America's Suitehearts

“I feel very judged right now.” I said awkwardly as I stared down at my plate. When the waiter had come to take our orders and was telling about today’s special, I had gotten distracted watching Hailz twirl a piece of her hair around her finger absentmindedly as she politely listened to him and had paid zero attention to what he was saying then panicked when he asked me what I wanted because I hadn’t really looked at the menu much either and blindly ordered the special so I didn’t look like an idiot in front of my date. Imagine my surprise when he set down a plate with a massive fish fillet on it as I sat with my back almost directly against the giant fish tank that had like an entire fucking reef in it. I could just feel the angry glares of the fish behind me as I took a bite of their fallen (but admittedly delicious) comrade.
“Babe, the fish aren’t judging you.” Giggled Hailz as she swirled her spoon in her soup
“Yes they are! I can feel it…” she rolled her eyes and smiled at me
“Okay, you’re right. The fish are totally judging you. In fact, one of them has armed itself with a sea urchin spine and is shouting ‘Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You ate my father. Prepare to die!’ at you through the glass.” She said sassily. The sass is strong with this one. And so are the Princess Bride references.
“…I knew it.” I responded as I suspiciously glanced over my shoulder just in time to see a fish dart away. Hailz just laughed and carried on eating her soup while I sheepishly ate my fish.
After we had both finished our meals we sat and talked about life for a bit until the waiter came around with the bill. Hailz, being Hailz, tried to pay for her half of the bill and of course I didn’t let her and had to wrestle the little folder thing out of her hands so I could slide my card in and quickly hand it back to the waiter. She tried to argue that since I was her guest she should pay but I countered that she was my tour guide and that I was paying her in food.
“But still…”she began but I cut her off
“But nothing. Look, you have a much tighter budget than I do and you need all the money you can get so you can get through college, so I’m not going to let you spend more than you need to especially since I know that I can afford to pay for you. Alright?” I said firmly
“Fine.” She huffed after a moment and crossed her arms
“But, you know,” I added after a second of silence, just to make sure she wasn’t actually pissed at me or anything “If we happen to come across any monster and you just so happen to buy one for me while I’m not looking…”
“Deal.” She perked up just as the waiter came back around and dropped off the receipt
Before we left to check out the actual aquarium part of the aquarium, Hailz asked me to keep an eye on her phone and purse while she took a bathroom break, which I honestly didn’t mind. Maybe two minutes after she had left, her phone went off, signaling that she had received a text message. Normally, this wouldn’t concern me, but the fact that the text tone was a soundbite of the Grinch going ‘Oh, MaaaaaaAAAAAXXX!!’ got me worried. I took a quick glance around to make sure no one was looking at me then reached over and slid her phone over to me to see if my suspicions were correct. Yep, I was right, it was Max texting her. Why does he have a special text tone?! I know that I should respect Hailz’s privacy and trust her, and I do, however, I do not trust Max too much and don’t give much of a shit about his privacy when my girlfriend is involved. It took a couple tries but I guessed her password fairly quickly (It was her birthday) then checked her messages. Evidently that was far from the first text he’d sent her. They appear to have been texting on and off for the past couple of weeks which, I’ll admit, really irked me. It’s not that I don’t want her talking to other guys or anything, I knew that would be irrational to demand of her, that being said, was it too much to ask that she not talk to guys who’ve previously attempted to sabotage our relationship?
I read over a few of their texts and, much to my not surprise, they mostly consisted of Max flirting with her and her sending him gentle reminders that she was happily dating me. The most recent message from him was asking her if she wanted to hang out and get drinks with him when ETF came back to Houston in May, which, if I remember correctly, is when we’ll be doing a show in Washington. Fuck no, not gunna fucking happen bub! Knowing Hailz, she’d probably say yes, thinking it would just be a friendly few drinks with the band and some innocent conversation. I mean, I love that she tries to see the good in people and I by no means think Max is without redeemable qualities, but I wouldn’t put it past him to try and exploit that aspect of her so I decided to take matters into my own hands. I checked over my shoulder to see if she was coming then started typing Max a message of my own:
Me: Hey Max, here’s an idea, how about you STOP TEXTING MY FUCKING GIRLFRIEND. She’s too nice to say it but you need to take a fucking hint and get it through your skull that she is with me, and I have no intention of letting that change anytime soon. So for the last time. Back. The. Hell. Off. – CC
I deleted my message along with Max’s as soon as it had sent and put her phone back just before she got back.
“Hey babe, anything happen while I was gone?” she asked with a smile that made my heart flutter in my chest
“Not really.” I replied as she grabbed her purse and phone. “So, you ready to go see the fishies, baby girl?”
“Heck yeah! And what about you? You ready to see some tigers, babe?” she asked as I got up
“Sure, though I still don’t understand why the fuck they’re at an aquarium.” I said as I took her hand in mine
“To be totally honest, I don’t think anyone does.” She smiled as we made our way out.

Notes

GUESS WHO FINALLY FIGURED OUT HOW TO GET BACK INTO THEIR ACCOUNT! (Spoiler Alert: It was me)
It's been so long! I've really missed this and I can't wait to get back into habit of updating!
But anywho, feel free to share your thoughts, ideas, and opinions in the comment section if you're still here!

(PS: I think I'll keep updating on Wattpad as well, but truth be told, I like this site SOOO much better!)