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Reece's POV
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After being away from Layla for a little over two weeks, we've managed to establish a routine. She's started her new school in New York which is three hours ahead of ours. So, her school ends around the time we start lunch. That's when we have our first call of the day. Sometimes it's a video call and other times it's a phone call. We all pass the phone around – it's usually mine – and get a chance to talk to Layla.
The next time I speak to her is after school. By the time I arrive home, she's been home for three hours already, so that gives her enough time to do her homework or anything else she has to do before our call. This one is almost always a video call. My whole family spends time talking with her, although it's mostly Cody and the twins. That call ends when it's time for her to have dinner.
And lastly, every night before bed, Layla and I have our own call just between the two of us. I try to go to sleep earlier so that she doesn't have to stay up as late, but she doesn't seem to mind either way. We spend this time either talking or I listen to her sing or sometimes we just sit in silence. Either way, it's my favorite time of the day.
It's now Thanksgiving, meaning we've been off school since yesterday. It's the afternoon now, and my family and I have gone to my grandparents' house as we do every year. We've already eaten a huge lunch cooked by my parents and grandparents.
Macy, Sophie, and Cody are now running around in the backyard, somehow not at all affected by the copious amounts of food they've just consumed. Sophie got her cast off earlier this week. Max is outside too, sitting on the deck and playing a game on his phone. Mom and Dad are in the living room with my grandparents while Anna has gone down the hall to call Liam and see how his Thanksgiving is going. His parents came home for the first time in months and I know he's ecstatic. He doesn't get to see them very often, but when he does, it makes him ten times happier.
I've found myself on the front porch, away from everyone else, staring down at my phone as I contemplate whether or not I should call Layla. I want to. Boy, do I want to. I want nothing more than to call her and hear her calming voice. But I also don't want to disrupt her plans. It will be around six o'clock in New York at the moment so they might already be having dinner. Maybe not, but I don't want to annoy her if they are.
Before I can hesitate any longer, I press the call button and hold my phone up to my ear. I let out a breath and feel my leg start to bounce up and down as I listen to the monotonous ringing. I don't have to wait too long though, as after only two rings, the call connects.
"Reece! Happy Thanksgiving!" Her voice is light and bubbly and it only makes me miss her more.
"Happy Thanksgiving, Sunshine," I murmur, closing my eyes as I feel my leg still. I rest my elbows on my knees and bend forward slightly, feeling a small weight lift off my chest. I always feel better when I'm talking to her.
"Is everything alright?" She asks softly, her voice filled with concern. I smile despite myself. She's too good.
"I'm alright, Sunshine. Just tired, that's all," I mutter, running a hand through my hair. I pause, sighing softly when I find myself wishing it were her hand brushing through my hair. What is she doing to me?
"Reece," Her voice is still soft, but it's also strong. She doesn't believe me for a second.
"Sunshine, I'm fine. It's just-" I stop myself, not wanting to repeat the same three words to her again. I've said it too many times now, she must be getting sick of it.
I can hear the smile in her voice as she replies gently, "I miss you too, Reece."
I release a short breath, "I do though. I don't mean to sound repetitive, but I do miss you."
She lets out a quiet sigh, "Reece, you are so adorable. You think you're being repetitive? I honestly don't care. I like that you're voicing how you feel."
I shake my head to myself with a small smile. If only she knew how much of my feelings I hide. "Oh. Good." Clearing my throat, I continue, "How's your Thanksgiving going?"
"Pretty good. Bella and I called my dad this morning and we saw Mack. I miss him a lot. Mack and my dad," She giggles and the sound brings a smile to my face, "We cooked way too much food for the three of us to eat for lunch, but we still gave it our best shot. We have enough leftovers for every meal for the rest of the week."
I chuckle, "Sounds similar to my day then. You know how my mom is. And my grandma is ten times worse. By the amount of food they cooked, you'd think they were trying to feed the whole country,"
She laughs again, "That sounds awesome. Your mom is the best cook."
"I'll tell her you said so. She would very much appreciate that," I tell her with a smile. How does she manage to make me so happy just by speaking to me over the phone? I will never understand.
Before our conversation can continue, the front door to the house opens and my grandpa pokes his head out. He smiles and motions for me to come back inside. I'm guessing we're going to play monopoly as per tradition.
"I gotta go, Sunshine, I'll call you later?" I tell her, standing up from my spot on the steps.
"Looking forward to it. Bye, Reece," I hear her blow a kiss and I grin. This has sort of become our thing now. We do it at the end of every one of our calls.
I reach up and pretend to catch it, saying, "I caught it," I tell her, "Bye, Sunshine."
The call disconnects and I stick my phone back in my pocket before turning and walking up the steps towards my grandpa. He sends me a knowing grin as he lets me walk past him into the house, "So, who is she?"
"What?" I furrow my brows, pretending I have no idea what he's talking about. I know that if I tell him about Layla, he'll take it the wrong way. We're just friends.
"Don't play with me, boy. We both know that wasn't Liam. So who is she?" He persists, following me as I start walking back towards the living room.
"How do you know it's a girl?"
"You called her Sunshine. I'm going to take a wild guess and say that she's a girl, unless you've started batting for the other team. And she's important to you. Isn't she?"
I only shrug in response, walking into the living room to find the rest of my family already there.
"I'm right aren't I? What's her name?" He chuckles deeply as he takes a seat next to my grandma on the couch.
"Who are we talking about? Oh! Is there a girl you haven't told us about, Reece?" My grandma joins in, her eyes wide and bright with excitement.
I sigh, "It's not what you're thinking, really. She's a friend."
"Are you talking about Layla?" Mom asks and when I give her a slight nod, she grins. "Mom, you'd love her. She is just the sweetest girl. So is her younger sister. They are just the nicest pair of girls. Beautiful too. My boys have taken quite a liking to them haven't you two?" Mom looks between Max and I with raised eyebrows. I look at him and see he's blushing profusely just as I'm sure I am.
"You too Max? We have to meet these girls," Grandma says, smiling merrily at the thought.
"Oh that would be so nice," Mom agrees before she frowns, "But the two of them only recently moved away. Their parents split up so the two girls had to move with their mother to New York. The kids have been torn up about it. They became like part of the family."
My grandma frowns, "That's no good. You'll have to go visit."
Oh grandma, how I wish I could.
~
"I'm thinking of getting a new tattoo," I mention to Layla on our call as I drive home from boxing on the Friday after Thanksgiving. This has also become a part of our routine.
"Oh yeah? What would you get?" Her voice comes from my car as I have my phone connected to Bluetooth.
"I'm not quite sure yet, but I have quite a big area on my side that hasn't been done yet. I was thinking Anna could draw something up for me."
"Has she done that before?"
"Yeah, a few of my tattoos are ones she designed. The roses on my shoulder blade were her."
"That's so cool. Do you want to get your whole body done?"
"Um, I dunno. Definitely all of my neck, arms, and torso. Basically my whole upper body. Apart from my face. I'm not really into face tattoos. But I wouldn't be opposed to a leg piece someday. That would be pretty sick. Liam's got this really cool thigh piece that Anna designed."
"I've seen that! Anna drew it? Wow! It's so cool! That's the forest with a wolf merged into it, right?"
"Yeah, that's it. I'd be down to get something like that someday."
"Do you like to have any special meaning behind all your tattoos?"
"Some of them, yeah. Like the initials and stuff like that. But some of them I just like the look of. I don't know why people always think they have to have some meaning behind them. I just like the look of them, mostly."
"Yeah, I don't really understand that. I think it's nice when tattoos sometimes have a meaning behind them, but they don't need to. If you like the look of them, what's wrong with that?" She pauses for a moment before continuing, "As long as it's not something you'd regret getting. That would be stupid."
I chuckle softly, "Yeah, that's not smart. You gotta put some thought into it beforehand."
"I've always kind of wanted a tattoo."
My eyes widen slightly in surprise, "Really? I wouldn't have guessed that would be your thing."
She laughs softly, the sound warming me to my core, "I think they look awesome. I'd only get one or two small ones. But if I found one I really liked, I'd definitely consider it."
I grin, "Well, maybe one day when I go and get another tattoo, you can come with me and get one yourself."
"That would be so cool!" She exclaims before pausing, "I'd have to fly to you though."
The thought of our distance puts a damper on my mood. "That's alright. Gives you an excuse to come see us."
"I don't need an excuse. I'd be on the next plane to see you if I could. But that's not exactly logical."
"I know, Sunshine. I know."
~
"Guess what! Guess what! Guess what!" Layla exclaims excitedly the second our call connects the next Monday after school.
I chuckle softly, closing my bedroom door and hoping that my siblings didn't hear her voice. I might be a little selfish, but I want it to just be me and her for as long as possible. They will realize that I'm talking to her soon enough, but until then I want to savor my limited alone time with her. "What Sunshine?"
She sighs dramatically, and I watch her flop onto her bed. All their furniture has arrived by now and she gave me a full tour the second her room was finished. "You're supposed to guess, Reece!"
"Sorry, um... you dyed your hair bright pink?"
She stares at me flatly, her hair very clearly still her usual golden blonde. She has braided it into two plaits today and she looks adorable. "Does it look like I've dyed my hair to you?"
I chuckle, "Okay, just tell me."
"I made my first official friend!" She exclaims happily.
I furrow my brows, "Didn't you meet that girl in your English class on your first day?"
"Well, yeah, but I think she was just pitying me because I had joined the school halfway through the year. Anyway, I'm classing this as my first official friend in New York because he actually called me his friend today! Like, it's not just pity!" She exclaims happily.
I'm happy for her. I really am. But there are a couple words in there that are nagging at me. He? His? "It's a guy?" I don't mean for it to sound so cold and abrupt, but I haven't really considered the possibility of her finding some New Yorker guy. I'm not ready for that and it hits me harder than it should.
She frowns slightly, "Yeah, it's a guy. His name's Ethan."
"Ethan," I mutter, already wondering if I should just book a flight over there. If he has plans to ask her out, I need to meet him. To make sure he will make her happy.
"Yeah..." She trails off, eyes clearly scanning my face, "What's wrong? I thought you'd be happy for me?"
I shake my head, forcing what I hope is a believable smile on my face, "I am, Sunshine, honestly. That's great."
She seems to believe it, smiling again, "He's super great! I thought I was annoying him when I first met him because I wouldn't stop going on about you guys, but he really wants to meet you!"
"That's great, Sunshine," I smile forcefully. Before our conversation can continue any further, my door bursts open and the twins run into the room.
"See! He's talking to her without us!" Macy exclaims before grabbing my phone from my hands and then they both run back out of the room.
She's met someone. I don't know why that hurts so much. She's my friend. She's allowed to get a boyfriend if she wants.
"It's not like we're together," I mutter to myself, sitting up on the edge of my bed, running my hands through my hair. Almost instantly, I begin to imagine it's her hands running through my hair instead of my own. I've gotten used to it by now. Nothing is ever going to be the same again.
"It's not like I-" I stop myself, sitting up straight suddenly. I glance at my nightstand and see the two picture frames sitting there. One is a family photo. The other one is newer. It's a photo of Layla and I that Anna took of us at Homecoming without our knowledge. We're dancing to whatever song was playing, my hands on her waist and hers hooked around my neck. Her head is resting on my chest while I'm just staring down at her. I'm always looking at her.
"Do I-" No, I can't. It's impossible. She's my best friend. I pick up the photo and stare at the two of us. I'm smiling at her. Do I look like that all the time? I don't remember the last time I smiled like that before her. Did I ever smile like that before I met her? It looks like...
"Holy shít,"
I'm falling for her.
~
A/N -
Hello amazing readers!
What are your thoughts on this chapter? Reece has finally realized his feelings for Layla... When do you think she'll realize too? What do you think will happen next?
Question: What are three interesting facts about you? 1. I love science and I'm going to study bio-med at University, 2. I love all animals, but dogs are my favorite - especially big dogs (I want a golden retriever so bad!), 3. I had braces for three years.
Thank you so, so much for taking the time to read my story! Have an amazing day!
~ Pink Flamingo