(A/N sorry I haven't posted in forever. If you like this story, will you please help me spread it around?? I really want more reads:) this is the last chapter I have written already. I am about halfway through with writing chapter fourteen, so I will post it when I'm done. I've been pretty busy lately so it might be a while...sorry guys. But thanks, you guys are awesome:) don't forget to vote please:) )
"HEY, ARE YOU Lexi?" the girl with bright red, dyed hair behind the desk asks me. I nod, and she shakes my hand. I notice she has quite a thick layer of eyeliner on, and there is a silver stud in her nose, but she is actually really pretty. "I'm Sydney," she adds. "I've been excited to meet you, I'm tired of being the only girl working here. I mean, I love Josh to death, but...let's just say I get a little lonely in here sometimes."
Sydney gestures around the music store indifferently, showing off black-painted fingernails. She seems really nice and friendly, but she reminds of one of those emo girls in movies.
"I'm supposed to be 'training' you," she says, using air quotes, "but to be honest, working here isn't that hard. Come back here, I'll give you your name tag."
I walk around to the other side of the desk and she hands me a silver, metal name plate reading "Lexi." Pinning it onto my shirt, I hear Sydney pop her gum as she explains what I'll be doing during my shift. When she is finally finished, she smiles and says, "Got it?"
"Sure," I say, looking around. "Is it usually this empty here?"
Sydney shrugs. "We're not to busy most of the time...I wonder where Josh has gotten to. JOSH! Where'd you go?" she calls into the back room. "Lexi's here!"
I giggle. "You don't have to make a big deal out of it."
A voice yells back, "Coming, Syd, Jesus!"
I smile as a thin boy about my age walks out of the back room. He has curly, black hair and dark eyes, and a long nose. He gives off an air of kindness, and smiles when he sees me, revealing perfect white teeth. I hate to say it, but he's kind of handsome.
"I'm Josh," he says, holding his hand out. I take it and return his smile.
"Lexi," I reply. "Nice to meet you."
As the few hours pass by, lightly working and chatting, I get to know Sydney and Josh a bit better. I find out that Josh is a fellow senior, and goes to school with me-I'm new, of course, so I don't know many people yet. They are both really nice, and I like them.
Good job, Lexi, I tell myself, friends are exactly what you need.
When it is time for the store to close, I lock up and meet Sydney and Josh outside. The sky is dark and sprinkled with stars, washed out by city lights.
Suddenly, as I'm having a conversation, I see Sydney's eyes widen at something behind me, and before I can look around, a hand firmly grasps my shoulder. Bewildered, I look around wildly, and when I tilt my head backwards to look up, my eyes meet Landon's. I relax as I am confirmed that the person is not a crazy rapist or anything.
"Hey," I say, his heavenly features making my heart melt, his touch giving me butterflies.
"It's late, Lex. You've been standing out here for a long time."
"I told you not to call me 'Lex,'" I frown.
"Too bad," Landon smirks.
"Okay, well...I guess I'll see you guys tomorrow," I say to my coworkers, giving a small wave and allowing Landon to steer me to my red Beatle.
Once seated in the driver's seat, I look to my right, seeing Landon climbing into the passenger side.
"Why are you in my car?"
"Because I walked here to check on you, and you're driving me home," he says.
I sigh in defeat. "Okay."
"Who the hell was that?"
"Who?"
"That guy."
"Josh? He goes to school with me, and he works with me now."
Landon frowns. "Stay away from him."
"Why?" I exclaim.
"Because I said so. I didn't like the way he was looking at you."
"L-looking at me?"
"He was checking you out."
"Last time I checked, it wasn't your job to tell me who to be friends with!"
"He didn't want to just be friends, Lexi."
"This is ridiculous! You're not the boss of me, Landon!"
My voice is raising, and thank God for the darkness, because I am blushing furiously.
"I'm just telling you that that guy is trouble."
"I could say the same for you!"
Landon's eyes widen, and I can tell that I have touched a nerve. Wanting to grin in satisfaction, I then say, "Are you actually jealous of him, Landon? I just met him."
"So you don't like him?"
"Like him? Of course I like him. He's nice, and funny, and doesn't stalk me everywhere I go!"
Landon's face snaps in my direction, and I know I have gone too far. Anger contorts his face and his breathing picks up. He leans across the console and puts his face close to mine, gripping my face and forcing me to look at him. Fear takes over me, and as much as I try to hide it, I am sure it shows.
"What did you just say?" he snarls. I am paralyzed with fear of this angry man before me, not able to move. Suddenly I am afraid that he will hit me, harm me, somehow.
"L-Landon-stop-"
Then, just as suddenly as my words had flipped his anger switch on, they flipped it off. His grip on me softened, and he backed away from me a few inches.
"You thought I was going to hurt you," he states.
I try my best to ignore the pressure building in my throat, to swallow down the forming tears.
"You thought I was going to hurt you," Landon repeats, "didn't you?"
I dare to look back into his eyes and see them clouded with worry and guilt. He really is concerned about me. I don't answer, but instead bite my bottom lip and stare at the floor. My eyes disobey me as I feel a tear trip down.
Landon touches my cheek to wipe it away; I didn't know he could possess such gentleness. Still, though, his touch frightens me, and I jerk away, my back hitting the car door.
"Lexi, please," Landon whispers. "I am so sorry. So, so sorry. I didn't mean...I didn't mean to scare you. I would never, ever hurt you, I swear. I'm not like my father."
He falls silent. With a shaking hand, I press the unlock button.
"Get out," I command in a small voice. Landon looks at me as if surprised.
"What?"
"Get out of my car," I say again.
"Lexi-you know I would never-I'm sorry, I am-"
This time, I make eye contact with him before repeating myself.
"Get out."
"Please, Lex, don't leave me."
Somehow, I know he isn't saying not to leave him stranded at the music store. He is saying not to leave him...as in leave him, leave him. For good.
"Get out!" I cry, more tears spilling past my eyelids. Landon exhales and exits the car with a pained expression.
I drive away, leaving him standing in the parking lot, his eyes glossy.
•••
Crying the whole drive home, I am relieved to find that my parents are not home. I check my phone and see that they texted me-they decided last-minute to drive to my mother's friend's house for a couple of nights, a few hours away.
Great, I'll have the house to myself.
Since it is late, I take my shower and get ready for bed, turning off the lights and crawling under my soft sheets. My eyelids are getting heavy...
BANG.
I bolt upright in bed, heart pounding. Glancing at the clock, I find that it is two-thirty in the morning. I have been asleep for two and a half hours.
Home-alone-at-night paranoia sets in and my mind begins to race. That sound was loud, and close...
BANG.
What the hell? I start to panic, hurriedly running to my window to look out.
A dark figure is barely able to be seen in the shadows of night, slightly illuminated by the streetlamp, staggering around the yard, yelling. I shut the window and close my eyes, listening to my quick heartbeat. Someone is outside my house, making a racket, in the dead of the night.
Then an idea occurs to me. Landon...
Before I know what I'm doing, I open my closet door and throw on the first article of clothing I see, which conveniently happens to be Landon's hoodie he left me, and run down the stairs at full speed, only pausing to look out of the kitchen window for a closer look.
I can tell by his broad shoulders, his wide chest, his muscular arms-even though a hood is once again covering his face with shadows, I know it is him. As afraid as I am still of Landon, I know I don't have much of a choice but to confront him.
I quickly run a brush through my hair and tip-toe into the side-yard, grass prickling my bare feet. I peer through the iron fence at him, still calling out random, slurred words and phrases, making no sense, staggering around as if he'll fall with any wrong footing. And in his hand...a bottle of alcohol.
Of course...he is drunk.
Taking a deep breath, I open the gate and step out into the driveway. He hears the sound and looks to me, probably only seeing a blurred, black silhouette.
"Lex," he calls, and I brace myself as he begins to make his way to where I stand, stumbling many times in the short distance. He takes a long swig from his bottle.
"Lex," he says again, this time softer, his speech slurred. He reaches out and touches my cheek with his hand, but I cringe away, frightened. I see panic cross in his bloodshot eyes.
"Shit!" he yells, the scream piercing the night. "What did I do...what was I thinking..."
I stand, my back pressed against the brick of my home. Suddenly, Landon heaves and with a surge of unthinkable strength, he whirls his almost-empty bottle of liquor into the garage door, causing a startlingly loud sound of shattering glass.
I leap away, fearing the shards of glass on my bare feet.
"Landon," I cry. "Landon, calm down, it's-"
But he throws himself onto the ground in the midst of the glass shards, picking up one and cursing loudly as it slices a gash in his finger.
He looks up at me, blood running down his wrist. Careful to avoid treading on broken glass, I near him and place a hand on his shoulder.
"Come on," I say wearily, as he shakily gets to his feet and flicks his wrist, showering the cement with droplets of gushing blood. "Let's go get you cleaned up."
I lead him into the house and flip on the lights in the kitchen, taking him to the sink. "Give me your hand," I instruct, and he holds it out. I take it in mine and let cool water from the tap run over it. As I rinse away the redness and observe the deep gash in his index finger, I am aware of him studying my face.
Even though Landon towers over me in height, I patch his finger with a bandage and ask while not looking at him, "What are you doing here?"
His speech is still slurred and hard to understand. "I came to-to find you."
"Why?"
"Because I-I-"
He somehow finds the strength to lightly press me into the kitchen counter and stand over me, our bodies pressed together. In our close proximity, I find I have no option but to stare into his eyes, and even in his drunken state, he is still the most beautiful man I have ever seen. He reaches up to push a strand of my hair behind my ear, and this time, I don't flinch.
"I am so sorry, Lexi," he whispers. "I would never hurt you. Please-please forgive me. Give me a chance, let me make it up to you."
He is breaking, I can tell by his voice and his face. He cannot stand himself after what he did to me.
Sweat is making some of his hair stick to his forehead, and I push it away, letting my touch linger on his precious face.
I nod, a silent confirmation to his worries. And then he is pressing his lips to mine, kissing me, and I wrap my arms around his neck as he pushes me back into the counter-he tastes like sweat, and liquor, but satisfying, and I am kissing him back, ignoring the voice in my head screaming at me how wrong this is. Because I am saying this is right, incredibly right...my legs wrap around his waist and he lifts me up, sitting me on the counter as he continues to kiss me.
My fingers tangle in his chocolatey hair, and he grips me tighter still, his large hands holding to my waist.
Finally, I am the first to pull away, still close enough but our lips no longer touching. My brown eyes stare into his blue ones, deep as the ocean.
"You are so beautiful, you know that, right?" he whispers.
I grin, pulling him into an embrace. It feels good just to be in his arms.
"You're wearing my sweatshirt," he smirks, voice still slurred.
"I know," I say. "It's late, now. I have school tomorrow..."
He buries his face into my neck and sets me back down on the floor. "Okay. I'll let you get to sleep, then. I'm pretty tired, myself."
"Sure, but you're drunk," I giggle.
Landon smirks. "Maybe," he says.
I sigh and start up the stairs to my room, knowing that I can't let him leave in his intoxicated state. He's get hurt...I have to let him stay here.
When I reach my door, I realize he is still following me. I turn around, facing him. "No," I say. "You can stay, but you're staying in the guest room. And I'm only letting you stay because you'd get hurt by yourself getting home."
He sighs. "Damn it. Fine, then."
I lead him to the guest room, and he immediately flops down on the bed, obviously exhausted. I'm glad...he needs to sleep off his intoxication.
"Okay, I-" I begin, but stop when I hear a slight snore and heavy breathing. I look at his face, seeing that his eyes are closed. How can someone fall asleep that fast?
Alcohol, that's how.
I remove his boots from his feet and place a pillow underneath his angelic head, then retrieve a blanket from the wardrobe and drape it over him. Landon looks so peaceful in sleep.
I begin to back out of the room, flipping off the lights, my hand resting on the doorknob, when I hear him speak.
"Stay with me."
I grin to myself, and take a seat on the edge of the bed. I could watch him sleep all day. The way his back falls and rises with every deep death, the way his hair falls around his head, the way his face is not contorted with anger, sadness, of any expression except for peacefulness.
I return to my own bed with a smile on my face, my confused mind replaying the previous moments with Landon.
Well...that was a dramatic turn of events.
•••
My alarm wakes me up very suddenly in the morning, and it take me a moment to remember why I feel different and confused.
Oh yeah. Landon came here drunk last night, I cleaned his bleeding finger and then we had a make-out session and he slept over. No biggie.
Yes, biggie! What about Austin? My freaking boyfriend?
Oh, God. What have I gotten myself into?
Austin. Austin, Austin. I feel terrible admitting this, but in the past couple of days, I haven't really thought much about him. What's wrong with me? And he called me recently, and I didn't get that usual spark from hearing his voice. Does that mean I don't love him anymore? Does it mean I am moving on?
I still have feelings for Austin, of course I do. But they just aren't as strong as they were before. Is he moving on, too?
Guilt presses in on me, but I shrug it away. I most likely won't see him again, and anyway, it isn't like I have another boyfriend or something. Landon and I aren't dating.
I creep down the hall and peer into the guest bedroom. Landon is still sprawled out on the mattress, fast asleep. I should let him finish sleeping off the effects of the alcohol.
It's strange, seeing a boy in my house. Thank goodness my parents are gone.
I quickly stuff my face with a Pop-Tart and then brush my teeth and wash my face. Eyeing the clothes in my closet, I decide to go with comfy clothes today: a gray sweatshirt from my school in New Zealand and neon pink shorts. I braid my brown, highlighted hair into a long side-braid and push it back with a headband, then get out of makeup bag, spreading mascara on my lashes, drawing on a thin line of eyeliner, putting rosy blush on my cheeks and coloring on pink lipstick. Simple look, but cute.
I am retrieving my school bag from my chair when there is a soft knock at my bedroom door.
My heart begins to race as I pull it open to see a sleepy looking Landon, but as usual, he is perfect.
"Hey," I say quietly. He leans on the doorframe.
"Hey," he says. "Do you have any Tylenol?"
I grin, eyeing him jokingly. "Hangover?"
"The worst," he replies.
I push past him, walking down into the kitchen and handing him a glass of water and two small pills.
"Thanks," he murmurs, swallowing them.
I slip on my gray Vans and eye Landon, who is still standing in the kitchen, watching me.
"What?"
"You just...look really cute today. That's all."
I smile at him and sling my bag over my shoulder. "I'm going to school," I announce. "How are you getting home?"
Landon shrugs, pushing back his hair with his hand. "I guess I'll walk."
I glance at the clock, proud of myself for being ready with so much time to spare.
"I still have a while before school starts...I guess I could drop you by."
I would feel bad making him walk, especially since I have a car and extra time.
He decides to drive because I don't know where he lies, and he pulls up about ten minutes later at a nice apartment building.
"Thanks," he says before opening the car door. I climb out of the car and walk around to the driver's seat. "Thanks for everything."
I allow myself to meet his eyes. "You're welcome."
"I guess I'll see you later then."
Landon then bends down and gives me a lingering kiss on the cheek. I try to hide my grin by bringing my bottom lip in between my teeth, but he catches me and smirks.
"Bye," I call as he walks away towards the entrance of the building, and I close the car door, putting the car in drive. I look up again just in time to see him glance back at me before letting the door swing shut behind him.
I turn up the volume of the radio, singing along and thinking about how much I wish he was still in the car with me as I drive myself to school.
•••
I MAKE IT to my locker in time for the hallways to sill he crowded before class. Hurrying to get my textbook for Geography, I hear a boy shout my name.
"Lexi!"
I turn around, not sure who to expect. I don't really know many boys from school yet.
"Oh-hey Josh."
He stands to my left, a textbook in his hand and a smile on his face.
"Um, listen," he says, looking uncomfortable. "If you don't mind me asking, who-who was that guy that came to the store after closing last night?"
I raise my eyebrows. "You mean Landon?"
"I guess so..."
"Oh. Yeah, well, um...I guess he's a friend of mine," I say.
"Okay, I was just checking to make sure you were okay...he looked like trouble and I was sort of concerned."
I frown. "Thanks, I appreciate that, but I can take care of myself. I guess I'll see you after school."
I push past him, my shoulder brushing into him as I make my way to class.
"Wait-Lexi!"
I turn around, meeting Josh's handsome face and dark eyes.
"Is-is that guy your boyfriend?"
Taken aback, I reply hotly, "That's really none of your business. But no, he's not."
Before he can respond, he is ambushed by a crowd of guy friends. Wow, he must be popular...I make a mental note to ask Morgan about it later.
•••
At lunch, I am invited to leave school and go out for a burger with the group-the group, as in Morgan, Haley, Claire, and, unfortunately, Jordan. I'm still not a huge fan of her, but then again I don't really know her well yet. I offer for us to take my car, because it has five seats and also, it's closest to where we are.
We decide to go to the burger joint instead of a drive-through, meaning skipping fifth period. But hey, I'm not complaining.
I order a cheeseburger and a Dr. Pepper, and the girls and I go find a booth to sit at, our hands full of burgers and fries.
"Hey, so do you guys know Josh?" I ask, dipping a French-fry in ketchup.
Haley raises her eyebrows. "Josh Fenwick, you mean?"
I shrug, not knowing his last name.
"He's one of the most popular guys at our school," Claire mentions.
Morgan looks at me knowingly. "He's going out with Rylee Crause, if that tells you anything."
I recall the image of Morgan's party, and the "popular" girl making out with her boyfriend in the corner. Well...I guess that was Josh.
"Oh," is all I say.
"How do you know him?" Jordan cuts in, jealously clear on her face. What the heck does this girl have against me?
"I work with him."
"No way!" Morgan exclaims. "Since when?"
"Yesterday."
"I'm jealous," Claire pouts sarcastically, and I can't help but notice Jordan flush with embarrassment. See, she really is jealous, as to where Claire is just joking around. Jordan must really hate me.
She sweeps her flame-colored hair over her shoulder, her eyes on the restaurant entrance that she is facing. I, on the other side of the booth with Morgan, am facing away from it.
"Oh my God, hot guy alert," she announces, and Claire and Haley look around wildly, but Morgan and I don't bother turning around.
"He's coming over here, he's coming over here," Haley says quickly.
I freeze mid-drink when Landon stops at our table.
"Uh-oh," Morgan mumbles next to me, also recognizing him. Jordan kicks her under the table.
There are four other gorgeous girls sitting with me, but Landon is staring only at me. "Hey, love," he says.
"Erm, hey, Landon."
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Jordan's face fall and be replaced by pure anger. For come reason, I want to do a happy dance.
"What are you doing here?"
"I was driving past and saw your car, so I thought you were probably here. I have a while before my next class, so I thought I would come say hi, but...you're not alone..."
"You're at uni?" I ask, shocked. I had assumed that he's not in college.
Landon nods.
"Um, okay, hey I'll be right back," I say to the girls and I grab Landon by the arm, pulling him with me to the outdoor eating area. I can still see my friends staring at me open-mouthed through the glass.
"What's wrong?" he asks me.
"I just can't believe you're here," I say, scowling. He digs in his pocket, pulling out black shades and putting them on. Gosh he is so attractive.
"Who are those girls?"
"My friends..."
"Friends? Didn't you just get here?"
"On Friday is when I started school. So yeah, I guess."
It's Thursday now, so I don't get why he is so shocked. It's nearly been a week of school. Which means that I've been in Oklahoma for about two weeks.
"Thank you, for...taking care of me last night."
I smile. "Sure, Landon."
When I smile, he reaches a hand out to caress my face. "You're so beautiful," he whispers.
Suddenly, forgetting how public we are, I stand on my tiptoes, and he lowers his head, connecting our lips. A kiss, short and sweet.
"I should get back," I say, grinning.
"Me too. See you later, Lex."
I turn away and head back to my friends' table. They are all staring at me with shocked expressions.
"What-what was that?" Morgan asks, eyes wide. I smugly slide into the seat next to her and sip my Dr. Pepper. The four girls continue to stare at me.
"Landon," I reply simply, shrugging.
She gives me an odd look, probably remembering the scene at the mall on Sunday. "Um...okay..."
I check the time on my cell phone. "Fifth period ends in fifteen minutes," I say. "We should get back."
•••
I am the first one to arrive at the music store after school. On weekdays, the store opens at four o'clock and closes at ten, and on Saturdays (when I am not working) it is open from noon to seven in the evening, and on Sundays, it is closed. There are no customers yet when I arrive, and Sydney and Josh have not gotten there.
Knowing that "The Boss" (as my coworkers and I call him, because they hate him and he is barely ever even in the store) is gone, I sit down at one of the pianos for sale and begin to play. Eleven years of lessons has really paid off. I allow my fingers to gracefully move across the keys, creating beautiful music to move throughout the store.
I have always loved music, and began singing at an early age. As much as I love singing, and as good as I am, I am always too afraid to do so in front of people. Every year at school I was in the choir, but I hated doing solos, even though I had the best voice out of all my friends. And piano...is something that comes pretty easy to me. People were always shocked when they heard me play.
I end the memorized piece with a complicated chord and suddenly I hear applause behind me, and my heart stops. I whirl around to see Josh leaning on a table nearby.
"Oh my God-" I begin, feeling my face turn bright red, but he interrupts me.
"No, don't," Josh says. "I know what you're going to say already...just save it. That was amazing...you are really talented."
I grin, still blushing furiously. "Um...thanks."
The door bangs open and Sydney stumbles in, bright hair flying all around her face. "Sorry I'm late, Josh-oh! Lexi! I forgot there's another girl here now! Why are you at a piano? Do you play?"
Geez, she seriously never stops talking.
"Oh, a little-"
"She's crazy good," Josh cuts in.
Sydney's face lights up. "Ooh! Really? Play something!"
I blush, cheeks turning red. "No, I'm good. I guess I'll go..."
Looking around the store wildly, I try to find an excuse of something to do.
"Organize the sheet music. By alphabetical order. And genre."
I grin, sarcastic, and walk over to the sheet music station. Why are there three teenagers working in this store? Only one is necessary.
Several minutes later, Sydney approaches me. "Why don't you go take over the register," she suggests. "Josh is putting out new merchandise, and I'll organize the shop." Her eye drops in a wink. "And when you're on your way to the desk, turn on some music, will you? There's a speaker radio by the CDs."
"Okay," I grin, and head to the CD section, switching the radio on to the local pop station. I then head to the desk, ringing up the waiting customer.
"Thank you," I say as I hand her the bag of purchased sheet music. She smiles and walks away.
I stand by the register, drumming my fingers on the desk to the music, waiting on the next customer to complete their shopping. Or in other words, doing absolutely nothing.
That's when the blonde girl walks in, and I instantly recognize her. She is my age, with sun-tanned skin and long, straight hair. Bright red shades are pushed back in her hair, revealing dark eyes with heavy makeup. A tight, short blue top covers her torso, revealing a lot of skin, and hot pink, torn booty-shorts hug her hips. The girl walks up to the counter and stares at me, popping her gum, a snobby attitude etched all over her face.
"Hey..." Rylee Crause-according to my friends, the most popular girl at our school-says. "You look familiar. Do I know you?"
I shrug, already deciding that I am not a fan of this girl. "I go to your school."
"Okay...?"
"I'm new."
"Um, alright. Is Josh here?"
Right, they're dating. How could sweet, kind, handsome Josh like this slut?
"Yeah, he's in the back. One sec."
I turn my head back, imitating Sydney from yesterday. "JOSH! Come here please!"
I face Rylee again just in time to see her roll her eyes.
"I know who you are now. You're that girl from New Zealand, right?"
I nod, not wanting to be too friendly.
"Right. You hang out with that Morgan girl."
I raise my eyebrows, suddenly aware of the girl scanning me over thoroughly.
"You're pretty enough, though. You could hang out with my and my friends, I guess."
Thankfully, Josh chooses this moment to come out of the back room, rescuing me from this awful girl. I turn away uncomfortably as Josh greets her with, "Hey, babe," and then Rylee latches herself onto him and starts making out with him in the middle of the store. Yeah, no thanks, Rylee, I'd rather not hang out with you and your friends.
Since there is no one in line at the register, I look around the store for a sign of Sydney's flaming hair, and vividly spot it in a corner, talking to a customer. I approach her, wanting to get away from Josh and Rylee's love fest, and hear her kindly helping a woman pick out the best flute for her daughter.
"I think I'll go with this one," says the woman a few moments later, and heads over to the sheet music section.
Sydney looks at me with a dark look. "Is the devil here?"
I give a small smile and nod. Sydney rolls her eyes.
"Of course she is. God, she's always here. I don't know why Josh is into
her...they're nothing alike. I've known Josh for a while now, and he's a really nice guy. Completely the opposite of the queen of whores."
I laugh. "I don't like her much either. But I guess I don't really know her. My friends think the same way about her as you do."
Sydney shrugs. "Sorry. She just really annoys me."
"No, it's fine," I say.
Sydney looks at me and grins. "I like you, you're cool. We should hang out sometime. I live alone, and I get pretty lonely sometimes."
"Yeah, that'd be fun," I agree. We exchange numbers and I head back to the register, where thankfully, Rylee and Josh are no longer kissing.
•••
I drive myself home after work, and when I am ready for bed, I tell my parents goodnight and settle on my beanbag texting Morgan and Haley. It feels like I have been here in Oklahoma for a lot longer than two weeks.
Someone lightly taps on my bedroom door, and I frown, confused. My parents said they were going to bed.
The door is pushed open to reveal my parents. I sit up on my beanbag, looking at them.
"I thought you guys were going to bed," I say.
My mother looks uncomfortable. "We have something we need to discuss with you."
"Um...okay. What is it?"
Mom and Dad come in and sit on my bed, and I can tell something is wrong.
"Lexi," my dad begins, "I know we've only been here two weeks. And it feels like several months, right?"
I nod, not sure where he is going with this.
"Are you happy here?" Mom asks.
I nod, truthfully, and she takes a deep breath.
"Okay. Well...we're moving to McAlester."
This doesn't make any sense to me, and I am sure I heard her wrong.
"What?"
"We are moving to McAlester. We need to repair the bond with that side of the family...you know, Brittany's family."
"We're moving? Again? But...we just got here!"
My dad sighs. "We're sorry, Lexi. But this would be best for us. Your mother is having trouble finding work here, and we think she would have more luck in a small town like McAlester. And it just so happens that the company I work for has an office there, too. It would work good, it would be perfect. We even found a house on Brittany's street."
I stare at them, open-mouthed. "Seriously? You guys are serious? I can't believe this. I'm just now getting comfortable, building friendships, getting to know people...and we're leaving? After two weeks?"
Mom nods, biting her lip. "Lexi, honey, we're sorry-"
"And what about this house? The one I've just now started calling 'home?'"
"We put it up for sale this morning. It's a done deal, and we've made an offer on the house in McAlester."
"I'm not going."
My mom buries her face in her hands. "Lexi, please don't start this, we don't want to fight-"
I stand up from the beanbag. "I am an adult now, mother! I can do whatever I want, I turned eighteen last month! You can't stop me from staying."
"Lexi, please-"
But, to my utmost surprise, Dad interrupts her. "She's right, Kristi. We can't stop her, she's an adult now."
Mom gives him an incredulous look. "How an you side with her? You really want to leave our only daughter here alone?"
"No, but we can't force her. Lexi is old enough now to make her own decisions. She just started a life her, Kristi, we can't force her to start over again."
"I'm going to bed," my mom snaps, looking upset. My dad stands and follows her out of the room.
Finally. Finally at least one of my parents sees that I am no longer a child.