When I was done eating my lunch, I looked over at Anthony and saw that he was still finishing his. I grabbed my bowl and glass and walked over to the sink and started washing the dishes, including the ones already in the sink.
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"Oh hey, you don't have to do that." Anthony finished his soup and walked over to me.
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"N-no, it's okay, I don't mind, really!" I said, trying to be cheery.
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Anthony shrugged and placed his dishes in the soapy water. He walked over to my right and began to dry the dishes I had already washed. I started humming Taylor Swift's new song, Safe and Sound while I cleaned and I heard Anthony muffle a laugh.
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"What?" I placed my hands on my hips and turned towards him.
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"Oh, nothing..." He smirked and I flicked some bubbles off my hands in his face.
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He gave me a little nudge and turned back to drying the dishes. I finished washing them and then emptied the sink. Anthony put the rest of the dishes away and we went downstairs to play some video games.
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"Uh, how about Mario Kart?" Anthony suggested, as we got to the couch.
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I shrugged my shoulders and he went over to the games cupboard. I saw him pull out a Nintendo 64 and the game. He set it up and handed me a controller.
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"Wow, you have one of these too?" I said in excitement.
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"Yeah. My older brother managed to get it at a pawn shop a few years ago, as well as a bunch of games." He pushed in the game and turned on the TV and the console.
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"I've had mine since it came out in uh, 1996, I think. My older sister, Melanie, got it for Christmas and she let me play it, even though I was only two years old. I was never very good at it until a few years later." I gave out a little laugh, and Anthony laughed with me.
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"Wow, I never knew it was that old. Huh." He sat on the couch beside me with his own controller.
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We played Mario Kart for a little while and then I got a phone call. I saw that the number was blocked, but I answered it anyways.
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"Uh, hello?" I said nervously, excusing myself from the game.
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"Yeah, this is Sarah," I brought my knees up to my chest. "Yeah, um, I'm at a friend's house right now but- okay." I paused and let the other person talk.
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The person on the other end of the line was the childcare services people. They told me that my parents and Rose were in critical condition, and they might not make it. I breathed in sharply and felt the tears starting to come up. The woman continued to talk about how I would have to go and live with my aunt and uncle in Victoria until I turned eighteen.
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"S-so I'll have to change schools and stuff?" I asked her, shaking.
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Anthony noticed this and he raised his eyebrows. I just stared at him.
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"Yes, but only for a few months. Your aunt will be at your house tomorrow, so pack up all the things you need. I'm sorry but that's the way it'll have to be." She said coldly, not even caring that my parents and my sister could die.
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I hung up my phone and covered my face. I then started bawling, not even caring that Anthony was there. He asked what's wrong, but I couldn't stop. He came moved across the couch to me and sat to my left. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into his lap. I latched my arms around his neck and he rocked me back and forth. I pressed my forehead into his neck and cried.
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We sat there for a long time, me quietly sobbing into his chest and him rubbing my back and telling me it's going to be okay. I finally stopped and he asked me what was wrong.
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"My aunt is coming here and taking me back to Victoria for a few months because I'm not eighteen yet so I need a guardian to "take care" of me and I have to switch schools and my mom and dad and Rose are in critical condition and they might die and the lady on the phone doesn't care and I don't want to go to Victoria because my aunt and uncle are mean but he's my mom's brother and she's my mom's best friend and there's more taxes to pay there and I need to leave tomorrow so I have to pack my things tonight and I don't know anybody and I'll be all alone and I won't have any friends not that I have any here beside you and Ian and FUCK!" I said quickly.
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"What? That's bullshit, they can't do this!" He threw his hands up in the air and I got up.
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"Apparently they can. I can't even go and see my family!" I kicked the couch in anger and continued to curse loudly.
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I walked over to the couch and pulled my bag over my shoulder. I walked over to Anthony and hit my head against his chest.
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"Just fucking kill me already." I muttered into his chest as I started to cry again.
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Anthony hugged me and then grabbed my hand. He pulled me up the stairs and got my jacket out of the front closet. He forced my arms through the sleeves and zipped it up for me. Anthony then sat me down on the bench and pushed my boots onto my feet. He put on his own jacket and shoes, then his scarf. Before we left, he wrapped my scarf round my neck and put my gloves on my hands. I looked up at him with glazed eyes as he opened the door. I got up and walked out the door and down the steps.
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We walked together to my house and I opened the door with my key. I then took my jacket, scarf, boots and gloves off and went down to the basement to grab a suitcase. Anthony followed me and offered to carry it up for me. I led him up to my bedroom and he put the suitcase on my bed. I started to throw my things in it.
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"I don't want to go to Victoria." I threw a sweater in. "I don't want to live with my aunt and uncle." Then a few t-shirts. "I don't want to change schools." A pair of jeans. "I don't want to have to make new friends." Some books. "I don't want my family to die." My laptop. "I don't want to leave my house." I closed the suitcase. "I don't want to leave you..." My voice trailed off.
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"Sarah..." I heard Anthony say from behind me.
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"No, don't Anthony. Just don't. Don't say you're sorry for me, don't say you'll be here for me, or say you'll miss me, just don't say ANYTHING." I strained my voice on the last word as I felt Anthony's hand pull on my shoulder.
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I turned around and he held my face with his hands. I put my hands on his wrists and looked up into his eyes. I could feel his face nearing mine and about a centimetre away from me, he stopped. He looked into my eyes and then closed the gap between us.
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At first I didn't know what to do. I mean, Anthony was kissing me. I hesitated a bit, but then eventually I started to kiss him back. I reached my arms around his neck and pulled him closer to me. He put his arms around my waist and did the same. This has to be a dream. We stood there, in the middle of my bedroom, just kissing. In that one moment, I forgot about everything that had happened and just focused on Anthony.
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His lips were soft against mine as we continued to kiss. My eyes stayed closed as he pulled me tighter against him. He lifted me up off the ground so that I was on the tips of my toes and I felt a smile grow on his lips. I then became aware of what was happening so I opened my eyes and broke the kiss.
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"I-I'm sorry Anthony, I shouldn't have done that I-" He pulled me back and kissed me again.
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I tried to stop it but he held onto me tightly. Well I can't say that I'm not enjoying this. I managed to break the kiss.
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"Anthony, stop! I can't- we can't do this! I'm leaving tomorrow for Victoria and I just..." my voice quietened as I sat down on the bed.
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Anthony's lips were all swollen and his cheeks were bright red. He sat down beside me on my bed, confused.
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"But I-I thought that's what you wanted. I mean, you do like me and I like you." He then stopped talking after he saw what I like to call my "death glare".
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"Damn it Anthony, that's not what I meant!" I practically yelled at him. "Don't you get it? I'm moving away to VICTORIA. I won't be able to talk to you or anything. I won't even be able to call you. You want to know why? Because my aunt and uncle basically live in the middle of fucking nowhere! They don't even have a landline at their house!" I opened my bedroom door and walked downstairs into the dark kitchen.
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I leaned against the wall and silently cried. I heard Anthony coming down the stairs and then walk over to me. We looked into each other's eyes and then I pulled his face to mine and kissed him. This one was deeper than the last one.
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"Don't go." I heard him whisper.
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"I have to." I leaned into him.
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He kissed the top of my head and hugged me.
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"This is all going too fast." I said quietly.
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I stared into the darkness, hoping to find some sort of way out. Suddenly, Anthony's phone started ringing. He answered it and after a few seconds, he hung up.
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"I uh, have to get home. It's almost 11." He said nervously.
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Has it really been that long? I nodded, even though he couldn't see.
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"Yeah, um, I'll uh, call you in the morning, when I'm leaving." A small tear made its way down my cheek.
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Anthony let go of me and then put on his shoes. He then opened the front door and left without saying goodbye. I ran up to the door and looked through the window. Even with the street lights on, I could barely see him. I then realised that he had forgot his jacket, so I grabbed it and raced outside, not wearing any shoes or a jacket.
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"Anthony!" I yelled, a few metres behind him.
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He had just turned the corner, but stopped when he heard his name. I guess he saw me running towards him, so he stopped walking, his hands in his jean pockets.
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I finally caught up with him and handed over his jacket.
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"Oh, I completely forgot about that." He took the jacket from my hands and turned around.
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"Anthony, please," I said quietly.
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He still didn't turn around and then he started walking. I could feel the rage building up inside me. I clenched my fists together and ran towards him.
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"You fucking idiot, what the hell are you doing?" I said, my voice almost cracking.
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I grabbed his wrist and violently pulled. He almost lost his balance and stumbled towards me.
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"What the hell? Sarah, what are you doing?" He looked down at me.
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"Why didn't you say goodbye?" I pushed him back a little.
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"Because... because I thought it would be easier. I'm sorry Sarah, but I have to go." He pulled my hand from his wrist and started walking away.
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I just stood there, in the cold, freezing, with no coat or shoes to protect me. It had been about 5 minutes before I snapped back to reality. He's gone. I slowly turned back to my house. When I got inside, I went up to my room and finished packing my things. I zipped up the suitcase and then prepared my carry-on for the flight tomorrow. I made sure that the thermostat was set at 17 degrees so the heating bill wouldn't be too high, and then I went to sleep.