Several weeks after graduation, Courtney and Sam were at his house enjoying one more night together before Courtney left for her grandparents' house. Since his parents were gone until early the next day, they'd opted to stay in instead of going out for the evening. They weren't sure how often they'd be seeing each other once they both started school.
She was just glad they wouldn't be going to schools too far away from each other. For a few days, it looked like he might actually be going to some place on the other side of the country. She'd never been happier to see an acceptance letter come in as the one he got a few days after graduation.
They settled into a lounge on the back porch to listen to the radio. She couldn't help the wicked grin that spread across her face as she pictured the looks on her parent's faces if they knew she was at his house without anyone else around.
"What's so funny?" he asked, tightening his grip on her as he gave her a kiss on the neck.
"Just picturing how my parents would react if they knew where I was right now."
Sam grinned. "And where, might I ask, do they think you are?"
Courtney reached for the tea she had sitting beside them on a table, taking a sip of the drink before answering, "They think we're at the movies right now. It's going to suck, by the way, and we're going to be playing games there instead."
He shook his head, looking at her in surprise. "Why, Courtney, I don't think I've ever heard anything like that out of you before. What happened to not lying to them?"
Courtney shrugged. "If there's one thing I've learned lately, it's that they don't need to know everything. Besides, I've been in a much more adventurous mood lately," she teased.
"I've noticed," he said, leaning in for a kiss.
Courtney had no idea how long they lay kissing on the lounge chair and she didn't care. It was nice to let herself go a little crazy once in a while and forget about the rest of the world — she supposed she should be grateful to Lauren for bringing out this side of her.
The thought of her cousin made her pull away from Sam, her thoughts wandering to that night for what felt like the millionth time. Even weeks later, Courtney and Sam were the only people who knew the truth. She hadn't even told Matthew about it, feeling it would be best to keep the number of people involved to a minimum.
"You okay?"
"Sorry," she answered. "I just got to thinking about Lauren again."
"You aren't still worried about anyone finding out are you? Didn't they already close the book on her?"
Courtney nodded. "Yeah, the roommate who never existed did it," she said with a slight touch of bitterness. She should've wondered why the roommate was never around. The night Courtney had almost been busted in the apartment, the landlord had been letting Lauren's parents in instead of 'Annie' as Courtney had feared. Turned out, Courtney wasn't the only one who'd never met the elusive girl. She guessed she shouldn't be surprised that Lauren had made the person up. She didn't think people like her cousin would want too many extras hanging around to complicate whatever plans they had. What pissed Courtney off the most was the fact Lauren had used her birth mother's name for the fake friend. It was as though the girl had been taunting her secretly the whole time. To this day, no one else knew where the girl was, so everyone assumed 'Annie' must have done something to Lauren.
"I still can't believe she used that name." Sam shook his head as he stood up to change the radio station.
"Neither can I. That bitch. At least she got what she deserved." She felt odd saying that, but it was how she felt and she wasn't going to pretend otherwise.
"Agreed," he said. Sam finished tuning the radio station and took a seat beside Courtney again. His finger strayed to Courtney's side, gently caressing it.
Courtney relaxed into his arms again, one hand straying up to finger the crystal necklace she wore. She kept it hidden from view unless Sam was around. She didn't know who might have seen it when it belonged to Lauren. Courtney knew she probably shouldn't wear the thing at all, but something about it called to her. It felt comforting to have it on, even if she didn't understand why. "I'm going to miss this."
"Same here," he agreed. "I'm looking forward to the weekends even more now, though."
Courtney smiled. "True. There's always a plus side." Her smile faltered a moment later as she said, "Sam? Are you sure you're going to be okay with everything?"
He kissed her forehead and nodded. "I already said that, didn't I? You need to stop worrying."
"I did break my promise, so I wouldn't blame you if you were a little upset at least." Her stomach tightened as she spoke. She couldn't help the lingering worry she'd carried with her every day since making her decision.
"I never really expected you to keep it," he admitted. "You're too stubborn for that and I knew it from the second you bought that first book, but I'm still here. Don't expect that to change anytime soon."
His words brought a deep sense of peace to her.She might never tell her parents about the decision she'dmade, but she couldn't picture not telling Sam she'dchanged her mind about her birth parents' job. Sort of, anyway. Shewasn't exactly planning to go looking for trouble,but Courtney realized it was in her blood, and she had a feeling she wouldn'tbe able to avoid it forever.
Author's note:
Thanks for taking the time to read Learning Me. I hope you enjoyed thebeginning of Courtney's journey as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you'd like to keep up with her story, check out the books below. Also, keep an eye out for STAINS ON THE SOUL, which I'll be updating now. Chapter one is already up, but I'll post the rest of the book, chapter by chapter, as I did here and it will be every Friday. Also, keep an eye out for the other projects on the way here on Wattpad.
Other books in the LIGHTWORKER SERIES:
Exploring Me: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01C57OJ8E/
REBUILDING ME: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01JGY1NQU/
RECLAIMING ME: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XFZ9Y6P/
DEFINING ME: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077Y3948H/
CONFRONTING ME: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07CT5XBQ2/
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Learning Me
ParanormalCourtney dreams of being a professional actress one day, but her parents have always been against it. Their disapproval and disinterest in what she loves most has always been a source of resentment, but she refuses to give up on her dream despite th...
