I wake up to a lot of noise coming down from the kitchen and my eyes shoot open.
I look straight at the clock next to me.
It's 9am.
I slowly get up, making my way to the bathroom where I splash my face with water, before tying my hair up in a bun.
I then go to do my business before walking downstairs and seeing James cooking some breakfast.
I walk up to him, wrapping my arms around him as he fries some bacon up.
"Morning." I say and he smiles, turning around and wrapping his free arm around me.
"Good morning."
"I was a bit disappointed you left me alone in bed." I pout.
"Aw sorry. I thought I'd surprise you with breakfast." He says turning around and placing his hands on my cheeks.
"I forgive you." I say and he smiles, leaning in and placing a kiss on my nose.
"How rude of you to not give me a proper kiss." I pout again and he laughs, leaning in and placing a soft kiss on my lips which makes me smile.
"Better?"
"Much better." I say and he smiles as he grabs a couple plates out, placing the bacon and eggs he's cooked there.
"Well, breakfast is ready." He says and I smile, walking over and taking a seat at the bench with James next to me.
"So you ready for this game of Laser tag today?" I ask and James nods.
"Yep, we got our game plan."
"Oh god, you're taking it that seriously are you?"
"Uh yeah, we wanna win." He says and I laugh.
"You guys are hilarious."
"And who will you be going for hmm?"
"Whoever wins." I say and he scoffs.
"No you gotta choose one."
"I can't choose."
"Sure you can."
"No I can't choose between my brother and boyfriend." I say and he smiles.
"Alright."
"What time do we have to be there?"
"11."
"That's early."
"Well, it's the only booking that was available."
"Who the hell does laser tag during the day on a school day?"
"Lot's of people it seems." He shrugs and I laugh..
This is definitely gonna be interesting....
-----------------------------------------
The next couple of hours go by pretty quickly, so before we know it we're at Zone bowling, waiting for the rest of the boys to rock up...
"Are you playing as well Tahls?" Aaron asks and I shake my head.
"No way, I'll just watch the score go up on the outside." I say and he nods.
"Fair enough." He shrugs and I smile as finally the rest of the boys have arrived.
I follow them into the laser tag room, where they all grab their vests and guns before heading in.
Hawks are the blue team and Dogs are the red team so it'll be interesting to see who wins.
I watch the clock countdown on the screen, and the game has begun... may the best team win...
James' POV:
Walking into the room, my eyes have to adjust to the darkness.
I have forgotten how dark it actually is in here. Obviously there is a dim light shining through but it's pretty dark, which makes the game harder I guess.
Both teams huddle up where we discuss our game plan, before we split up.
I find myself a really good spot that's higher up, perfect position so that I can shoot at anyone who is below me.
We all wait for the countdown to be finished before we begin.
I stay in the spot I am in and look down, when I see someone move so I instantly move, pointing the gun to the opposition player and shooting them, I quickly duck back out of view before the person could shoot me.
I look up at the scoreboard and smile when I see a point has been scored. And I hear a loud groan.
"Fuck sake, 5 minutes in and I'm already eliminated." The voice of Baz chimes through the room and we all laugh.
The next couple of minutes go by slowly as no one really moves, so I decide to move, which was a bad decision as Naughts nearly gets me but I duck behind a pole just in time.
"I'll get you Worpel." I hear him say and I just laugh as I watch him move around and quickly shoot at him too.
"Better watch your back Naughts." I say as I quickly make a bolt for it before he realises that I've shot him as well.
A couple of my boys go down, but there's still enough of us, and enough time on the clock for us to win.
I shoot a couple more boys in Weightman and Dunks, which was bittersweet as I am kind of being forced to be nice to Dunks for Tahls' sake, but I really don't like the guy for what he did to her.
So I was pretty smug about knocking him out, just won't tell Tahls that obviously.
The next 10 minutes was pretty crucial with only a couple of us left.
I know Bont hasn't been eliminated yet, and I think Ads is still in too, I could be wrong.
"Gotcha." Dylan and Ads say at the same time, when really they've just eliminated each other which is hilarious.
Now I know it's only me and Bont left, as I look up on the scoreboard to see that there's only one player left from both teams.
This should be interesting...
I slowly make my way around the room, careful not to accidentally expose myself. I peek my head around the corner, looking both left and right. Bont is nowhere to be seen.
I decide to move further, behind another post where I do the same thing. Still no sign of Bont.
I turn left in hopes I run into him, which I do. He has his back turned to me, so I make sure I shoot my laser at him. This will be the one and only time I have a shot at beating the Bont, so I will make sure I take every opportunity to do it.
"Gotcha Bont." I say and he spins around, before he sighs.
"Damn it!" He says and I laugh.
The boys all get around me, ruffling my hair as we have officially beaten the Dogs boys at laser tag. It's a pretty good feeling not gonna lie.
Just to know I have beaten The Bont at something in my life is awesome, even if it was just a shitty game of laser tag. Because in reality I know I will never, ever beat him on the footy field.
"Well done mate, you really won it for the team." Bont says holding his hand out to do that high-five hug us guys do.
"Thanks mate."
"I'm sure Tahls will be happy." Baz rolls his eyes and I laugh.
"She was on the fence today."
"Really? I thought she would've chosen you." Baz says and I smile.
"Well she'll definitely be happy for me, but she also would've been happy if you boys won too." I say as we walk out of the room and see Tahls sitting at a table outside.
"I couldn't watch, who ended up winning?" She asks and I smile.
"I won the game for the Hawks." I say proudly and Tahls smiles.
"That's amazing James, well done." She says and I smile.
"Thanks, it was down to me and your brother, to win it for our teams and I was just better." I shrug and she laughs.
"Beating my brother doesn't happen often so soak it up." She says just as Bont joins us smiling.
"He's a good man this one." Bont says, putting his hands on my shoulders and giving them a squeeze while I laugh.
"Aw look at you too." Tahls teases which makes both Bont and I laugh.
"Hey you guys gotta come back to my joint, a couple of the boys are." Bont says and I nod, looking at Tahls.
"Well we got nothing to do." I say and she nods, grabbing her bag as she stands up.
We walk towards the exit where we say goodbye to the boys that have other obligations to attend to, before we make our way to the car and head to the Bontempelli residence...
Tahlia's POV:
We get to my brother's house in about 5 minutes as the shopping centre we went to wasn't far from his house.
James and I get out of the car the same time Marcus, Aaron and Baz do, before we walk through the garage and into the house where Em has just started making some lunch.
She's making some lasagna, and her lasagna is amazing, so can't wait to dig into that.
"Hey boys, and Tahls, how did the game go?"
"Good, I won." James says which makes Baz roll his eyes.
"Stop being a sore loser baz."
"I just don't understand how I can be so shit at laser tag." He puffs.
"Oh calm down mate, you can't be good at everything." Aaron says ruffling his hair and Baz nods.
"I guess." He says, plonking himself down on the couch, with Aaron doing the same.
"Well good on you James for beating Marcus, he doesn't lose that often." Em says with a smile and James nods.
"I will be soaking it up for the rest of the week." James says and I laugh, as I walk over to the couch and take a seat next to Aaron who pulls me in for a hug.
"We really could've used you." He whispers into my ear and I smile.
"And what would I have done?"
"James would've let you win if you played."
"I don't think so."
"Come on, he has a soft spot for you." Aaron says and I shrug.
"Maybe, but he is very competitive."
"True." Aaron says as I rest my head on his shoulder.
"Hey Tahls, can you go grab the clean tea towels from upstairs? I accidentally left them up there." Em groans and I nod.
"Sure thing, where are they left?"
"Just on the couch up there, you'll see them." She says and I nod, getting up and walking slowly up the stairs.
Once I'm up there, I spot them straight away, so I walk over to the couch, picking up the pile before walking downstairs.
"How many would you need?" I joke and Em smiles.
"I just need a couple, for now." She says taking the first two off the top of the pile. "Can you chuck those in the cupboard there?" She adds, pointing to the cupboard under the sink and I nod.
"Sure thing. If it means I get to eat your delicious lasagna." I say and she nods.
"You don't have to do anything for me to eat my food, I just thought you could help me out a bit."
"Good." I say and she smiles, walking over to me.
"Just be careful with how you're acting with Aaron around James." She whispers and I nod, then frown.
I want to ask her why but she's already walked away and I don't wanna make a big deal about it so I walk over to the couch and wrap my arms around Aaron's neck which causes him to look up at me and smile.
I lean in and give him a hug before walking around and taking a seat next to him.
I look over at Em who gives me a look, which confuses me again because I'm allowed to hug my best friend... right?
I shake those thoughts out of my head and tune into the conversation that Aaron and Baz are having...
James' POV:
I am in the middle of a conversation with Bont when I catch Tahlia hugging Naughts from the corner of my eye.
I turn my head a bit in their direction so I can get a proper view.
She's standing behind the couch, her arms wrapped around his neck.
Why am I jealous? She's allowed to hug her best friend... they're just friends.. right?
That's what she's told me, but what if she's been lying to me this whole time.
I turn my head back to face Bont and continue talking to him until the conversation ends and he guts up to get us some drinks.
I turn my attention back to Tahls who is leaning a bit too close to Naughts for my liking.
He's showing her something on his phone, but why is there a need for her to be that close?
If he turns his head an inch more, they're practically gonna kiss.... why would she be so close?
I try and keep my emotions bottled down the best I can by placing a smile on my face when Baz asks me a question, which I try to answer politely, but he can tell something is wrong. He looks at me then back to Tahls and Naughts, then back again, raising his eyebrow, which makes me sigh.
He shakes his head, letting me know there's nothing to be worried about and I nod. I want to believe him, I really do, but I know something is not right here when she starts touching his hair.
I want to explode right then and there.
I don't know why I'm so jealous but I am. There's an ill feeling in my stomach that arises every time I look at them.
It makes me want to puke. It makes me want to put Naughts in his place and tell him to back the fuck off because I know he's enjoying this.
Hell I know he had a massive crush on her, and probably still does. I reckon he could even be in love with her the way he's looking at her right now, and it just makes me sick, sick to think that she has no idea too.
I decide to distract myself by pulling my phone out and scrolling on Instagram. When I look up again, her head is on his shoulder.
She is completely oblivious to what she is doing. She is unintentionally leading Naughts on by her natural flirtyness, and making me jealous in the process.
Or maybe it all is intentional.
Maybe this relationship is too good to be true.
Maybe she is not the girl I thought she was.
All these questions spinning in my head, making me doubt that what we have is even real. It has to be. Why would someone lie about loving another person? That's just such a shitty thing to do.
Is she just in a relationship with me because she knows I'm in love with her and will do anything for her, so she's just with me for the hell of it?
I am fuming right now as I see him tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. That's MY thing. That's something I do.
I can't fucking believe my eyes right now. I am so mad that I want to grab a pencil and poke my eyes out with them because this sight is just fucking appalling.
I am brought out of my day dream when Bont comes back and hands me the bottle of water I asked for before.
I plant a smile on my face as Em announces that the lasagna is ready, and we all crowd around the kitchen for a serving as apparently her lasagna is to die for.
I sit down at a random spot at the table, and Tahls automatically sits down next to me, she smiles at me and I smile a fake smile back at her, but she has no idea that it's fake.
We dig into the lasagna and I must admit, it actually is amazing and I make sure I tell Em that.
"Em this really does taste amazing." I praise her and she smiles.
"Thank you James. Because I've made so much I can send you some to take home."
"That would be lovely." I say and she smiles as I tune into the conversation that Naughts and Tahlia are having.
"So we have is it Port or Essendon this week?"
"Essendon." Naughts says and Tahlia nods.
"So we should win right?"
"Well, considering we only lost by a point to the crows yes." Naughts says and Bont smiles.
"We'll win Tahls don't you worry." He reassures her and she nods.
"Okay, but you know they're gonna come out."
"They definitely will, we'll just come out harder though." Bont says and Tahls nods, then smiles.
I kind of zone out as they continue talking about their upcoming games, as I can't stop thinking about what happened on the couch.
There's one question I am repeating over and over in my head and that's. Does she really even love me?....
----------------------------------------
Not long later Tahlia and I decide to hit the road as she said she's got some school stuff to do in preparation for tomorrow.
And I was honestly happy to leave cause I was in a shitty mood with what I saw. But she won't know that until we get home.
We say our goodbyes, and I thank Em for the wonderful meal. She made sure to send some lasagna home with us which I was very thankful for.
The drive home was pretty quiet, but we did make some small talk, and I tried to not let her know I was pissed until we get home.
Once we're home, I get out of the car, grabbing the lasagna and walking into the house, with her not too far behind me.
I head straight to the kitchen where I place the lasagna in the fridge.
When I turn around Tahls is standing there, a smile on her face as she wraps her arms around my neck, pulling herself closer to me.
I place my hands on her hips, looking down at her as she continues to smile.
"Hey gorgeous." She says leaning in and placing a kiss on my cheek and I pull away a bit which leaves her startled.
I don't say anything but instead unwrap her arms from me and walk to the couch where she follows me.
I take a seat, grabbing the Tv remote and turning it on while Tahlia sits down next to me and I sigh.
She scoots closer to me, leaning her head on my shoulder and I don't move. I don't wrap an arm around her or anything, I just focus on what channel I'm putting the Tv on.
She says something to me but I don't hear it, I am too busy typing in my password to Optus Sport to even hear what she says.
The next thing she does kind of shocks me, she pulls herself up, and on me beginning to straddle my lap.
She wraps her arms around me and I sigh, pushing her off gently.
"What the fuck James." She says and I turn to her.
"What?"
"You never usually push me off, so how come now?"
"Cause I'm not in the mood tonight." I say bluntly, looking at the Tv to see what soccer games are on.
"Okay that's fine, but why are you giving me the cold shoulder? Why aren't you being affectionate?" She asks and I want to laugh so badly, and be so sarcastic to her, but I don't have it in me, I can't be toxic to her even if I wanted to be.
"Why aren't I being affectionate? Maybe have a long hard think back to before we came home." I say bluntly again she she frowns. She opens her mouth then closes it again, unsure of what to say.
"What's that supposed to mean?" She asks and I look at her, trying everything I can not to get mad because she has no fucking idea what she did or was doing.
"Surprised you didn't go home with Naughts." I say staring dead into her soul which makes her frown.
"What the fuck? Where are you getting this from?"
"Don't play dumb Tahlia." I fire at her.
"I'm not." She fires back.
"Oh really? So why the fuck were you flirting with him the whole time hm? Why the fuck were your arms wrapped around him, hugging him for most of the time we were there. And why the fuck were you so close to him that if he moved his head an inch to the left he could've kissed you." I say angrily and she looks at me, completely confused.
"Flirting? You think I was flirting with Aaron? Oh honey then you haven't seen me flirt if you think that was flirting."
"Then what was it then?"
"It was teasing. I was teasing him!" She yells and I sigh.
"I don't care what it was, I just didn't like how you were so close to him." I say in disgust.
"We're best fucking friends James, and he was showing me something on my phone, what did you want me to do? Be 1.5 meters apart?"
"You can look at someones phone from a bit more of a distance yes." I say and she shakes her head.
"You're being unbelievable right now." She says with her arms crossed, and that's when I begin to lose it.
"I'm being unbelievable? Are you listening to yourself right now Tahlia? I was sitting there, watching you be all touchy and close with your supposed 'guy best friend,' how did you want me to react?"
"You know I don't like him like that."
"It's not the point Tahlia!" I yell. "It's the fact that you let him tuck a strand of hair behind your ear, and whisper things to you."
"It's not that bad James."
"Alright, you put yourself in my shoes. What if we were at a club and I started dancing with a girl, touching her on the hips, caressing her face, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. Would you get mad at me?"
"That's different James."
"No it isn't! It's the same thing. You're so blindsided to it Tahlia."
"Are you listening to yourself?"
"Are you listening to yourself?" I shoot back.
"I'm done."
"Well I'm fucking not." I say as she goes to get up and I follow her.
I grab her hand so that she can't go anywhere and so we can finish this argument.
"Let me go." She says and I shake my head.
"When you were all touchy with Naughts, it made me question whether you even loved me, whether our relationship was real, or it's just been too good to be fucking true. So I'm gonna ask you now, and you better answer honestly. Do you actually love me?" I ask her and she stares at me, in disbelief that I've actually asked the question.
"James. Of course I fucking love you, if I didn't why would I say I did?"
"I don't know, just to make me feel better." I shrug and she frowns.
"Well you're wrong, because I love you so fucking much that I wouldn't do anything to jeopardise this relationship."
"I have a hard time believing that. Tell me now. What would've happened if you two were alone hm? You would've kissed wouldn't you?" I say and she shakes her head.
"No. That wouldn't have happened?"
"Are you sure? Cause it sure looked like he wanted to kiss you."
"That's him, not me." She says tears stinging her eyes. "I love you so fucking much James, you mean everything to me. I. I-I don't even know what I would do with myself if we break up over this." She says with tears spilling down her cheeks.
"I can't believe you would assume something so low of me. I would never fucking cheat on you, I am the least likely person on this planet to cheat on someone I love so fucking much. I know what it's like to be cheated on and I would never wish that upon anyone." She says, ripping her hand from my grip and storming upstairs.
I watch her walk up there with tears streaming down her face and I put my hands in my hair.
"FUCK." I say beginning to pace up and down the hallway, not knowing what to do.
I know for a fact that if she didn't love me, she wouldn't be crying over the thought of our relationship ending.
I run upstairs and into our bedroom where I knew she would be. I scoop her into my arms as she cries, I stroke her hair, trying to calm her down as I want to knock myself out with a bottle for thinking that she didn't love me.
"I am so sorry." I say once she's calmed down and she looks at me.
"I just can't believe you thought I don't love you."
"I know, I was being stupid, I'm so sorry Tahls." I say. "But what I saw with you and Naughts just made me so jealous, I don't know why, I know you guys are really good friends. But I think knowing that he has a crush on you made me doubt you loving me."
"I understand why you would get jealous, and I know part of it was my fault too, so I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have been that touchy with him." She says and I let out a small smile as tears fall down my cheeks, which she wipes.
I lean in and place my lips to hers, immediately we fall back on the bed, and I pull her on top of me, hugging her and never letting her go as I kiss her like my life depends on it.
From this moment on, I will never doubt her love for me ever again, because I know she loves me, and I love her back....
***
Well, that took a turn...
So many emotions in this chapter haha
Also over 4000 word chapter haha
Would've been too short to split into two so I just made it one long chapter so hope you guys enjoyed it!
Remember to vote and comment
Next update out Wednesday! (Might be an update tomorrow since this chapter was VERY long haha)