Hello everyone! This is aminea88, the co-writer of AlyssaLutz. She has run off the Austria and Germany for the next week (until the 22, 11 days!) for a school trip. So while she is having tons of fun there, I wrote chapter 14 (she still helped of course :)) and she wrote a bunch of chapter 15 –which I might or might not put up before she gets back- she sent the chapter 15 to me to finish.
So make sure to send her your love readers! I hope you enjoy chapter 14 :)
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Chapter 14: So Different
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EPOV
A few weeks have passed since the New Years incident and I have gone into full study mode. My mom and I made a deal that if I get over 90 on all my finals I won't have to buy her the new stove that she wants. There are some burn marks on the interior of the stove that won't come off. It's times like these I wish I could hang out with my friends, but seeing as I am still grounded and finals are a week away, that won't be happening anytime soon.
Finals. Ugh. The one time of year where social life, for me, is non-existent. Emmett had sent me an email a couple of days ago that said "Notice that Student + Dying = Studying". For once in my life I actually agreed with Emmett on this. But there is a light at the end of all the hard work. We had a whole week of just going to school for a couple of hours then going home.
This year our finals began on a Thursday and carried through till the next Friday. Luckily my exams were Thursday, Friday, Monday, Tuesday so by Wednesday I was free to hang out with Emmett and Jasper again.
In order to get the scholarship that I want, I need my marks to be at the top. Right now I have the highest overall average for a junior but it is followed closely behind by Bella Swan. The rivalry between us never ends.
I shut my AP math book with a deep sigh. For the past two weeks it seemed I have been doing nothing but studying. I think Emmett and Jasper made a "Edward Masen Died" group on Facebook, making fun of the fact that I haven't shown my face anywhere outside of class (at lunch I go to the library to study) since the Christmas break. The closest thing to a social life I have right now is on NDTeens, which is really pathetic. I talk to Twilight_girl13 (or Marie) everyday now, and she has been a great stress reliever. It really seems that she knows just what to say to make me feel better in any situation.
She also has been studying hard for finals. From what I can tell she is studying almost as much as me. I doubt anyone can quite get up to the level where I am at though.
After studying for 4 hours straight on what should have been a fun afternoon, I turned on my laptop and hoped that Marie was online. All the stress that I had built up in me melted away when I saw that she was indeed online.
- -
Sending chat request to Twilight_girl13.
Twilight_girl13 has accepted chat request.
Starting conversation with Twilight_girl13.
Julliard_Bound says: Hey!
Twilight_girl13 says: Hi Anthony!
Julliard_Bound says: How is your day so far?
Twilgiht_girl13 says: Filled with endless studying, yours?
Julliard_Bound says: The same. I went 4 hours straight today. Luckily finals start on Thursday.
Twilgiht_girl13 says: Ha. Beat you. 6 hours.
Julliard_Bound says: It appears I have met my match. I have never known anyone who has studied longer then I have.
Twilight_girl13 says: You are such a geek.
Julliard_Bound says: Are you not the one who studied longer than I have?
Twilight_girl13 says: Fair enough. So what are you up to for tonight?
Julliard_Bound says: Nothing much, probably more studying (oh joy). How about you?
Twilight_girl13 says: Uh… I don't know, I might need to run grab some groceries for tonight's dinner.
Julliard_Bound says: Sounds fun. Do you cook?
Twilight_girl13 says: Yep. My dad is pretty useless in the kitchen.
Julliard_Bound says: Haha, you really are different from normal girls. In a good way of course. Being about to cook is a great quality in a girl.
Twilight_girl13 says: Lol, thanks. I get that a lot (the not –normal part). Especially from my friends. If there is one benefit to this whole "non-stop studying" thing, its that I don't need to deal with them trying to convert me to a "normal person". After all, who wants to be normal? Yuck.
Julliard_Bound says: Right on, haha, normal is for boring people. Why don't you like hanging out with your friends? You guys don't get along?
Twilight_girl13 says: No, that's not it. Trust me. When you have crazy friends like I do, you enjoy these times when you know they won't come pounding down your front door.
Julliard_Bound says: My friends are much the same. I get in so much trouble because of those four.
Twilight_girl13 says: Lol. What exams do you have this semester?
Julliard_Bound says: AP Math, Music History, Gym, and AP Chemistry. You?
Twilight_girl13 says: AP English, AP Math, Music History, and AP History. I have gym next semester, so if I don't message you in a few days you'll know that I am in the hospital.
Julliard_Bound says: Klutz?
Twilight_girl13 says: That would be me yes. The whole emergency room here knows me the moment I walk in and I know all the nurses names. I have been there probably 20 times since I moved here freshmen year.
Julliard_Bound says: Lmao, if we ever meet I promise to never let you fall again.
Twilight_girl13 says: Thanks Romeo –insert sarcasm-.
Julliard_Bound says: My mother taught me to always treat a woman with the utmost respect they deserve.
Twilight_girl13 says: Another reason why I think your mom is awesome. Lol.
Julliard_Bound says: She's pretty cool but can be a pain at sometimes.
Twilight_girl13 says: Promise me that I will get to meet your mom one day if we ever meet each other in person?
Julliard_Bound says: Lol, I promise. I should go now; I have at least two more hours of studying because of you.
Twilight_girl13 says: You don't have to beat me lol.
Julliard_Bound says: Fine, then I will go start on my studying marathon.
Twilight_girl13 says: I will too. Lol.
Julliard_Bound says: See you later alligator.
Twilight_girl13 says: You are such a nerd. In a while crocodile.
Conversation has now ended.
- -
I shut off my Macbook and went downstairs to the kitchen to grab something to eat. I heard the front door open and shut. My dad must me home.
"Hey" I greeted him when he walked in the kitchen. He nodded his head, acknowledging my presence but said nothing more. He looked really tired.
"Rough day at work?"
"Yes, preformed a heart bypass surgery on a young man today, only twenty three." He said with a sigh.
"Will he be ok?"
"Oh yes, it was a rather low-risk procedure. It's just sad that someone his age is having troubles with his heart already."
My dad often told me these sorts of stories, along with the more terrible, and heart wrenching ones. I think he is hoping to motivate me to become a doctor.
I stuffed the rest of my sandwich in my mouth and went over to the front door where my dad put down the big pile of mail he collected from the mail box on his way home.
"Did you look through the mail yet?"
"No not yet" he answered, "you expecting something?"
"Uh…" I didn't answer him. I was waiting for an acceptance letter from this really good summer music program I signed up for… without my parent's permission. I sort of forged their signature.
My mom came down from upstairs, greeted my dad with a kiss, and asked me how my studying was doing. I didn't answer her because I was to busy gawking at the letter in my hand.
Dear Edward Masen.
Congratulations, your application for the International Music Camp, Summer School of Fine Arts, has been accepted along with a full scholarship for our three week piano and organ program. We look forward to your…
I read the first sentence five times over. I am going to the International Music Camp this summer!
"Edward…?" My mom asked, wondering why I haven't answered her. She walked over towards me. "What is that you are reading?"
"Uh…" Oh shit, new problem. My parents will kill me when they find out I forged their signature to get into a music program…
"Who's that letter from?" My mother asked, taking the sheet from me. I thought about stopping her but what was the point really?
Her eyebrows met at the center of her forehead as she read the acceptance letter. Her lips became thinner and thinner…
"What is this?"
"Well you just read it, so you should know." I said with some attitude I should have kept to myself.
"I don't recall you mentioning signing up for anything like this." She said sternly.
"Well if you did, that would be pretty creepy because I didn't mention signing up." Oh man Edward, just shut up already!
My mother looked shocked, and angry. My defensive approach made it very obvious that I knew I did something very wrong, and that this was not just some misunderstanding.
"We already agreed that you will work with your father as a co-op student at the hospital this summer." She said sternly.
"We? What we? You both were the ones who decided that, not me."
My father stepped in, and my mother passed him the letter which he read over quickly. He put it down on the bench by the door.
"There is no point in discussing this, you are not going." He said finally.
"What do you mean!?"
"Doing these kinds of things on your own… I don't know where we went wrong in raising you but I will not have my son disrespecting his parents like this."
"What do you mean? You two were the ones who said when it comes to me working towards Julliard; you wanted nothing to do with it."
"That does not mean you can forge our signature, which I'm sure you did, to go into some summer camp thing. Aren't you a bit old for summer camp anyways?"
"It's more of a summer course then a summer camp. It's a university prep-course for those wishing to pursue a career in music."
"You are still going on about that?" My mother asked with a deep sigh.
"Well I have been 'going on' about this for the past, what, three years. It's been even longer since I have decided to become a musician. I am not about to drop my dream over night."
"Edward… Please… Understand that we are not trying to be your enemy here. We love you and we want the very best for you. We want you to be able to support yourself and have a steady, decent job one day. We won't be around to support you forever you know."
"I know that, but this is something I really want to do. I don't need the newest blackberry, the most expensive designer clothes or a Ferrari to make me happy like you guys. I am perfectly capable of living in a normal sized house with average pay and average things." I had this talk with my parents like a million times. I knew all their arguments and I know they know all mine.
"I am getting sick of your disrespect!" My mom snapped, "You are doing this on purpose aren't you? You are trying to make me and your father upset. Well I hope you are enjoying yourself." She started crying.
"Oh come one there is no need to cry… god" I mumbled. She has pulled out the crying thing a few times to many for me to really get that upset by it anymore.
She turned around and started clutching her stomach as if she was going to puke, another thing she did when we got into fights. "Why can't you just act like normal guys your age?" She asked. Once again, something she asked often because she knew it pissed me off.
"What do you mean by normal? So you want me to act like the majority of other guys my age? The majority of guys my age don't study nearly as much as I do; they are satisfied with their sixty averages. The majority of guys are out at party's getting wasted and high every weekend. The majority of guys wouldn't put up with half the bullshit I get from you two!"
My mom turned around and smacked me across the face. This was not something she did very often. I stood there on the spot, too stunned to stop her so I can tell her off for smacking me. Without a word, she took my fathers arm and they left the house. After the door slammed behind them, I fumed my way up to my bed room where I locked myself in and turned on the laptop again. Marie was offline so I took out my plan B for relieving stress. I played spider solitaire… for an hour.
I started feeling bad. It was my fault really, I should have told them about the music camp. I also acted really childish when they were telling me off. I tried to call my mom to apologize, but her cell was turned off. I tried my dad's to, but it too was shut off. I wonder where they went.
I could have literally jumped for joy when I saw that Marie logged in. I opened a chat window with her.
--
Sending chat request to Twilight_girl13.
Twilight_girl13 has accepted chat request.
Starting conversation with Twilight_girl13.
Julliard_Bound says: Hey!
Twilight_girl13 says: Hey, wow, it's been so long since we last chatted. Lol. What happened to studying?
Julliard_Bound says: Uhh… it got interrupted by something awesome!
Twilgiht_girl13 says: Oh really?
Julliard_Bound says: Oh yeah. I got accepted at the international music camp. I signed up for a full scholarship for their university prep course for the piano. Since I would have had to pay for it all myself I wouldn't have been able afford to go if they didn't give me the scholarship.
Twilgiht_girl13 says: Wow… I think I might have heard of that place before… Congratulations :)
Julliard_Bound says: Thanks, my parent's weren't very happy though. I sort of signed up and everything without telling them. (Yes I know it was stupid, but I knew they would stop me from signing up in the first place. Now that I have already been accepted and everything, there is not to much they can do to stop me… I don't think. Well anyways, my chances are a lot better now then they would have been.)
Twilight_girl13 says: Hn… I am sure they are just trying to do what's best for you (even though their idea of what's good for you might be different from yours.)
Julliard_Bound says: Yeah -.- That's what they said.
Twilight_girl13 says: Just apologize and talk to them about it, I am sure you guys can come to some agreement.
Julliard_Bound says: Yeah I would, but they ran off because that's what they do when we get into fights. I think they went to see a movie and go to dinner or something.
Twilight_girl13 says: Aww that sucks.
Julliard_Bound says: Well what will suck about going to the camp is that I will be gone for three weeks, without internet. So that means I can't talk to you for a long while.
Twilight_girl13 says: Oh you must be excited. Haha
Julliard_Bound says: Not about that part really.
Twilight_girl13 says: Oh you flatter me so. So… do you have a cell phone?
Julliard_Bound says: Yep… want to exchange numbers?
Twilight_girl13 says: Sure, mine is 416 957 9114
Julliard_Bound says: 647 230 1003
Twilight_girl13 says: Awesome, now we can text each other. Make sure you do!
Julliard_Bound says: I will. Now we have an excuse not to use this site all the time. I have been getting too many creepers trying to chat with me. I ignore them.
Twilight_girl13 says: Oh me to, but I have set my settings so only my friends can see me as online. I figured out how to do that a few days ago (there is an option for it on the top left had corner of the window. Next to the logo thing.)
Julliard_Bound says: Oh perfect! Thanks a lot.
Twilight_girl13 says: Well, I have groceries to go and get before it gets too late. It's already 6:30. My dad will be home in an hour.
Julliard_Bound says: Ok, well have fun with that.
Twilight_girl13 says: Haha I will. Bye
Julliard_Bound says: Cya
Conversation has now ended.
--
I quickly added her cell number to my phone. Delighted she agreed to give it to me. I wanted to ask for a while but was worried about scaring her off.
With nothing else to do, I found myself digging through the cupboards for something else to eat; chips and pop or something. After seeing there was absolutely nothing –shocker- and having nothing else to do, I decided to take a trip to Target to grab some snacks (my parents are not here to stop me).
When I got there I went straight for the junk food isle. After grabbing a bunch of chips, cookies, pop and a bag of sour watermelon candies (those things are amazing) I headed for the cash registers. As I waited in the line, someone came from behind.
"Oh well Masen, long time no see." A sarcastic, condescending voice said.
"Swan, come to slap me again?"
"No actually. Don't think I would ever put myself through the trouble of coming over here just to slap you. You are defiantly not worth my time."
"Well that's nice. Well I am apparently worth the time of coming over to this specific cash register just to bug me."
"No actually. All the other ones are closed or the lines are crazy long. But that other one is opening up now so I am off." And with that she left for the next queue.
"Oh. Ok bitch." I mumbled to myself.
When we finished paying for our stuff, annoyingly enough at the same time, we headed for our cars. Which were parked annoyingly close to each other. We ignored each other until Bella strolled over a patch of ice/mud and fell in it. I couldn't help but start to laugh. She was lucky her cart didn't tip over, but it did start to roll away. I was nice enough to stop it for her.
"Watch where you are going smart ass!" The entire right side of her leg was covered in mud.
She got back up, trying to get some of the mud off her leg with her sleeve… which was pointless because it was also covered in mud. She looked ready to cry in frustration.
"Oh yes, very funny. You dick." She said angrily.
"Oh well that's not very nice. You really should be kinder; I did stop your cart from rolling away and busting more cars. Oh wow you got a lot of stuff here" I said nonchalantly. Bella fumed as she reached down to roll up the bottom of her pant leg, which got it bad. It was then I noticed she still had the cast on from when she kicked my car.
"So when you getting that off, the token of how dumb you are." I asked as if I didn't say anything offensive at all in the question.
She glared at me and retorted with a snort. "If you mean this token of what an asshole you are; I have an appointment for it in a week or so."
"You know what; you are so not cute at all."
"Who said I wanted to be cute around you?"
I took a deep, dramatic, sigh. "It's really amazing. How different two girls the same age can be."
"You know what Masen, I was just thinking the same. How two guys can be so completely opposite from one another."
"You are rude, bitter, and bitchy. She, on the other hand, is polite, thoughtful and sweet." I must never tell her I met her online.
"You are an arrogant asshole, a player, and a dumbass. He, however, is charming, brilliant, and totally perfect."
She walked over, shoved me over, and took her cart back. I didn't stop her. I made my way back to my car and back to my house.
I spent the rest of the evening eating chips, drinking pop, and thinking of a girl that I was just dying to meet. Until I feel asleep on my bed, with the lights still on.
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I woke with alarm. There was someone banging on the front door. Needless to say, it freaked me out. I swung my head around to check the clock, 2:47 am, before I went downstairs and looked through the peephole. On the other side of the door there were two police officers. What is going on?" I asked myself as I opened the door.
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:O Cliffy!
Well, thanks for reading! Send your reviews for Alyssa dear in Austria/Germany! She might be back for the next chapter… depends on how fast I am able to write (there is a chance I might have it out before the 22… depends on how lazy I am).
Happy March break ppls!