Heartbreak Weather, Eli Mosko...

LVI.                                                  Heartbreak Weather

    Odessa was in need for a spa day. As did Sam, who was stressing herself out over the situation with Miguel. She felt torn because she loved them both. She loved them together. But Odessa also understood why Sam was so upset with him. He left with no warning and it scared her.

The girls walked into the spa. "Moon, this place is so you." Sam commented.

"Isn't it?" Moon said with a happy smile. "When Piper and I broke up, there was a lot of negative energy. This place helped cut through the noise."

"I could have used this place a long time ago." Odessa muttered while looking around.

"Well it's exactly why I brought you all here." Moon followed. She placed her arms around Sam and Odessa. "You gotta find yourself. Figure out who you really are."

"They also do facials. Which I'm in much need of." Hailey added and touched her bare skin.

Odessa looked at Sam and smiled softly. "No more thinking about Miguel, okay? We're here to relax. We need it."

They followed Moon into a room that contained large pods. "What is this, exactly?" Sam questioned.

"This is a self actualization pod."

"Like a sensory deprivation tank?" Odessa asked.

She quickly shook her head. "No, no, no. They don't call them that anymore. It's not about deprivation. It's about connection with your innermost self." She explained more spirituality.

"My innermost self is telling me that i'm claustrophobic." Said Hailey and she scanned the large pods with causation.

"Yeah, i'm still gonna pass,"nSam agreed. "I still have nightmares about drowning in shallow bodies of water."

"I have those dreams sometimes, too. Don't worry. So does Oliver." Odessa mentioned.

"Sam, ever since what happened at the school, you've been off balance." Moon said calmly. "It's clear there's been some tension with Miguel. The only thing you're gonna find in this pod is yourself. That's not so scary, right?" She glanced at Odessa. "And Dess, you've been off too. Ever since what happened at the tournament, you've been different. This is a chance for you too, okay?"

Sam and Odessa glanced at each other, still worrying. After a minute of contemplating to themselves, they both gave in.

"Well, i'm gonna go take a mud bath." Said Hailey and she left the room.

Odessa rolled her eyes and went to the pod in the corner. She shrugged off her robe and stepped into the pod, shutting the door being her. She was surrounded by darkness. She started to feel nervous but she thought about what Moon said. This was her chance to have a peaceful day and not only not think about what happened at the tournament, but to forget about what was happening with her dad.

She sank into the body of water and closed her eyes, allowing her body to relax. She freed herself of all the stress and tension she had been feeling since losing to Tory. She told herself to not thinking about her dad.  She let out slow breaths.

Eli followed the boys into the jewelry store. "I buy all of Oliver's jewelry from here. He's never without a chain or watch." Demetri informed.

Oliver nodded. "He's right. My man spoils me." He smirked and grabbed the boy's hand.

"Hailey makes me buy her jewelry," Grayson told them. "She usually hints to me what she wants and I just buy it. She's an expensive lady."

"Okay, explain to me again why I have to buy expensive jewelry?" Miguel asked. "Maybe Sam is okay and you guys are just reading too much into it like the girls told us."

"Mig, dude," Oliver started and wrapped his arm around his shoulder. "You've got to learn the ways of the ladies."

Eli narrowed his eyes. "But you're gay."

He glared at him. "No shit, but my two best friends are women so i've learned a thing or two. Right, Gray?"

Grayson nodded. "Yep."

"My friend, this is a five alarm fire," Demetri added into the conversation. "If anything, we're not reading into it enough, okay?"

"Can I help you find something?" The lady behind the desk politely asked.

Miguel stepped forward. "Um, yes. I'm looking for something special for my girlfriend," he said respectfully.

"That's so sweet! Is it a birthday? An anniversary?" the woman asked with a smile.

"He left the country without telling her during the biggest karate fight of her life." Demetri answered with no hesitation.

She was in shock and cleared her throat.  "That's a new one. How about a nice pair of earrings?"

But Miguel's eyes were on something bigger. "How much is that?" He asked while pointing to a piece of jewelry in the glass case. They all looked at what he was pointing at and they saw it was an octopus necklace.

"The octopus?" She said and took it out of the display case. She carefully handed the necklace to Miguel.

Grayson hummed while eyeing it. "Good taste, Mig."

"It's perfect," he uttered with a smile. His face fell. "But I don't think i'm gonna be able to afford it."

The woman checked the price tag. "Actually, it's been reduced." She told him with a smile.

"Reduced?" Miguel repeated a bit more hopeful. "Great. How much?"

"After tax,  $182."

Grayson hissed under his breath. "Damn,  and I thought the sea horses were expensive."

Miguel sighed again in disappointment.

"Do you maybe have one with fewer tentacles?" Eli questioned.

"Or a different sea creature?" Oliver added.

His eyes glanced at all the jewelry in the cases before the landed on a specific one. Eli walked away from the others and leaned down to examine it. It was a silver diamond bracelet with a butterfly in the middle. It shimmered under the bright lights. He smiled to himself.

While she knew the pod wouldn't fix all of her problems, Odessa did feel better. She didn't feel as stressed as before. She put her robe back on and wrapped her wet hair in a towel. The other girls exited their pods and wrapped their hair up as well. Moon lifted Sam's up and the girl jumped. "Oh, my god. I had the most incredible vision. I was a drop of dew glistening in the moonlight."!Moon said in a daze.

Odessa grinned until she saw Sam's face and she went to help her out of the pod. "Sam, are you okay?" She asked with concern.

Hailey came back into the room with her skin fresh and glowy. "That was the best experience of my life." She expressed with a refreshing smile.

"I found it quite peaceful, actually." Odessa muttered and adjusted the towel on her head

"Wasn't it enlightening? What'd you see?" Moon said to Sam.

Sam's face was stoic like she had seen something terrible. "Why don't we go get a massage?" Odessa suggested to take the attention off of her.

"Oh, my gosh. That sounds blissful." Hailey exaggerated and latched onto her hand, dragging her out of the room.

Sam looked over at Odessa as she was getting her deep tissue massage. "Hey, Dess?" She voiced, earning a light hum in response. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure." Odessa answered and hummed again in satisfaction when the woman started massaging her shoulders.

"When you broke up with Eli, how did you make that decision?"

Oh boy. Odessa lifted her head and turned it to the side. "Are you thinking about breaking up with Miguel?" She asked carefully.

Sam frowned deeply even though she couldn't see it. "I don't know. I've just—Things have been really hard for me lately and I don't know how to go about things right now. And then Miguel left without telling me and it just added onto all these complications."

Odessa listened to her and nodded when she was done. "How have you been feeling lately, Sam? Truly."

She spaced out at the question for just a few seconds. "Lost."

She nodded, knowing the feeling all too well. "Sam, what happened at the school wasn't your fault. What happened to Miguel wasn't your fault. I know you've been struggling a lot lately. Trust me, I know how you're feeling because I went through it, too. I know that you feel like you have to please everyone and act like everything's okay. The best advice I can give you is to not focus on others and to worry about yourself. Your mental health is the most important factor right now. If ending things with Miguel is the first step to helping you get back on track then he'll understand. I promise."

Sam's eyes watered. "Thank you, Odessa"

Odessa reached her arm out to the side and held her hand out. Sam grabbed it.

With a fresh face and better attitude, Odessa walked into Eli's room and saw him laying on his bed, stomach down, playing Call of Duty. Thankfully he didn't have his head set on. "Hey, killer." She greeted with a wide smile.

Hearing her, Eli looked her way and smiled. He turned the game off. "Hey, baby."

She walked over and bent down to give him a kiss. "How was your day? Did Operation Get Sam Back go as planned? She teased and sat on the bed with him.

He halfway rolled his eyes. "No, not exactly."

"Does that mean I was right?" She continued and slowly grew a smile.

"If I tell you that, then you'll never let me live it down." He saw right through her.

Odessa hummed. "That's true. But I'll take it as a yes."

He scoffed a laugh. "My day was good. I missed you while you were gone." He laid on his side, resting on his arm, and he smiled up at her. "How was the spa?"

"Ugh, it was amazing." She said dramatically. "I think the deep tissue massage was the best part. I definitely needed it. I feel like a new woman."

"Well good. I'm glad." He sat up from his position. "Um, I have something for you."

Her eyes perked up. "You do? What is it?" She asked with a smile.

Eli quickly got off his bed and walked over to his dresser. Odessa watched him fetch something and then quickly make his way back. "I got this for you." He told her and held it out a small black box.

She sent him a look. "You did not buy me jewelry." She stated in disbelief.

He only shrugged with a smirk on his face. "You don't know if you don't open it." He stated.

She narrowed her eyes. He continued to smirk. Slowly, Odessa opened the box and gasped. She pulled out the diamond bracelet and examined it, her heart warming at the butterfly charms. "Eli, it's beautiful. I love it."

"We took Miguel to a jewelry store so he could pick something out for Sam. I saw this and thought of you." He told her with a shy smile.

She held out her wrist. "Can you put it on, please?" She watched him clasp it around her wrist and she smiled again. "Thank you so much."

"Of course," he replied and leaned it to kiss her. "But just know you might not be getting a birthday present this year."

She giggled and grabbed him by the shoulders. He laughed as she pulled him on top of her.