Forever ✔️

Chapter 8

That afternoon I get home after avoiding everyone staring at me and wondering as to why I am soaking wet and why I missed class, though as I walk through I just cannot wipe the smirk off my face no matter how hard I try. The thought of my mother brings me back to Earth and down deep into the ground as I ponder hard about what she might be doing.

Mum is not in the front garden like she was before I left for school. Panic begins to arise inside of me but hope covers it that she may be elsewhere. I go inside and she is asleep on the lounge under the same blanket I covered her with before I left. I am slightly relieved but, call me stubborn if you like, I will never forgive her.

I look down and the floor is as wet as I am but nothing bothers me about it. It just brings back the feeling of my heart beating a million miles a minute as my lips touched that guy and gave me that irreplaceable magical feeling. I should probably take a shower though. I'm getting cold.

Unclothed I hop into the shower and wash. As I do I rethink everything that happened while I was standing in the rain with the most significant person in my life right now and I smile uncontrollably. I start thinking about the future and I suddenly feel nervous and stop myself of thinking. This nervous feeling is unexplained.

While I am thinking I do not realise that I am voicing my thoughts. I look around to see who I am talking to and realise it is me. Have I always talked to myself in the shower? How embarrassing! Normal people sing in the shower but I talk to myself in the shower like a loner. Even more embarrassing, I haven't even noticed it until now.

I step out after turning the shower off and dress myself. I am rubbing my hair with my towel when I hear my phone sound. My eyebrows furrow in confusion but seconds later I am given hope that it could be Zane.

I quickly do up my hair in a neat high ponytail and walk to where my phone lays (only after admiring how neat I did my hair in only a few seconds). I reach my room and pick up my phone with excitement and look at the screen where the text sits.

Unknown Number 4.30pm

Your gym membership at Let's Get Physical is about to expire. Go to our website now to renew it.

My excitement leaves me and confusion settles in again. I don't even have a gym membership! I have also never heard of that gym, even if it does exist what a silly name!

My fingers tickle the screen as I type a reply.

Ava 4.34pm

Sorry, wrong number.

I send it with a sigh. I sit my phone back on my bedside table where it always sits, locking it. I tap one of the buttons to glance at the time but instead three faces look back at me. I see the guy I saw who stole my heart, the guy who made my heart bleed and the one who owns the heart. Zane, my father and me.

The photo was taken a couple of years ago and ever since it has been my lock screen. Dad and I had planned to go out for dinner together at the shopping centre and I asked him if I could invite Zane because it was the school holidays and I knew that Dad would let me invite him unlike Mum who didn't care about me like he did. So Zane tagged along with us. We had the best time and to finish the night off we went to the photo booth to keep the photos to remember the night by. Both Dad and Zane offered to let me keep the photos which I really appreciated because they both meant so much to me and still do, even though one is dead. I took a photo of the printed photos with my phone, which is strange yes, but I really liked the one where we all made silly faces. It made me smile every time I looked at it so I made it my lock screen. So whenever I feel down I could look at it and it would cheer me up.

My phone's light dies as it goes to rest, but then lights up again as a message appears.

Excitement fills me up as I read who has sent the message.

Zane 4.40pm

Hey, Ava. Just wanted to tell you that this afternoon was...amazing. This took a lot of courage which it shouldn't because you are my best friend but...do you maybe want to do something tomorrow night?

A grin spread across my face and just couldn't make its way off it. I unlock my phone and the message appears in my messages app. I compose a response to the message and send it.

Ava 4.41pm

I totally agree about today, and I would love to go out with you

Zane 4.42pm

Awesome! Is 5.30pm alright? And where do you want to go? I was thinking that place you took me to that time with your dad a few years ago...

He always knows exactly what to say.

Ava 4.44pm

Perfect.

Zane 4.44pm

So...it's a date?

Ava 4.44pm

Yup :) see you tomorrow

I sit my phone back down and lay back on the bed and let my heart beat uncontrollably.

For some unknown reason I am fully prepared and have everything ready in my head for our first date.

I can't wait!