apartment 23 // mitchel cave

12

angeline's p.o.v.

"what are you doing mitchel?" i whined as i covered my face with my hands. mitchel sat in front of me, his phone pointed in my direction as he snapped pictures.

"you look prettyyyyy." he said softly as he snapped another picture of me with my face in my hands.

"ugh, stop it mitchel." i laughed, pretending to be frustrated with him.

"never." he teased, throwing a quick wink in my direction.

"can you guys knock it off? i'm trying to enjoy my day and not sit through this sappy bullshit." clinton said from across the room, causing christian to let out a laugh.

"you're just jealous 'cause you're lonely all the time." mitchel snapped back at his brother.

"i'll have you know, i was with this one hottttt blonde the other ni-" clinton was cut off by his brother.

"i don't need to know." mitchel cut him off quickly. i sat there and laughed at their "argument". they always pretended to be angry at each other but deep down i knew they needed each other. they were so dependent on each other that even when they were genuinely mad at each other, they could never stay mad for long.

although on the outside i seemed perfectly okay, deep down i was still in so much turmoil over james. this whole "happy" facade i had put on for mitchel seemed to be convincing him; he didn't ever ask whether or not my smiles where genuine or whether or not i was as happy as i said i was.

at night once he had fallen into his own sleep, i often lay awake, thinking over everything that had happened. silent tears would fall down my cheeks as i lay there, no one else to comfort me except for the father motionless body next to me. it wasn't hard to feel alone when you were the only person conscious.

trying not to ruin my happy mask for mitchel, i forced myself to focus back on what was happening in reality, not what was running through my brain. mitchel sat in front of me, re-braiding a section of his hair right at the top of his head. he seemed to be having a difficult time; his hair was always a mess.

"shit..." he mumbled as he ripped through a knot in his hair.

"do you need help?" i asked, giggling lightly.

"it would be greatly appreciated." he cracked a light smile at me.

i gently grabbed the section of hair he was trying to fix and began running my fingers through it, hoping to get through any knots without causing too much pain. he would wince slightly when my fingers caught on a knot, which was kinda cute even though it made me feel guilty. i'd apologize with a slight laugh and then continue every time. he watched me intently as i wove together three tiny sections of his dark hair until it had formed a full length braid. i tied it off quickly with the small rubber band he had placed in my hand and gently let go of it with a smile.

"what would you do without me?" i asked him with a giggle.

"i have no clue." he grinned.

although mitchel and i were definitely not a couple, we often acted like it which scared me. it worried me that maybe i wasn't fully ready to become attached to someone again. maybe we were moving too fast, much like how we had when we first met.

mitchel's face had progressively gotten better which helped relieve some of the stress and trauma i had left over from james. now all that remained was a thin scab over where james had sliced through his skin. he played it off like it was okay but i knew deep down he saw the scab as a constant reminder of him.

three sharp knocks could be heard on the door, causing us all to divert our attention towards the noise. christian immediately jumped out of his seat next to clinton and ran to the door. he opened it up quickly, revealing alexa.

she looked exactly like i had remembered her looking. her thick dark hair grazed her shoulders and she wore loose fitting pants with a tube top. she placed a light kiss on christian's lips before she turned her attentions towards the living room.

and then she saw me.

she instantly cracked a huge smile when she saw me, causing her to run over to me and practically tackle me in a hug.

i missed her so much.

"it's been way too long." she sighed as he held onto me tightly.

"i agree." i told her. she let go of me and stared at my face, her smile never faltering. she quickly took a seat next to me, mitchel on the other side of me simply grinning happily at the sight of our reunion.

"how have you been?" she asked suddenly.

"well..." i looked over to mitchel with an unsure look on my face and he smiled and nodded at me as a way to say "you got this".

"mitchel and christian have been keeping me updated on how you've been but i want to hear it from you. despite how you've been distant, i've been trying my best to make sure you're okay." she said kindly as she gently placed her hand on top of mine.

"i'm definitely getting better. slowly, but surely. it's still a lot to deal with and sometimes it doesn't even feel real, but i'll eventually come to grips with what happened between me and james." i told her. she gave me a sympathetic smile.

"everything takes time to heal." she told me.

i think that's all i really needed: time.

"you're right. plus the boys have been absolutely amazing by letting me back in. i don't know what i would do without them." i said.

"so i've heard. mitchel always talks about you now..." she said, throwing mitchel a smirk to which he sighed.

"probably about how much i annoy him." i laughed, turning to look at him. he had a slight red tint to his face.

"no, he always talks about how ado-"

"okay that's enough!" mitchel interjected her in the middle of her sentence. it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what she was going to say though. mitchel really talked about me like that? i felt a weird feeling in my stomach erupt at the thought of him ranting and raving about me to the others. this was something i never experienced between james and his friends.

"well, this reunion has been nice, but we should do something." alexa states, standing up and adjusting her skirt.

"and what would that be?" christian asked.

"dinner on me?" she asked. we all looked between each other and nodded.

"i know the perfect place." she smiled as she walked towards the door. we all followed her,
mitchel standing beside me and christian running up to walk next to alexa. clinton walked with jesse outside and to the car.

it felt like it used to be: just a group of friends going out and having a good time. perhaps this was the best type of remedial medicine. i needed time with the people i truly loved in order to overcome this. if i planned on getting over this any time soon, i would have to step out more and actually interact with people. being cooped up in a room wrapped in blankets is nice and all but it definitely secludes you off from society. this was exactly what i needed.

throughout the night, i had enjoyed myself enough that i didn't even care to check my phone when it buzzed in my pocket.

i didn't need that reminder.

all i needed was them.