XANDER PAIGE
"I will ask again. Zach, what is going on?" I moved forward to see the faces of the people standing before the guards.
We kept staring at each other...(me and the older-looking girl, of course).
I broke the stare and glanced at the man standing next to her. He looked quite familiar.
"I'm sorry, have we met?" I asked him with a curious look.
"I'm not so sure." He replied, sounding uncertain.
"No, we have. Vega?...Owen Vega." I said, surprising him.
"How did you...wait, XP, as in Xander Paige!!" He said in shock.
"You know the name..." I sounded like a movie character. Not to mention, striking a pose.
I stepped closer to give him a hug.
"You guys...sorry, you "men" know each other?" The younger girl asked.
"Well, yeah. Xander and I were coursemates at Stanford University. We studied International Business." Owen replied.
"How come I never knew you went to Stanford." Peyton raised a questioning brow.
"Now you know, Peyt." Owen replied.
"Cool. I'm Peyton." She introduced as she clung to Owen's shoulder.
"And, this is Phoenix, the responsible one." Owen said as he made her stand before me. He sent Peyton a stare when he said "the responsible one".
"Hi. It's nice to meet you." She said as we shook hands.
"Likewise. The pleasure's all mine." I said.
I don't think I've ever held a hand as soft as this in my entire life. I could hold onto it for more than a day.
I didn't realize our hands were still in contact until she withdrew.
"So, Owen called you XP..." Peyton said.
"Yes, he did. What about it?"
"Nix, think. XP...Xtreme. Get it? X-X..." She grinned.
"I'm starting to get uncomfortable with the way you're saying that alphabet." Owen said as he looked at her suspiciously.
While Peyton was still trying to make her siblings understand her, a guard walked up to me.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, Boss, but there's been a...."
"I knew it! That's what I've been trying to tell you guys!"
"I think we figured that out seconds before you even started making a point, Peyt." Phoenix said.
Owen snickered when he saw the look on Peyton's face.
Her shoulders slumped in defeat.
"You guys can have fun without me. I'll be in the car, watching depressing videos on TikTok." She said as she made her way towards the parking lot.
"What if I showed you guys around, Peyton. It'd be way better than staring at your phone." I suggested.
She swiveled immediately.
"Really? A tour from the owner himself?"
"Definitely." I replied.
"Now that's one thing I wouldn't miss for lame videos. What the hell are we waiting for? Let's go!" She squealed as she ran past the guards...not without sticking her tongue at them.
"They're in with me." I told the guards.
"Yes, Sir." They replied simultaneously.
I walked the Vegas through many sections of the park, and one section was for extreme sports.
"So, you have people here every freakin' day?" Peyton asked as she stared at some teenagers bungee jumping.
"Where are you going with this, Peyt?" Owen asked as he stared at his sister with suspicion.
"Nowhere. It's only a question."
"Actually, we have people here every single day, including Sundays." I replied.
"Good. Now I have a reason to get out of that boring penthouse. These two are wack when it comes to fun." She said as she made sick faces.
Owen sent her a glare.
"Don't look at me like that." She said as she rolled her eyes.
"OMG!!! Owen, check out those cute guys! Let's go over there." She gushed as she pointed towards the abseiling section.
"There's no way I'm gonna watch you ogle over a bunch of keepers of sweaty gym socks." Owen said.
"Just come on." She took his hand and led him towards the direction, leaving me and Phoenix.😊
Come on, man. You can do this. Just say something.
"So, Phoenix, huh? Like the sun bird."
"It's more like hope and resilience for me." She replied.
"Oh. I like to think of myself as resilient." I said.
"Well, that's why you're where you are. You had to put in a lot of effort. Look at you, you've got major establishments around the globe and not to mention the world's most craz"iest", most wild"est" and..."
"Most extreme parks." We concluded together.
Am I staring at her right now?
Am I supposed to? But she's staring too.
I don't know why, but I'm loving this.
She broke our stare and turned the other way, tucking her hair behind her ear.
Cute, I thought.😏
"Phoenix?"
"Yeah." She turned back, leaning forward this time.
"Are you working?" I asked.
Okay, Xander. That's the dumbest question you've ever asked in your life. It came out so wrong.
"Well..." She took a deep breath.
"Yes, I am. I own a restaurant. Nix's Café." She said.
"Oh, I've heard of that restaurant. My friend Giovani, orders his breakfast from there on weekdays."
"Giovani Smith? You know him?"
"Yeah, he's my best friend and my non-biological brother. Wanna meet him someday?" I asked as we left the bridge we were standing on and strolled to a section filled with rock pedestals...more like a desert, only with less heat.
"That would be awesome. But how?" She asked as she stood before me.
As it seems, our faces are inches apart. If only she could come a little bit closer.
Damn! Is it getting hot all of a sudden?
Oh, I forgot...Artificial desert😒.
"What if I..." I got interrupted by a familar voice.
Oh, Peyton😒.
"Hey, you two! Owen and I couldn't get engaged in any of the sports 'cause someone was too scared to even try jet skiing." She rolled her eyes as she said the last part.
"No, I wasn't. You're the one who wanted to meet gym class losers." Owen said angrily.
Being the eldest is totally not easy...🤧
She folded her hands, huffed and turn to walk away.
"You wouldn't dare taking another step." Owen warned.
"And what if I do?" She asked provocatively.
"You know how this always ends." Owen taunted.
"Oh, come on, Owey. I promise I'll do anything you tell me to." She pleaded as she ran back to him.
"Too late, little sis. Too late." He said and Phoenix chuckled.
"I guess this is "See you later", Paige. I gotta drop Nix off at work and dump Peyt somewhere far from sanity. We'll meet again?"
"Of course, Vega. Hold on, I've got something for you guys."
I put a call through the Boxing Department and in a few seconds, two men arrived.
Each had an enormous dollar bouquet in his hands.
"Paige, this isn't necessary." Owen said as he let out a nervous chuckle.
"Don't worry, it's not for you. It's for the ladies." I said. I saw his face drop immediately.
"Ouch." Peyton silently said as she faked a cough.
The men handed each bouquet to Phoenix and Peyton and retreated to their department.
"Thanks, Xander. We really appreciate it." Phoenix said as she smiled at me.
"Yeah, thanks. I've never received a rose before, let alone a bouquet."
"It's nothing, really. I want to make your first visit to Xtreme World one to always remember."
"And you sure have. Now my sisters will buy vases and fill their bedrooms with your horrible gifts." Owen said as he grabbed the bouquets from them.
"Stop being jealous, Owey." Phoenix said as she gave him a smirk.
"Oh, I'll show you jealous...let's go." He said as he held their hands in one of his and moved towards the exit.
Phoenix turned to wave at me.😊
I returned it.😊
I could've sworn I saw her wink.🫠
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