WRONG NUMBER // C.L ( #wattys2019 ) EDITING

40

4 Months Later... 

First loves hit you hard. 

So hard you stumble for a bit until you find your balance, only to lose your footing again and come crashing back down. 

This is, in no way, an exaggeration. 

That's how it feels. 

Love is this great thing that lifts you up and makes you feel all warm and happy inside. 

But it's also this horrible feeling that you wish you'd never felt. 

Brooke and Carson knew what love was. They also knew what it was like to lose love. 

They stood now, on opposite sides of the of America, with the inconvenience of heavy hearts. 

One, a nineteen-year-old getting ready to go back to school after spring break, hoping to completely erase all memory of her first love, also known as, her first heartbreak.  

The other, a twenty-two-year-old, traveling the world mindlessly, while taking a break from music. If you asked him, he'd tell you that he was just tired of the same scene, so he looked for comfort in other places, where he met new people and tried new things. But if you asked him a second time, this time begging for honesty, he'd tell you that he was just doing whatever he could to try and get over her.

So, here we are.

Where exactly is "here"?

New York state.

It just so happens that, both, Brooke and Carson are here today. And were here yesterday. And will be here tomorrow.

Neither one of them, however, found out about this, until just now...

"What do you mean he's here?!" Brooke yelled into the phone as she shut her apartment door behind her.

"Exactly that," Hayden responded on the other end of the line, sounding bored.

"Why aren't you freaking out? I'm freaking out!"

"Because," he started. Brooke could perfectly picture him rolling his eyes.

"There's no reason to freak out and it's been months."

"Yeah, but- "

"I thought you said you were over him," he cut her off.

"I am over him, but I'm afraid if I see him again, I'll...I'll- I don't know what I'll do," Anna tugged on her hair in frustration, groaning. "I just pray to God we don't bump into each other or something."

"You probably won't, New York is a big city," Hayden commented, not understanding how nervous Brooke was.

"Thank you for that information, I wasn't aware." Brooke rolled her eyes, plopping down on the couch.

"Okay, being rude to me isn't going to fix anything."

"You're right, I'm sorry," Brooke sighed. She pulled her legs up to her chest and rested her head on her knees. "I'm just scared, H. I've worked so hard on bettering myself and trying to move on from him, that if I see him again, I'm scared I'll break."

"Brooke, listen to me, you are stronger than you think," Hayden said, his voice reassuring her. "If you happen to bump into him, which you most likely won't, you will simply look the other way and act like he never meant anything to you."

"Easier said than done, H."

Although Brooke wanted nothing more than to be able to stay in her apartment all day and not have to go out, this risking encountering Carson, she was out of milk. So, here she was, at the Walgreens a couple blocks over, looking all over the place, paranoid that she would spot him.

With the gallon safely in her arms, she turned around, her eyes set on the ground, and rushed to the cash register, where she placed the milk on the counter and rejected several offers to join their rewards program.

"That comes down to $2.75," the cashier informed her. His name tag read Joe, which suddenly made Brooke miss her Joe from back home.

Brooke reached into her pocket and pulled out three crinkled bills, flattening them out as much as she could, before handing them to him.

"It would have been thirty cents less if you were a member." Joe sang under his breath, shaking his head.

Brooke leaned her head down so he could see her glare as she snatched the change from him and took the milk with her free hand.

"It's a good thing I have thirty cents to spare then, isn't it Joe?"

He gulped, nodding and offering her the receipt. Brooke scoffed and turned away, bumping right into a hard chest.

Arms reached out to hold her in place and keep her from falling. She looked up, her brown eyes meeting a pair of familiar, green ones.

"Brooke," he said, dropping his arms.

"Carson," she croaked out, before moving past him and exiting the store.

As soon as she was out of there, she got in her car and drove away.

A/N
that's it. 'Wrong Number' is completed
i want to say thank to everyone who has taken the time out of their day to read them. Also thank you for getting me in the top five every week. Just thank you.

i know it's a bit of an open ending but i might add some bonus chapters i'd you'd like them

But i am going to be working on 'Secret' so i wont post too frequently.

Neve x