in the driveway of the beach house. Audrey clung to him, getting dragged along.

 

“Audrey, get off Kris and get your luggage,” Eric ordered, giving her a playful noogie. She let out a complaining noise and pressed herself harder against Kris, trying to avoid her brother’s hands. He just laughed, hauling Ailee’s suitcase down the driveway, despite Ailee protesting in the background. “Go, you little brat.”

 

“Go away, you big brat,” she responded childishly, and he chuckled, wheeling the luggage away and gently pushing her (and Kris) towards the cars. She finally detached from Kris, the two separating to grab their luggages. She struggled to lift hers and I watched amusedly.

 

Stupid. Can’t even lift your own suitcase.

 

“Don’t just watch, go help her, you ,” Jackson nudged me, jerking his head towards Audrey.

 

“Why?” I hissed back, and he shoved me forwards.

 

“Because you already put your crap in the house and everybody else is busy or too weak. Go,” he urged, and I glared at him before walking over as slowly as possible. Jackson rolled his eyes before running off to join Krystal, lugging his suitcase behind him.

 

“ing-- Jesus Christ--” Well. If nothing else, she at least had a colorful vocabulary; I could give her that much.

 

I smirked, settling back on my heels. Jackson made incoherent shouting noises at me and I sighed loudly, making my way over to Audrey at last, reaching past her for the suitcase and tugging it out easily, setting it down on the ground beside her.

 

“Weakling.” I couldn’t resist.

 

She glared at me and I sauntered away, stretching my arms up in the air.

 

“I didn’t need your help,” she yelled after me, and I turned around, raising an eyebrow.

 

“I think you meant to say ‘thank you,’” I retorted, and she flipped me off, dragging her suitcase off.

 

“More like ‘ you,’” she snapped, passing by me, and I gaped at her, scoffing disbelievingly.

 

“You know what, next time just do it yourself!” I shouted at her, and she stomped her feet all the way to the entrance of the house.

 

“You know what, I will!” she shouted back, and I fumed.

 

Ungrateful little--

 

    -- -- --

 

There was a knock and then the door opened, Audrey’s head sticking through. I scowled immediately but she was only looking at Jackson, tossing him a bottle of sunscreen. “The others wanna head out back, to the beach. Meet us in ten,” she informed us, though she was really only talking to Jackson.

 

Jackson beamed, almost immediately tossing his shirt before she’d even finished her second sentence. She scrunched her nose, “Ew, ain’t nobody wanna see any of that,” she teased. Jackson threw his shirt at her, earning a squeal as she ducked behind the door.

 

“Ten minutes!” she shouted, laughing slightly, and then she was gone, Jackson throwing himself backwards on the bed, kicking his feet and making high pitched noises of excitement.

 

“‘I don’t wanna go,’ he said,” I muttered. “‘The beach is too hot,’ he said.”

 

“‘I can show off my abs now,’ he said,” Jackson mimed, cackling as he pulled out a pair of swim trunks. “Come on, dude. Hurry up and get ready.”

 

I squinted at him. “It’s just our friends, who are you showing off to?”

 

I grabbed my swim trunks anyway, snatching the sunscreen away from Jackson while he shrugged, not caring. I scoffed. “Get burned, 852,” I grumbled, and he let out another hyena laugh, excited.

 

    -- -- --

 

Screams resonated in the air, and then Kris threw Audrey into the water, Audrey resurfacing with her hair a mess and her t-shirt clinging to her body. She shrieked at Kris, laughing and running after him, and my scowl deepened. Just her presence was irritating.

 

Plus, she was throwing herself at Kris left and right - literally, right now, attaching herself to him like a koala, jumping onto his back. Kris spun around in circles and she screamed again, arms and legs tightening around him. I spotted Luna sitting on the sad, leaned back on her elbows and watching them with a fond look on her face.

 

My feet padded comfortably against the warm sand and I joined her, crouching down slowly before sitting, pulling my knees to my chest.

 

“Hello,” she chirped cheerfully, turning to smile at me. “You’re not going into the water?”

 

I shook my head, watching as Jackson joined in, splashing water at Eric, who had been trying to walk with Ailee across the beach, reenacting some cheesy movie scene. There were shouts and a lot of laughing, the corners of my lips lifting upwards as I watched Eric quite literally sweep Ailee off her feet, running away before Jackson could get more water on them.

 

Luna hummed, giggling when Jackson toppled over in the water, courtesy of Amber, who chortled, running away before Jackson even properly realized what had happened. “Hey!” he yelled, clambering to his feet and chasing after her, Amber ducking behind Henry and laughing. Henry’s eyes widened comically when he saw Jackson, and the pair stumbled over each other trying to back away from Jackson, finally turning and bursting into a run, fleeing from Jackson.

 

“This was a great idea,” Luna sighed contentedly. “My first summer in the US spent at a beach with amazing people. Eric is really smart.”

 

I would’ve laughed, but she wasn’t technically wrong. Eric was kind of a genius, what with attending UChicago and whatnot. He just occasionally lacked common sense. And dignity.

 

“Well,” I said. “At least you’re enjoying it.”

 

She smiled at me. “Aren’t you?”

 

I would be if Audrey wasn’t here. “More or less.”

 

We quieted, spending some time in silence before Luna sighed dreamily. I followed her gaze to where Audrey and Kris were still playing around. “They’re so cute together, don’t you think?” she smiled affectionately, and I shrugged noncommittally.

 

She must have seen something on my face that wasn’t there, because she turned to me with a mischievous smile on her face. “Are you jealous?”

 

I stared at her, one eyebrow arched up. She laughed, “I’m kidding.” I hummed, and we relapsed into silence.

 

I glanced at her from the corner of my eye, and it took approximately thirty seconds before Luna cracked and turned to look at me, sitting up and turning so fast her hair nearly smacked me in the face. She narrowed her eyes at me.

 

“I have a question,” she announced, and I braced myself, waiting. “What happened between you and Audrey?”

 

I blinked in rapid succession, mildly taken aback. Probably should’ve expected that.

 

“Audrey didn’t tell you?” I asked, and Luna moved her hands about half-heartedly, shrugging.

 

“She just says you’re really annoying,” Luna said slowly, pursing her lips. I pushed my tongue against my inner cheek, unamused, but not entirely surprised, either.

 

“I don’t know what happened,” I said honestly, crossing my arms over my knees. “She moved here and we just...got off on the wrong foot. You know how some people just irritate you, for no reason at all? It’s like that. No offense,” I added, remembering that this was her best friend I was talking about. Luna waved it off, taking it in stride.

 

“It’s been twelve years though,” Luna said. “How has nothing changed?”

 

I shrugged. “We don’t have anything in common. Anything in common turns into a competition. It just never ends.”

 

She fell back into silence, thinking. “Can I ask you another question?”

 

“You just did,” I pointed out cheekily, and she smacked my shoulder, whining.

 

“Mark!”

 

I laughed, “Okay, okay, go for it.”

 

“Can you tell me exactly why you hate her?”

 

I froze, dumbfounded, then arched an eyebrow at her. “You sure you wanna know?”

 

She nodded seriously, without a moment’s hesitation. “Don’t get offended,” I warned, and she pretended to cross her heart, earning a small chuckle from me.

 

I hesitated, thinking about it. I leaned back on my hands, glancing out towards our friends, who were shrieking and having the time of their lives by the water, Henry running away from Krystal, who was waving a flip flop at him, threatening to throw it. Amber was bent over with laughter, off to the side, near breathless.

 

My eyes fell on Audrey, who had fallen onto the sand, wincing but laughing, rubbing her back while Kris fell onto his knees beside her, reaching out. “Are you okay?” I heard him laugh, and she smacked him on the shoulder before simply laying back on the sand contentedly.

 

“It’s only ever me,” I started. Kris lay down beside Audrey, and she rolled onto her side, smiling at him. “She’s fine with everyone else, but she has to get on my case about everything. She goes out of her way to bother me, and doesn’t stop no matter what I do.”

 

Audrey poked Kris’s forehead, and Kris jerked his head back, probably complaining about her being abusive.

 

“She gets angry about everything I do, which makes me angry about everything she does, and she thinks she’s so high and mighty, like, ‘look at me, I’m a Nam, a genius in a family of geniuses, I can do everything,’” I mimicked her, pitching my voice up a few octaves. I scoffed, shaking my head, watching as she sat up, starting to bury Kris under the sand. “I hate it,” I said. “She tries to make my life miserable when I haven’t done anything wrong. She just causes trouble, then flutters her eyelashes a bit like, ‘oops, sorry,’ and gets away with it. She’s such a spoiled brat,” I muttered. “I don’t know why everyone likes her.”

 

Luna snickered a little, “I don’t think Audrey has ever fluttered her eyelashes in her entire life.”

 

I deadpanned, throwing her a look. “You know what I mean.”

 

She laughed, shaking her head with an affectionate smile on her face. “You guys are like five year olds,” she cooed, giggling. “You bicker like little kids. Did you pull her pigtails when you were young?”

 

I stayed quiet, pressing my lips together, and she laughed harder, covering with one hand. “You did!”

 

I did. It was one of the only things I knew that would bother her back then, so I did it, because I didn’t know what else I could do. Nothing else fazed her back then. Now just about everything I do does, but then her irritation just makes me cranky, so it’s a lose-lose situation for the both of us.

 

“You don’t hate her,” Luna said when she’d calmed down, looking affectionate. “You don’t hate her at all. You hardly dislike her.”

 

“Maybe I don’t hate her,” I consented. “But I won’t say I don’t dislike her.”

 

Luna just smiled, a knowing look on her face, the kind that Audrey’s other brother, Eddie, always gave me for some unfathomable reason, and I frowned, curling back up and hugging my knees. She patted me on the shoulder and I smiled slightly at her.

 

“You don’t hate her,” she repeated, and I pursed my lips.

 

“If you say so.”

 

 

---

 

author’snotes;

luna sailing all the ships, man.

team kris? team mark? team.. jackson? LMAO

comments are always appreciated!