A/N: I have really no excuse for making you guys wait THIS LONG!
I am truly, truly sorry! Forgive me! This chapter is EXTRA long and
now that the term is over I'm not stressing so much about grades
I'll be posting weekly.. maybe. NO promises.. THANK YOU to the
few readers who have stayed with me! Reviews would be VERY
MUCH APPRECIATED! I LOVE YOU GUYSSS!
ALSO, this might be a bit confusing at first but things will all fall into
place I promise!(:
OKay... ON WITH THE STORY!(:
"You really did that?" my jaw hung low as Jeremy proceeded to tell me
about the time he made cookies for his new neighbors when he was
younger and instead of sugar he used salt.
"I was a little shit!" he laughed. We were seated on a bench located
in the middle of the park next to the small pond.
We had sat for what seemed like hours just talking about our hometowns
and childhood. I learned he was the youngest of five and the only boy.
His parents gave him everything his little heart desired.
I envied him, I was an only child. I hardley had friends now, you
could only image what I was like as a kid. I played alone most of the time with my
dolls growing up and didn't have many friends in my younger
years. I didn't hardley even played with the neighbors! Once high school
started I acually began aquainting myself with the other kids. The
ones I hung out with, I never considered my friends. As for my
parents, they were crazy. Always trying to make me a perfect child. I
guess that's the reason I tried to rebel against them all the time.
"Man, I miss Pheonix." Jeremy continued to speak after a moment of
silence. I sat forward with my elbows in my lap and my chin resting in
my hands looking up at a contemplating Jeremy. I grinned at him as his
eyes met mine.
"What is it that you miss most about Pheonix?"
He answered almost immediatley. "The heat, the beautiful scenery, my
friends and family."
He sighed heavily before turning to look at me. I smiled and patted
his knee. "You know, I never really thought about it, but I sure do
miss Perrysburg." Instantly images of my beautiful home in Ohio
flashed across my mind. I missed my home. Just not so much the people
in it. Was that a heartless thing to think?
Jeremy interupted my thoughts. "What is it that YOU miss about
Perrysburg?" he grinned sarcastically at me. I smiled and stared out
at the freshly cut grass. I knew exactly what I missed.
"The fireflies."
"Fireflies?" I could feel Jeremy's stare but I didn't look up to meet
his gaze.
"Yes, I used to sit out on my lawn every so often and just watch.
Watch the fireflies illuminate my backyard. It was the prettiest
thing.." my smile faded. LA didn't have fireflies. The closest thing
were the city lights that I could see from my back patio.
"Sounds amazing."
"It really was." I replied finally looking up to meet his eyes. We
just sat in silence. It wasn't so much awkward as the first time. I
was starting to acually feel a bit more comfortable with him. This
made me extremely happy. I was forming a friendship, and I valued that
more than anything in the world. A true friendsship. Just the like one
I had with Carlos. The Carlos whom I had promised I would be home by
ten.
"Shit." I muttered breaking the silence. I dug through my bag that was
set on the space next to me for my phone. As soon as I pulled it out I
noticed my red notification light flashing. Five missed calls, seven
unread texts and the time was barley past midnight.
"Whats up?" Jeremy noticed the paniced expression on my face.
"I should probably get home." I gave him an apologizing look.
"Okay, no problem!"He didn't look as upset as I thought he would. I
sighed as we began walking back to his car.
Carlos wasn't my mother, but I hated breaking promises, especially
with him. I'm sure he was worried about me. I pictured him sitting in
his kitchen staring out the windows waiting for me to come home or at
least call.
As we pulled up in my drive way I glanced over at Carlos' side of the
duplex. All the lights were off. I formed my lips into a straight line
a bit nervous.
"Do you want me to walk you to your door?"
I smiled and shook my head. "No that's okay, thanks though." I reached
for the door handle but Jeremy stopped me.
"Elora, I had a really great time. Thank you. For giving me a chance.
Your truly an amazing girl. I feel like we've missed out on so many
years being friends. Thank you, again. We need to do this more often."
he smiled and placed his hand on mine. I bit my lip and tried to
smile, my mind not tearing away from the thought of Carlos.
"Um, yeah it was fun! We will for sure hang some more! Thanks Jeremy.
You're a sweetheart!" I pulled him into a hug. He was quick to return
it.
I pulled away quickly, "I really gotta go! See you Tuesday at work!" I
waved throwing his jacket onto the seat before shutting the car door.
I ran up the path to my front door my heart pounding. I reached for the
handle then froze. I heard muffled voices behind the door.
Panicked I stepped back. What if someone had broken into my home?
Trashed the place and took things? Or maybe they were waiting for me
to get home. It made me sick just thinking about it.
I shook the feeling realizing that I was just overreacting and Carlos
probably left the television on before leaving.
Nervously I twisted the doorknob opening it slowly. I stepped into my
darkend home. The only light was coming from my living room. I let out
a sigh of relief. It was only my tv.
I threw my bag on the table next to the door before kicking my shoes
off and locking up my door.
As I walked into my living room, my stomach dropped. There curled up
in my couch was Carlos, and playing on TV were reruns of the tv series Friends. I
frowned standing next to him.
He waited up for me. I told him ten and here I was arriving at almost
one in the morning. I felt like complete shit. He waited up for me..
I sat on the floor next to the couch and placed my arm across his. I
reached up to stroke his face with the back of my hand. I couldn't
decide if I wanted to wake him up or just let him sleep. He looked so
peaceful. Aside from the drool forming at the corner of his mouth, he
looked so flawless when he slept.
I used a finger to wipe away his drool. As I did so he shifted, which
caused me to freeze. I jerked my hand away and watched his eyes
flutter open. He furrowed his brows together when he saw me eye level
with him.
"El..." he yawned and pushed himself up on his elbows not taking his
eyes away from mine. I weakly smiled before struggling to stand.
His eyes when directly from mine down to the red stain on my dress.
His eyes widened and he sat completely up.
"Elora! What the fuck happened? What did he do to you!" he started
panicking. I quickly sat down embracing him in a comforting hug.
"It's okay, 'Litos. I just spilt some wine. Nothing bad happened."
"Then why are you so late?" his voice cracked as he spoke. He pulled
out of our short hug peering into my eyes. I sighed as my chest tightened.
"I'm sorry.." I looked down at my hands. "We got distracted, he's a
good kid Carlos." I dared to look back up to his eyes.
"You like him now?" he cocked his head to the side. I chuckled before
laying my head on the back of my couch.
"Naw, were just friends now. But don't worry he won't replace you.
Your my best friend." I lightly turned my head so I could see his
face. He was just staring at the floor. His face was almost blank. It
frustrated me a little not being able to tell what he was thinking.
Without a word I reached over and lightly placed my hand on his arm.
He looked from my hand to my face and gave me a weak smile. He looked
exaughsted.
I sighed and stood up. "I'll go grab some extra blankets for you. Be
right back."
He brought his legs up to his chest and fell onto his side bringing
him into the position he was in when I found him. Dismissing what I had said,he shut his eyes.
Smiling I left making my towards my room. I wanted nothing more than
to finally be able to slip into a pair of sweat pants. Carlos had been
wearing a pair all day and I envied him greatly.
Without hesitation I threw my dress off and jumped into a pair of
sweatpants and a baggy tshirt. I grabbed two pillows off of my bed and
as many blankets I could find laying around my room.
Struggling to see I made my way down the hallway back into the room
where Carlos was. I heard light snoring as I approched the couch where
he was already passed out. I softly slipped a pillow underneath his
head. He only fluttered his eyes open once but quickly let them drop.
Quickly but gently I wrapped Carlos up in the extra blankets. I took a
step back holding onto the extra pillow. Did I mention how peaceful
Carlos looked when he slept? I was jealous of how comfortable he made
my couch look right now.
Watching him made me want to fall to the floor in that very spot and
just sleep. I hadn't realized how tired I really was. Grasping onto
the pillow I held in my hands, I leaned down and kissed Carlos on the
forehead. "Goodnight, 'Litos." I whispered before making my way to my
own bed.
As soon as my head hit my pillow I was already starting to slip into a
deep sleep.
The smell of bacon and eggs hit my nose like a ton of bricks. I shot
my eyes open and looked around. The sunlight started to fill my room
making my eyes hurt. I moaned kicking the blankets off of me before
stretching. I slowly sat up inhailing the smell of food in the air.
"Carlos." I whispered remembering he had spent the night on my couch.
I was soon stumbling down the hall towards the sweet smell of
breakfast. As I reached the doorway I abruptly paused when I heard a
soft humming noise. A smile began to spread across my face as I
watched Carlos run around my kitchen singing quietly to himself while
starting my coffee machine.
Carlos' voice has always made my heart melt. There was just something
about it that made me weak in the knees, but He rarley sang around me
in fear that I would make fun of him. I have no idea what would cause
him to think I would ever do something like that. I've been to the handful of
shows he's had in the past couple years and I even owned the very first Big
Time Rush cd. I would often bust it out from time to time and listen
to it while I cleaned my home. I enjoyed listening to all the hard
work Carlos and the boys had put into their music.
All the days and nights spent in the studio sure paid off and I would
always remind Carlos of it. His melodic voice became more and more
like gold every time I got a chance to hear it.
I wish I could be only half as great as him. I heavily sighed causing
Carlos to squeak. We locked eyes and I smiled warmly at him. He just
stared with wide eyes. "Oh, hey I-I made breakfast."
"I know, and it smells amazing!" I winked at him before picking up a
strip of bacon. "You know, I wish you just lived with me so I could
eat like this everyday." I examined the perfectly cooked slice of
bacon in my hands before devouring it.
"I don't think I could handle sleeping on the couch that long." Carlos
laughed and began pouring coffee into a mug that he set infront of me.
"So what's on the agenda for today?" he asked as he set a plate full
of food in front of me. My eyes wondered from him down to the feast
set before me. I shrugged my shoulders before picking up a fork and
taking my first bite. Carlos watched me with a smirk on his face while
he sat down next to me with his own plate.
"Los, this is so good!" I stated while sipping on my coffee.
"I'm glad you like it!" his mouth was full of food as he spoke.
"So," he continued. "I was thinking that maybe we could go to the
beach. I really wanna get some sun!"
I groaned silently. The beach meant wearing a swimsuit. I hated
wearing swimsuits, it was like prancing around in your underwear.
Second the beach meant there would be people, and I can garuntee they
would recognize Carlos. I'm not misanthropic, I just prefer to be less
social than most.
"Okay, sounds great." I tried to sound as thrilled as he was. My
attempt failed and he seemed to notice all too well that I was in fact
not the least bit thrilled.
"Or... you know what would be even better? Rollerblading in the park!
Then we could grab lunch and head to James' place and finish getting
ready for the party?"
Now that sounded much better than the beach. I nodded my head
furiously before turning my attention back to my homecooked meal.
As soon as we had cleared the kitchen of the breakfast mess, Carlos
had taken off to his own place to get ready for our day together. I
sat on the edge of my bed struggling to try on my rollerblades that I
had owned for several years now. I remember the week I had begged my
parents to buy me a pair for my 15th birthday. A girl from my school
had told me about a rollerderby club she had going with a few other
girls from school and wanted me to join. I never did much outside of
school so I figured i'd give it a try.
Of course I didn't tell my parents the reason I wanted a pair of
skates. I knew they would never get me a pair if they figured out.
They were always so concerned for my saftey it was a miracle they even
let me leave the house.
I looked down at the skates that were now encasing my feet. It has
also been years since I've ever used these things. Pushing myself up
off the bed I began to inch my way towards the door. It was easy
walking on carpet with these things, I figured I'd do just as well on
concrete. As I began wobbling down the hall at a very slow pace Carlos
walked in with a helmet securley strapped to his head and a duffle bag
slung across his shoulder. He saw me and smiled.
As soon as he closed the door he turned to face me. I leaned against
the wall blowing my brown curls out of my face and sighed. Carlos only
laughed.
"Elora, what the hell are you doing?" he dropped the bag on the floor
and began walked towards me with an outstretched arm. "C'mon!" his
smile grew as he inched closer.
I rolled my eyes and shook my head. "Carlos, I got this! I'm just a
little off because I haven't done this is so long!" I stepped around
Carlos and began sliding across the carpet until I finally hit the
wooden floors.
The contact the rollerblade made with the wood scared the hell out of
me. I slipped and tumbled backwards into Carlos who was now holding me
up by my underarms laughing histerically.
"El, maybe you should wear normal shoes until we get to the park?"
"Right."
I felt my cheeks burn as he helped me over to the couch so I could
remove the skates. I sat back and giggled to myself. I probably looked
like a moron. I just hoped I wouldn't embarass myself in public.
"Carlos, please wait!" I called out to him as he sped down the side
walk effortlessly dodging people passing by. I could barley stand, I
made it my best effort not to fall for the billionth time. Watching as
Carlos dissapeared into the crowd of happy ongoers, I finally gave up.
I found the nearest bench and slumped down already reaching for my
skates. After almost an hour of desperately trying to keep up with
Carlos as he lapped around me, I was finished.
I struggled with the strap on my right skate. With many failed
attempts I decided to try and just slip my foot out. Grunting and
tugging I finally managed to get one skate off. I let out a sigh of
relief only to become more aggrivated as I peered down at my other
skate that still held my foot.
"Give up already?" I glanced up from my struggles to find a amused
looking Carlos holding two water bottles in his hands with a cocky
smirk played across his face.
I sat up and crossed my arms over my chest and huffed. "I'm sorry I
can't be as great as you, Los."
He chuckled and plopped down next to me offering me a bottle of water.
"Elora, it's okay. Not everyone can be as great as me. I get it."
I rolled my eyes and playfully nudged him in the shoulder before
taking a long, needy gulp of water. He did the same.
"Why don't we grab some lunch and move this party on over to James'
place?" he suggested looking down at me with a giant grin. I turned my
head to look up at him and exhailed deeply before smiling.
"Sounds great."
Blinding neon lights flashing over a wave of sweaty people, dancing
and grinding carlessly against eachother, with the strong scent of
alcohol and sweat, filled James' house. I stood leaned up against the
wall with a red cup in my hand, the other was tangled up in my
brunette waves twirling a strand of hair around my finger. I stared
down at the transparent liquid held in my cup. I had lost interest in
the drink after the first two sips. The bitter taste wasn't holding up
well with my taste buds. It was too bad, I was hoping to get at least a slight buzz,
making this party more enjoyable.
The night started out almost bearable. I was glued to Carlos' side as
guests began to arrive. One by one they all piled into James'
oversized home. Carlos and I were laughing and dancing for a while.
All of a sudden Carlos was being dragged away by Kendall towards a
group of girls. He gave me an apologetic look before slipping away
into the crowd. That's what left me here. Alone in the corner watching
as people had fun. I really wished I wasn't so anisocial. I feel like
I'm just afraid I wont fit in with the crowd. These people seemed so
important and I was just... Well me. Absolutely nothing special about
me which is what seemed to set me apart from everyone else.
I continued to scan the dance floor until I found a pair of eyes
watching me. Logan. He was leaned against the wall casually with one
hand in his black leather jacket and another lightly gripped onto a
red cup. His face was blank but I knew he was looking in my direction.
Our eyes locked and my chest started to tighten. He gulped down the
rest of his drink carlessly tossing the cup to the side and began
slowly working his way through the crowd in my direction.
Panicked, I began searching for an escape. Every conversation I ever
had with Logan was always awkward or uncomfortable. If we ever held a
conversation, it would be about how awful of a friend I was to Carlos
for whatever reason he could come up with. I let him drink or eat too
much sugar, I let him watch a scary movie before bed, I put my work
before him. I am NOT his mother. Carlos is a grown ass man who can
take care of himself and make his own decisions, I don't make them for
him. He is a big boy. At least when I talked to Kendall it would end
in me feeling more of a person who did, in fact have feelings.
In search of my escape I found James. He had his hands lightly placed
on the slim waist of a short blonde with huge green eyes. She looked
like she belonged on the big screens. In fact she probably already
was. The way she held onto his broad shoulders made thier bodies fit
perfectly. James was whispering into her ear causing fits of laughter
to slip from her bright pink lips. Poor girl she had no idea what was
in store for her.
I took a swig of my drink and decided to head out side by the pool. I
maneuvered through the sweaty crowd until I found myself standing
outside. I inhailed a deep breath of the refreshing cool air. It
wasn't as crowded as it was inside but there were still quite a few
partiers. I noticed Kendall and Carlos with a large group of guys
standing near the pool. I debated on going over and trying to tell
Carlos I was leaving but by the way they all stood I could tell they
had one too many drinks. There was no way I was going to let Carlos
nor Kendall drive home.
I pulled my phone out of my pocket and sighed. It was barley eleven.
These parties went on for hours. I noticed a pair of empty pool chairs
and went to sit. I leaned back and tried to get comfortable. I closed
my eyes and allowed myself to relax.
The speakers blasting music and the cheers and chatter of the guests
began to fade and I felt my mind let go. I was falling asleep.
Before I could fall into a deep sleep I felt movement from underneath
my seat. My eyes flew open and I jolted upright. I was in the air. I
rubbed my eyes thinking I was dreaming but it was all too real. Below
me was Kendall and a few of the guys I saw talking with him earlier
carrying me in the chair.
I screamed, "Kendall! What the hell are you doing?!" Kendall snapped
his neck to look up at me and frowned.
"Awh! She's awake!" complained one of the guys.
"Throw her in anyway!" slurred another.
My heart began pounding out of my chest. People began to stop and
watch. I felt my face beat red. I was terrified! They were going to
throw me in the pool. I knew Kendall had some sort of dislike towards
me but was it so bad that he felt the need to embarass the life out of
me? I'd like to think not. He was also very drunk. Which didn't help
this situation the least bit.
"Please, put me down!" I gripped onto the sides of the chair tightly.
A roar of cheers and laughter began to fill my ears. I felt like
crying out for anyone to help me, but knew it would be pointless. They
all wanted to watch the poor helpless girl whom none of them knew, nor
cared about, get thrown into the pool.
I felt hot tears sting my cheeks. "STOP!" I screamed over and over. I
began to frantically search for Carlos but he was no where to be seen.
They approached the edge of the pool. I stared down into the water. I
couldn't believe this. I closed my eyes holding them shut tight
waiting for my appending humiliation.
"Put her down, NOW!" I heard an unfamiliar voice approaching. A chorus
of 'boo's and moans filled the air. I opened my eyes just in time to
see Logan grab one of the guys holding me up, by the collar. "I said
put her down, didn't I?" the prideful boy just stood towering over
logan and laughed.
"No way, shortie." Before he could fit in another word Logan
tightened his grib on the boys shirt and shoved him into the pool. A
fit of laughter arose from the audience and I felt myself being lowered.
As soon as the chair hit the ground I flew off of it standing as far
back from the group of boys as possible. I was shaking and I felt my
knees weaken. I wanted to drop to the ground and sob. All eyes were
shifted from Logan to me then all at once the party continued just as
it had before.
My chest tightened. I wanted to just scream from the
embarassment, I couldn't take it anymore. I broke down sobbing. I
began to fall to my knees but was caught into a warm embrace. Hoping
for Carlos's sweet scent I inhailed an unfamiliar scent of vanilla and
spice mixed with a light scent of alcohol. The unfamiliar's arms
wrapped around me and began rubbing my back trying to sooth me.
"Are you alright?" I looked up into the eyes of... Logan? Taken back
by whom my capture was I tensed up.
"I-I.. What.. Logan?" I wasn't sure what I was trying to say. I was in
such a shock seeing as Logan was the one who had saved me from being
soaked was now comforting me.
Logan chuckled at my reaction. "C'mon let's get you out of here."
I was dragged through the back gates of James home and pulled into a
quiet, dark corner of the house. We sat on the cool grass, me still
trying to catch my breath and collect my thoughts. My heart was still
beating at a million miles per hour and I could feel myself trembling.
Logan still had his hand tightly gripped around mine. "You doing
okay?" I jumped at the break of silence.
"Y-Yeah." Logan released my hand and I stared down at the ground. "Um,
thanks. For, you know, that." I slurred out my words and pointed in
the direction we came from. He lightly chuckled. I glanced up at him
catching his crooked smile.
Seeing him this way made my stomach flutter. Out of all the people who
could've saved me it was him. In fact I would have figured he'd be the
one who'd enjoy watching me get thrown in the most. I was so confused
and my head began to ache.
"Logan, why?" I shocked myself at my outburst. It definatley wasn't
something I would just ask but then again I wanted answers. Or maybe
if was just the light intoxication taking over me. I looked up to see
Logan's reaction. He still wore his crooked smile and his eyes bore
into my own.
"You know Elora, I'm really not really the douchebag you think I am." he
cocked his head to the side still looking at me. I raised an eyebrow.
"Even after all this, I still have a hard time believing that."
He sighed and broke eye contact looking down. "Look, I know these past
few years I've been well, a jerk. I get it I shouldn't have been that
way and, wow look at me, I guess this is me apologizing." he shrugged
his shoulders nonchalantly and looked back up at me with hopeful eyes.
This didn't feel real. Was I still sleeping?
I laughed. My outburst shocked me, it was a cold half hearted laugh. I
could see Logan tense up under my gaze. "Logan. For four years you've
made me feel like I've been doing something wrong, I've tried to be
friends. I know there's a reason you pushed me away like that. I want
to know, why? I'm fairly certain I'm not that terrible of a friend. I
mean, I have Carlos and even James. Why couldn't I have you or Kendall?"
He sighed once more. "Look, you have to understand. Kendall and I just
worry about Carlos. We've been around when he's been crushed by other
selfish, spoiled, petty brats using him for his rising fame. We were
the ones who had to pick up the pieces. We don't want him to get hurt
again. He-"
"Hurt? You really think I would hurt Carlos? He's my BEST friend,
Logan. I could never imagine hurting him. Ever. Do I really come off
as that bad of a person? Selfish? Spoiled? PETTY? Did you really think
I would USE him like that? Have I?" I felt my blood boiling. I didn't
think I could get anymore insulted by something that Logan Mitchell
ever said to me. How could anyone judge another person like that
without acaully getting to know them? I've never intentionally hurt
Carlos. Never could I ever imagine doing that. Could I? The thought
was bringing me near tears. Angry tears.
I blinked the few that were forming before struggling to get to my
feet. Logan rose as well and reached for my hand. "Elora, no I didn't
mean it like that. You don't understand. He-"
I ripped my hand away furiously. "No. Maybe... Maybe your right, maybe
I'm not the greatest friend, but I still care about him. I can assure
you I won't EVER hurt him. If I ever did, I don't think I could live
with myself." With that I spun around on my heels and began walking away.
"I wish I could believe you." It was barley above a whisper. I'm not
sure if he meant for me to hear it or not but I did. Loud and clear.
What was it about me that made me seem like that bad of a person that
could hurt Carlos that way? I loved him dearly. He was without a doubt
one of the most important people in my life. But, maybe Logan and
Kendall's assumptions and caution towards me from the start was
because Carlos was also an extremely important person in their lives.
But that didn't give them the right to treat me the way they have,
does it?
"What about you Logan Mitchell, ever thought that maybe you could hurt
him too?"
BAM! Was that long enough? I hope so! I'm really sorry if it's confusing!
I'm going to try and clear things up within the next few chapters or so!
REVIEW? It would mean the world to me! Thanks for reading! I'll hopefully have
a new chapter up this weekend!
WOOHOO(:
