"Phil, I need a flight back to London as soon as possible. I'm going home." I said down the phone, trying my hardest to keep back the tears as I threw clothes into my case.
"What!? You still have just over two weeks left of your trip!" He all but screamed.
"I no, but I don't need anymore time. I've made my decision, and I don't want this."
"What happened? I'd heard you was doing really well in your lessons, what went wrong?" He questioned.
"Its just not what I expected, like at all. I don't belong here, I need to go home. You said when I came here.. no, you promised that if I wanted to go home, then you'll get me the first flight back."
"And I will, I just needed to no what went on. Are you sure this is what you want?" Phil asked, his normal energetic voice sounding drained of all that he had.
I thought about what I wanted. Did I want to spend three years with a class that hates me, in a city that I didn't no, completely alone? Nope, I don't believe I did.
"This is what I want, I'm sorry." I said after some time.
"Yeah? Well that makes two of us." After saying that, Phil cut the call and the line went dead.
Renee and Harper was out getting lunch so at least I didn't have to face them yet.
Just as I was zipping my case up, my phone beeped.
'Your flight leaves at six tomorrow night. Make sure your ready by three and Andy will be downstairs waiting. If you change your mind at any point, don't hesitate to call me.'
I sighed into my phone. How could I tell the girls that because of me, we were going home. Would they understand? I really, really hoped so.
I walked into my bathroom and looked in the mirror at my foreign reflection. I looked tired, like a person who'd wanted something so bad for so long, that when they finally got the break they dreamed of, just to watch it crush in front of their very own eyes.
And that's exactly what I was, defeated. You may think I'm being over dramatic with the whole situation, but it was just to over whelming. Being in a city that I didn't no with people that didn't give me the time of day.
The thing that made this whole experience even harder was how I pictures this trip in my head. I thought I'd come here, I'd develop friendships instantly, and we'd work through this all together. And the realisation of it not being like that at all was the fact that pushed me home.
I turner around and flicked on the shower, hoping the steam will clear my head. I stripped and slipped inside. The water hit my cold bones like a ton of bricks. And it felt like the steamy liquid washed away some of my thoughts.
And I love that moment. When your mind drifts to another place, up in the clouds. When your reading, or listening to music and everything that's right now, in this moment, no longer exists. It's just you.
After twenty five minutes of drowning my sorrows, the door to my bathroom swung open and I was ambushed by Renee and Harper. They both had that 'I know something I'm not suppose to no until you told me' look on their faces.
"So here's the thing. The phone rang, it was Phil. He said he'd tried calling you but he got your voicemail. Spill the beans, what happened that was so bad that it caused you to jump on the first flight home?" Renee asked as she pushed herself up on the counter next to the sink, Harper joining her.
"Pass me a towel." I squeaked as I cut the shower, nervous for the conversation unfolding.
I grabbed the towel that was handed to me and wrapped it around my body, then pulled back the shower curtain and stepped onto the bath rug.
I looked at both of their curious yet worried expressions. What do I say? 'Oh yeah, sorry girls were going home because I'm a quitter, I quit when things get hard'. How pathetic is that!
"It's just not what I thought it would be. I had this all planned out, and it's just so different. I'm so sorry." I whispered, to scared to look them in the eyes.
"Don't you dare say sorry. We are here, because of you. No one else, you. We have both had the best few weeks of our life's here and thats because of you! And if your not happy, then we aren't either. We'll just catch a flight and spend the rest of the summer at home together, no biggy!" Harper said as she pulled me into a bone crushing hug.
"You took the words out of my mouth H!" Renee grinned as she joined in on the hug.
"I ghlve yew thwo" I attempted, my voice muffled by the hug.
"We ghlve yew thwo" They both giggled.
"But.." Renee continued, looking at me seriously now, "who's arse do I have to kick?"
I chuckled at her seriousness. The look on here face looked like she wanted names, numbers, addresses from ever single person who attended my class.
"No body did this to me, there all only human. Plus I would like to spend the rest of my summer with you at home, not in a prison cell!" I grinned.
That's the thing with these to, no matter if I'm angry, upset, lost and loosing all hope in the world, no matter how low I feel, they will always find a way to make me smile, and a genuine smile at that.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After an hour of laying on my bed talking about all the times Renee's short temper and over protectiveness had got her into a few sticky situations, the two of them left to pack there cases.
I was going to miss a lot about New York. I was going to miss Andy, I was going to miss yellow taxi's and Central Park on a sunny day, I was going to miss the way the stars sparkled on a clear night when Harper, Renee and I stood on our balcony and watched world go by with a few blankets and a cup of hot chocolate each.
There was going to be a lot I'd miss about New York, but I'd mostly miss being here, with my two dearest friends in the word creating memories that would live on to be told to our grandchildren.
Just as I was working out a way to say goodbye to Andy and the staff here who'd looked after us while we'd been staying here, there was a light tap on the door. Renee poked her head around the door, an excited expression plastered across her face.
What had she done?
"Rhi, there's someone here to see you." She smiled like she knew something I didn't. Before I had a chance to reply, she pushed the door open the rest of the way, revealing a sorry looking Logan.
"What the hell are you doing here? And how on earth did you even no where I was staying?" Renee made a swift exit, shutting the door at my raised voice after Logan cautiously walked towards me with both hands raised as if I was going to shoot him. Don't test me.
"I got in touch with Phil, he told me where you was staying. Why are you going home?" He said as he came and sat on the end of my bed.
"Because I don't belong here, clearly. Why are you here? Don't act like you care because you treated me like I didn't exist all week." I said, furious by this point.
I was embarrassed, I must of looked quite a sight. My eyes were swollen and red from crying previously, my hair damp, stuck to my face and hanging like rats tails due to the shower and the baggy hoodie I'd chucked on after the shower didn't exactly do wonders for me. Yet here he was sitting at the end of my bed like he'd just stepped of a photo shoot.
He sighed and run his hand's through his hair. He looked like he was fighting thoughts in his head. He bit his lip as he stared directly into my eyes.
"What? What are you staring at?" I asked, feeling self conscious.
"Ok, so you wanna no the truth? When we first heard about you, we thought you was a stuck up rich girl from London who's daddy knew the principle so you got offered a free pass unlike us who worked out arses off since the day we could walk to get a spot here. We didn't give you a chance and we was wrong. Today when I came back, I heard you sing and from that moment I knew you weren't the girl we all thought you were. You're one of us. You deserve to be here just as much as we all do." He breathed out like he'd let the world off his shoulders.
"We'll it's a little late for that now, my flight is booked for tomorrow. Besides just because you changed your mind doesn't mean anyone else will." I argued back. I really didn't feel like getting into this argument right now.
But the things he was saying made sense, I would of acted the same way my class had this week.
"You can cancel your plane! Phil would be more than happy to do that and you know it. And them? Look how easy it was to change how I saw you, it will be just as quick with them, all you have to do is show them what you got. You are never going to get this chance again!" He looked at me as he spoke, hope filling his eyes.
"I, erm, I-I can't.." I stuttered, feeling weak.
"There's no such things as can't. Let me make a deal with you. Cancel your flight, come back to school for the last day, leave the rest down to me. If nothing changes, then I will personally book you a flight as soon as the clock strikes four. But I promise, things will be better tomorrow, you have my word. Please, just consider this.." He all but got down onto his knee's and begged.
I bit my lip, glancing away from him and out my balcony over looking New York, the stars dancing in the black velvet sky.
My mind was fighting a battle of it's own now as I weighed up my options. If I leave, I get to go home and never think about this again, I'll see my dad, see my other friends and spend my summer like I normally would, comfortable.
But then I could stay here, I could finish the week, maybe even enjoy it and do what my mum and I always wanted, stay in New York and do things that I could only ever dream of doing, daring.
I looked at this guy I hardly knew, sitting on the end off my bed in this posh apartment in New York, begging for me to stay, to give my own dreams a chance, feeling as if owed it to myself to agree.
And without thinking, my heart speaking instead of my brain, I blurted out..
"A day, you have a day to make me stay.."