"There you are," Isaiah said happily, a smile on his face as he jogged up the hill and towards his girlfriend. "I was wondering where you disappeared to, Toni."
Toni, who was leaning against a tree with a magazine in hand, looked up and her eyes locked onto the brown eyes of her boyfriend. She peered around. "Where's Gan and Tavis?"
"They spotted some twins and ran off to go flirt," Isaiah explained as he sat down besides her and pulled her into his lap. Toni squirmed in his lap and settled in between his legs, her back resting against his chest as his arms wrapped around her waist. He sighed. "Some trip to the park this is turning out to be."
"It's not so bad," Toni commented. "It's given me some time to think."
"Think about what?"
"Oh nothing... Just my mom's new boy toy."
"She has a new boyfriend already? Damn, that was fast," Isaiah shook his head. "Wanna talk about it?"
Toni began her story about how her mother met her new boyfriend and Isaiah listened intently. "So now my mom's with this insanely rich guy, and she's completely head over heels for the jerk. She wants me to meet him. Supposedly their relationship is that serious. Ugh, I hate him already."
"You hate all your mom's boyfriends," Isaiah pointed out, earning a nudge from Toni. "You know... maybe you should give this one a chance. He might be different."
Toni rolled her eyes. "Whatever."
"Did you just whatever me?"
Toni giggled. "Maybe."
Isaiah smirked. "Oh it's on baby. C'mere!"
"Ah!"
Toni giggled as Isaiah ticked her sides. She attempted to crawl away but he easily stopped her from doing so. To prevent her from escaping he playfully tackled her to the ground, and in the scuffle he wound up on top, straddling her as he continued his tickling assault on her ribs. Toni laughed uncontrollably as she attempted to swat his hands away. No luck.
"Okay! Okay," she shouted over her laughs. "I give up! You win!"
Isaiah halted his hands, smirking at his girlfriend. "What was that? I don't believe I heard you."
Toni pouted at him. She hated having to admit defeat, she hated it even more when she was mocked by it. Isaiah chuckled at her expression. He knew he had her in a jam, and the expression on her face was just adorable.
"You're mean." Toni huffed, frowning at him.
"Aw, don't be that way," Isaiah cooed. "I'm sorry."
"You're a jerk." Toni said, attempting to hit him. Isaiah reacted quickly and caught her hands, pinning them above her head. Their faces then became centimeters apart and she felt herself blushing.
Isaiah dipped his head and captured her lips into a kiss. Toni eagerly responded and kissed him back. He released her hands and touched her cheek affectionally. Now that her hands were free, Toni wrapped her arms around his neck, her finger tips brushing against his curly black hair.
Eventually, the two separated to catch their breath.
"Mmm," Toni smiled in content, her eyes half lidded. "That was nice."
Isaiah grinned at her in return. "It was."
"I love you."
"I love you too."
She arched her neck and recaptured his lips in a kiss. Unfortunately for her and Isaiah, before the kiss could become more heated, they were interrupted. Running up the hill shouting their names came two very ecstatic boys. The thin boy with grey eyes and spiked up blonde hair paused at the sight of the couple on the ground in a compromising position. He grinned and released a wolf whistle, nudging the much larger boy at his side who had grey eyes and black and blue hair.
"Woo hoo! Lookie at what we got here, Gan," he announced. "Looks like some bow-chicka-bow-wow is going on!"
Toni and Isaiah broke away from their kiss and looked up, glaring. "Do you two mind?!" they snapped in union.
"Excuse me, but do you two mind," the blonde snapped back. "This is a park! For goodness sake old people and little kids come here. No one wants to see you two make out. Get a room."
Isaiah helped Toni to her feet and wrapped an arm around her waist. "You're just jealous you don't have a girlfriend, Tavis."
"Ah, but that's where you're wrong my dear friend. Show 'em, Gan."
The large boy held out a piece of scrap paper, smiling broadly. "Those twins we saw gave us their number! We have a date for next week."
"Wow, congratulations you two."
"Yeah, congrats," Isaiah said, pounding fist with both boys. "This calls for a celebration. I saw a ice cream vender not far from here. Ice cream on me."
"Sweet!"
"Alright!"
Score!"
Isaiah smiled. "Okay, vanilla for the twins, chocolate for me, and strawberry for my favorite girl," Isaiah kissed Toni's cheek and took off. "I'll be back in a flash!"
"Wait up, Isaiah," Gan called out, running behind his friend. "I wanna come too!"
Toni smiled, feeling simply delighted. She turned towards Tavis. "Isn't Isaiah just the best?"
"He sure is," Tavis said softly, sighing unhappily. "Man, I'm gonna miss that dude."
Toni rose a brow. "Pardon?"
Tavis, realizing what he just did, quickly tried to smother his words. "I mean, I miss him right now. I really wanted to tell him about the twins Gan and I met."
"Uh-huh," Toni frowned and narrowed her eyes, placing her hands on her hips. "Cut the crap, Tavis. I know something's up, now tell me what it is."
"C'mon, Toni, I'm not hiding anything."
"You are too hiding something, and it's something about Isaiah," Toni concluded. Immediately she feared the worse. "He didn't cheat on me did he? Ugh, if he did I'll kill him!"
"No, no, Toni," Tavis grabbed her shoulders, looking her in the eyes. "Isaiah did not cheat on you."
Toni sighed in relief. She looked at Tavis. "So if it's not that then what is it? Is he sick? If he is I deserve to know."
"It's not that either," Tavis answered, stepping away. He ran a hand through his blonde hair. He promised Isaiah he wouldn't say anything to Toni, but she was his friend too. He couldn't lie to her. "Look... awhile ago Isaiah told Gan and I some news. Isaiah is... he's..."
"He's what?" Toni asked, slightly fearful as to what this big secret could be.
"He's moving to Florida."
Toni felt as if someone had just squeezed her heart. "Florida," she repeated, feeling devastated. "What do you mean he's moving to Florida? How could he not tell me this?!"
"He wanted to be the one to tell you, but he was waiting for the right time. Isaiah would never purposely hurt you."
"Well he did." Toni hissed angrily, fish clenched.
"Dun-dun da-da," announced Gan, holding two vanilla cones in his hands. He handed one cone to his brother. "We have ice cream!"
"One strawberry ice cream cone for my favorite gal," Isaiah said cheerfully, handing the cone to Toni. He rose a brow when she didn't accept the treat. Toni loved sweets. "Is something wrong babe?"
"As a matter of fact yeah," Toni snapped, slapping the ice cream from his hand and glaring at him. "When the hell were you planning on telling me that you were moving?!"
Isaiah's mouth was agape and he looked over at Tavis. "You told her?"
"Yeah, he told me," Toni said, grabbing his attention. "Something you couldn't do."
"Toni, I--"
"Save it," she turned away, storming down the hill in a blaze of fury. "Some boyfriend you turned out to be."
Isaiah ran after her. "Toni, please--"
"Leave me alone!" she screamed furiously, turning around to glare at him. Tears ran down her eyes and she walked away from him.
Isaiah dropped to his knees and punched a fist to the ground. "Dammit!"
TT
Toni was absolutely furious with Isaiah for keeping a secret this big from her. How could he not tell her that he was moving? For crying out loud she was his girlfriend, he was supposed to tell her things, especially things that affected their relationship.
Toni frowned into her pillow, her mind trying to think of how life would be without Isaiah. To be honest she couldn't picture life without him. Ever since she moved to Jump City he had always been there for her.
When she was only in the sixth grade, Toni and her mother had moved from Colorado to Jump City. On her first day in her brand new school she had met Isaiah. He had been so kind and friendly to her, and they immediately became friends. He was the one to introduce her to Tavis and Gan. It was the first time in her life Toni actually had real friends. Before, when she lived in Colorado, she never got along well with the other children, which resulted with her becoming an outcast. Since Isaiah became her first friend she quickly grew attached to him, and eventually she developed feelings for him.
Isaiah developed feelings for her as well.
Toni recalled her first date with him as if it was yesterday. It was in the summer after the ending of sixth grade. He had taken her out bowling and they split a sundae. It was the most romantic night of her life.
Now that he was moving what would become of their relationship? Surely it would never work out. Long distance relationships never worked out. She believed this to be true after spending hours and hours watching romantic films and reading romantic novels.
Toni rolled over on her back, her red eyes glued to the ceiling of her room. Why did life have to be so difficult?
A knock was heard at her door.
Toni immediately sat up. "Isaiah?!"
The door opened, revealing Gan. He stepped in timidly. "Sorry, it's just me."
"Oh," Toni turned her head away sadly. Despite how angry she was, she wished it had been Isaiah at her door. "What do you want?"
"I was hoping we could talk," Gan said softly, sitting at the foot of her bed. "About Isaiah."
"Look, if he sent you to do his dirty work--"
"He didn't, I swear. I'm here because I was hoping to convince you to go talk to him."
Toni's eyes flashed angrily. "Why should I go talk to him? That jerk has been keeping a secret from me for who knows how long! And you, I shouldn't even be talking to you."
"Toni, we're all sorry about what we did, but none of us meant to hurt you. Especially not Isaiah. You know how much he cares about you. Just yesterday he wouldn't stop talking about you."
Toni rose a brow at this. "Really?"
"Yeah. He was going on and on about how much he loves you and how sorry he is."
"... Go on."
"And he really wants to talk to you."
Toni lowered her gaze, thinking deeply. No matter how angry she was at Isaiah, she knew she had to talk to him.
"I'll go talk to him."
TT
Upon hearing the door bell ring, Isaiah quickly went to go see who was on the other side. He peered through the peek hole and was surprised to see his girlfriend on the other side. Without a moments hesitation he quickly opened the door.
"Toni," he was overwhelmed with happiness to see her. "I thought you... I mean--"
"Before you go on a babbling rant how about letting me in." Toni suggested.
Isaiah quickly stepped to the side and allowed her entry. Upon stepping inside Toni glanced around. Boxes upon boxes were stacked in a pile and the walls were stripped of their frames. She tapped her foot against the wood floor, there used to be a carpet on the floor. Looking around once more Toni felt as if she just stepped into a gloomy atmosphere. Usually when she walked into Isaiah's house she was welcomed with a cozy and warm feeling. But not today. Today she didn't get that homey feeling she normally did. Looking at the bare walls and floor only made the fact that Isaiah was leaving a harsh reality, one that hurt Toni greatly.
"So this is it huh," Toni said softly, trying to force back tears. "You're really leaving?"
"Believe me I don't want to." Isaiah replied softly, sitting at the foot of the stairs and letting his head hang between his knees.
Toni sat down besides him and rubbed his back. She suddenly felt guilty. She had overreacted and only thought about herself. She forgot all about his feelings. Isaiah had lived in Jump City his whole life, he had a history here. He had friends here. He and her had just started high school, they only had a few weeks of school left. Leaving Jump City was harder on him than it was her.
"I'm sorry," Toni murmured softly, kissing his neck and rubbing his arms. She rested her head on his shoulder. "I shouldn't have gotten angry."
Isaiah took hold of her hand and squeezed it gently. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about me moving."
Toni sighed. "How much time do we have left?"
"About two weeks."
Only two weeks? Toni fought the urge to cry right then and there. She had to be strong. She had to be strong for Isaiah.
Squeezing his hand back she smiled at him. "Well then, let's make this the best two weeks of your life."
TT
Toni, Isaiah, Tavis and Gan couldn't control their laughter as they took a trip down memory lane. About a week had passed since the day Toni discovered that Isaiah was moving, and since that day the four friends had been trying to squeeze in as much time together as possible. They had little time left with Isaiah, and they wanted to make their last moments together count.
The group had already done an array of activities together, such as: going swimming, visiting the amusement park, a trip to the movies, and the arcade. Today, the group had settled down in the twins back yard for camping. They sat in a circle with junk food in their laps. Instead of telling ghost stories, they had instead chosen to tell stories of their past.
"Remember last summer when Toni and Gan streaked their hair?" Tavis said, munching on a bag of popcorn.
Toni laughed. "When my mom saw my red streaks she totally freaked on me. She was like, your hair! What did you do to your hair?"
Isaiah ruffled Toni's black and red streaked hair and chuckled. "She totally freaked out. I thought for sure she was gonna faint."
"You know who I thought was gonna faint," Toni began, looking over at Gan and smirking. "Gan last Thanksgiving. He looked like he had a heart attack when his mom burnt the turkey."
"Hey, if you wanna talk about burning stuff let's look at your boyfriend over here," said Gan. "Remember that time we were at his house and he tried cooking? He almost set the kitchen on fire."
"Okay, that was bad. My parents were so steamed," Isaiah chuckled and turned his eyes towards Tavis. "They reminded me of your parents when you broke their priceless vase."
"It was an accident!"
"Yeah, just like that time when you broke that ice sculpture at our aunt's wedding." quipped Gan, taking a bite out of a smore.
"Well you broke the car window. And the house window. And just last night you dropped a plate."
"Well you dropped the lamp."
The two twins glared at each other before they began a wrestling match with each other. Toni and Isaiah could only laugh.
TT
Before anyone realized, time had flown by and the day for Isaiah to leave came. Everything had already been gathered from Isaiah's house and into the family car. Everyone was prepared to go. Everyone but Isaiah. He still had to say goodbye to his friends.
Tavis, Gan, and Toni had gathered by the front porch of Isaiah's home. He stood before them, hands in his pockets.
"Well guys...," he began. "This is it."
"Isaiah, dude, it's been cool," Tavis said, bumping fist with the chocolate skinned boy before him. Isaiah bumped his fist and grabbed Tavis in a one armed hug. "You take care man. And I wanna hear about all the chicks you see in bikinis in Florida. Feel free to send me some pictures of that."
Isaiah ruffled his hair, laughing. "Try and stay outta trouble, Tavis."
"No promises."
Isaiah moved on to Gan next, looking up at his tall friend. He rose a brow. "Dude... are you crying?"
"No," Gan squeaked, rubbing his eyes. "I just got something in my eye."
Isaiah gave Gan a one armed hug. "You take care, Gan. And kick butt once you get to high school. I wanna hear about how awesome your grades are gonna be."
"Not as awesome as yours. You're a genius!"
"Yeah, I am, aren't I," Isaiah laughed and patted his friend on the shoulder. "You be good big guy."
"You too, dude."
Finally, Isaiah stepped up to Toni.
Isaiah wrapped her in a hug. "Toni... I'm gonna miss you so much."
Toni could feel the tears prick at her eyes. "I'm gonna miss you too."
"I promise I'll call, write, and e-mail."
Toni nodded her head. Her and Isaiah had discussed the topic of a long distance relationship a few days ago. They decided to give it a shot.
"Listen," Isaiah cupped her face and looked her in the eyes. "I love you, okay? No matter what happens from here on out, I will always love you."
"I love you too." she replied, tears spilling from her eyes as she embraced him again.
He kissed the top of her head. "Try and behave yourself, alright. And give your mom's new boyfriend a chance. He seems like a nice guy."
Toni giggled. "Okay. But if they get married don't think I'll be a sweet little step daughter or anything."
Isaiah chuckled. "I wouldn't dream of it."
They pulled apart and smiled at each other. Leaning in closer their lips met in a passionate kiss.
Isaiah's father beeped the horn and his mother poked her head out the window. "Son, we have to go!"
Isaiah wiped his eyes. He could feel the tears ready to fall. "I'm gonna miss you... All of you."
"We're gonna miss you too."
Isaiah lowered his head. "Bye guys."
"Bye, Isaiah."
"Bye."
"Goodbye, Isaiah."
Tavis, Gan, and Toni watched as their friend walked away. They watched him as he got in the back seat of his family's car, and they watched as the car drove further and further away.
"Do you think we'll ever see him again?" Gan asked, breaking the silence that had settled. Tavis looked down, not having an answer.
Toni sighed, lowering her gaze as well. "... I don't know."
TT
SPECIAL THANKS TOO featherpen13, ravencherithgirl, BerryDrops, TerraBB4Eva, cookiesruletheworld, RobinxStarfireLuvr, Ace.04, .Spaz-attack101, Dancing-StarFrenzy, clarkLover1, NegativeCloud, MathGeek1o1, tennisgal456, Hexanna, AND Romancelover1321 FOR THE AWESOME REVIEWS! YOU GUYS ARE THE GREATEST! I HOPE YOU ALL LIKED THIS CHAPTER.
OKAY, CLEARLY THE LONG DISTANCE THING DIDN'T WORK OUT BETWEEN ISAIAH AND TONI. AT SOME POINT THE RELATIONSHIP ENDED, AND THEN TONI MOVED ON TO ALAIN. IN CASE ANYONE WAS WONDERING, OR WERE CONFUSED:
Isaiah Crockett - Hot Spot
Gan Williams - Thunder
Tavis Williams - Lightning
Toni Monetti - Argent
ONE MORE CHAPTER LEFT! OMG, FINALLY!
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