Half the World Away

37

"Lottie!" I heard Brad yell up the stairs to my bedroom, we had just got back from the hospital and I was staying in the guest bedroom of my old home. That just feels weird. Opposite my bed was the wall, behind that wall, was my old bed, that I shared with Brad.

"Yes!" I replied, coming to the top of the stairs, my little feet pitter pattering as I walked against the wooden brown floor.

"I'm going out with Reece, Blake and George, do you wanna come?" He asked, fiddling around with his keys. He felt awkward and it was evident.

As much as I love the New Hope Club lads, I could snuggle up in bed for five thousand years right now, I thought to myself. "I'll stay at home, I'm tired." I replied, smiling at him, weakly.

"Are you sure, the last time I left you alone..."

The last few times Brad, "it's not your fault shush!" I rolled my eyes. "Anyway this is all I'll be doing!" I ran to the guest bedroom and ran to the stairs, cocooning myself into the blanket and closed my eyes. When I opened them, brad had bit his lip, trying to contain his giggles. "Oi, goof you can laugh."

And boy that's what he did.

For about 5 minutes.

Then he stopped.

And looked at me again.

Then laughed.

I'm not that funny, Jesus Brad.

"Brad when I said, you could laugh I didn't mean that much." I sarcastically said, giggling whilst I said this.

"You look like a caterpillar." Okay, caterpillars are furry and ugly. I do not whether I should be offended at that comment, or laugh? How rude. Maybe I'm mistaken and he didn't say that?

"Me?" I stepped backwards.

"Well, Jesse isn't here and you're the only person here in this house other than me." I rolled my eyes at his smart remark and put my hand to my chest mocking fake hurt.

"A cute caterpillar." He tried to correct himself. You're just digging yourself a bigger hole because caterpillars aren't cute.

"When caterpillars cocoon aren't they technically dead?" I asked, he shrugged in return. So, I decided to get revenge. I ran back into my room and he followed me.

"Oh I look like a caterpillar?" I raised my eyebrow, as he stopped at the door, "Do I?" I asked again, he slowly nodded. I picked up the pillow.

He stepped forward.

Then two steps back.

"When you do that you look like a praying mantis thingy!" I giggled, it was highly comical.

"OI!" Oh, look who doesn't like it now then? He picked up a spare white pillow too.

"You don't like it?" I said, laughing at how annoyed his face is.

"I only like being called Bradley bear by you!" He stuck his bottom lip out and made himself look like he was going to cry. Oh, two can play at that game babe.

"I don't like being called a caterpillar!" I stuck my bottom lip and made it wobble.

"Oh, don't do that you'll make me cry." He said, dropping his pillow and coming over to me.

Uh oh hunny, wrong move.

I hit him with a pillow.

"HEY THAT WAS NOT FAIR!" He shouted jumping on the bed to avoid my repeated hits.

"It was because of the caterpillar thing." He laughed at how offended he was.

"Excuse me, but I said you were a cute caterpillar."

"You're an ugly praying mantis!"

"Oi!" He smiled and grabbed my other pillow and hit my body with it, being careful to avoid my injured head.

"Oh it's on babe!" I screamed and jumped on the bed with him, we danced around on the bed for a while, occasionally hitting each other but mostly missing each other because we were overcame with happiness and we couldn't stop laughing. But his face when he was happy was worth every moment.

That smile could light up my darkest of days and for a while thinking of it was the only thing that kept me going, through the kidnaps and abuse.

When Tom told me Brad didn't care, my whole world ended. 2 months may not seem like a massive amount of time in the outside world, it's 8 weeks let's be honest. But inside, it felt like a whole 200 years, spent just waiting. The one thing that kept me going was Brad and the thought of him not even caring hurt.

"Hey, look what's that on the wall?" Brad said, pointing at something behind me and me being the gullible person I am, turned around.

Bang.

The pillow hit my body and I turned around, Brad had mischievous glint in his eye and started laughing. So I got revenge. He jumped up and my pillow made contact with his legs when he jumped. He fell and I stood over the top of him and remarked, "I won bitch." I stuck my tongue and he smiled.

"Shit, what time is it?" He asked, quickly getting up as I went to slap him again with the pillow.

"I don't know." I said my breathing quick.

"You need to shape up." He laughed, pulling out his phone to check the time.

"So do you!" I laughed, watching his defined chest rise as he breathed deeply.

"I'm going to go now, are you sure you'll be fine?" He asked, I nodded and followed him down the stairs, to the door.

"You know to..."

"To call me? Yeah I will Brad, always." I smiled and as he went to turn around, something caught me by surprise.

He kissed me.

And it wasn't a quick kiss on the check or nose.

It was a long one, on my lips.

Then he left.

I just stood there a smiled like a dork for about 10 minutes, wondering how I keep getting to this point with him.

I closed the door and I felt my phone buzz in my pocket, I slid it out of my back pocket and read the name.

Joe O'Neil

I was confused and slid the green button across the phone and put the screen to my ear.

"Have you seen the Instagram post?"

A/n: 1 MORE MONTH UNTIL I SEE THE VAMPS AGAINNNNN ALSO IM GOING TO POST 2 MORE CHAPTERS BECAUSE I DDNT REALISE BUT WE GOT 2K READS AND ITS 1 MONTH TILL THE VAMPS