Good Enough, Right? - Chapter IV
By the Lake
Carlos sat down next to his friends on the overly large picnic table. He suddenly felt bone-tired. Everyone's voices felt too loud. Audrey laughing at something Uma said, Harry taunting Chad inappropriately, Gil, Lonnie and Jay talking about sports, Jane, Evie and Doug talking about some ball, and Mal and Ben bickering quietly. He could feel the paparazzi's camera's glare on his skin and he felt like he was breathing manually. He curled up on himself slightly, and his three best friends immediately surrounded him.
"What's wrong?" came Jay's voice, close to his ear.
Carlos could feel Evie's hand on his back and Mal sitting in front of him to shield him from the cameras. He mumbled softly:
"Nothing, really... Just... got broken up with..."
Jay immediately started "Oh, that bi--"
"No! No, it was mutual. It was mutual, Jay."
"Shit, sorry."
"Do you wanna leave?" asked Evie, running a hand through Carlos's curls.
Carlos shook his head and grabbed a little sandwich.
"I'll be fine, probably take a little nap or something..." He suddenly chuckled. "Mal, I have just gained so much respect for you. I mean, you do twice the things we do and you're doing fine!"
"Fine is debatable, squirt. I also find myself in frequent need of naps-"
"Jay, stop acting as me!" Mal said with a laugh.
From slightly far away, Ben watched them talk. He was confused and a little upset. They were all laughing, carefree... But when he would join them later, he knew they'd all look uncomfortable, and everyone but Mal would dip. And even then, she didn't really enjoy his presence anymore. Was he being childish? But surprisingly, what hurt the most was Carlos's reaction. Since that morning, Carlos had been avoiding him. He wasn't blind, he noticed that he left to look for Jay just as he stepped out. And how he had reacted in the car...
But now he was laughing. He knows he should be happy for him and how he's doing better, but he couldn't help but feel a little jealous. After all, Carlos was always there to make him feel better, and Ben couldn't even return the favour.
"Ben!" Jay's voice rang out from the other side of the Enchanted Lake. "Come race in a swim!"
Ben laughed.
"To be clear, we are competing for second place, right? We have a literal octopus mer-maiden with us!"
Uma smirked and jumped up to ruffle Ben's hair.
"Of course, your King-ness."
Carlos watched their interaction with a smile. It still felt crazy to think that only a few years ago, Uma had kidnapped Ben and almost fed him to sharks...
Carlos suddenly frowned. Ben had gotten kidnapped and almost killed by Uma. Ben had been turned into a beast and suffered from a chronic pain in his wrist because of Audrey. Ben had been drugged by Mal. How was he still so chill around those women? Carlos suddenly found himself staring at Ben intently, trying to figure out if he was hiding under a facade, even after all this time.
But his expression softened when he saw Ben looking up at him with worry, and he flashed him a smile and a wave.
He wasn't aware that Ben turned around very quickly because he felt a kind of pain right near his heart.