Elliot & I

Chapter One

*       *      *      *      *

     "Yes, mum - okay, yes - got it, okay, okay, I won't, yes I love you too.  Okay, right, got it.  Bye."  I hung up the phone.

Ever had that almost exact phone call with one of your parents?

I for one, am too familiar with it, every time my mum leaves for business I get the exact same call, give the exact same replies, and then have (on average) a two week time slot of complete freedom.  Pretty sweet if you ask me.

It was almost noon as I trudged down stairs, still half asleep wearing my pyjamas.

Now you'd think - an empty house for two weeks - no parents, I'd break the rules a bit. But the furthest I'll go is to drink the milk straight from the carton.

Here's the thing about me, I'm below average.

Extremely below it at that.

I don't get amazing grades, I'm not popular or pretty, I don't have the newest designer purse and quite frankly, I also don't care about any of the above mentioned.

I have all I need, my mobile, a music streaming app, the same best friend I've had since I was 5 years old, and a tub of Cookie-dough ice cream hidden behind the peas in the freezer.

I've never been someone who cares what people think of me.  Probably why me and Emma, (my aforementioned best friend,) get on so well.

We simply do not give a fuck.

I pulled my phone from the pocket of my robe and typed a message to Emma.

*tree house in an hour?  I'll supply the ice cream, you bring the spoons. S*

It's our Sunday thing you see.  We live in a small town, filled with people who have that small town mentality.  When we were younger, we had discovered an old tree house and decided to make it our own.  Emma's dad helped us decorate it and make sure it was stable and we've visited every week since.

Back then we used it for our secret club meetings and to discuss cute boys, now we bring stashes of food and a portable DVD player.  Much more civilised.

My phone buzzed in my hand.

*Sounds good. E x*

I made my way back up stairs to change from my pyjamas.  I quickly pulled on some leggings and an old jumper, before attempting (and failing) to make my hair bun look effortlessly messy.  Em has seen me in some states however, so I know she won't mind.

I grab my car keys and phone and head to the door, making sure it clicks shut behind me before locking it.

I strap the ice cream tub into the passenger seat and head off. 

Incredibly lazy of me to drive to the treehouse, it being around 5 minutes from my house and all, but it is what it is.

*

"You took your time,"

"Well, hello to you too."  I chuckle, sliding the ice cream tub to Emma as I heave my legs into the small wooden abode.

"I have shit to tell you," she says, already digging into the ice cream, "you'll never guess about who though"

"Johnny?" I wink at her.

"Johnny." She sighs.

"Well, go on then." I say taking a spoon from beside her.

Johnny is Emma's ex boyfriend.  He treated her horrendously, always ignored her and talked down to her and she promised me she'd never go back to him, but here we are.  As best friend though, it is my job to support her and be there for her if it goes wrong again, which it inevitably will.

"He called by my house last night, I think he is serious about us this time Sadie, I really do..and he told me ....."

I let her continue rambling about him as I began to zone out.  Emma was always a level up from me in the social hierarchy, she got the boys she wanted and had large groups of friends in school but she always stuck by me and I will always have respect for her for that reason. 

"... anyway, don't hate me, I can't help myself."  She said, finishing her story chuckling, as I realised I'd missed it all.

"Oh shush," I laughed "I'll be there to slash his tyres with you if he fucks up again"

We laughed, and continued to talk about our plans for the week ahead.

*

As it began to get darker, Emma made her excuses to go see Johnny and we locked up the treehouse and went our separate ways home.

Being the teenage girl that I am, and going back through my One Direction phase, I plugged my phone into the speaker and began to play No Control. 

I got home, locked the doors behind me and went to the kitchen to make myself dinner.  After staring into the fridge for 5 minutes, I decided to order take out and watch a film.  What else are Sunday's good for?

I phoned my local chinese and ordered my favourite: Crispy chicken in the most amazing honey chilli sauce.  They told me my total and hung up, I was embarrassed as ever when I realised they hadn't asked my address, as they knew exactly who was ordering and where to send it.

I grabbed some cash from upstairs before sitting in the lounge and waiting for the delivery driver to arrive.  Suddenly, I could hear every car door within a ten mile radius closing.

I switched on the Television to kill some time and decided to indulge in some Nick Miller (New Girl).

After around 30 minutes, the doorbell chimed, I grabbed the cash and stood, counting to 20 seconds so I didn't seem too eager when I opened the door.

Little did I know, the most handsome man I'd ever seen was going to be the other side of it.

*

"Hi, that's £10.90 please ma'am" he spoke.

I almost drooled. Ma'am???

He had deep brown curly hair, and styled it slightly shorter at the sides. He wore a tight white Tee, allowing me to see his arms. His very muscly arms. They were covered in dark tattoos and I couldn't help but admire them for a moment.

"Oh, yeah, here, I have the money here.  £10.90 and a tip too," I stuttered, not being able to remove my eyes from the mass of brunette curls on his head.

As I moved to put the money into his hand and take the food from him, I dropped the coins all over the floor, apologising profusely, I lent down to pick it up.  Realising I was making a fool of myself, I kept my head lowered, thanked him and took the food.

Closing the door behind me, I shrank onto the floor.  If only mum was here to laugh at the situation with me so I didn't feel as much of a goof as I did.

I went into the kitchen and began plating my food, laughing at myself and trying to forget what had just happened. 

The doorbell chimed again.

"That's odd," I thought, going to check who it was.

I opened the door to see the same man as before.

"Hi?" I awkwardly said, wondering why this outrageously gorgeous man was still there. I imagined he'd come back to confess his love for me.

Wrong.

"Eh... hi.  Could I have the money for your order?"

I felt my cheeks turn beet red as I realised I'd collected the money from the floor and pocketed it before taking the food off of him.  Way to go.

I couldn't even spit words out to apologise, I just laughed, called myself an idiot and placed the money into his hand.

He didn't smile or joke with me, he just turned and walked away.

"Rude," I muttered, way to make a girl feel even more embarrassed.

I turned and locked the door behind me, taking my plate through to the lounge and pressing play. Hoping that by watching my show, I'd forget the embarrassment I'd just experienced.