*Brendon's POV*
Have you ever needed something so bad, but you're not exactly sure what that thing is?
For years my life felt incomplete but I could never figure out what it was. I'd tried everything, or should I say, every girl?
I didn't realize it when I was in 7th grade, but she was it. She was the missing part of my puzzle. In 7th grade all I cared about was trading cards. Timing is a bitch.
I looked her and I saw sadness in her eyes. What was going through her head? Before I could even say a word, she bolted. She ran from the line and into the bathroom.
"Hey, babe," the girl on my arm, Vanessa, said. "Who was that girl? Why was she so scared of you?"
Honestly, I had forgotten about Vanessa once I saw Laken. I don't think I was fooling anyone by saying that I actually had feelings for Vanessa. It's a known fact that I'm not with one girl for very long.
"She... it's... it's complicated," I stuttered. "Listen, I can't... I have to go." I told her, and I exited the restaurant.
If I was thinking clearly and if I wasn't a jerk for the past 5 years I probably would've thought, hey, even though I don't have feelings for Vanessa, I probably should have arranged for her to get a ride home since I drove her here. Sadly, that thought didn't cross my mind. The only thing I was thinking about was Laken.
I got into my car and drove to one of the few places I could get some peace and quiet... the tree.
I hadn't been there since that day I last saw Laken. I didn't even know if it was still there. As I turned onto the street, I was surprised to see that where a block of houses had been was now turned into a park complete with a pond. The only people there were elderly. That's when I noticed that an assisted living complex had been built where some of the other houses used to be.
Now most people would have turned around and found somewhere else, but not me. One thing kept me from leaving. The tree, our tree, was still there.
I parked my car and popped the trunk open. I always kept my guitar with me just incase. It was my way of escaping the world. Music really spoke to me. I grabbed my guitar case and walked toward the tree.
As I got to the trunk of the tree, I realized I had a problem. How was I supposed to climb a tree with a guitar case? I stared at it for a while and sighed. Although my favorite part of the tree was the big branch, the ground beneath it would have to do.
I sat down and strummed a few chords and the words just started to flow out of me.
Oh Memories,
Where'd you go?
You were all I've ever known.
How I miss yesterday.
How'd I let it fade away?
Don't fade away...
After playing for a while and creating my new song, I was interrupted.
"Well, hi there!"
I looked up to see a short old women with white hair standing above me. "Hello, ma'am, can I help you?" I said. I realized that might have sounded slightly rude, but it was too late now.
"I couldn't help but over hear you singing. It was so beautiful that I turned up my hearing aid!" she said.
"Uh, thanks?" I said with a chuckle.
"What's your name, son?" she asked me.
"Brendon. Brendon Urie."
"Nice to meet you Brendon Brendon Urie. Strange that your first name and middle name are the same. I'm Flora Mae ," she said, shaking my hand. I shook my head at her comment "So, what's got you writing such a sad song?" she asked.
I didn't really think before I poured my heart out to this stranger but I did anyway. And it felt good. I told her about 7th grade, and the things Laken and I did in the summer together. I told her about the tree and then I told her about the day I left.
My mother tricked me that day. She told me that we were going on a trip and that we'd be back. I didn't realize that we weren't going back until we got to the new house later that night. We were 6 hours away from home. 6 hours away from Laken.
I wish I could've picked up and gone to see her but I was in freaking middle school. As time went on, I didn't think about her all that much anymore. I gave up on the thought of ever seeing her again. She never crossed my mind again until I moved back two weeks ago.
Things with my mother got gradually worse after we moved. Like I said, I was only in middle school so what was I supposed to do? Once I turned 18, I moved out. My mother didn't believe in me and my music and she constantly told me how my life was a wreck. The day I moved out she actually told me that she was glad because she never wanted me anyway. I would've moved in with my dad, if only I knew where he was. He ditched on me and my mom when I was younger. I never knew him.
Now here I am, back in the town I was born in. As I said before, I moved back about 2 weeks ago. As soon as I got settled in, the first thought that crossed my mind was my middle school best friend. I had to track her down! The problem was, how? She wouldn't have the same phone numbers and chances are she moved as well. How was I supposed to find her?
Then Chick-fil-a happened and we all know how that went.
I finished telling my life story and looked back up to the old lady. She had a funny grin on her face.
"What?" I asked laughing.
"This girl is your soul mate and as soon as you saw her again you ran like a scared dog with it's tail between it's legs?" she said chuckling.
"She ran too!" I argued.
She shook her head at me. "Well," she said, "I have to get back to my apartment. The caregivers get upset if we're gone too long. Brendon, I've only known you for about a half hour but I have a feeling that you and this girl are meant to be together."
I smiled at her and then dropped my gaze to the grass.
"Honey," she said, "will you be coming back here tomorrow?"
"I guess so, I don't have anywhere else to be."
"Okay, meet me here at 4. I want to hear more about this girl and then I'll help you find a way to get her."
"Flora, I'm not sure I want her, let alone she would want me. And also I'm not sure I can find her again." I said, trying to hide the sadness in my tone.
"Trust me, I know you need this girl. See you tomorrow!" she said with a wink.
I watched her slowly walk away and when she made it to the building I began to pack up my guitar. Flora had to be crazy. We were just middle school friends. Or was Flora right and Laken was everything I needed?
I packed my guitar back into the trunk and drove to my new apartment. My apartment wasn't that great but for 18 years old, I was lucky to have a place to live on my own in general. It had a small kitchen, one bedroom, one bathroom, and a small living room. I had everything I needed, it was just smaller than average. Luckily, when I moved out of my mom's, I was able to grab a few things like my tv, Xbox, and my clothes. I had enough to get by.
By the time I got to my apartment it was about 7 o'clock. I decided to call for a pizza.
As I waited for my pizza, I realized that I had about 85 messages on my phone. I hadn't checked it since Chick-fil-a. I opened the messages app to see who they were from.
84 of them were from Vanessa. Surprise surprise. The text messages went something like this:
Vanessa: BRENDON WHAT THE HELL WHERE DID YOU GO
Vanessa: IM SO FCKING PISSED AT YOU
Vanessa: GET BACK HERE AND DRIVE ME HOME
Vanessa: WHO WAS THAT BTCH ANYWAY
Vanessa: Brendon, I'm sorry, I didn't mean that
Vanessa: I love you please answer me
Vanessa: Want me to get you some Chick-fil-a???
I think you get the point. Poor girl didn't realize that I didn't actually have feelings for her. I scrolled back to my messages screen to see who the other message was from.
RyRo: Hey dude, what the hell did you do to that btch Vanessa? She somehow got my number and she's freaking out trying to get a hold of you.
I shook my head and started to text back.
Me: Bro, it's a long story. Want to come over for pizza right now? I'll tell you everything.
RyRo: Sure, I'll be right over. Want me to invite Vanessa??
Me: You wouldn't.
RyRo: ;)
**
Ryan ended up arriving before the pizza did. Go figure. Can't get any decent service anywhere.
I didn't even have to open the door for Ryan when he came over. He usually just walked right in which is exactly what he did. He walked straight through the door and jumped onto my couch.
"Alright, get talking- wait.. I thought you said there'd be pizza?" he said.
"It's on it's way, chill out." I replied.
I could see the disappointment in his face when he realized that the pizza wasn't here yet. He got so freaking emotional over pizza.
"Fine, tell me the story." He said.
I sighed and began to tell him the same story I had told Flora a few hours ago. Ryan already knew about my family situation with my mom and dad so at least I could leave that part out. I met Ryan when I was in town looking at apartments about 2 months ago. I was checking out the local music store between open houses and that's where I met him. We bonded over music and since then, we became pretty close.
I finished up with everything about Laken and everything that happened today. Ryan looked stunned when I finished.
"You just ran away? You saw her and you ran away?" he said.
"You sound like Flora now." I told him.
He looked confused, "Flora?"
"Never mind, that's a whole other story."
The door bell rang indicating that my pizza had arrived. I grabbed my wallet of the counter and answered the door.
"That'll be 10.50," the delivery man said.
When I looked up to hand him the money, I realized I recognized him.
"Hey," I said, "Do I know you from somewhere?"
"NO WAY," the guy said. "You're the dude that scared Laken today! Dude, I'm Parker. I'm like her best friend. What the hell did you do to her?"
"It's a long story that I've already told a million times today." (Okay maybe just twice but still.) "Hey, Parker, can I maybe ask you a favor?"
He nodded but he seemed unsure. "Uh sure, what is it?"
I glanced back at Ryan who was completely focused on the Pizza he was holding and not at all focused on the conversation. I turned back to Parker. "Can you leave me Laken's phone number?"
Parker thought about it for a little while, but eventually he wrote down her number on a napkin and handed it to me. "I'll give it to you but I swear to god if you do anything to her I will kill you. God knows why she was so terrified of you today. I'm watching you."
I smiled and thanked him and he left. I turned around to where Ryan was sitting, unable to stop smiling.
"Bro," Ryan said, "Did that pizza guy just give you his number?"
I shook my head and laughed. "No, not at all. He gave me Laken's."