Then I Met You

Chapter Thirty Six

Once I got to my house and parked my car I climbed up to the treehouse. It was the only place I felt safe to let out everything I was feeling and like I could be alone. I sat down on the platform and ran my fingers through my long blonde hair in frustration. I rubbed my eyes which were tearing up and then began to cry, I banged my fist on the platform floor and cursed under my breath. Then I got out my phone and started going through my camera roll. I looked at every picture Shane and I had taken together from state to sophomore year.

The first photo we had ever taken together came in December of our sophomore year. I remembered the story behind that photo like it was yesterday. I had just failed a chem test we had, I was so upset about it because It dropped my grade from a B to a C. I was ranting to Shane about it as he was my lab partner at the time. He told me he would tutor me more to help my grade. On the next test I got an A thanks to Shanes tutoring skills, he took me out to ice cream to celebrate. I looked at the selfie of us in his car holding ice cream cups In celebration. we were both younger than more naive but also more carefree. I missed times like that.

Then there was the infamous State photo. The photo that was currently single-handedly running my life. But that kiss, I couldn't get it out of my head. The way my heart melted when his lips touched mine, the way the whole world stopped around me at that moment. It was perfect and so was he.

How could I have let him get away? I felt so fucking stupid, I was alone with cold December air biting at my back. I heard my phone ring, I picked it up.

It was Miranda I stared at my phone screen for a while deciding if I wanted to answer it, ultimately deciding that I did.

"Hello?" I said dryly.

"Hey, where are you and Shane, did yall go off campus for lunch?" Miranda spoke cheerfully, which made sense for her there was no reason for her to be upset she didn't just lose the most important person in her life.

"I'm at home and I don't know where Shane is. At his house I guess?" I responded and sighed.

"What's going on Elli? You and Shane have both been MIA all day." what's going on is I just broke up with the most perfect boy who was probably the love of my life.

"I don't want to talk about it Mer." There was silence for a bit then I could hear Colin whispering to Miranda in the background.

"I'm going to know sooner or later so you may as well tell me sooner, besides we have to find Shane the victory rally and parade start in two hours he kinda needs to be there." oh my God. The fucking victory rally I totally forgot that was today. Why didn't I wait till after that to break his heart? How could I be so cruel?

I paused and rolled my eyes, here goes nothing. " If you want to find Shane you'll have to call him, we're not talking anymore. We broke up."

Miranda straight-up exploded. " What do you mean you broke up? Never mind the fact that you were perfect for each other, he was your best friend probably even more so than me."

"We made a mutual agreement that splitting up was for the best" I heard Miranda groan from the other end.

"Okay, well we're talking about this later, and your one hundred percent sure you have no clue where Shane is?"

" I already told you I have no fucking idea Mer," I said sarcastically, I didn't want to talk about Shane anymore I wanted to be left alone to cry.

"Okay, fine, bye." Then she hung up on me.

So Shane had left school too, and on his victory rally day. I felt a pit form in my stomach, I had a sinking feeling that this was going to be bad and two hours later when I was sitting in bed watching the stream of the victory rally my suspicions came true.

There in the middle of the gym floor was Shane giving his victory rally speech and he was completely plastered, reciting every word with a slur, the entire student body laughing at the sight of someone so confident and put together was now falling apart before their eyes.

I had never seen Shane drunk before, he swore to me he never drank. I didn't understand what he was doing, was he that broken? I don't know, the only thing I did know was seeing him like this hurt me.

I replayed the video over and over, I probably watched him like a million times. I sat there and I sobbed over it. I did this to him, this was my fault. I didn't want to hurt him like this but never the less I wrecked him, even though I loved him.

After watching Shane's speech for over an hour, my balcony door opened and Miranda appeared a plastic bag slung on her arm.

"You're watching the video huh?"  I nodded my head still crying, Miranda sat down on my bed and shut my laptop for me.

"I can't stop, I just don't understand."

" I swear he wasn't that drunk when we picked him up, We wouldn't have let him go to the rally if he was. Yeah he was drinking when we found him at his house but he hadn't had too much, he was tipsy at the most."

Mer took a carton of cookies and cream ice cream out of her bag as well as two spoons. She handed me one then took the lid off the ice cream. We both ate a bite.

"How did he get that drunk then?"

"Colin and I were stupid, we let him take a water bottle out of the house, I'm guessing he put liquor in there when he saw the warning texts that we were coming to get him."

I started crying again.

" I can't believe him, how fucking stupid is he, just think about how many people are going to see or have seen this video."

" I know he has made some bad decisions in the past six hours."

I shook my head and took a bite of the ice cream.

"How did you even get him home when he was like that?"

"Colin and Blaine are taking him home and there going to watch him until he calms down or passes out. He started getting violent when we were trying to take him out to Colin's truck, We almost needed a third guy to restrain him. For being highly intoxicated he is really strong."

Just like his dad violent and drunk, I hated myself for doing this like him, he needed to get his shit under control.

"I broke him, Miranda," I started not really knowing anything else I could say.

"You didn't break him Ellianna, He just made a bad decision in the heat of an emotional event. I'm sure Shane will be okay, just like I'm sure you're going to be okay."

" I wanna talk to him Mer."

Miranda took a giant bite of the ice cream she brought.

"Trust me you do not want to talk to him right now, he is drunker than I was at the party the other night. Even if you did talk to him he wouldn't make any sense, or say things he even means to say to you."

"I just want to be there for him, I want to go over to his house and take care of him just like he took care of me that one time I got drunk at his homecoming party and ripped out Karlie's hair sophomore year."

"Okay Elli, listen to me it's not safe to do that Colin and Blaine are having a hard time handling
him they are the same size as Shane, He literally tried to attack me in the parking lot, that's why I'm here and not helping my boyfriend handle your ex-boyfriend."

I knew she was right, just there was still some part of me that thought I could march over to his house and make him okay again.

"Shane would never hurt me Mer I know that, even after what happened today I can talk to him."

Mer scooched closer to me and gave me a hug, her embrace providing little comfort in light of this situation.

"I know you would like to think that but he doesn't know who he is right now, he needs to take some time to figure that out."

I nodded my head just so in shock at the situation we were in. Not understanding how things spiraled out of control so quickly.

"It's going to be different for a while sure, but you have my support Elli we're gonna get through this."

Miranda reached over and hugged me.

"I know time heals all right?"