Learning to Live Again: 3/?
by Emilie Eden
Disclaimer: See part one. Oh, and I don't own Victoria's Secret, The Little Mermaid, Barbie, or anything else that I might have mentioned. Better to be safe than sorry, cause I don't wanna be sued.
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"That's right!" Heather beamed with pride. "I knew you would remember me. I was the most popular girl in school, after all!" She thought for a minute. "Of course, I won't be Heather Stillmore for long. After Tyler Bear and I get married, I'll be Heather Connell! Or maybe I could be Heather Stillmore-Connell." She sat down in front of Val. "What do you think? I need a girl's opinion."
"Heather..." Tyler began.
"Yes, Tyler Bear?" Heather looked up at him and smiled sweetly.
"Honey, I told you not to call me that in front of people," he whispered.
"Sorry!" She apologized, then turned back to Val. "So, Val? What do you think?"
"Um," Val cleared her throat. "Stillmore-Connell?"
"I was thinking that, too!" Heather nodded her head vigorously. "Because, well, see my middle name is Amanda, right? So, when I marry Tyler, and if I go by Heather Connell, my initials will be 'H.A.C.' and, well, what if people, like, pronounce it? They'll pronounce it as 'hack' and then I'll be humiliated and I couldn't be seen in public and..."
"Heather, honey, didn't you have some bags in the car?" Tyler asked.
"Oh! I did! I borrowed your credit card, sweetie. I'm sure you won't mind though, because I bought myself some things, of course, but you'll enjoy them, too, since I'll be wearing them. I practically bought out Victoria's Secret, so I'll have to model everything for you later tonight, especially this little leopard print number I got..." Heather trailed off, realizing Val was still in the room. "I'll just go get those out of the car now!"
"Ok, honey, you do that." Tyler watched as she scampered out of them room, before turning his attention to Val. "I am so sorry about that."
"Hey, no problem. It's your house...and your fiance." Val raised her eyebrow.
Tyler sat down at the table, looking mortified. "What?"
"Nothing," Val shook her head. "I'm sure you'll have a lot of fun tonight. Your own personal Victoria's Secret model. It's kind of like having a walking, talking, Barbie doll..."
Tyler turned red and stood up. "How about more coffee?"
"You know, I never really pictured you and Heather as a couple. Well, you did go with her to Homecoming one year, but that was because..." She was going to continue, but Heather walked back into the kitchen, loaded down with shopping bags.
Heather dropped her bags on the table and let out a sigh. "Those were heavy!" She commented as she dug around in one of the bags. She produced a leopard print teddy and showed it to Val. "Guys go crazy for these," she informed her, before dropping it back into the bag. "Especially my Tyler Bear!"
"Um, yeah..." Val agreed.
Heather dropped her voice into a whisper. "Sometimes, I call him Tyler the Tiger...if you know what I mean." Heather grinned widely, before raising her voice. "You know what? I'm starving," she announced, walking over to Tyler and wrapping her arms around his waist. "Sweetie, why don't we go out for an early dinner?"
"Oh, well, Val..." Tyler gestured to her.
"Oh, that's okay, I was --" Val began, but Heather cut her off.
"Val can come. It would be fun! We can catch up on everything," Heather added. "You can borrow something to wear of mine, Val, since you obviously don't have anything to wear. I'm sure I have something that fits."
"Well, with an offer like that, how can I resist?" Val gave Heather a fake smile.
"See, Tyler? We can go!" Heather then glared at him and stabbed his chest with her finger a few times. "But no Internet Cafe this time! That was so embarrassing, the way you and Jamie were e-mailing each other back and forth the whole time we ate dinner! I thought I was going to die!"
Tyler nodded his head. "Ok, honey. Val, any dinner preferences?"
"Seafood?" Val suggested.
Heather flinched. "Seafood? Gross! I always feel like I'm eating Ariel's friends from 'The Little Mermaid!' Oh, and don't you just hate how little pieces of shrimp or fish gets stuck in your teeth and --"
Tyler covered her mouth with his hand. "Seafood it is."
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Later that night, Val was sitting on the pull out sofa that Tyler had fixed for her. Dinner had been an interesting event, to say the least. Heather did most of the talking, her conversation topic of choice being a detailed report on how she and Tyler had went from friendship to engagement. She then proceeded to complain about the food, all the while picking at her teeth in an attempt to get Sebastian out of her teeth.
Val let out a sigh and glanced around the room. It was decorated in very modern decor, everything being either black or white. There were pictures of Heather and Tyler, pictures of Heather by herself, an occasional picture of Tyler, plus more pictures of Heather by herself.
Val rolled her eyes and leaned over the couch, looking inside the table beside it. She found an address book and, recognizing it to belong to Tyler, flipped it open to the 'R' section. She ran her finger down the pages, until it landed on Roth, Caitie.
Carrying the address book, she walked into the kitchen and picked up the telephone. As she dialed the number, she sat down at the table, nervously tapping her fingernails against it.
A man answered the phone. "Hello?"
"Um..." Val cleared her throat. "I'm trying to reach Caitie Roth. Is this the right number?"
"Yes, it is. Hold on just a minute." Val heard him lay the phone down, but she could still hear him talking in the background. "Cait? Telephone. Someone asking for you as Caitie."
"Caitie? Only, like, you and Tyler call me that these days..." Val heard Caitie say, before hearing the phone be picked up once again. "Hello?"
"Caitie?" Val asked uncertainly.
"That would be me," she replied. "Who is this?"
"It's um...it's Val," she said quietly.
Silence.
"Caitie?"
"I'm...I'm here," Caitie said finally. "I just...I don't..." She took a deep breath and then let it out. "This is a little overwhelming, you know?"
"I know. I'm sorry. I can call back," Val offered.
"No! No, just...give me a second to take this all in, ok?" Caitie sat quietly for a minute, before letting out a sigh. "Ok. I'm over the initial shock."
Val smiled to herself. "Same old Caitie," she laughed. "Which is good, because all of this is a little overwhelming for me, too."
"Yeah," Caitie agreed. "So..."
"So, um, who answered the phone?" Val asked curiously.
"Oh, that was...that was just Jamie," Caitie mumbled.
"Jamie? Really?" Val glanced at her watch. "Isn't it like, two in the morning?"
"Oh, heh, so it is," Caitie replied, laughing lightly, before quickly changing the subject. "So, um, where are you?"
"Tyler's house..." Val let out a sigh. "Or should I say, Tyler Bear's house?"
"Ah, you found out about Heather." Caitie made a gagging sound. "Isn't she awful? I thought she was bad in high school but at least then I didn't have to deal with her on a regular basis, you know?"
"Yeah, all she has done is talk about her and Tyler's relationship," Val informed her.
"I don't want to sound, I don't know, jealous or anything but..." Caitie paused. "Why did you go to Tyler first?"
"Oh. Oh, I didn't..." Val let out a sigh. "I went back to, um, to the old house and basically had an emotional breakdown." She laughed dryly, before continuing. "He found me there and brought me back to his place."
"So you're not like, avoiding me on purpose, right?" Caitie laughed. "Hey, why don't I come pick you up? Being with Tyler and Heather can't be all that great. You can stay here and we can do high school best friends stuff."
"Stay there? With you and Jamie?" Val teased.
"Jamie's leaving!" Caitie exclaimed. "It was purely...purely business, thank you very much. He's helping me set up a...a website for my law firm. Did you know I'm a lawyer now? Because I'm a lawyer. I have proof."
Val started giggling. "Caitie, you don't have to be so defensive!"
"I'm not!" Caitie sighed. "Ok, so, I'll be there in like, ten minutes, ok? Ok, good, see you then, bye." She said in a rush, before hanging up the phone.
Val grinned to herself as she hung up the phone. "She's definitely hiding something."
by Emilie Eden
Disclaimer: See part one. Oh, and I don't own Victoria's Secret, The Little Mermaid, Barbie, or anything else that I might have mentioned. Better to be safe than sorry, cause I don't wanna be sued.
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"That's right!" Heather beamed with pride. "I knew you would remember me. I was the most popular girl in school, after all!" She thought for a minute. "Of course, I won't be Heather Stillmore for long. After Tyler Bear and I get married, I'll be Heather Connell! Or maybe I could be Heather Stillmore-Connell." She sat down in front of Val. "What do you think? I need a girl's opinion."
"Heather..." Tyler began.
"Yes, Tyler Bear?" Heather looked up at him and smiled sweetly.
"Honey, I told you not to call me that in front of people," he whispered.
"Sorry!" She apologized, then turned back to Val. "So, Val? What do you think?"
"Um," Val cleared her throat. "Stillmore-Connell?"
"I was thinking that, too!" Heather nodded her head vigorously. "Because, well, see my middle name is Amanda, right? So, when I marry Tyler, and if I go by Heather Connell, my initials will be 'H.A.C.' and, well, what if people, like, pronounce it? They'll pronounce it as 'hack' and then I'll be humiliated and I couldn't be seen in public and..."
"Heather, honey, didn't you have some bags in the car?" Tyler asked.
"Oh! I did! I borrowed your credit card, sweetie. I'm sure you won't mind though, because I bought myself some things, of course, but you'll enjoy them, too, since I'll be wearing them. I practically bought out Victoria's Secret, so I'll have to model everything for you later tonight, especially this little leopard print number I got..." Heather trailed off, realizing Val was still in the room. "I'll just go get those out of the car now!"
"Ok, honey, you do that." Tyler watched as she scampered out of them room, before turning his attention to Val. "I am so sorry about that."
"Hey, no problem. It's your house...and your fiance." Val raised her eyebrow.
Tyler sat down at the table, looking mortified. "What?"
"Nothing," Val shook her head. "I'm sure you'll have a lot of fun tonight. Your own personal Victoria's Secret model. It's kind of like having a walking, talking, Barbie doll..."
Tyler turned red and stood up. "How about more coffee?"
"You know, I never really pictured you and Heather as a couple. Well, you did go with her to Homecoming one year, but that was because..." She was going to continue, but Heather walked back into the kitchen, loaded down with shopping bags.
Heather dropped her bags on the table and let out a sigh. "Those were heavy!" She commented as she dug around in one of the bags. She produced a leopard print teddy and showed it to Val. "Guys go crazy for these," she informed her, before dropping it back into the bag. "Especially my Tyler Bear!"
"Um, yeah..." Val agreed.
Heather dropped her voice into a whisper. "Sometimes, I call him Tyler the Tiger...if you know what I mean." Heather grinned widely, before raising her voice. "You know what? I'm starving," she announced, walking over to Tyler and wrapping her arms around his waist. "Sweetie, why don't we go out for an early dinner?"
"Oh, well, Val..." Tyler gestured to her.
"Oh, that's okay, I was --" Val began, but Heather cut her off.
"Val can come. It would be fun! We can catch up on everything," Heather added. "You can borrow something to wear of mine, Val, since you obviously don't have anything to wear. I'm sure I have something that fits."
"Well, with an offer like that, how can I resist?" Val gave Heather a fake smile.
"See, Tyler? We can go!" Heather then glared at him and stabbed his chest with her finger a few times. "But no Internet Cafe this time! That was so embarrassing, the way you and Jamie were e-mailing each other back and forth the whole time we ate dinner! I thought I was going to die!"
Tyler nodded his head. "Ok, honey. Val, any dinner preferences?"
"Seafood?" Val suggested.
Heather flinched. "Seafood? Gross! I always feel like I'm eating Ariel's friends from 'The Little Mermaid!' Oh, and don't you just hate how little pieces of shrimp or fish gets stuck in your teeth and --"
Tyler covered her mouth with his hand. "Seafood it is."
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Later that night, Val was sitting on the pull out sofa that Tyler had fixed for her. Dinner had been an interesting event, to say the least. Heather did most of the talking, her conversation topic of choice being a detailed report on how she and Tyler had went from friendship to engagement. She then proceeded to complain about the food, all the while picking at her teeth in an attempt to get Sebastian out of her teeth.
Val let out a sigh and glanced around the room. It was decorated in very modern decor, everything being either black or white. There were pictures of Heather and Tyler, pictures of Heather by herself, an occasional picture of Tyler, plus more pictures of Heather by herself.
Val rolled her eyes and leaned over the couch, looking inside the table beside it. She found an address book and, recognizing it to belong to Tyler, flipped it open to the 'R' section. She ran her finger down the pages, until it landed on Roth, Caitie.
Carrying the address book, she walked into the kitchen and picked up the telephone. As she dialed the number, she sat down at the table, nervously tapping her fingernails against it.
A man answered the phone. "Hello?"
"Um..." Val cleared her throat. "I'm trying to reach Caitie Roth. Is this the right number?"
"Yes, it is. Hold on just a minute." Val heard him lay the phone down, but she could still hear him talking in the background. "Cait? Telephone. Someone asking for you as Caitie."
"Caitie? Only, like, you and Tyler call me that these days..." Val heard Caitie say, before hearing the phone be picked up once again. "Hello?"
"Caitie?" Val asked uncertainly.
"That would be me," she replied. "Who is this?"
"It's um...it's Val," she said quietly.
Silence.
"Caitie?"
"I'm...I'm here," Caitie said finally. "I just...I don't..." She took a deep breath and then let it out. "This is a little overwhelming, you know?"
"I know. I'm sorry. I can call back," Val offered.
"No! No, just...give me a second to take this all in, ok?" Caitie sat quietly for a minute, before letting out a sigh. "Ok. I'm over the initial shock."
Val smiled to herself. "Same old Caitie," she laughed. "Which is good, because all of this is a little overwhelming for me, too."
"Yeah," Caitie agreed. "So..."
"So, um, who answered the phone?" Val asked curiously.
"Oh, that was...that was just Jamie," Caitie mumbled.
"Jamie? Really?" Val glanced at her watch. "Isn't it like, two in the morning?"
"Oh, heh, so it is," Caitie replied, laughing lightly, before quickly changing the subject. "So, um, where are you?"
"Tyler's house..." Val let out a sigh. "Or should I say, Tyler Bear's house?"
"Ah, you found out about Heather." Caitie made a gagging sound. "Isn't she awful? I thought she was bad in high school but at least then I didn't have to deal with her on a regular basis, you know?"
"Yeah, all she has done is talk about her and Tyler's relationship," Val informed her.
"I don't want to sound, I don't know, jealous or anything but..." Caitie paused. "Why did you go to Tyler first?"
"Oh. Oh, I didn't..." Val let out a sigh. "I went back to, um, to the old house and basically had an emotional breakdown." She laughed dryly, before continuing. "He found me there and brought me back to his place."
"So you're not like, avoiding me on purpose, right?" Caitie laughed. "Hey, why don't I come pick you up? Being with Tyler and Heather can't be all that great. You can stay here and we can do high school best friends stuff."
"Stay there? With you and Jamie?" Val teased.
"Jamie's leaving!" Caitie exclaimed. "It was purely...purely business, thank you very much. He's helping me set up a...a website for my law firm. Did you know I'm a lawyer now? Because I'm a lawyer. I have proof."
Val started giggling. "Caitie, you don't have to be so defensive!"
"I'm not!" Caitie sighed. "Ok, so, I'll be there in like, ten minutes, ok? Ok, good, see you then, bye." She said in a rush, before hanging up the phone.
Val grinned to herself as she hung up the phone. "She's definitely hiding something."