I Wanna Be Yours (Arctic Monkeys Fanfiction) UPDATED VERSION

37 | Passing Time

There was something in her voice that caught me the wrong way. I cleared my throat. "Long story... but I'm back. The contract's over with."

Katie practically threw her keys on the kitchen counter. "I mean what are you doing in the apartment? I'm still royally pissed."

"But it's been months since—"

Her face contorted. "Exactly. Months! You abandoned me completely and left me to rot in this stupid old place alone!"

I stood up, muscles tensed. "It was either that or get sued. You know I don't have that kind of money," I muttered, almost in a state of shock. "I had to stay there."

"Still," she shook her head, pressing her think pink lips together. Dimples formed on her tightened cheeks. "We were going to have the trip we always dreamed about in LA. You ruined that."

"I had no choice."

"We always have a choice."

"Rich people like you can make those type of choices." I felt my chest constrict. "You're only upset cause you knew you paid a little bit more than me to go on the trip. You even entered me in the contest so it could balance the funds I was paying—but I thought we agreed it was okay."

Her voice was a little raspy, medium skin tone paling. "It was okay when I considered you a friend."

I took a slow breath in.

"I've been waiting so long to tell you this," Katie said, crossing her arms. "You abandoned me—for the band you knew I've loved since they first came out. I should've been the one up there! Why couldn't you have just come down to the lobby?" She ran a hand through her hair. "And now you come back after he broke up with you—yeah, I saw it on the news. You should be thankful that they even talked to you! God, Leah, you're the most ignorant person I've ever known. I hate you."

There's ringing in my ears. "Kat..."

"Don't call me that!" Tears welled up in her eyes. "Get out of the apartment!"

My gaze hardened. "I'll leave, but at least let me pay the three months rent that I missed."

Katie couldn't look at me. "Their manager sent a check each month to pay for it. It's fine."

I wanted to tear my hair out. How could Collin ruin my life, and still have been helping me out the entire time?

"Now leave. I don't ever want to see you again."

There was nothing to do but just that. I sauntered out with my bag and the door slammed behind me. I took shallow breaths as I came down the stairs, coming to the realization that I had just ended my closest friendship ever. It wasn't a nice realization.

Because I had nowhere else to be, and I was wanted nowhere else—I took a bus to my parent's house. It didn't feel nice eithe rhaving to swallow my pride and go back to depend on my family, but I was thrilled to finally see my mom's face once again. I practically tipped her over when I ran into a hug. The house smelled like quality coffee and detergent and I felt like a kid again when I stepped on those familiar hardwood floors, light blinding me through the windows.

I stayed there for a week, and no word from the band. I expected them to shut me out, but completely? I figured Collin would have least said goodbye. I could never understand that man. I spent a lot of the time looking for a new job, and stayed locked up in my room in the meantime. The transition was really hard. I didn't feel like myself.

Another week passed. I got no job offers, since my last boss never found out about the contracts I signed. He didn't know they were demanding me to stay in LA longer than I planned for as my vacation time. I was never that social, so the other friends I had couldn't ever have been close enough to talk to like Katie. Apparently I always thought more of our friendship than her. It became heavier to get out of the bed in the mornings. My mom tried to be more cheery in order to pick me up a little, and I felt bad that I couldn't pretend to have been less upset. It weighed down on me. I saved the bottle that Jamie gave me and kept it on the shelf of my room.

My heart tugged whenever I thought of Alex. It ended all too abrupt. The thoughts were unbearable, so I made a routine to shut my eyes tightly and push them out of my head. But regrettably, whenever I closed my eyes, I swore I could still feel his hand on my hip, or his lips brush mine. 

My thoughts were interrupted one morning when I heard my mom open the door downstairs. It had to be Katie. I suddenly got a wicked headache and flopped onto my bed. I yelled as loud as I could so they could hear on the first floor. "I don't want to talk to her, mom!"

"Her?" There was shuffling downstairs, but it definitely wasn't a girl's voice. "Don't misgender me!"

My heart rate spiked and I flew down the steps. My eyes lit up once I saw the figure in the door, taking off his shoes inside. His tee shirt collar looked stretched out. His blondish hair was cut shorter. I laughed, but my voice came out a little broken. "Matt!"