The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonPG-13 2008 ‧ Romance/Drama ‧ 2h 46m
This is what I'm referring to, watch it if you like...
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Alex's POV:
When I made it home I figured, today would be a good day to watch that movie for my extra credit assignment. I mean I had no other homework to worry about, except for Christian's stupid little challenge. Of course I would be able to make it through the movie, I'm Alex Abernathy for hell sakes. And I was up for his little challenge...
After greeting my mother in the kitchen, I changed into some shorts and a graphic T shirt. Only to then quickly set up my little work station on the porch. I set my laptop on a little table, while bringing another one close for my pen and notebook.
Once I sat down, I pulled the large knitted blanket, on top of me while I felt the sea breeze. It was thick enough to keep me warm while also letting any sand that happened to reach the porch, slip right through it's hole.
When I clicked play on the movie, I internally winced as I saw that it was around two hours long. I nuzzled into the porch chair, and watched the seen start to play out...
This was going to be a long night...
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Christian's POV:
When I made it back to my house, I took a shower, and changed into a simple pair of sweats and a light t-shirt. Sitting down at my desk, I opened my laptop and started working on a few layouts and designs my boss sent over.
This teaching job was draining me of all my energy. I come home every day from school and pug in a few hours of work. Constantly making me feel like a zombie by the time I crawled into bed.
Trying to get ahead on the fatigue, I brewed a large pot of coffee and poured my self a cup when I saw her... sitting on the porch. With her laptop open. I took a sip and and walked over to my desk, grabbing my laptop and bringing it to the couch, so I could see her while I worked.
She had her blanket wrapped around her, pressed against her face as she looked at her screen. I saw her watching something on the screen, when it then hit me...
She was in for a loooong night.
With how much Alex analyzes and internalizes things, this movie was going to fuck her up, big time. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, was a movie that made me completely change my way of thinking when I was her age, so waiting for her report excited me.
I wondered what her thoughts on the story were. If she was going to hate it as much as I did, or if she was going to fall in love with the story, like most women did when it came out.
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After about an hour of watching her out of the corner of my eye, I saw her get up and walk into her house. I hadn't seen her face the entire time, so I didn't know how she was reacting to the story line. I wanted to read her emotions, to see how she was reacting to the movie. It was killing me to only see the back of her.
When she came back out, she had a large sweater on but, she sat down so fast that I couldn't clearly see her face. Making me annoyed at the fact, that she might be doing this on purpose. But with out any hesitation, she immediately started writing in a notebook and pressed play on the laptop...
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When the second hour rolled around, and the wind started to blow more. She shut her laptop right as the sun was touching the water, creating an orange glow on her figure.
I stood up and walked closer to the window to see what was she was doing, when I noticed she was still for some time.
After a few moments set her pen down, and removed the blanket that was wrapped around her as she stood up. I brought the coffee cup closer to my mouth, and took in a sip of the now cold liquid, as I saw her walk off the porch and onto the beach.
I felt my eyebrows furrow as I watched her, walk towards a large piece of driftwood... what on earth was she going to do with a piece of—
Shit!
I immediately set down my cup of coffee, as I watched her pick up the large piece of wood and throw it back down on the sand. Only to then watch her pick it up again, and throw it only about two feet, due to its weight. She then picked up large clumps of sand and started throwing it in every direction, when she then thrusted her hands into her hair.
Pulling strands out of her face, as her chest heaved up and down, while looking onto the beach.
I thought in my mind just how I would go out there and comfort her. But before I could move an inch, Alex grabbed the bottom of her sweater and tore it off her body. Throwing it on the ground near the large piece of wood.
Only to then take off running down the beach, north of our houses. I quickly ran to my porch and watched as Alex run. She ran, and ran, farther down the beach, when she then stopped to turn and sit down. Appearing like a little dot in my line of vision...
Okay, maybe that was the wrong movie to have her watch. It tackled the stereotype of ageism and the challenges of love, but I didn't know it would fuel her into literally running away from home...
I saw her finally stand up and walk back, slowly, towards our houses. I huffed out and uneasy breath, as I stayed on the porch watching her approach. My stomach started to twisted and sour from the sheer regret I had from making her watch that film.
I stayed in my seat, positioned towards her house, as I watched her. Waiting for her to get even closer to me.
When she finally made it back, I saw that her face was pink, and soaked with tears. I had never seen her loose her cool. She was always smiling and had her chin up high, but now... She looked so broken and melancholy like, as she picked her sweater off the ground.
I could tell that she was consumed with deep thought. So much so, that she didn't even look towards me or my house. She just kept her gaze straight down, as she made her way back towards her porch. Tossing a hand into her hair as she carried her sad self towards the back door.
The moment I realized she wouldn't notice me, I shot off my porch and walked back into my house. Marching towards my window so I could see her better.
All her makeup was gone, and parts of her hair were wet from her tears.
The sun painted the white wood pink and orange as she rubbed the side of her neck, looking only at the laptop. When she then grabbed her things, and walked into her house.
I turned around and leaned against my window, touching my chest, where I felt the pain.
This was the first time I had seen Alex so full of such a sorrowful emotion. It made me sick, and sweaty, as I felt the guilt seep into my veins. I wanted to march over there and erase her mind from every thing I exposed her heart to.
But she was already gone. Taking safety from what she just witnessed inside her large white home.
I sat down on the couch and felt all the air in my lungs escape, as a large lump in my throat started to become present. Tomorrow would be a challenge...
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As the last period of the day rolled around, I saw Alex walk in. Looking much like her normal self, except the image of her broken soul, still haunted my mind. Making me hate myself more than anytime Alex made me feel inferior, or called me out on a lie...
Throughout the class period, I kept my body positioned perfectly to where I could see Alex. Her calm-like yet confident presence back. Taking up its space in my mind, only to then move places when the bell rang.
The students started to shuffle out of the room with speed, as I shot up from my chair from my side office. Hoping to catch her before she leaves.
Walking into the now empty classroom, I was slightly surprised when I noticed Alex was still there. Pulling out a thin packet from her backpack. She grasped it with force, and walked towards me with grace. Looking at me with her honey brown eyes, I saw the first time I met her.
"What's this?" I asked, grabbing the paper from her out reached hand.
"You said it had to be under two thousand words." She said, looking up at me with her wide eyes. "It is." She said.
I furrowed my eyebrows as I flipped back the cover page, watching her try to sneak away in my peripheral vision. I read the eight words on the blank pice of paper, and choked on the air I was breathing, only to then let a laugh slip past my lips.
"Alex." I said, quickly turning in her direction. She froze in her position, slowly turning around as She looked at the packet in my hands. I could tell in her eyes, this movie stuck with her. She wasn't her cocky charismatic self she usually was... "When I said under two thousand words, I figured you understood that you needed to back up your argument."
"'They both should have killed themselves at 40.' isn't a good enough argument with out evidence?" She asked, leaning up against the wall by the door, as she looked away from me.
I let another laugh slip passed my lips as I smiled, looking at the words on the paper. She really found a loop hole. Something I should have expected from her. Before she could escape again, I rounded my desk, and took out a red pen. Sitting down as I looked over the words.
"You're correcting it right in front of me?" I heard her ask, as she pushed herself off the wall. "Couldn't you have waited for me to leave, before you failed me?" She said, sitting on top of one of the desks across from me.
"Relax Alex." I said, as I wrote a single letter at the top of the paper. When I then flipped through the rest of the blank pieces of paper.
The packet was basically ten pages of wasted blank paper... When Alex wanted a reaction from me, she knew just how to get it. Perfectly pressing my buttons despite how hard I hide them...
I closed the packet and looked up at her. She was staring at the ground, deep in thought. With soft still melancholy-like eyes. The same eyes I saw last night. The same eyes I would pay money to never see again.
"Why." I paused. "Why do you think they should have killed themselves?" I asked, holding the packet in my hand. While waiting for her to look up at me.
She let out a large deep breath, and slid farther back onto the desk so she was fully sitting on it, finally looking up at me.
"I think they should have you know... 'Romeo and Juliet' it." She said, looking at me with her wide eyes.
Did— Did she really just say, 'Romeo and Juliet' it? She really made a connection to Shakespeare? I wasn't even a literature buff, but I couldn't help but let a laugh escape my lips.
"Why?" I said, covering my smiling mouth with my hand, as I studied her body language.
"It's not funny Christian." She spat out, furrowing her eyebrows. The way she said my name, struck my heart with weight, causing my smile to drop completely from my face... "They loved each other, and if they wanted to be together forever, they should have... I don't know... drank poison?" She said, crossing her arms, as she casted a glare off to the side.
"I didn't think you believe in an after life." I said, trying to get her attention again. "You know... since your not Catholic?"
"I don't know if I do." She said, running a hand through her hair, looking back onto the ground. "They just loved each other so much, that before either one of them could have continued getting younger, or older, they should have stopped it." She said, finally looking up at my with worry in her eyes. "They should have stopped it. Be- before she got pregnant, and before he felt like he had to leave, and before all the awful shit happened." She said, pushing her self off the desk with one, quick, forceful motion. "There was a chance of having a somewhat of a twisted happier ever after. Instead of one that ended in more heartache." She looked down.
"They loved each other enough to continue living for one another." I said, noticing Alex start to pace up and down the isle with her tan legs. Letting my comment noticeably irritate her.
"Oh that's bull shit." She said, turning to face me. "It was selfish and immature for them to each think that they could have a life together. Yes, they both knew that they could love each other, and yes..." she said, marching towards my desk. "They could have a few good years, but if they wanted to stop time. To stop the aging. To be with each other indefinitely. They should have killed themselves." She huffed out, finally leaning on the desk in front of me. "I know it's harsh... but I don't care."
"Is that what you think you would have done?" I asked, in utter shock by her passion and controversial opinion on the matter.
"Yes." She said, glaring at me. Only to then cast her gaze down, at her packet on my desk. "I know... for me... that I couldn't help but fall in love, but I would want that love to last. For forever, before I would have had a kid with him, before he would have gotten any younger, before I would have lost the love of my life." She said, finally leaning away from the desk, to stand in an upright position. "I would have done it." She said firmly.
"But life and love is about challenges." I said, playing the devils advocate, leaning back in my chair, as I pried some more.
"The life and love they had was destined to end in heart break. So I would have proactively stopped it before the inevitable happened." She said, motioning an arm up in the air as she tried to prove her point. "I won't change my opinion. I still think they should have killed themselves, and you can fail me, write me up, or throw it away. I despise that movie and I don't care what yo—"
"Take it." I said, motioning the packet to her. She quickly looked down at the packet, and then up to me, skeptically squinting her eyes. "I can see your point." I said finally. Content that she was passionate in keeping their love alive... for forever. "Here. I already graded it." I said, setting the packet on the edge of my desk.
Her eyebrows pinched together as she eyed me with intensity, grabbing the packet off my desk.
She filliped the cover page over, and lifted an eyebrow. Looking back up to me and then down onto the packet when she finally parted her soft plump lips, to speak.
"What's wrong with you?" She asked, taking me completely by surprise. "Why did you give me an A? I only wrote one sentence." She said. Grabbing the packet by its edges, only to then crumple it and throw it in the garbage next to my desk.
"You proved your point verbally in under two thousand words." I said, standing up from my seat, as I looked down on her rosy cheeks. "You did a good job." I said, softly, trying not to tempt her to riot. I rounded my desk and leaned against the side so I was closer to her. Wanting to comfort her with out any of our games... "You got the credit." I said, looking into her honey eyes.
She looked at me up and down and raised an eyebrow. Making my skin tingle under her electric gaze. She seemed so serene even when she felt that she was in the wrong.
I looked at her now confident form come back into the light, I realized Alex wasn't someone you could break. She just molded into a smarter, more mature individual each time. She was truly something diff—
"You saw my reaction after the movie ended didn't you?" She asked, pulling me out of my thoughts directly.
She had her arms crossed and her brows furrowed as she stayed leaning against the side of my desk. Eyeing me with the intensity as if she already knew the answer.
"Oh yeah." I said, letting a smile press onto my face. As I watched her lips finally stretch into her signature smirk. The same smirk I had been trying so hard to copy.
"I guess if that's what it takes to get an A in your eyes, I'll let you spy on me more often." She laughed, grabbing her backpack off the ground. "I'm headed home. Don't stay too late Christian." She said, walking off towards the door. "I've gotten used to my nosy neighbor." She laughed.
"I have to keep an eye on the pest next door." I shot out, in a laugh, trying to get a rise out of her.
"You wish I was a pest." She laughed, pushing her back against the door as it opened. "If anything I'm the girl next door you see in your dreams." She hummed, with a smile, as she raised her eyebrows. Only to then let out another laugh and push through the door completely. Making my core and chest tighten as the buzz of her presence danced in the air.
Alex Abernathy... what are you doing to me?