Hello again, thanks for following the story! I've gotten nice messages and I'm glad you like it!
I hope you noticed the story is going backwards, we will get to the break up eventually but a lot can happen in three years, tell me why do think they broke up or what detail do you wish to know first. Anyway, this chapter is coming early because I had time after some busy days.
As always I hope you enjoy the story and comment, review, like... do your thing and I'll keep writing!
-AGA-xx
ROCKY START. CHAPTER 3
The day had started like any other would, me sprawled in my bed, half still dreaming, the other half waiting for the call of sunshine. And no, not the sunshine that would creep through the window, but Riley, my sunshine. Today I hope she forgets, I just want to stay in bed all day, have my mom bring me food and draw in my sketchbook, to stay in the safety of my sheets. I look at the clock, 9:46am, it's already late for her call, I sigh of relief and close my eyes again, cover myself to my neck and drift away. Not a minute after that, my phone starts buzzing, an annoyed groan leaves me. I manage to grab the cellphone and stay completely covered in the bed.
"Good morning sunshine!" I greeted as I always have every day for who knows how long.
"Peaches!" She said in her sweet voice "Do you think I should wear the white laced dress or the green one with the flowers I like? Because Farkle likes the white one better and it's his birthday after all..." She rambled on, getting flustered.
"Riley, honey, the party is not until 1p.m, I could be sleeping right now. But wear the yellow one with flowers he also likes"
"Ohhh yes! I love that dress! But with what..."
"The brown sandals" I interrupted her.
"Thank you peaches!" She finally said, sighing with relief on the other side of the line "Sorry for waking you, I thought you promised your mom you would go and pick up the cupcakes."
Shit, I jump off the bed, and stumble around the room taking a shirt from my closet and a pair of jeans that have been in the floor for a couple of days. My mom told me a thousand times to remember, to be fair I had more important things in my mind.
"Riley, I gotta..."
"Pick the cupcakes you forgot" she interrupts me this time.
"Yes!"
"Okay, be safe, love you!"
"Me too, see you later!" I finished the call on the first floor, grabbing my keys from the bowl and my purse.
It was almost 10 when I came back from therapy, all covered in sweat from the session, but I had stopped showering on the center, preferring the privacy of my own house. Well, it was my parent's apartment, but my room hadn't been touched since I moved to campus.
I shaved, quick but careful in my task, I didn't want to stand in front of the mirror for a second more than necessary. I knew I had to live with this scar for the rest of my life, but it was too soon and I couldn't look at myself without a shirt on.
When I came out of the bathroom I found a sticky note on my desk with my mom's handwriting. 'Went to do my hair, do the dishes and sweep the floor of the kitchen before you leave. XX'
I came back with the boxes filled with cupcakes, they were vanilla with caramel in the middle and decorated as chemical elements (even though he was turning 21), it had become an inside joke between the small group of friends. Ah crap, I didn't want to think about him, he had creeped into my thoughts as always. Today was the first time I would socialize with Lucas again, he wasn't here to celebrate the previous birthdays, or christmases or halloweens. He had made sure to keep his distance and I had made it very clear that I never wanted to see him again. Here we are now, three years later, we had moved on and here we are, pretending we are friends again. A part of me really wants to try but it has become a constant battle in my brain, deciding if I want to forgive him or if hating him forever is much easier.
"You forgot the cupcakes, even after I reminded you a hundred times yesterday" my mom said entering the kitchen.
"Who said I forgot? I have them right here" I responded placing the heavy boxes on the counter. She looked at me with a raised brow.
"I need more glitter!" Riley's faint voice came from the backyard, my mom and I looked at each other, eyes open in bewilderment. When we got there she was looking at a table, already covered in green glitter. The rest of the place looked amazing, tables were settled, balloons were inflated, decorations were hanged.
"Riles everything looks great, put down the glitter, it's perfect" I tell her taking the bag of glitter carefully as if she was holding a weapon. Riley and crafts were a deadly combination, we all still remembered the 'Purple glitter accident' that happened on our senior year. By graduation we could still collect a fair amount of glitter out of our bags and books.
I left the two in the kitchen, they were setting the cupcakes on platters and the rest of the food Riley had brought was heating on the oven. I went upstairs to shower and blow dry my hair before people started coming, before he came. Sure, we had seen each other a couple of time after his accident, but those times we only spoke a few words to each other. The only reason I'm doing this is Farkle, he looked so hopeful when he asked me if it was okay to invite him, I didn't want to let him down, not when he wanted so badly to see his best friend.
I hadn't been in the room with the four of them for a very long time, I went out with Farkle and Riley and Zay at least a couple times a month, but it was never the same, we were missing a piece and we all felt it.
I was so surprised when Farkle invited me to his party, both him and Riley always tried to keep us apart, due to Maya's wish of never seeing my face again. I was tempted to decline his offer, to make Maya happy, but his voice, it killed me and I had to say I would go.
There was a knock on the front door, I finished buttoning my shirt and opened it to see a smiling Zay holding a huge birthday present.
"Dude, what are you giving Farkle?" I asked, letting him come in.
With relief he put the gigantic box on the coffee table, he turned to me and smiled deviously. "Tickets for Pippin" I lift a brow, not understanding what he meant. "Oh, that..." He pointed his gift "that's just boxes inside boxes, one of them even has rocks to make it heavy, the tickets are inside an envelope" he laughed at his own genius prank, I couldn't help but smile. "Are you ready to go?" He turned to me.
"Yeah, let me grab my gift and my car keys" I went back to my room and took the lonely present that I kept on my desk. "Let's go Zay" I said grabbing my keys from the kitchen counter and heading to the door.
The car ride was silent, Zay had put some new alternative country band that wasn't as bad as it sounded. It was a 40-minute ride until Shawn's house, the familiarity of the route scared me, but how could I forget it after driving there with Maya every weekend. When Shawn got the house from one of his step sisters, they left the city immediately, I was more devastated to know that I wouldn't walk her home anymore or knock on her window in the middle of the night, but sharing 40 minutes to one hour (when she insisted on going the long way) was even better.
"Are you ready for this?" Zay broke the silence, we were a few minutes from the house. I looked quickly at him, searching for the reason of the question. "To see her again, I mean".
I stared at the road ahead of me, thinking for an answer, but no one ever came. I stayed quiet, telling myself to keep it cool, it was just a party, other people would be there too. My throat tied up, while my heart pulsed in my ears.
"You'll be fine" Zay said patting my shoulder, as I passed the street where we used to park when I begged her not to leave just yet, inside this car we shared so many things, memories, dreams, fears, love; she is the reason I declined a new car to stay with this one. I wanted to see that nail polish stain in my carpet, that scratch in the roof, the missing '5' on the radio, her sketches inside the glove compartment, I wanted to keep that part of us alive.
I was checking my outfit in the mirror, a cute skirt Riley had lent me and a black top that bared my shoulders and collarbone. This was a nice change from the dirty jeans and paint stained shirt I was wearing in the morning, but I wouldn't change the comfiness of an oversized shirt for a pair of heels. My hair was dry; I could already hear chatter downstairs from people showing up. Someone had turned the music on and I couldn't help but feel a nervous tickling in my fingertips.
"Aww you look beautiful baby girl!" I jumped at the sound of my mom "oops, sorry I thought you heard me knock" she was standing against the door frame.
"It's fine mom, I was just..." Thinking about Lucas, I averted my mom's look, she was smiling and I knew she was reading my mind.
"You had your head in other place, I get it" she told me with her understanding eyes and soft smile, she was comforting me from the other side of the room, no more words were needed "in other place when it should be downstairs in the party."
I looked at myself one last time, yep, I was dressed to kill. I spun around and left my room behind my mom.
"Honey, Shawn is late so I'll be staying around for another hour." I didn't reply, it was actually better if she was here to protect me "we'll be back early on Monday and I expect this house to be perfect when we return".
"Yes mom" I said when she turned to me in the stair rest.
"Where is all the party people?!" Someone shouted from the entrance, it was clearly Zay, which meant Lucas was here too, my breath stopped for a second and my hands felt sweaty. "Oh, hi Ms. Hart, I thought you were gone already..." He said after my mom and I finished walking down the stairs. He was holding a big present in his hand, that looked really heavy and I couldn't help but smile at him, he looked hilarious. No Lucas by his side, maybe he backed out, maybe he couldn't bring himself to see me or maybe he was doing it for me, yeah, that sounded more like him. "I will put this somewhere... What a lovely place you have here Ms. Hart..." He trailed off.
"Thank you Zay, I hope all the party people keep it that way" she said smiling, as she walked behind him.
The doorbell rang and distracted by the previous encounter I yanked the door open at once. A tall figure was standing in front of me, he was wearing dark jeans and a light blue buttoned shirt, rolled up sleeves that marked the strong arms that wore them. He was holding a cooler and a small wrapped box on the other one. I had to look up to meet his face, green foamy eyes that were looking back at me. It was him.
That's it for today, remember to comment and like, if you like!
