author's notes: i'm soooo sorry that this chapter has taken me so long. i've had major writers block and i wasn't quite sure if i wanted this to go in the direction i had in mind before - it was too predictable and it's all been done before. i wanted to do something a little different with it, so i decided to do that instead. i came up with a different idea tonight, and it took me around two hours to write this. i'd already written two other versions of this chapter, but this one's the best one. there's a little bit of, well actually there's a lot of angst. but have faith in me, dear readers. i will not let you down. i'm nervous about you guys reading this chapter, i really hope you like it.
Lizzie stood in front of her bedroom mirror, examining her appearance and checking to make sure that everything was perfect. Perfect, for her date with her best friend. Their first ever date. Lizzie was beyond excited and sure that she looked beyond fabulous, wearing a red sleeveless shirt that hugged her body, and a flowy simple black skirt that reached down to her knees and flared out slightly. She had chosen a black belt with a silver buckle, a silver necklace, silver bracelet and small diamond earrings to accesorize her outfit. She smiled, slipping her feet into simple red flip flop sandals. Perfect. Flipping her hair, which she had left down and wavy, she giggled. She couldn't wait for the date tonight.
She glanced at the clock on her wall. Six thirty. Gordo was supposed to pick her up at seven. Lizzie sighed in anticipation. What was she going to do with herself while she waited for Gordo to arrive? Lizzie ran down the stairs, tripping slightly on the last few and falling flat on her face. She only laughed. Nothing could ruin this night. Lizzie got up, fixing her skirt, and walked to the couch. She sat down and thought as she waited for him to come over.
Jo McGuire entered the living room and sat down on the couch beside her daughter. "You look very nice tonight, Lizzie," Jo said, taking in Lizzie's appearance. She frowned slightly. "I thought you and Gordo were just going to a movie?"
Lizzie blushed, unintentionally. "I, uh..Yeah. We are. I just felt like getting dressed up, I don't know." Lizzie hadn't told her mother that her and Gordo were going on a date. It just hadn't seemed right to tell her. It was something that Lizzie didn't want to share yet. She didn't know why.
"Well, I won't get in your way. I just wanted to tell you to have a nice time. Your father and I are taking Matt out for dinner, so we'll be out of your way for awhile. See you later, honey." Jo got up from her place on the couch and kissed Lizzie's forehead. "Don't burn the house down while we're gone."
Lizzie smiled. "Don't worry, I'll try not to. See you guys later." She waved goodbye as her family exited the front door, pulling it shut behind them. She tried to hide her excitement, but she felt that it was pointless to hide it at that point. Lizzie couldn't keep the smile that was spreading across her face down.
Seven o'clock came rolling by, finally. Lizzie waited in anticipation, Gordo should have arrived at any moment. Seven came and seven passed. Lizzie sat down at her kitchen table, her head lying at rest in her hands. She had been pacing her kitchen for the past half hour. It wasn't like Gordo to be late. Had he stood her up?
No way. The David Gordon Lizzie knew would never have stood her up. He would have called. He would have came, on time. Something horrible must have happened, Lizzie knew it. And then her thoughts came crashing down on her.
"Who am I kidding?" She said out loud, to nobody but herself. "I've been stood up by my best friend." Warm, salty tears began to run down Lizzie's face and she walked back upstairs, retreating back into her bedroom and hiding underneath the covers.
She had been hiding in there for two hours when the doorbell rang at nine thirty. Reluctantly, Lizzie got up from her bed and crossed the room to her door. On her way there, she noticed that her mascara had ran down her face and the skin beneath her eyes was grey with smudged makeup. She wiped at her eyes with her hands, but it only seemed to smudge her makeup even more. Her perfectly done date hairstyle had gone crazy and fallen apart on her, but she didn't care.
Lizzie walked down the stairs slowly and towards the door. The doorbell rang again and Lizzie heard a thump outside. She wiped a tear from her eyes, still crying at the fact that Gordo just hadn't shown up for their date. Breathing in deeply, she took the final step towards the door and opened it to reveal Gordo sitting on her steps, his back to her. He stared out at the lawn in front of the McGuire house.
He didn't turn around upon hearing the door open. Lizzie stood outside, pulling the door shut behind her. "You." She said it accusingly, the hurt that she had evidently been feeling clear in her tone of voice. "What are you doing here? You're two and a half hours late, you know. You could have called. You got my hopes up. You hurt me, Gordo. You don't know how much I wanted this date to be perfect."
Gordo was silent for a moment, and then turned to face her. Lizzie gasped, taking in his appearance. Gordo's eyes were red and blotchy and his cheeks were stained with tears. Lizzie had never seen her best friend look so distraught in her entire life.
"Gordo, uh. I'm sorry. Forget everything I just said, forget it, I'm sorry." Lizzie babbled on, shocked at the sight of his face.
A sick, twisted smile spread across Gordo's face. He spoke the words loudly, his voice rough. "You wanted this to be perfect? Lizzie, I've had a major crush on you for the majority of my life. I wanted this date for ever. I wanted it more than anything. You wanted perfect? I wanted perfect. And do you know what I got? I got the worst night of my life, Lizzie. The worst thing that has ever happened to me happened on the night I was supposed to go on my perfect date with my perfect best friend. The worst thing on earth."
Gordo took a deep breath, and more tears fell down his face. He collapsed against the railing of the steps that he was sitting on. "It's my parents, Lizzie, my parents. They chose to tell me tonight, as I was going on my date with you, the truth."
Lizzie didn't dare ask. He probably didn't want to talk about it at the moment, it wasn't the time. She took a few steps forward and sat down on the steps right beside him, putting her right arm around his shoulders and pulling him in closer with her left arm. She let his head rest on her shoulders, and he began to heave sobs like Lizzie had never heard before.
"Gordo, I'm here for you." Moments later, Gordo's cries began to subside and Lizzie handed him a blanket to wipe his tears away with. He wiped at his eyes with his hands, and then turned to face Lizzie, biting his lip.
"Thanks, Liz." He leaned towards her, opening his arms.
In response, she fell gladly into his open arms, and she wrapped her own around him, resting her head on his shoulder. She breathed in deeply, feeling his heartbeat. His pulse was racing, and Lizzie wondered why. Now wasn't exactly the time to ask.
After moments, she pulled away from his embrace and looked him in the eyes.
"I'm so sorry for ruining tonight, Lizzie. I know it's all my fault," he whispered, his apologetic voice cracking.
She shook her head. "No, Gordo. Now's not the time."
"I'm so glad you were here for me." Tears formed in his eyes, once again.
The mood seemed to be contagious, and Lizzie found herself wiping her eyes with her hands again. "Oh, Gordo. What are best friends for? I'll always be here for you."
He stared with his blue eyes into her brown eyes. Lizzie became instantly self conscious, realizing that she had makeup smudged all over her face and lowered her hands to her lap. Her head began to fall, as she tried to escape Gordo's eyes.
She felt his fingers touch her face, wiping away her tears with his soft hands. "Lizzie," he whispered.
In response, she leaned away from him and lifted her face so that she could look him in the eyes.
He answered her gaze by leaning towards her, slowly and hesitantly.
For a moment, Lizzie felt as if her heart had stopped. She tried to register in her mind what was happening. Nothing was going to ruin this moment this time. She leaned towards Gordo and with one final glance towards his eyes, she closed her eyes.
She felt her lips meet his, in a perfect movie moment. Electricity shot through her whole body; she'd never felt anything even remotely like this before. She never wanted him to pull away. Everything else around them had stopped. They were the only things that mattered.
Every thought in Gordo's mind had lost his cohesiveness, and he thought of nothing but Lizzie. Nothing but his best friend, whom he was kissing at that particular moment in time. It seemed like it was lasting forever; time was moving slowly. Electricity shot through Gordo's veins and he felt like everything in the world was going to be away.
Breathless moments later, they pulled away simultaneously. Lizzie opened her eyes, and they met Gordo's eyes. His eyes shone with love, and she knew that hers reflected the same intense emotion that his did. Instantly, a smile spread across her face, wide and real.
Gordo didn't know what to feel. He knew that every girl-related dream in his life had come true - he had just kissed Lizzie. That was after everything else in his world had fallen apart. Everything had come crashing down, and then in an instant, Lizzie had made him feel as if he was flying. Pulling away, he felt his world close in on him again and he knew he had to deal with the previous events of the night when everything fell apart.
He breathed in and out slowly. She was probably expecting an explanation. "Lizzie, I'm sorry I couldn't make it for our date tonight. I know I probably hurt you with that and everything, and I hate myself for that. I'm so sorry and I hope you forgive me, but I had a good reason, I promise. I've wanted to date you forever, and I'd finally gotten my chance, but," he paused, "wait. Before I go on with that, I want to tell you that that kiss meant everything to me and I'm so glad that I've finally kissed you. Lizzie, that was the best feeling I've ever had in my life and I wish that I could feel it every day."
Lizzie smiled at him. She wanted nothing more than to lean in again, to kiss him again. To feel his warm, soft lips against hers again, but she held herself back, waiting for Gordo to continue. Whatever he had to say, it sounded like it was important. "I feel the same way, Gordo."
He smiled back at her, weakly. "Lizzie, I was late for my date because my parents told me that they're," he paused, breathing in and out slowly again. "My parents are getting divorced. My dad's going to be staying here and living in the house we have now, but my mom is going to be finding a new place to live."
Lizzie looked at him, confused.
"Lizzie, my parents want me to go move to New York with my mother."
Lizzie stood in front of her bedroom mirror, examining her appearance and checking to make sure that everything was perfect. Perfect, for her date with her best friend. Their first ever date. Lizzie was beyond excited and sure that she looked beyond fabulous, wearing a red sleeveless shirt that hugged her body, and a flowy simple black skirt that reached down to her knees and flared out slightly. She had chosen a black belt with a silver buckle, a silver necklace, silver bracelet and small diamond earrings to accesorize her outfit. She smiled, slipping her feet into simple red flip flop sandals. Perfect. Flipping her hair, which she had left down and wavy, she giggled. She couldn't wait for the date tonight.
She glanced at the clock on her wall. Six thirty. Gordo was supposed to pick her up at seven. Lizzie sighed in anticipation. What was she going to do with herself while she waited for Gordo to arrive? Lizzie ran down the stairs, tripping slightly on the last few and falling flat on her face. She only laughed. Nothing could ruin this night. Lizzie got up, fixing her skirt, and walked to the couch. She sat down and thought as she waited for him to come over.
Jo McGuire entered the living room and sat down on the couch beside her daughter. "You look very nice tonight, Lizzie," Jo said, taking in Lizzie's appearance. She frowned slightly. "I thought you and Gordo were just going to a movie?"
Lizzie blushed, unintentionally. "I, uh..Yeah. We are. I just felt like getting dressed up, I don't know." Lizzie hadn't told her mother that her and Gordo were going on a date. It just hadn't seemed right to tell her. It was something that Lizzie didn't want to share yet. She didn't know why.
"Well, I won't get in your way. I just wanted to tell you to have a nice time. Your father and I are taking Matt out for dinner, so we'll be out of your way for awhile. See you later, honey." Jo got up from her place on the couch and kissed Lizzie's forehead. "Don't burn the house down while we're gone."
Lizzie smiled. "Don't worry, I'll try not to. See you guys later." She waved goodbye as her family exited the front door, pulling it shut behind them. She tried to hide her excitement, but she felt that it was pointless to hide it at that point. Lizzie couldn't keep the smile that was spreading across her face down.
Seven o'clock came rolling by, finally. Lizzie waited in anticipation, Gordo should have arrived at any moment. Seven came and seven passed. Lizzie sat down at her kitchen table, her head lying at rest in her hands. She had been pacing her kitchen for the past half hour. It wasn't like Gordo to be late. Had he stood her up?
No way. The David Gordon Lizzie knew would never have stood her up. He would have called. He would have came, on time. Something horrible must have happened, Lizzie knew it. And then her thoughts came crashing down on her.
"Who am I kidding?" She said out loud, to nobody but herself. "I've been stood up by my best friend." Warm, salty tears began to run down Lizzie's face and she walked back upstairs, retreating back into her bedroom and hiding underneath the covers.
She had been hiding in there for two hours when the doorbell rang at nine thirty. Reluctantly, Lizzie got up from her bed and crossed the room to her door. On her way there, she noticed that her mascara had ran down her face and the skin beneath her eyes was grey with smudged makeup. She wiped at her eyes with her hands, but it only seemed to smudge her makeup even more. Her perfectly done date hairstyle had gone crazy and fallen apart on her, but she didn't care.
Lizzie walked down the stairs slowly and towards the door. The doorbell rang again and Lizzie heard a thump outside. She wiped a tear from her eyes, still crying at the fact that Gordo just hadn't shown up for their date. Breathing in deeply, she took the final step towards the door and opened it to reveal Gordo sitting on her steps, his back to her. He stared out at the lawn in front of the McGuire house.
He didn't turn around upon hearing the door open. Lizzie stood outside, pulling the door shut behind her. "You." She said it accusingly, the hurt that she had evidently been feeling clear in her tone of voice. "What are you doing here? You're two and a half hours late, you know. You could have called. You got my hopes up. You hurt me, Gordo. You don't know how much I wanted this date to be perfect."
Gordo was silent for a moment, and then turned to face her. Lizzie gasped, taking in his appearance. Gordo's eyes were red and blotchy and his cheeks were stained with tears. Lizzie had never seen her best friend look so distraught in her entire life.
"Gordo, uh. I'm sorry. Forget everything I just said, forget it, I'm sorry." Lizzie babbled on, shocked at the sight of his face.
A sick, twisted smile spread across Gordo's face. He spoke the words loudly, his voice rough. "You wanted this to be perfect? Lizzie, I've had a major crush on you for the majority of my life. I wanted this date for ever. I wanted it more than anything. You wanted perfect? I wanted perfect. And do you know what I got? I got the worst night of my life, Lizzie. The worst thing that has ever happened to me happened on the night I was supposed to go on my perfect date with my perfect best friend. The worst thing on earth."
Gordo took a deep breath, and more tears fell down his face. He collapsed against the railing of the steps that he was sitting on. "It's my parents, Lizzie, my parents. They chose to tell me tonight, as I was going on my date with you, the truth."
Lizzie didn't dare ask. He probably didn't want to talk about it at the moment, it wasn't the time. She took a few steps forward and sat down on the steps right beside him, putting her right arm around his shoulders and pulling him in closer with her left arm. She let his head rest on her shoulders, and he began to heave sobs like Lizzie had never heard before.
"Gordo, I'm here for you." Moments later, Gordo's cries began to subside and Lizzie handed him a blanket to wipe his tears away with. He wiped at his eyes with his hands, and then turned to face Lizzie, biting his lip.
"Thanks, Liz." He leaned towards her, opening his arms.
In response, she fell gladly into his open arms, and she wrapped her own around him, resting her head on his shoulder. She breathed in deeply, feeling his heartbeat. His pulse was racing, and Lizzie wondered why. Now wasn't exactly the time to ask.
After moments, she pulled away from his embrace and looked him in the eyes.
"I'm so sorry for ruining tonight, Lizzie. I know it's all my fault," he whispered, his apologetic voice cracking.
She shook her head. "No, Gordo. Now's not the time."
"I'm so glad you were here for me." Tears formed in his eyes, once again.
The mood seemed to be contagious, and Lizzie found herself wiping her eyes with her hands again. "Oh, Gordo. What are best friends for? I'll always be here for you."
He stared with his blue eyes into her brown eyes. Lizzie became instantly self conscious, realizing that she had makeup smudged all over her face and lowered her hands to her lap. Her head began to fall, as she tried to escape Gordo's eyes.
She felt his fingers touch her face, wiping away her tears with his soft hands. "Lizzie," he whispered.
In response, she leaned away from him and lifted her face so that she could look him in the eyes.
He answered her gaze by leaning towards her, slowly and hesitantly.
For a moment, Lizzie felt as if her heart had stopped. She tried to register in her mind what was happening. Nothing was going to ruin this moment this time. She leaned towards Gordo and with one final glance towards his eyes, she closed her eyes.
She felt her lips meet his, in a perfect movie moment. Electricity shot through her whole body; she'd never felt anything even remotely like this before. She never wanted him to pull away. Everything else around them had stopped. They were the only things that mattered.
Every thought in Gordo's mind had lost his cohesiveness, and he thought of nothing but Lizzie. Nothing but his best friend, whom he was kissing at that particular moment in time. It seemed like it was lasting forever; time was moving slowly. Electricity shot through Gordo's veins and he felt like everything in the world was going to be away.
Breathless moments later, they pulled away simultaneously. Lizzie opened her eyes, and they met Gordo's eyes. His eyes shone with love, and she knew that hers reflected the same intense emotion that his did. Instantly, a smile spread across her face, wide and real.
Gordo didn't know what to feel. He knew that every girl-related dream in his life had come true - he had just kissed Lizzie. That was after everything else in his world had fallen apart. Everything had come crashing down, and then in an instant, Lizzie had made him feel as if he was flying. Pulling away, he felt his world close in on him again and he knew he had to deal with the previous events of the night when everything fell apart.
He breathed in and out slowly. She was probably expecting an explanation. "Lizzie, I'm sorry I couldn't make it for our date tonight. I know I probably hurt you with that and everything, and I hate myself for that. I'm so sorry and I hope you forgive me, but I had a good reason, I promise. I've wanted to date you forever, and I'd finally gotten my chance, but," he paused, "wait. Before I go on with that, I want to tell you that that kiss meant everything to me and I'm so glad that I've finally kissed you. Lizzie, that was the best feeling I've ever had in my life and I wish that I could feel it every day."
Lizzie smiled at him. She wanted nothing more than to lean in again, to kiss him again. To feel his warm, soft lips against hers again, but she held herself back, waiting for Gordo to continue. Whatever he had to say, it sounded like it was important. "I feel the same way, Gordo."
He smiled back at her, weakly. "Lizzie, I was late for my date because my parents told me that they're," he paused, breathing in and out slowly again. "My parents are getting divorced. My dad's going to be staying here and living in the house we have now, but my mom is going to be finding a new place to live."
Lizzie looked at him, confused.
"Lizzie, my parents want me to go move to New York with my mother."