Hey, guys! I know that I haven't updated Send Me An Angel or Dance Is Better With U in forever, and I am so so so so sorry for that! Junior year has been hectic so far and writer's block sucks ass! But I had a homework assignment in my Language Arts class and I had to write a short story based on any of the Edgar Allan Poe stories that we've read. I chose to do mine on Annabel Lee, which made me cry. I whipped this up in about three to four hours and turned it in an hour ago. I decided since I haven't posted anything in a while, I would upload my short story to let you guys check it out. Of course I changed a couple of things like the name and city. So... here it is! Oh, and stay tuned for a couple of announcements!
It was about eleven o'clock at night in Sherwood, Minnesota. You could hear the cool wind slightly blowing and see the snow falling outside my bedroom window. Everyone in my house was sound asleep in bed. Well, everyone except for me, that is. I slipped on my fuzzy blue slippers really fast then tiptoed my way over to my parents' room. When I slightly opened their door, my dad's grizzly bear snore startled me. Yep, they were definitely asleep. I shut their door and walked back into my room. As soon as I opened up my window, I was hit with a gust of cold wind. I stepped out of the window and climbed my way down the brick wall. There were a couple of slips here and there, but I managed to reach the ground safely. I shivered as the snow continued to fall and I snuggled into my oversized sweatshirt. To make sure that no one was watching me, I turned to the house and saw that all of the lights were off and no one was peeping through the windows. The coast was clear, so I started to run to my destination.
After about fifteen freezing moments, I finally made it to Seaside Park, which looked absolutely gorgeous covered in white blankets of snow. I couldn't stop to take the time to appreciate its beauty, unfortunately. I looked at the text message he sent to me and it said to meet him at our playground. The reason I say 'our playground' is because it was where we first met when we were five years old. I smiled to myself at the memory of us chasing each other around the monkey bars as I continued to walk through the park. It didn't take me long to find him sitting on a swing, fiddling with his fingers. He must've heard me walking towards him because he looked up at me.
With just one look, he succeeded at taking my breath away. The dimpled smile he flashed at me was the same exact smile that made me fall in love with him when we were kids. When he first smiled at me, it automatically sent me the impression that he was a playful and sweet boy. And his eyes- oh, how easily I could get lost in them. They were the most beautiful shade of green, like emeralds. I sighed to myself. This was only going to make things so much harder.
He stood up from his swing and met me halfway through the playground. He towered over me, not that I really minded. We did nothing but looked at each other, not saying a single word. The silence wasn't awkward, but rather comfortable.
"Hi," Kendall said, smiling down at me and breaking the silence. A puff of air escaped his mouth as he spoke, due to the cold weather.
"Hi," I replied dumbly, smiling back at him.
Kendall continued to stare down at me until all of a sudden, he wrapped his strong arms around me and pulled me closer to him. I immediately wrapped my own arms around his waist and buried my head in his chest. I took in his scent, which was a bit minty. I giggled to myself because I knew he had sprayed on that cologne of his that I really liked. It felt like it had been forever since we held each other like this, and it was a feeling that I do not want to let go of anytime soon.
I picked my head up so I was looking up at him. He met my gaze and he placed his hand his hand on my cheek. I flinched at his cool touch but then leaned into it as I got used to the temperature. He lowered his face down to mine pressed his slightly chapped lips against mine. Butterflies fluttered in my stomach, just like how it did every time. I wrapped my arms around his neck as he continued to place soft kisses on my lips.
We pulled away after a few moments and smiled at each other, like two lovesick teenagers that everyone else would mock, but secretly wish for something like they had. Oh wait… we were two lovesick teenagers. Who could blame us?
During the time we had left together, we played around in this kiddie area like we used to when we were little tykes. We had a little swinging competition to see which one of us would go higher, slide down the slides that were way too small for us, and spun around the merry-go-round (Kendall even fell off a couple of times because he got so dizzy- I actually found it to be quite hilarious). Even though it was just the two of us there, we were having the time of our lives.
We got tired after an hour and a half, so we sat down next to the slide. I sat between his long legs and my back was pressed against his chest. Kendall played with my long curly light blonde hair and I rested my head on his shoulder; his touch was so soothing that it almost put me to sleep.
I felt him nuzzle his nose into my hair and he pressed a kiss to the side of my head. "How have you been?"
"I'm okay, I guess," I lied, mumbling a bit, "How about you?"
"Could be better." I felt his icy finger under my chin and he tilted my head up so I was looking at his emerald eyes. "I just really miss you, Amanda."
I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion. "How could you be missing me? I see you every day."
"You know what I mean."
I frowned a bit when I saw the look in his eyes; it went from gleaming with love to dulling in sorrow. I did know what he meant, and I also knew that it was my fault.
I sighed. "I'm sorry, Kendall," I apologized to my love, "It's just… things have been really crazy at home with my family, AP classes have been really stressing me out, and not to mention that college applications are due in…"
Kendall had shut me up with a kiss. "Don't apologize, Amanda. These past few months have been hard for everyone, including me. It just sucks so much when I see you every day, knowing that I can't hold you, kiss you, or even talk to you without being pushed away by everyone in your crowd. I just want to be with you, my beautiful Amanda Lee."
He held onto me a bit tighter and continued to kiss my head. He chanted the words 'my beautiful Amanda Lee' between each kisses. My heart began to sink to the bottom of my stomach. The guilt was eating me alive; I miss being around this boy more than anyone will know. I only had myself to blame both of our frustration, even though Kendall would never admit it. Because of my family, my friends,and my future, our love was forbidden.
I couldn't do this anymore. I couldn't live with the guilt that has been brought upon me. No matter how badly I would regret this either tomorrow, next week, or even ten years down the road, this had to be done.
"Kendall, we need to talk."
He stopped stroking my hair and remained still. He was probably sensing what I was about to say because I have never felt him be this tense before.
"What's wrong?" he asked me softly.
I pulled away from his grasped and turned myself so I was now sitting across from him. I was shaking violently now, but I didn't know whether it's from the cold or the pain and nerves.
"You know," I finally said, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, "I applied to Stanford a couple of days ago, and it's all the way in California. You're applying to a music school in New York, which is so far from where I'm going to be. This may sound harsh, and I'm sorry, but I don't think-"
"Don't," Kendall interrupted me, making me jump slightly at his outburst, "say it."
He stood up and paced back and forth right in front of me. Things became silent and you could feel the uncomfortable tension in the air. He finally stopped pacing and pinched the bridge of his nose. He chuckled humorlessly.
"I knew this day would come," he spoke, "but I didn't think you were going to give me some lame excuse." I was about to ask him what he meant but he beat me to it. "I know your parents and friends hate me, Amanda. They don't just dislike me- they hate me because I'm not as wealthy as they are. They don't want to see the most perfect girl in the world be with someone like me." He gestured to himself. "Look at me and tell me it isn't true."
He finally looked at me and my heart broke at the sight of him. The sparkle in his eyes were now completely gone and were now filled with tears that he wouldn't dare to let fall. He was waiting for an answer from me, whether it would hurt him or not.
I bit my bottom lip in shame as I nodded my head. He grunted in anger and sadness as he punched the plastic slide.
"What did I do wrong, Amanda?" he asked desperately, "We were doing so well. Remember how we promised each other no matter how hard our relationship would be, we wouldn't let anything break us? Where did I go wrong?"
"Darling," I tried to say, "please listen to me-"
"Is it because I don't have as much money as you guys? That I don't have a Mercedes-Benz, the most expensive clothes, or the flashiest watch in town? Well, I'm sorry that I can't just ask my mommy and daddy for a hundred bucks and go on daily shopping sprees like a spoiled and ungrateful brat."
My jaw clenched. Now I was starting to get irritated with his attitude. "Kendall, that is not fair."
"You know what's not fair, Amanda?" he yelled. I was grateful that we were the only two here in the park. "I have to work twice as hard as everyone else just put food on my family's table and it's barely enough. It breaks my heart that I can't even afford to take the love of my life on a nice date for once." He sniffled and lowered his head. "You know how badly I want to buy you that beach house in California that you always wanted, Amanda, and I'm working so hard to get that for you, trust me. I just need some time…"
I stood up and closed the distance between us. I cupped my face with my hands and made him look at me. The tears that had finally fallen down his face made my stomach churn with guilt.
"I know how hard things have been for you," I said to him, "No one has worked as hard as you do, and I praise you for that. But we're not living in a fantasy, Kendall. This is the real world- love just isn't enough. I need to make my family happy and set a good example for my siblings. I'm so deeply in love with you, don't ever doubt that, but I need to start doing what's best for me." I wiped a fallen tear off his pale cheek. "We're just too young to know what we actually want in life."
At this point, tears were just pouring out of my eyes. I hated this more than anything. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt the one who's been right by my side the majority of my life. But like I said, I had to do what was best for me, even if that meant going on without Kendall. I placed a soft kiss on his cheek. I was about to take my hands away from his face, but he gripped onto my wrists.
I was not expecting what he was about to say next.
"Marry me, Amanda Lee."
I probably looked like a bug right now because my eyes grew so wide. At first I thought it was just some joke just to make me stay. However, when I looked into his eyes, I knew he was dead serious.
"What?" I asked in disbelief.
He let go of my wrists and reached into the pocket of his sweatshirt. He pulled out a small red velvet box that could only mean one thing: this was no joke. As if it were a fairytale, he got down on one knee and held the box out to me.
"This was the reason I asked you to meet me here tonight. I love you so much, Amanda. I don't care that I'm not the most handsome or richest guy on Earth, but I know for sure that no one will love you the way I do." He opened up the small box to reveal the most beautiful ring I had ever seen. "I saved up my paychecks from the last five months just to buy this ring for you. I promise to buy you that beach house one day. It may take some time, but I'm determined to get it just for you. You will never go hungry, you will never be alone, and most of all, you will never go unloved. I will be right by your side until I die, and I promise you that."
He let one last tear go as he said the four words, "Will you marry me?"
Oh my God. I was too shocked for words. I blinked a few times just to see if I was awake and I knew for sure that this was real life. Kendall, the boy I have loved since the day I met him, was asking me to be with him for the rest of my life. Despite what happened just a couple minutes ago, he was still willing to get down on one knee for me and present me with the most breathtaking ring (and he saved up all of his money just for me- how could a girl not fall for him?).
I can't go on with the rest of my life without him. As cliché and dumb as it sounds, but he really does complete me and I wouldn't be the girl I was without him. It truly isn't about the money or property anymore- it's about having someone willing to stick with you through thick and thin and giving you the only thing that really mattered- love. Looking into Kendall's eyes, I knew he was going to provide me with just that.
I pulled him up so that he was now standing and smiled. "I don't care if I get the beach house. I don't even care if we go homeless! I'd rather be living in a box with you than living beachside with some stuck-up jerk my parents set me up with."
Kendall seemed to perk up at my words. "So does that mean…"
"Yes. Yes, I will marry you."
The corners of his mouth stretched from ear to ear once I gave him my answer. He wrapped his arms around my waist as he gave me the most passionate kiss. I wrapped my arms around his neck as he spun me around. After he set me down, he took the diamond ring out of the box and slid it onto my left ring finger. We met each other's gaze once more before smiling like fools and embracing each other. This joy and pure love I'm pretty sure we're both feeling at the moment was something I never wanted to lose.
"I love you, Kendall Knight."
"I love you, too," he said as he kissed the top of my head, "I'll love you more than you will ever know, my beautiful Amanda Lee."
Aw, yay for corny and cliche endings! Sorry if this is REALLY bad but I hope you guys somewhat enjoyed it. PLEASE REVIEW!
For those of you who are fans of Dance Is Better With U, I know I haven't updated it since... July, I think? Here's the thing: I don't like the way it's coming out but I'm so in love with the idea and characters (team Cardi!) that instead of giving up on it altogether, I'm just gonna rewrite it. I don't know when I'm gonna start working on that, but I hope to soon!
Also, even though I have two stories I still need to finish, I'm gonna be starting a new story soon. Don't judge me, but it's been stuck in my head ever since the summer but I could never just get to it. It's called Secret Love and it's gonna be mainly a KendallxOC with CarlosxOC, maybe Lomille or LoganxOC, and maybe JamesxOC (there might be a contest for Logan and James's love interests). It's coming out soon and I really hope you guys read it. Also, continue to read and review Send Me An Angel and I promise to update ASAP!
Until then, rock on and WHOO HOO! Also, I might not update until after Christmas so just in case, I hope you guys have an amazing Christmas and thank you so much for all your love and support! You guys are the best! xoxo, Maddie :)