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pretty girl with the butterscotch hair
your eyes and the sunshine smile you wear
Ever since Aja had started attending Arcadia Oaks High, it seemed everyone was drawn to her. Of course, it might have had something to do with the fact that she’d punched Steve in the face and Mary had made sure it was in everyone’s social media feed by the next morning. Not that Eli could really blame Aja for punching Steve in the face, or everyone who applauded her for it. Eli had been on the receiving end of Steve’s insults for years.
But he’d figured being punched in the face and knocked to the ground by the girl would cause Steve to not want to be her friend. Then again, Eli had still wanted to be friends with Steve, so maybe Eli should stop making assumptions.
Either way, it was very obvious that Steve was completely smitten with Aja, and he’d only known her for a day and a half. Eli had to admit Aja was pretty, even he could tell that much, and she carried a lively sort of energy with her that made people want to befriend her, a stark contrast to her brother who seemed to want nothing to do with anyone who wasn’t Aja. But Eli figured Steve’s crush would wear off in a few days and Aja would just be some girl at school who was friends with Claire, Darci, and Mary.
Eli was wrong.
i can see how you make his soul glow
Aja was in Eli’s English class, and it wasn’t hard to see she hated the class. She seemed to excel in every other subject, but for some reason, she couldn’t master English. So one day, instead of sitting at the front of the classroom, Eli sat down in the back in the chair next to Aja.
“Do
you
understand this class?” Aja asked, sounding like she had already given up in English for the day. Which she probably had.
Eli nodded. “I figured maybe I could help you? I’ve been told I’m a good tutor.” To be fair, Eli had only ever tutored one person and that one person one Steve, but still.
Aja’s face lit up with pure joy and if Eli liked girls, he would have absolutely fallen for her just because of that.
pretty girl with the adventurous mind
you envision so much you make me look blind
Aja’s presentation for Spanish was the best before she even began. The assignment had just been to write about the book they had read in class, and then read what they had written in front of the class. But Aja had gone above and beyond. She’d written a script for a video and gotten her parents, he grandpa, her dog, and (most impressively) Krel to be in it with her. Suddenly Eli having his paper memorized didn’t seem so impressive.
After class, everyone was complimenting Aja on the video,
especially
Steve. Eli just told her a quick, “Good job,” and left for lunch.
you spark his life in ways i’ll never know
Eli was already halfway done with his sandwich when Steve and Aja sat down across from him, still talking about Aja’s Spanish presentation. Krel rolled his eyes behind them before taking the seat next to Eli.
Aja laughed at something Steve said and as fiery jealousy rose up in Eli’s stomach, the realization that he had a crush on Steve came washing over him. How had he not realized that sooner? There was literally no other reason for him to be jealous of Aja.
But Steve had
bullied
him. Eli shouldn’t have wanted Steve to be his friend, let alone his boyfriend. And yet when Aja leaned in a little too close, Eli knocked his knee against the table, spilling some water out of his cup, as he quickly rushed off to the bathroom.
and i won’t hate you, but oh it stings
how does it feel to be adored by him?
“Eli?” A voice called as the door the the bathroom opened. It was Steve. Who else would it be? “Are you okay? You rushed off pretty quickly.”
Eli flushed the toilet and stepped out of the stall. “Yeah. Just had to go to the bathroom.” He smiled and hoped it didn’t look forced before walking over to the sink to wash his hands.
“You sure? You looked a little sick.”
Eli shrugged. “I think I’m just getting a cold. It should pass in a day or two. It’s really nothing to worry about.” He shut off the water and began to dry his hands. “I’m fine, I swear.”
Steve didn’t look like he really believed Eli, but he said, “Alright, whatever,” before walking out of the bathroom. Eli sighed. What was he going to do?
and i won’t hate you, but oh it stings
how does it feel to be adored by him?
When Eli returned to the lunch table, Krel was on his phone while Steve and Aja were laughing about something. Eli sat down and pulled his phone out. He knew the absolute last thing he was going to do was try to stop Steve and Aja from ever seeing each other, because that was the sort of jealous popular girl move that drove Eli crazy in every show he watched.
So he would just sit on his phone, kind of feeling like an outsider at his own lunch table.
pretty girl, there’s no need to fret
‘cause it’s midnight, he’s drunk
Strickler had warned them about the side effects of the vials of liquid they were supposed to be confiscating from a group of gnomes that had taken to living in the woods after Trollmarket was invaded. Eli, Steve, and Toby, however, had not been as concerned about it as they should have been. And now Steve was stumbling around, mumbling to himself, because a gnome had thrown a vial at him and it had splattered all over his shirt.
“Don’t let so much as a drop touch you,” Strickler said. “The side effects aren’t serious, but they
will
impair your ability to complete the retrieval. I’m sure none of you have experienced this,” that sentence was paired with a pointed glare towards each of them, as if he didn’t entirely believe what he was saying, “but it will have a similar effect on humans as alcohol.”
Luckily, Aaarrrgghh!!!, Eli, and Toby had managed to retrieve the rest of the vials without Steve’s help, but now they had the equivalent of alcohol with them and no good way to get Steve anywhere or even a place to take him. It had only been a few weeks since the trolls, Jim, and Claire, had left in search of a new place to live, and they were already in over their heads.
and you’re the one in his head
At that moment, in his stupor, Steve decided to start calling for Aja. It was quiet at first, and Eli just did his best to ignore it as he and Toby discussed what their best bet was for a next move. But the volume of Steve’s mumblings got progressively louder until Eli couldn’t take it anymore and he snapped.
“Stop shouting for your girlfriend!” He yelled at Steve, who turned to look at him, his eyes unfocused. “Aja isn’t here, so just be quiet until we can figure out what to do with you!”
“You’re gonna hate me for this,” Toby said slowly, “but I might have a really bad plan.”
you don’t even have to try at all
Toby’s plan was, indeed, ‘really bad’. It involved wrestling Steve’s phone out of his hands so they could call Aja (neither Eli nor Toby had her number) and give her a very brief description of what was happening and beg her to come help them. Okay, well, it wasn’t really
them
begging. It was more her begging Krel not to tell their grandpa she was sneaking out at 12:30 in the morning.
Krel did not seem very happy with the situation he was being put in, but he did eventually agree so long as he could come with Aja, and what choice did Eli and Toby have besides to allow that? So Aja hung up with the promise that she and Krel were on their way.
pretty girl, oh, he looks at you
as if life is perfect and the world is new
When the two arrived, Aja rushed over to Steve, who stood up before he promptly fell into her arms. Eli was almost surprised at how easily she was able to keep him upright. Krel rolled his eyes and turned to Toby, Eli, and Aaarrrgghh!!!. “So what, exactly, are we planning to do with him?”
Eli looked over at Toby. It was Toby’s horrible plan, so Toby was the one who was going to have to explain it. Once Toby had begun to speak, Eli let his eyes wander over to Steve and Aja. Eli had been hoping seeing Steve as good as drunk would just feel embarrassing and stop Eli’s crush, but it didn’t seem to be going that way. Because, yes, Steve was being so completely embarrassing right now, but he was also kind of cute.
And he was also probably whispering cheesy romantic things to Aja with slurred words that he would forget in the morning, so Eli needed to stop looking at them and focus on the task at hand. He was Elijah Leslie Pepperjack! He didn’t let a stupid crush distract him!
in those moments, i just feel so small
But no matter how hard Eli tried, his gaze kept falling back to Steve and Aja. Aja had helped Steve sit back down, and she was kneeling across from him with one hand on his shoulder and the other resting on top of his hand. And despite the fact that Steve most likely wouldn’t remember any of this come morning, Eli could feel his importance in Steve’s life shrinking.
and i won’t hate you, but oh it stings
how does it feel to be adored by him?
Aaarrrgghh carried Steve back to Toby’s house and by the time they arrived, he had passed out. Aja had driven Steve’s Vespa, because she was the only one who knew how it worked besides Krel, who was adamant that he would not be driving it.
Toby put the vials in a locked box on a shelf in his room, and then the group headed to Steve’s house, praying that his mom was asleep. While Aja parked the Vespa, Eli woke Steve up.
“Aja!” Steve shouted as he bolted upright.
“Not quite,” Eli said. he probably sounded annoyed, but he didn’t really care.
“Oh. It’s Eli Pepperbuddy. Where are we?”
“We’re at your house.”
“Oh.” Aaarrrgghh set Steve down gently, but he still wouldn’t have fallen if Aja wouldn’t have rushed over to steady him.
“Are you going to be able to get him in alright?” Toby asked doubtfully.
Aja nodded. “We’ll be fine. I can support Steve’s weight, and if I do need help, I have Eli. But if any more than three of us go in, we’ll definitely be noticed. You don’t need to wait around either, we’ll be fine.”
“Actually, it might be best you don’t wait in case we get caught,” Eli pointed out. “That way you won’t get caught too.”
and i won’t hate you, but oh it stings
how does it feel to be adored by him?
Eli retrieved the spare house key from its hiding spot and unlocked the door quietly. Toby, Aaarrrgghh, and Krel waved goodbye as he, Aja, and Steve entered the house. Krel did not look too happy to be leaving without Aja, but he also said there was no way he was waiting around outside Steve’s house, so he didn’t really have a choice.
Aja shut the door quietly, still somehow managing to support most - if not all - of Steve’s weight. The three silently made their way through the house to Steve’s bedroom. They would have gone unnoticed if not for Steve’s bedroom door squeaking when Aja opened it. Eli silently chastised himself. He should have remembered that it squeaked!
It was too late to fix it now, though, because before Eli could even think up a plan, Coach had appeared next to them.
“Hey,” Steve slurred as he waved weakly.
Eli shrunk back as Coach’s gaze turned to him, very unamused.
“Sorry,” Aja stepped in front of Eli, “we got called to help with a Trollhunters mission, and it didn’t exactly go as planned.” She smiled apologetically.
Coach crossed his arms. “What, exactly, happened?”
“Uh…”
Eli stepped out from behind Aja. “We were sent to retrieve some potions from gnomes who were using it for bad. The problem is, if it makes contact with humans in any way, it has similar effects to alcohol. And a gnome threw a vial of it at Aja, but Steve stepped in the way so it hit him instead.” The last part was a lie, but it would probably make Coach more sympathetic to their situation.
Apparently it worked, because Coach seemed to relax a bit as he turned to look at Aja. “He protected you?”
Aja nodded solemnly. “I’m allergic to one of the ingredients, so it would have been even worse if it had hit me.”
“She would have had a rash for weeks,” Eli added, hoping that unnecessary detail would make the lie more believable.
Coach sighed. “I’ll get a glass of water for him if you two can help him into bed.”
Eli and Aja both breathed sighs of relief once Coach was out of earshot.
how stupid to think that i could compare
to the pretty girl with the butterscotch hair
Aja slowly lowered Steve onto his bed before kneeling down on the floor so she could look at him. “Will he be okay?”
It took Eli a moment to realize she was talking to him. “Yeah. Yeah, he should be back to normal in the morning. Unless this causes a hangover like real alcohol. But either way, he’ll recover.” Eli took a step closer to her and Aja looked up at him.
“He really likes you, you know. He’s told me about many of your adventures together. He really appreciates you being his friend.”
Eli smiled. “He really likes you too. Like,
really
. Like it’s almost getting to be a problem.” Aja giggled at that. “But seriously, I know he really cares about you. You can see it in the way he looks at you.” Eli looked down. “And I guess I can see why.”
“Why?” Aja looked genuinely confused.
“‘Why?’” Eli repeated. “Because you’re just about every guy’s dream girl. You’re pretty, you’re smart, you’re popular but you don’t let it get to your head, you’re not afraid to stand up for yourself.”
“But I am not your ‘dream girl’?”
Eli glanced down at Steve. “No. I like you as a friend, but you’re not my dream.”
yes, how stupid to think that i could compare
to the pretty girl with the butterscotch hair
After Coach brought a glass of water and Aja had managed to get Steve to drink most of it, they left Steve to sleep. “I”m so glad my star pupil was there to make sure he got home safely,” Coach said as they left. Aja smiled proudly, but it faded when she saw Eli’s shoulders slump.
Before Aja, Coach would have said something along the lines of,
‘I’m so glad the smartest boy in the grade was there to make sure Steve kept himself out of trouble on the way home.’
But Eli never could compete with Aja, could he? Aja was loved by everyone, not just Steve. And Eli was just Eli.
Steve liking him more than Aja should never have been a thought in his mind.
and i won’t hate you, but oh it stings
how does it feel to be adored by him?
“Are you alright?” Aja asked as soon as she and Eli were outside. “You seem… sad.”
“I’m fine,” Eli lied.
Aja leaned in closer, like she was trying to read his thoughts. “Are you sure? Something seems to be troubling you. Is it Steve? You said yourself he would be fine. The coach will know what to do when he wakes up in the morning.”
“It probably wouldn’t make sense to you,” Eli tried avoiding the question.
“Oh? I don’t believe you.”
Eli shook his head. “I need to get home. If my mom realizes I’m gone, I won’t be allowed to leave the house til school starts up again.”
Eli turned away from Aja and began walking. Aja didn’t try again to get an answer out of him, which was probably for the best. The last thing Eli needed was Steve’s girlfriend figuring out he had a crush on Steve.
and i won’t hate you, but oh it stings
how does it feel to be adored by him?
Aja and Eli both showed up at Steve’s house the next morning, eager to see how he was doing. Coach begrudgingly let them inside and pointed them towards Steve’s bedroom.
Steve was hiding under the covers and the lights were shut off the the curtains pulled shut. Steve groaned when the door opened. “Please go away.”
“Oh Steve, it’s me-e,” Aja said in a sing-song voice as Eli pulled the door shut. “It’s your two best friends coming to make sure you are doing better!”
“I’m not,” Steve grumbled, his voice muffled by the covers.
Eli rolled his eyes. He walked over to the bed and yanked the blankets off of Steve’s head. “You can’t even say hi to us after we’re the reason you didn’t spend the night in the woods?”
Steve covered his eyes with his arm. “Hi. Thanks for not letting me sleep in the woods.”
“You’re welcome!” Eli and Aja said in unison. They looked at each other and smiled.
“Okay, can you guys leave now? I’m trying to go back to sleep for another seven hours.”
Aja shrugged. “Fine. We will be back in seven hours.”
and i won’t hate you, but oh it stings
how does it feel to be adored by him?
Instead of going to their homes, Eli went with Aja to the taco truck that sold the burritos Toby loved too much. Aja was a nice girl, Eli decided. She would make a good friend. She seemed loyal and trustworthy. She seemed, quite honestly, to be without any faults. But eli wasn’t going to hate her, despite how easy it would be for him.
“Hey, Stuart,” Aja greeted as the two approached the taco truck. “This is my friend, Eli,” she gestured towards Eli, “he’s a friend of Steve’s.”
“The kid you got into a fight with in front of my truck and then ended up dating?” Stuart questioned.
“Yes. That Steve,” Aja did not sound very amused.
“Alright, alright,” Stuart put his hands up in surrender. “I assume you want your regular?”
Aja nodded, then looked at Eli. “Do you want anything?”
“Just water, please.”
and i won’t hate you, but oh it stings
Steve recovered as Eli knew he would and things returned to normal. Or as normal as they could be in Arcadia. Staja was a
thing
, and it was very clear Mary was a fan. When Steve came over to Eli’s house to spend the night, he would ramble on about Aja for an hour and Eli would patiently sit and listen.
One evening, while his mom and Coach were out, Steve suggested Eli, Aja, and Krel come over to eat pizza and watch a movie. Eli didn’t really feel like hanging out with both Steve and Aja, but Krel convinced him to, because he absolutely did not trust Steve and Aja alone at Steve’s house, but he di
dn’t want to third wheel either. So Eli accepted the invitation.
Steve and Aja seemed rather uninterested in both the movie and the pizza. They spent the majority of the time cuddled on the couch, whispering to each other and laughing quietly at the conversation they were having.
Eli ended up going to get more pizza just because he needed to get away from it. Krel apparently had a similar idea, because he joined Eli in the kitchen a few moments later.
“Disgusting, isn’t it?” Krel looked at the two distastefully before piling more pizza and breadsticks onto his plate.
Eli sighed, looking over at Steve longingly. “Yeah,” he agreed.
how does it feel to be adored my him?