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The Essence of Friendship: Chapter 1
The Phone Call
Serena jerked awake from her fitful slumber. The rain was currently pouring out in buckets. The room was lit up suddenly by a flash of lightening. Serena covered her ears and screwed up her eyes in anticipation of the impending thunder. CRASH! Serena winced. I hate thunder storms, she thought. They're so terrifying. She crawled from her bed and made her way to the en suite bathroom.
Serena stood in front of the mirror with her eyes closed. She took a deep breath and sighed deeply. Slowly she opened her eyes. What she saw disappointed her. Her skin was unhealthily pale, her hair, brittle and dry, also having lost its former sheen. Her nails were broken and fragile and her body looked malnourished. She stared at her eyes in the mirror. Formerly vibrant and sparkling, they had become dull and empty.
Serena lowered her head. How have things gotten so bad? she asked herself. She already knew the answer, of course. Darien. Ever since he had broken up with her...she screwed up her eyes to block the memory from resurfacing. Yes, admittedly she had been on a steady decline before that, but it was at a snail's pace. Ever since that fateful day, her slow decline had snowballed out of control. She wondered if anyone else had noticed. Mina had; Serena knew that much. Mina always knew when something was wrong. But the others? They had no clue.
She felt a sudden surge of anger toward Darien. How dare he do this to me? He had no right! How could he? she thought angrily. I thought I was stronger than this. Yet he managed to knock me down and break my heart without breaking a sweat. Bastard. She sighed. Audrey would be so disappointed in me.
Her head snapped up. Audrey... If anyone could help her out of this rut, it was Audrey. Serena scrambled back to her room. After a bit of digging she found her cell phone that hadn't been used in two years. She hoped that they didn't hate her. After all, it had been nearly three years since she had spoken to any of them. She hadn't meant to do that but it had just hurt so much to think about her life before her move to Japan.
Up until the age of twelve, she and all of her family and friends had lived in Europe. She had been raised mostly in the U.K. and some in France. Though, the family often vacationed in Spain and Italy. Back then she had been Emily Binx. She changed her name shortly after settling into Japan. That name and that person were special and she intended to keep it that way. Emily, herself, as well as her near-identical twin, Jessica, was born in Limoges, France. Jessica, as she often liked to point out, was 2 minutes and 51 seconds older than Emily. Her immediate family tree was also slightly larger than just Sammy.
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Her family consisted as thus: 1) Their parents, who were currently vacationing in Naples (her "parents" here were actually just her god-parents), were Dr. Jerome and Mrs. Marie Binx. Her father was a very respected and renowned medical doctor. He was on the medical board and was often requested to speak at seminars. Her mother, Marie had been a very important executive for various high-end department stores. But soon after giving birth to the twins, she realized that, as much as the fashion world needed her, her family needed her more. Ever since then, she was known for giving some of the best parties (and for having great taste) in Western Europe.
2) Her oldest brother, Reed, who was 5 years her senior, was currently pre-law at Oxford. With his dark brown hair, blue eyes that were the Binx' trademark, and well-built, 6'2" body, he was, needless to say, very sought after. 3) Her second oldest brother, Mark, was 2 ½ years older. Mark's brown shaggy hair, trademark eyes and 6 ft. frame helped make him one of the most popular boys at his school. 4) Jessica, obviously, looked very similar to Emily. They shared the same Binx-blue eyes, long golden locks (although Jess' was cut to her rib cage and styled), and slender, 5' 4" frame.
5) Sammy, 2 years younger, had sandy brown hair, the family eyes and had recently moved back the England. 6) Katey, perhaps her favorite younger sibling, had just turned 11. She had the blue eyes and fair skin that marked the Binx family, but instead of golden-blonde hair, she had beautiful strawberry-blonde hair that went just past her shoulder blades. 7&8) Derek (4yrs) and Sara (3yrs). They were the newest additions to the family. They had the same eyes and white blonde hair that all the others had started out with, even Kat. Emily had left just after Sara's 1st birthday. She wondered if Sara would even remember her.
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Serena's heart pounded as the phone rang in her ear. Please pick up, Dree. Please. she silently begged.
Her breath caught in her throat as she heard the other end being picked up. The noise in the background was heard before the person's voice. Serena could hear loud talking and laughter. Someone shouted something out in French. The sweet British voice in her ear shouted back, laughing, " Shut UP, Grace. I'm on the phone." The laughter in the back increased.
"Alo?" the voice said.
"Audrey?" Serena whispered. She sobbed lightly.
"Oh my gosh. Emmy?" Audrey breathed. "Is it really you?"
"Aud, I really need to talk to you," Serena said softly as she began to cry.
"Ok, sweetie. Just gimme a sec to get alone. Hold on," Audrey whispered. Her voice got louder to talk to the others. "Hey, you guys. I gotta take this. I'll be upstairs."
"Ok, mate, but if you miss all the fun, don't come cryin' to me," someone, whom Serena suspected to be Jamie, called out.
"Trust me, it won't be anything I haven't seen before," Audrey called back.
Someone gasped dramatically. "How rude!" the same person, Serena thought this sounded like Beth, said in mock seriousness and everyone started laughing. She heard Audrey climbing the stairs, then the sound of a door closing.
"Ok, girlie, what's up? There's something wrong," Audrey said.
"Noth--" Serena started to say.
"Don't even TRY to tell me something's not wrong. I know there is. It's 2 a.m. where you are and you call me in tears. Besides, I can hear it in your voice. You're exhausted and it's not from anything out of the norm for you. Plus that, Mina and I have been talking and she's really worried about you. Don't you get it, Em? She cares. I care. WE CARE. So, please, tell me. What is UP?" Audrey asked, the worry evident in her voice, and, suddenly, it all came out. Everything. How she had stopped caring about school, how much she missed her family and and her friends in the U.K., how much stress she was under, and most of all, how much pain she was in from her break-up with Darien.
3 hours, 8 boxes of Kleenex, a couple of breakdowns, and a tub of ice cream on both sides later, Serena finally had it all out. And it felt good. So good. Audrey was the absolute best person to go to if you had a problem. She was a great listener and always gave her honest opinion.
"Dree, what do I do?" Serena asked.
"Honey, you're sunk in deep. Way deep. I know it's not just the product of this one jackass, that there are other variables to it, but mostly, it's this jackass," Audrey said frankly. " If he says he doesn't love you, you've gotta take it as the truth. I know you're stuck on him and it's going to take a while to totally get past all of this. I think it's for the best if you were to get away for a while. Everyone here misses you and your parents really want you back with us. I'm going to talk to some people and see what I can do, but no matter what, I'll be in Tokyo in a week. Ok?"
"Ok," Serena breathed in relief. "I can't wait to see you. I miss you so much."
"I miss you, too, Em. A lot," Audrey replied. "In the mean time, distract yourself. Spend some bonding time with Mina. Let her take care of you. She's your cousin."
"Yeah," Serena said. " Yeah, Audrey, you're right. I'm tired of being brokenhearted over a guy that doesn't even love me. And you know what? I'm not even sure that I loved him either."
"Ha Ha, good for you, Ems," Audrey laughed. Serena could hear voices in the background again. She heard Audrey's door open. "Audrey De Luca, who the hell have you been talking to for 3 hours?" a guy's voice asked loudly.
"Fuck off, Scott, it's none of you're business. And get out of my room," Audrey said.
"Ouch, Audrey, you cut me to the quick," Scott joked. "Is that anyway to talk to the love of your life?"
"I don't know, Scott, why don't you ask me when you find him, eh?" Audrey said with fake sweetness.
"Why I oughta—come 'ere," Scott said. Serena heard Audrey scream.
"Scott! Scott, stop that tickles! Scott!" Audrey laughed. Her laughter was suddenly muffled. A few moments later she spoke again. "Scott! LEAVE! I'm on the phone!"
"Lies! You can't be on the phone 'cause you were just kissing me. Ha HA!" Scott said in triumph. There was a pause.
"That's beside the point," Audrey said. Serena had, at this point, doubled over in silent laughter. "I'll come get you when we're done but for now, OUT."
"Anything for the lady," Scott said before the door was closed.
"Sorry 'bout him. Rotten timing skills,"Audrey explained.
"It's fine. So...you and Scott. How long has that been going on?" Serena asked slyly. "You made out with him yet?"
"3 months and yes," Audrey answered. "Any other questions?"
"Did he tell you his real name?" Serena asked. Scott's name wasn't actually 'Scott'. No one knew what it actually was. They thought his own parents didn't even remember. He just told everyone to call him 'Scott'. It had worked well so far.
"Yes, but I'm not telling you."
"Not even if I gave you the puppy dog eyes?"
"Save it. Jess already tried that," Audrey said flatly.
"Got it," Serena said. She glanced at the clock. "Wow. Ok, it's almost six which means I almost gotta go to school and learn...whatever it is that you learn in school."
Audrey laughed. "Ok, mate. Hang out with Mina this afternoon. And if you need homework help, give one of us a call. The cell numbers are still the same."
"Ok. Will do. See you soon."
"Later, babe," Audrey said and hung up.
Serena sighed and looked round her room. Everything was pink and fluffy and bunny-y. She made a mental note to redecorate. She got up and made her way to the shower. As she passed the mirror, she glanced at her reflection. Serena looked better than she had just hours before. She dug around in her drawer for something and place it on the counter. She undid her meatballs. Her hair now flowed to her ankles. She grabbed all of her hair in one hand and the scissors in the other. Time for a change, she thought. She picked a length and cut. The cut hair fell to the floor. She felt so much lighter now.
Serena looked in the mirror. Her hair now went to the middle of her back. She smiled. She dug out her Paul Mitchell shampoo and conditioner from the back of the cabinet as she waited for the shower water to warm up. She stepped into the shower and under the hot water. As she washed her hair and body, she was washing away much more than dirt and dead skin cells. She was washing away the past two years. Finally.
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