Miley Cyrus’ VMA performance was….interesante
That awkward moment when your mom asks what twerking is and you have to explain it and be like ‘I’m not doing a demonstration’
“Sam, stay behind” Carter called out as he wrapped up football practice. The coach had left him in charge of practice which was going great until Sam walked in twenty minutes late and had such a bad aim that more than a couple balls hit Carter on his head. He tried to keep his temper in check as Sam walked towards him, the rest of the team had already left the locker room apart from Nick who was sitting on one of the benches.
“What’s up captain?” Sam asked in a sarcastic voice. Carter glared at him which instantly made the smirk wipe off his face.
“First of all you showed up twenty minutes late to practice and now I probably have a concussion from those little stunts you pulled. Care to explain Sam?” he asked, crossing his arms over his chest. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips when Nick came to stand beside him, mimicking his posture.
“I was busy with Lucky” Sam said with a smirk. Carter felt his blood boil and he grabbed Sam by the collar.
“Stay away from her. Got it?” he hissed at the smirking boy.
“Ah? So you do like her?” Sam said.
“That’s none of your business” Nick spoke up. Carter gave him a grateful look and turned his attention back to Sam. “Just stay away.”
“Why should I listen to you?” Sam asked, Carter grabbed his collar again and threw him on the ground and Nick held him down.
“I’m your captain and so is Nick. That’s why” he snapped before letting go of him and angrily storming out the locker room with Nick following behind him. He felt himself fuming at the fact that Sam and Lucky were probably back together.
“Calm down, I think he was lying” Nick said as they walked upstairs to the main hall. Carter shrugged and put his team jacket on. He knew he would have to ask Lucky later. Just then he saw Lucky leaning against her locker talking to Maria and Daniel. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips at how lively she was being.
“Carter!” Lucky exclaimed happily and ran to hug him. He immediately returned it but let go of her when Daniel gave him a sharp look.
“Did practice end late or something?” Maria asked, eyeing Carter and Nick suspiciously.
“No, me and Nick just had to handle some…captain stuff” he said. It wasn’t exactly a lie but he didn’t want anyone to know about their confrontation with Sam, especially if he wasn’t lying and he and Lucky really were back together.
“Speaking of football, how about we have another party after the match on Saturday?” Daniel asked with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “And this time you can’t disappear halfway through” he said, pointing to Carter.
“Promise” Carter said, giving Lucky a knowing smirk when Daniel turned away
“So you have time to sneak onto her balcony but you have no time to tell her how you feel?” Nick asked Carter. He sighed and looked down at the ground, leaning against the car. They had to stay back late in school so not many students were around.
“It’s complicated” he answered.
“How is telling someone how you feel complicated Carter?” he asked.
“I want to wait till the class trip to Washington” he said, he had decided last night that before he told Lucky how he felt he would talk to Sarah’s parents.
“You’re wasting time” Nick pointed out. Carter cocked one eyebrow and gave his friend a questioning look. “Eventually we have to graduate, what if she goes halfway around the world?”
“So? Aren’t we going to the same University? Or at least Universities that are close to each other” he was feeling increasingly anxious to hear her answer. Especially since she had gone silent. “Sarah?”
“I’m going to Africa” she mumbled. He was barely able to make out her words. He felt something he had never really felt before. Heart break.
“What?” he said, standing up. “Africa? You’re going to Africa? Why?” he asked, feeling furious. Sarah whimpered and he felt his expression soften slightly, he knew he was scaring her but that wasn’t the issue at the moment.
“My grandparents live in Johannesburg and I’m going to live with them and study at the University there. They have a really good Science program. I can’t miss out on that” she said, her voice shaky, he noticed she was close to tears so he took her small hand in his but that wasn’t enough to calm him down.
“We’re leaving” he ground out, pulling her towards the area where he had parked his silver sports car. He heard her soft sobs and wished he could find a way to comfort her.
“Carter?” Nick’s voice brought him out his thoughts.
“That was why Sarah died” he muttered, trying to bite back tears.
“It’s okay to cry you know. I know how it feels to lose someone you love” Nick said.
“You’re surrounded by people you love” Carter said, feeling slight envy for his friend. “You have your parents and Maria and the whole football team. I would give anything to have what you got.”
“Trust me you wouldn’t” Nick said, giving him a sad smile. “My mom died two years ago.”
Carter felt empathy for Nick as he rested a hand on his shoulder. He regretted saying anything at that moment. “I’m sorry I didn’t know.”
“I was really depressed at first. Kind of like how you were when you first came here but I actually met Maria at the funeral. She was that family friend who I was never interested in and she comforted me although I used to push her away” Nick explained. “And now I’m in love with her and we’re happy together. If my mom didn’t die, I would have never met her.”
“Have you ever even considered that maybe you were supposed to meet Lucky? That maybe Sarah died solely for that purpose?” Nick asked. Honestly, Carter had never considered but he always thought he had a crush on Lucky. The word ‘love’ never crossed his mind because he knew he wasn’t ready to fall in love just yet.
“I never thought about that” Carter said and Nick smiled at him.
“Of course you didn’t. You should tell Lucky when you’re ready” Nick said. “Just make sure the moment you’re ready isn’t too late.”
'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'
“Twenty seconds of insane courage” Carter whispered to himself as he stared at the front door of Lucky’s house. He knocked on the door hesitantly and tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for someone to answer the door.
“What’s up Carter?” he smiled down at Lucky when she answered the door.
“I – um- I have a present for you” he stuttered out. He held out his slightly trembling hand to reveal his team jacket and his extra football shirt. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips at Lucky’s confused expression. “It’s for the game Saturday. I want you to wear it” he explained.
“Um, I don’t know. That’s a tradition for the player’s girlfriends” Lucky said, looking unsure.
“It’s okay. I really want you to wear it” he pleaded, hoping he wasn’t embarrassing himself as much as he thought he was. He sighed in relief when Lucky gave him a huge grin and took the stuff out of his hand.
“Okay well thanks” she said. “Anything else?”
“Nope, see you on Saturday Lucky” he said, giving her a small wave before she closed the door. He was walking down the street from her house but stopped dead in his tracks when he saw something at the corner of his eyes. He turned around but it wasn’t there anymore. For a split second, he swore it was Sarah. His breath hitched and he kept walking, feeling his body tense.
He couldn’t be imagining these things a week before he planned to tell Lucky how he felt.
Okay first of all: Carter wasn’t seeing a Sarah ghost. He was just imagining things
Second of all: The Civil Wars are awesome
Third of all: I’M SEXY AND I KNOW IT! (lol no I’m not)