Chapter Nineteen: Do You Not Speak English?!

Nothing.

That's what I heard from Griffin. Absolutely nothing. I didn't know whether it was because of what I said or what I did. Either way, he hadn't spoken to me the rest of the week. I had to wait until Monday after the break to see him. Even then, I had to wait until lunch or the afternoon to see him.

"Dude, it's gonna be fine," Indie said, munching on her burger. "It's not like he has a girlfriend or anything."

I froze. He could've had a girlfriend and I just kissed his cheek. I just learned about his mom and he doesn't talk about his life much. He could have a girlfriend and I didn't know. It would explain why he's so closed off. My hands started to sweat.

"He doesn't have a girlfriend, right?" Kira smiled nervously.

"I don't know," I whispered fearfully. "Shit! What if he does?! What if he just told her and she dumped him?! I'm a homewrecker! He's gonna hate me for the rest of eternity! I'm such a fucking idiot!"

Kira gave me a sympathetic look why Indie rolled her eyes and continued to eat. I smacked my forehead, hating myself. It was decided: I'm a homewrecker. There's no alternative. He has a girlfriend. Well, had at this point. I ruined that for him and now he hates me.

"Mackenzie, would you cool it? Your worrying is making me lose my appetite," Indie groaned. "Why don't you just text him?"

"He doesn't have a phone," I sighed. "He's that kind of guy."

"Go to his house after school or something. Just calm the fuck down and let me eat," Indie glared.

After lunch, I was a bundle of nerves. I couldn't go to his house, but I knew if I just called his name, he'd show up. I nearly vomited when I saw that he was here today and just didn't talk to me. I spent most of my afternoon trying to focus on anything but him. It wasn't too hard since we didn't sit together in our classes and I had a period away from him.

Then last period arrived.

I sat down, plugging in my headphones and pulling my hood on. I hoped the song would distract me enough to get through the rest of the day, but it didn't. I couldn't help but notice when Griffin sat down next to me. From the corner of my eye, I could see that he didn't look mad at all. He looked as relaxed as he could be.

I started copying down the notes on the board, attempting to look focused. My mind couldn't be further away from the board. Especially since I had realized he still had my notebook and I was writing in my History notebook.

After a while, the ten-minute bell rang. It was like a huge weight being removed from my shoulders. In a few minutes, I'd be free to hide in my room and force myself to deal with him tomorrow. Until then, I had to continue to try to distract myself. The dismissal bell finally rang and I hauled ass to my locker. I opened my locker and scrambled to get my books as quickly as I could.

I felt a tap on my shoulder. I mustered up all the courage I could and turned to Griffin. He pointed to his ear, wanting me to take one of my headphones out. I hesitantly pulled out the earbud and braced myself.

"Are you okay?" Was all he said.

I nodded my head slowly, "Uh, yeah. Are you?"

He nodded, "I don't know of a reason not to be."

I felt relieved but angry at the same time. I grabbed my bag and dragged Griffin outside. He reluctantly followed. He may have tried to hide it, but I could tell he was hesitant. I didn't care. He didn't speak to me all day and had me believe he hated my guts when he was perfectly fine.

"If you don't mind me asking, where are we-"

"You're walking me home," I snapped.

"But I thought this was your time-"

"You're walking me home! End of story!"

Once we were away from the school, I turned to him and glared. He gave me a questioning look. He seriously didn't understand the effect he could have on people. How much he could make someone worry just for him to be perfectly fine.

"You had me worried all day! I thought you hated my guts or something!"

He looked unimpressed, "That's it?"

I gaped at him, "You are unbelievable! You can be such an ass sometimes!"

"I'm sorry," He rolled his eyes. "Why would I hate your guts?"

"Uh, because I kissed your cheek and you went home and told your girlfriend and she dumped you so now I'm a homewrecker and you hate me for it, duh," I put my hands on my hips. "Seriously dude, you need to catch up."

"Girlfriend? Homewrecker? You have a very active imagination," He noted. "First of all, I don't have a girlfriend to dump me. Secondly, you're not a homewrecker. Lastly, I don't hate you."

"Then why haven't you talked to me all weekend?! You just disappeared and didn't even show up at lunch!" I tried keeping my voice down, but I was starting to fail.

He sighed, "You gave me a riddle and I didn't understand it. I spent the weekend trying to figure it out. Besides that, I'm a Reaper, Mackenzie. My father is on the council, so I have more work to do than just babysitting you."

Before I could yell at him for that last remark, I noticed the dark circles forming under his eyes. He wasn't kidding about having work to do. It was easy to forget he's legally an adult and has to deal with more than me. I decided to let him slide since he looked genuinely tired.

I let out a sigh and took down my ponytail. It was too cold for ponytails. I needed every ounce of heat I could get. Griffin stood there, massaging his temples. I felt bad for him. A weekend was supposed to be free, but he had to work. Constantly because of me.

Give the guy a break.

I agreed with my thoughts. He deserved some sort of time off. Even if it wasn't much time.

Maybe even give him a massage.

That one I didn't agree to. Griffin and I were only friends.

C'mon! Don't you wanna trip to the dark side?

No.

He'll be Darth Vader! Then you can call him daddy-

"Mackenzie?"

I shook away my thoughts, "Uh, yeah?"

"Am I still walking you home?"

"That depends. If you don't are you gonna go do more work?" I raised an eyebrow.

He shrugged, "Probably."

"Then you're walking me," I grabbed his arm. "Now c'mon slowpoke. We're watching Deadpool!"

"Dead-what?"

"Just c'mon!"

-*-

"So, what's this famous council you're talking about?" I asked, switching on the tv.

Griffin was already on the couch, Mufasa's head resting in his lap. I shook my head. That dog was in love with Griffin. I took a seat on the other side where there wasn't a huge ball of fur.

"Here in America, you have a president and congress. There's also a law enforcement team," He glanced at me before going back to scratching the large animal's head. "That's almost how the council works. There's a council for each area. The council is all of those combined. The 'executive' branch is somewhere in Europe. Two members of each council go there each year for a meeting. The meeting's coming up soon, so it's my job to help my father get ready for his departure."

"So, you're like an unpaid secretary?"

"To put it simply, yes. Except, I do more than fetching coffee," He shrugged.

Not long after the movie started, I decided to get some popcorn. Lindsay was in the kitchen on her phone. She was probably talking to Andrew. She glanced up at me before going back to texting. I tossed a bag of popcorn in the microwave and waited for it to pop.

"So, you and Griffin. How's that going?"

"There's nothing going on. Griffin's just a friend," I rolled my eyes.

"So, you wouldn't mind if I joined your little movie night?" She set her phone down, grinning like a madwoman.

I shook my head, "I prefer you didn't."

When I pictured this, I didn't paint her into the picture. It was supposed to be Griffin and I watching. Then I'd explain what was happening in the movie. If Lindsay was there, I couldn't do that because he'd most likely not ask about anything that's happening. Besides, Lindsay might bring up her boyfriend and the whole thing's ruined.

"Interesting," She grabbed her phone and turned to leave. "I better be invited to the wedding."

Before I could say anything, she was gone. I was glad she wasn't going to intrude, but what she said bothered me. She knew as much as everyone else that Griffin and I aren't a product. We wouldn't ever be. That thought in itself bothered me even more.

It wasn't like it was a choice not to be together. Griffin and I came from two different worlds. That didn't stop Andrew's family, yes. But Griffin's the son of a councilman. He was raised with the rules of Reapers being his main priority. He wouldn't even think of us being together.

So, you like him?

I wish you'd go away.

I'll get the lightsaber. Though he's probably already packing one-

I was happy the microwave went off and silenced my thoughts. I poured the popcorn into a bowl and headed back into the living room. My mind had suddenly become more perverted in the past day and I didn't appreciate it. Especially since I was getting images of Darth Vader that I didn't want to think of again. I took my seat next to Griffin and focused on the moive.

Eventually, the movie ended. I had to wipe away tears by the end from laughing so hard. Griffin grinned, looking down at the dog in his lap. I couldn't help my notice his small dimple. I was always happy to see it because it meant he wasn't being a broody teen.

Teen.

It was then I realized I never learned his birthday. It never came up in conversation. He's always known my birthday, but I never knew his. That's how our relationship is. He knows more about me than I know about him.

"Hey, Griffin?"

He glanced over at me, "Yes?"

"When's your birthday?" I asked, completely turning to him.

He bit his lip, thinking hard about the question.

And here I was thinking he couldn't get better looking. I was wrong.

"Reapers don't have birthdays per se," He started. "You see, birthdays mean the day you were born. Having a birthday would imply I was born, which I wasn't-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! You weren't born?!" I was genuinely shocked.

"Well, no. Birth gives you an expiration date. Dying defeats our purpose, so we aren't born," He explained. "However, I get what you're asking. You'd consider my birthday to be April 8th."

"Wait, so what do you call it?"

"Well, it all really depends. Some Reapers refer to it as a birthday. Some refer to it as their creation day. It's all about your personal preference. Personally, I don't care much about it either way," He shrugged.

I wanted to ask him why so badly. I liked learning new things about him. It was like putting together a puzzle piece by piece and I wanted to know the big picture of who Griffin Ryder is. However, I didn't know if it had anything to do with his mother. I didn't want to sour his mood, but I was curious.

In the end, I decided I'd have to face the consequences of my curiosity. I was greedy and selfish in that regard. I felt like I needed to know more about him. Once I'm dead, I want to leave no regrets on this Earth. Not fully getting to know Griffin would be the biggest regret I'd have.

He was so closed off and I wanted to fix that before my time was up. When we first met, he didn't smile much. Once I'm gone, I want the exact opposite for him. He deserved it. Suddenly, it made sense why he and Andrew were friends in the first place. They were both black sheep among Reapers. No Reaper had died before and Griffin had to face it all alone. Reapers and humans weren't supposed to fall in love, so Andrew was cast out.

It was interesting. They were seemingly the perfect match. However, their personalities couldn't be more different. Andrew had more of a carefree vibe to him while Griffin stuck to the rules. They could've made it, but Griffin grew up learning the rules. Because of the rule against Reapers and humans being together, they fell out.

"Griffin, why don't you care about your birthday or whatever you call it?" I finally asked.

Silence.

It was just as I thought. It had something to do with his mother. I thought about having birthdays without my mom. She usually planned the parties and put them together, so without her there was no party. That was probably what happened to him. His father couldn't have been in any mentality to plan a party after his wife died.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't-"

"No, you asked me a question and part of my job is to answer your questions," He cut me off.

Before he could continue, I stopped him, "Is that why you answer my questions? Because you have to?"

He sighed, "Really it's not a problem-"

"Listen, Griffin, I get you care about your job and doing it correctly, there's no problem with that. But you don't have to make yourself uncomfortable just to answer my questions. If you don't want to answer, you don't have to. Your rulebook may say you have to, but as your client-person-thing, I say you don't have to answer every question. Understood?"

"Mackenzie-"

"Besides, I have a bonfire I have to get to!" I smiled before getting up. "It's at Indie's place. You're free to tag along instead of doing more work if you want."

I quickly changed into a sweatshirt and grabbed my phone. Griffin decided to join me. For some reason, that made my heart skip a beat. I took a deep breath, ignoring it. I knew having feelings would end horribly for both parties. It would become awkward between us and I didn't want that. Griffin was a nice friend to have.

We arrived at Indie's house and people were starting to arrive. Every year, Indie throws a small bonfire before December starts. It's to say goodbye to fall and welcome winter. Winter meant snow days and long breaks. We were all happy about the season.

Kira ran up to me and wrapped me in a hug, "You made it! You were so late I thought you bailed on me last minute!"

I shook my head, "Kira, you know I wouldn't do that."

She turned to Griffin, "You don't hate her? Didn't she ruin your long-term relationship with your girlfriend in France whose parents didn't approve of your relationship due to your family running a mafia and that exact same mafia killing their dog, Sprinkles?"

Griffin looked bewildered while I was gaping like a fish. Kira's expression didn't change. She looked genuinely curious. I couldn't believe she came up with that entire story. Sure, I started it with the girlfriend nonsense, but she gave his imaginary girlfriend a back story.

"You know, Kira, if this whole wedding planning career thing doesn't work out for you, I think you have a shot at storytelling," I finally chuckled.

"I'm serious! Aren't you supposed to be crying over your lost love who you'll find again one day in a coffee shop just to find out she's married with two kids and a cat named Oodles that she only got as a memorial of her dog Sprinkles?" She said all in one breath once again.

Griffin cleared his throat, "I never had a girlfriend to begin with and my family doesn't run a mafia. Sorry to disappoint, I'm sure you spent a while putting that story together."

"Actually, I was just speaking from the top of my mind," She shrugged. "So, you've never had a girlfriend?"

"Not never, I was a teenage boy after all-"

"You had a girlfriend?!" I gasped. Kira grinned at me before walking away.

Yet another person who thinks Griffin and I are together. Or at least think we should be.

He raised an eyebrow, "You say that like it's impossible."

I shook my head, "No, it's nothing like that at all. It's just that you are always working and it doesn't seem like you have time for things like relationships."

"Mackenzie, not every client needs me at their side every second of the day," He sighed. "I still have somewhat of a social life."

I stopped for a moment, processing his words. I was hurt but felt a pang of guilt at the same time. He thought I wanted him at my side every second. Did I? He has been with me every week day and most weekends since we met. Was I really that needy to him?

At the same time, I felt anger bubbling up in me. I wasn't the one who wanted him to go to school with me. In fact, I was against the idea. He insisted that he go. He's also the one who feels the need to randomly pop up whenever his name is mentioned. It wasn't completely my fault he was always around me. And to think I wanted to give him a break from work.

"You're an ass, you know that?" I marched away.

"Mackenzie, what are you talking about-"

"You can go home now, Griffin. Thanks for being by my side every second of the day. Sorry I'm the ruining your social life- wait, no. Your 'somewhat of a social life'. If that's how you feel why don't you go make some friends?!"

He gave me a puzzled look, "What are you-"

"Leave, Griffin! Just go!"

"Mackenzie-"

"Do you not speak English?! Leave!" I fought back tears of frustration. "Please, just go."

//

Griffin's being a jerk?! Interesting. Okay, onto different things. I went to a J. Cole concert yesterday! (actually, it was two days ago since it's 1 AM). It was the best concert experience ever! I have so much respect for him as an artist and a person. Anywho, I'll shut up. Thanks for reading!

Tatty bye <3