𝐡𝐨𝐨 𝐡𝐨𝐨 - 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐲 𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐬

Childhood Promises

It was late afternoon, the sun leaving a golden glow in the air. A small blonde boy was sat in his backyard, another blondie next to him. The two 10-year-olds had been hanging out all day, running around, laughing and smiling, they'd been in the pool a few times. They loved being around each other, they were the best of friends.

"Hey Courtney?" he began.

"Yes Shayne," she answered, turning to face him.

"Can I make you a promise?" he asked.

"Of course, what is it?" she quipped.

"I promise, that one day when we grow up, I'll take you out on a date," he grinned proudly.

"That's so sweet of you, but how do you know we'll always be in touch with each other?"

"Because we're Shayne and Courtney, we'll always stick together."

"Ok then," she smiled, already fantasizing over what the day would be like.

"Make it a blood pact?" he offered, pulling a compass out of his pocket and pricking his finger, drawing a tiny bead of scarlet liquid.

"Yeah, a blood pact, will it hurt?" she questioned, holding out her pinkie.

"Maybe a little, but not loads, you'll be fine," he comforted her.

"Ok... ow, that did hurt, liar," she pouted.

"Oh well, you'll be fine," he smirked, wrapping his little finger around hers and squeezing tight.

15 Years Later
Courtney's POV

It's been fifteen years since Shayne made that promise, but I doubt he'll keep it, he moved halfway across the country when we were 12, so I don't think he'll remember the blood pact, or me as a matter of fact.

It was a Saturday, so I didn't have to go into work, but I was planning on it anyways, you know to write some scripts maybe.

I was sat on my couch, eating Lucky Charms like a child, wearing a pair of sweatpants and a baggy tee.

All of sudden, I heard a knock at the door. I assumed it was my neighbor, Cathy, she's always knocking to ask me questions about her WiFi and her iPhone 5 or something similar.

But, to my surprise, when I opened the door, I didn't see a middle aged woman in a pink robe, I saw a man. A man with dirty blonde hair, a toned body, strikingly familiar blue eyes and a million dollar smile I feel like I've seen before.

"Can I help you?" I asked, studying his face.

"Courtney Miller? I've been looking for you," he smiled. And it was only then I remembered who it was.

"Shayne Topp? Shayne Fricking Topp it's been too long," I exclaimed, bouncing up and down slightly.

"It has, a lot longer than I wanted it to be. But you know, it's not easy to find out which apartment block you live in when you're in LA, and I didn't even know that when I started trying to find you," Shayne grinned.

"How did you find me then?" I questioned.

"Oh my buddy Noah told me, he's your coworker right?" he answered.

"Noah. Noah fucking Grossman, of course he gave out my personal details to a stranger," I laughed.

"Oh I'm not a stranger, I've known him since I was like 16, and when I explained our past and why I'm looking for you, he gladly told me your address," he explained.

"Fair enough," I said, leaning against my doorframe.

"He said you talk about me a lot, and that lots of things remind me of you," he sighed.

"Yeah cos you left for Arizona when we were 12 and never came back! Or contacted me, or sent me a damn postcard, I missed you, I've been missing you for over a a decade," I snapped.

"I know, and I'm sorry, I really am, but my life got complicated, my dad wasn't always around, then I got into acting, met Damien, and shits just been crazy. I've missed you too, more than you could ever know. And at least you had an idea of where I was, for all I knew you were in Australia," he joked.

"Well I'm not, I'm right here. But I want to know why you're here," I eyed him up, noticing the bouquet of red roses in his hand.

"To take you out on a date, duh," he chuckled, pushing a strand of hair behind my ear.

"Shayne, you don't know how long I've been waiting to hear you say that," I smiled, resting my hand on his as it cupped my cheek.

"15 years? You don't know how long I've been waiting to say that," he grinned.

"Yeah, how long?" I challenged him.

"My whole life," he said. His eyes filled with tears and I could feel my eyes watering too. I took the flowers and dumped them on my table. Then I returned to my door to see no one there.

"What are you doing over there?" I heard Shayne chuckle. I spun round to see him sat on my couch, holding the bowl of my cereal.

I shut my door and skipped to sit next to him, but he put the bowl down and pulled me onto his lap.

"We've got some catching up to do," he smiled, booping my nose.

"I'd really rather do this," I grinned, closing in on his face, cupping his cheek with my hand and pressing my lips against his. He kissed back, and I could feel him smiling against my lips.

I guess he kept our childhood promises.