"Mah-May-Me-Mow-Moo," Sara sang, warming up. I was not much of the pianist, but I did my best to play the pitches for her. She continued for a few more minutes before I stopped her.
"Alright," I said, mustering up the best authoritative voice I could. "Let's start on your solo piece."
"Look, before we start, I need to tell you something." She looked at the floor and bit her lip. "Just don't hate me, okay?"
"Sure," I said, almost like a question. What could she have on me that I could potentially hate her for? "And I won't hate you. I promise."
"Well," She began. "I know that you got a picture. A picture of Krista McKinley kissing Matt."
I shifted uncomfortably. "Um, yeah. I did. But that is old news..."
She cut me off. "It was my fault." Sara lowered her eyes again, as if preparing for a blow.
"What do you mean?" I asked, dumbfounded.
"Krista saw me after rehearsal one day and said she would pay me $20 to take the picture of you and Matt. I saw it as a quick way to make cash, so I went ahead and took it. But then I heard her bragging about some picture she had of her and Matt, and I looked and saw it was the picture I had taken, except edited. I can't tell you how bad I felt when I heard it almost caused you guys to break up, I seriously hate that this all happened and it's all my fault..." She said, starting to cry. "Just please forgive me."
"Sara, it's not your fault. You didn't know. I probably would have done the same thing."
"So you're not mad?"
"Definitely not."
"Thank goodness. You're so nice, Lauren. I want to be just like you when I am older."
"I'm flattered, but don't be like me. Be like you." She grinned and I mentally laughed. I could only imagine that if she weren't a mascara-covered mess at the moment, she would have thought my cliche advice was just that; cliche. But she appreciated it nonetheless.
"Thanks." She giggled, wiping away the remaining tear on her cheek.
"No problem. Hey, I have some makeup remover in my bag. Let's get you cleaned up so we can work on this song."
---
"Wow, so our suspicions were confirmed," Matt chuckled. "I told you, Lauren. She's psychotic!"
"Yeah. I never liked her anyway." I laughed, kicking my Vans off.
"Really?" He asked.
"Really. Back then, it was just jealousy. I liked you and you were never going to like me while you guys were dating."
"Truthfully, I already kind of did. That's why when she dumped me I wasn't too horribly upset. She already was seeing some college guy behind my back anyway."
"You did?" I felt my heart leap in my chest. I knew it was wrong, but it made me feel really good to know he liked me long before I imagined.
"I did. I knew she was fooling around with some guy, and so I didn't bother shoving my feelings aside. I was going to break up with her but..."
"She got to it first?" I offered, completing his thought.
"Exactly. But I wouldn't have it any other way." He leaned over and kissed the tip of my nose. I tried to suppress it, but I let a tiny, girly giggle escape. "You're incredible."
We sat there on the floor for quite some time, kissing, laughing and kissing some more. After a good 20 minutes, Matt leaned away and tossed his hair. He stared at me for a moment before his pink lips turned upward into a grin.
"What?" I asked, tilting my head to the side, curiously.
"I was just thinking..." He paused briefly. "I think it's time you meet my family."
---
Author's note: Okay, guys. I know this chapter isn't that exciting, but I have had a case of writer's block when it comes to this story. I tried to set it up a bit to give it a little direction, so we'll just see where that goes. Enjoy!
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A Sweet Serenade
قصص المراهقينLauren is finally with the boy of her dreams. However, achieving their perfect relationship was not as easy as it may have appeared on the outside.
