Hello Wattpad.
Today is a bittersweet day for me because this is the last chapter of the book Bet Me. I enjoyed writing this book and it feels like the end is coming too soon. But, the end of a book also means the beginning of a new book, which I’m excited to start. Thank you so much to the girls who inspired me to write this book. I appreciate all the ‘help’ ya’ll put into the book. Thank you for being weird and funny and just plain out crazy so I could use what ya’ll actually say in real-life for the characters. This book isn’t based off a true story, but more of a fantasy with some real facts and characters. Anyways, here it is the last chapter of Bet Me!!
Shewitywitters14
~~~~6 years later~~~~
As I sat on the couch of my apartment that I shared with the girls, I mindlessly traced the tattoo I got several years back. “What should we order for dinner tonight?” Beth said, taking a seat next to me on the couch. “Doesn’t matter to me. Anything but seafood.” I answered her without looking at her. All my attention was on the TV screen in front of me. I had recorded the Cowboys game I had missed on the previous Sunday and I was finally able to watch it today.
Ever since I started working for the corporate part of Bank of America, I’ve barely had time for myself. My work schedule was so hectic that I’d spend an entire day at the office then come home and sleep the whole night, without eating anything. After 5 days of a hectic schedule, I was excited for my 3 day weekend.
“Elena? Earth to Elena?” Sierra said, moving her hand in front of my face and causing me to turn and look at her. “Huh?” “Have you heard anything I’ve said?” she asked me. “Um, not really.” I answered sheepishly. “Girl, you and these damn football games. It’s not healthy you know.” She said to me. “What did you say?” I asked, completely ignoring her comment. She knew I was ignoring her comment but she didn’t say anything about it. “I SAID, I think we should eat healthy today and cook at home.”
“And who’s going to be cooking?” I asked, knowing good and well it wasn’t going to be me. “Beth offered to.” She said, pointing at Beth. “Okay, but what exactly is she going to cook? I don’t think we’ve gone grocery shops for weeks.” I said. “I mean, I was going to make rice with beans and order some steak from that restaurant on Brookhill.” Beth answered. “They deliver?” I asked. “I believe so.” She answered. I shrugged and replied “Fine with me.”
After Beth set up the pot with rice and beans, she called the restaurant and was ordering the steak when Megan opened the front door. “Hey you guys. What I miss?” she said, plopping down onto the couch opposite from us. “Nothing. How was work?” Sierra asked her. Megan gave her the ‘you know’ look and went back to looking in her phone.
“What’s for dinner?” Megan asked, putting her phone down on the table and pulling her legs under her. “Beth is making rice with beans and ordering steak.” Sierra said. “Why don’t we just order in like we always do?” Megan asked. “Cause Sierra wants to be healthy.” Beth said, hanging up the phone and taking her seat next to me. Megan gave Sierra a funny look but didn’t say anything. “What are you watching Elena?” Megan asked me. Without even thinking, I responded “Your mom.” “Bitch.” She said back. “I’m watching the Cowboys game from this past Sunday.” I said laughing. “Where’s number 14?” she asked me, knowing exactly why I was watching the game. “He’s not playing right now. He started the game though.” I answered.
“Does anyone want anything to drink?” Sierra asked, getting up from her spot on the couch. “Can you get me a water? Thanks.” Megan said. She looked at me and Beth but we nodded our heads no. As she made her way to the kitchen, there was a knock on the door. “Who is that? Did anyone invite someone?” Sierra asked. “Nope.” We all said to her retreating figure.
After several moments, Sierra walked back into the living room with a weird expression on her face. “Um, Elena? Someone wants to speak to you.” She said, not looking me in the eye. “Who is it?” I asked her. “I can’t say.” She answered. I stared at her for a second before I got up from the couch. Sighing, I walked away from my seat and began walking towards the front door. As I walked, I retied up my hair and fixed my sweatpants. When I finally looked up at the stranger waiting at the door, I stopped walking.
My heart dropped from my chest and I felt like the walls around me were caving in. Standing at the door, at an astounding 5 feet 11, was the person I least expected to see. He looked absolutely stunning in his dark blue jeans and white polo shirt, leaning against the doorframe. His hair had grown just a bit and was still as full as it was the last day I saw him. The muscles in his arm were bulging, but not the steroid-driven kind of bulge, but rather the nice I’m-a-professional athlete kind of bulge. He was leaning against the doorframe, looking back at me as if I was the greatest thing he’d ever seen. I was staring into the eyes of the man that was my first love, the boy who almost broke me when he left, the boy who I watched every football game of, the boy I had tried time and time again to get out of my mind, the boy who’s videos I watched over and over and over again, the boy who I will never forget. That man that stood there, in my doorway was James. My sweet, sweet James.
“Wha, what are you doing here?” I said, my voice barely audible. “It’s great to see you too Elena.” He said, joking around. I couldn’t even laugh because I was still in shock. “I was in the neighborhood and decided to drop in.” he said, a smile settling onto his lips as he moved closer to me. He pulled me into a hug but my arms just dangled next to me. I was in too much shock to do anything but stare. When he realized that I wasn’t hugging him back, he held my shoulders and looked at me, deep into my eyes.
“Are you okay Elena? You’re kind of scaring me.” He asked me. “Yeah, yeah. I’m good. Just a bit surprised.” I said, snapping out of my daze. “You sure? It seems like you don’t want to see me.” He said, his confidence dropping. “Oh no. I’m just shocked. You were the last person I expected to see right now.” I said to him. He smiled a bit but didn’t say anything. “Are you going to invite me in or something?” he said, breaking the silence. “Oh, oh yeah. Come on in.” I said, motioning for him to enter the apartment.
I closed the door behind him and as I walked past him to show him around the house, he grabbed my hand and I froze. The feel of his hand brought back a burst of memories that I had to suppress. I shook off the memories and held his hand as I walked him into the living room.
“You guys, it’s…” I started saying. “Hey!” “What are you doing here?” Megan and Beth said, trying their hardest to look actually surprised. I knew they were spying on us but James didn’t seem to catch on. He gave them all hugs and stood awkwardly next to the couch. “Are you watching the game from Sunday?” he asked, pointing to the TV. “Uh, we were just flipping through some channels.” I replied quickly before any of the girls could give me away.
“Um, James. Let’s go to my room so we can talk.” I said. He smiled and waved goodbye to the girls. I lead him to my room and before I opened the door, I said, “Don’t mind the mess. Tomorrow is the first day in a week that I’m off.” “It couldn’t be that bad. Plus, I know you and how you work.” He said, smiling softly. I felt myself blush so I just shut my mouth and opened the door. We walked in and I was embarrassed about all the clothes on the floor of my room. I don’t know why considering all the things that James and I did when we were younger.
“I guess just take a seat on my bed.” I said, pointing to a clean spot on my bed. James walked over to my bed and waited for me to sit on my bed. I took a seat and he sat, facing me. “You haven’t changed a bit. You still look as beautiful as you were in high school, but you look tired.” He stated after studying my face. “I’ve been working 12-hour shifts all week.” I explained. He nodded. “You on the other hand look amazing. Football has done you some justice.” I said grinning. “Ehh, except for the injuries. I could live without those.” He said, smiling.
“So how is it? How does it feel to make it big?” I asked him. “Playing for the Cowboys has opened so many opportunities for me. It was my start at Duke that helped out a lot. But, what’s the point of making it big if you don’t have someone to share your successes with?” he said, his tone changing. “Well, you’ve probably just overlooked one of the girls you’ve dated.” I suggested. “Nah. Those girls never really liked me for me.” He said after hesitating for a second. “I’m pretty sure there was one who did.” I said.
“There was one girl, now that you mention it.” He said after a while. “See, I knew it. You might not have noticed but she probably did care about you.” I said, smiling. “We we’re together a long time ago but we weren’t together for long. I was falling in love with her but it wasn’t a good time for us.” He said, looking deep into my eyes with a serious expression on his face. Although I knew what he was talking about, I continued to play stupid. “Aw, well, that’s too bad. I guess if you still have her number, you should call her and reconnect or something.” I said, looking away from his stare. After several seconds of silence, he said, “Maybe I should.”
After he said that, my phone rang. “Hold on a second.” I said, grabbing my phone and turning away from James. It was a number I didn’t know. I pressed the answer button and put the phone to my ear. “Hello?” I said. “Hi Elena.” I heard James say. I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath. I removed my phone from my ear and hung up.
“Elena?” he said. “Yeah.” I said. He didn’t continue speaking so I turned to face him. “Are you seeing someone right now?” he asked me. I paused and thought over my answer. “Yes, I am seeing someone James.” I replied. I saw sadness and anger flash through his eyes before his expression went blank. “Oh, are you guys serious?” he asked me. “Yes.” I answered.
James simply nodded and stood up from the bed. “So, basically you’re saying that you and I don’t have any type of chance of getting back together?” he asked me bluntly. “Yes, I mean, you can’t just show up at my apartment and expect everything to be the way it was when you left.” I said softly. “You’re right Elena. I’m sorry I bothered you. I’ll be leaving now.” He said, walking towards my bedroom door. “Wait James. Where are you staying? The least I can do is offer you a place to stay.” I said, getting off my bed and moving towards him.
“Don’t worry about it. I have a room at the Hilton. Plus, I don’t think I could handle spending the night under the same roof as you.” He said, without any venom in his voice, just pure pain. My shoulders slumped as he walked out of my room. He walked back towards the living room and said bye to the girls. “Where are you going? Dinners almost ready.” Sierra said to him. “Oh, I already ate. Plus, I need to go right now.” He said, smiling at her. He walked towards the door and I followed him. He opened the door and stepped out into the hallway.
“James,” I started saying. “No Elena. Don’t feel like you have to say anything else. I completely understand where you’re coming from and I shouldn’t have shown up without a warning. Pretend like I never came. Live your life to the fullest. I’m sorry for coming back like this. I won’t bother you ever again. I hope you have a nice life.” He said, and walked away from me. My insides were screaming at me to tell him to come back, but I stood there frozen, watching his retreating figure. He looked so heart broken and defeated. His face made my stomach drop. I completely lost my appetite to do anything.
As soon as I walked back into the living room, the girls were on my ass. “What the hell is the matter with you?” “What’d you say to the poor guy?” “I can’t believe he came all this way to see you and you just blow him off.” They said to me. I felt so numb that I just ignored them and walked into my room, locking the door behind me. I flopped face down onto my bed and let our conversation run through my mind.
“Yes, I am seeing someone James” I don’t even know what possessed me to say that. Ofcourse I’d dated some guys but they were never serious. Right when I was about to start crying, my phone pinged with a new email. I was about to turn off my phone when I saw who the email was from. It was from James. I opened it and saw a download for a video. I downloaded the video and pressed play. It was a video of James wearing black jeans and a red polo, with his guitar in his hands.
“Hey Elena. If you received this video then it must mean that I visited you and you turned me down. I don’t feel bitter or anything, just sad. But don’t worry about it. I understand that I can’t expect everything to be the way I left it but hell, it doesn’t hurt to try. You remember the bet I made you in the letter? Yeah, well, I won the bet. I saw you at work the other day and I knew that I still loved you. I guess you were able to move on with someone else that made you happy. I hope I’ll be able to move on too, but it’s hard because I don’t want to . Anyways, I wanted to send this video to sing to you this last time. I just want you to know that I love you and I wish the best for you.” He said. He picked up his guitar and started strumming a tune on his guitar. He opened his mouth, and just like 6 years ago, his deep voice serenaded me.
Hey there stranger, how you been
Feels like I'm standing on the outside looking in
At the mess we left behind
And it's a long way to fall
I gave you everything I had
I gave it all
And then my heart was on the line
I can't hate you
Any longer
I know I'm going to miss you
I'll forget it and let it go.
Say hello to goodbye, cause it's gone forever
No more try, you and I
Not now, not ever
And I'll get by without you
I'm not going back again
I'm not going to lie to you
Cause, that was there and only then.
Say hello to goodbye
Say hello...
What doesn't kill you
It makes you stronger
And though I'm going to miss you
I'll forget it and let you go
Say hello to good-bye
It's gone forever
No more try, you and I
Not now, not ever
And I'll get by without you
I'm not going back again
I'm not going to lie to you
Cause, that was there and only then.
And even though the tears will dry
I can't completely disconnect
Couldn't make the compromise
Didn't have a safety net
Have I told you before, you're one of a kind?
The way that you make me feel, like the sun always shines.
And have I ever let you know that I could never let you go?
Baby, my heart is like the love's drum, beating like never before.
'Cause when I look into your eyes,
I see the whole life is spinning out of control
And, you know, it happens everytime,
When we're together it's like heaven, only better
I hope it last forever,
Oh oh ohh, oh oh ohhh, oh oh ohh oh,
I hope it last forever,
Oh oh ohh, oh oh ohhh, oh oh ohh oh.
Not really sure how to feel about it.
Something in the way you move
Makes me feel like I can't live without you.
It takes me all the way.
I want you to stay
It's not much of a life you're living
It's not just something you take – it's given
Round and around and around and around we go
Oh now, tell me now, tell me now, tell me now you know.
Not really sure how to feel about it.
Something in the way you move
Makes me feel like I can't live without you.
It takes me all the way.
I want you to stay.
Say hello to good-bye
It's gone forever
No more try, you and I
Not now, not ever
And I'll get by without you
I'm not going back again
I'm not going to lie to you
Cause, that was there and only then.
Say hello, to goodbye
Say hello, to goodbye
Say hello, hello
To goodbye.
By the end of the video, I had tears streaming down my face. I was silently crying. There was no way I could let an amazing guy like James just walk away from me. I had to go and get him. I need him to know how much I love him. I jumped out of my bed and looked for a pair of pants. I tugged a pair of jeans out of the pile of clothes and quickly put it on. I grabbed an aeropostale shirt and slipped into it. I also grabbed my college sweatshirt and threw it on. I began kicking clothes around my floor until I found my black vans. I slipped them on and ran over to my mirror. I retied my hair and put on a layer of lip gloss. I actually did look absolutely exhausted but that didn’t matter right now. I had to go and get my man.
I shoved my phone in my pocket and grabbed my keys. I threw my door open and fast walked into the living room. “Um, is everything all right?” Megan asked when she saw me. “Yeah, atleast, I hope it will be. I’ll be right back you guys.” I said, walking towards the front door. “Where are you going?” Sierra yelled after me. “I’m going to get my man!” I shouted back. “YOU GO GIRL!” they all shouted at me, causing me to smile.
I pracially ran to my car. I quickly started the car and drove to the Hilton that was closest to my apartment. Surely he had to be staying at that one. The hotel was a good 10 minute drive. As soon as I arrived, I parked the car and jumped out. I fast walked into the lobby and went up to the front desk. “Hi. Um, my friend is staying here. Can you please give me the room number of James.” I asked the front desk lady. “I’m sorry darling, I can’t give out his room number.” She said. “Um, okay. Well, did you see him check in?” I asked her. “No, no one has came in in the last 30 minutes.” She told me. “Well, can you please call his room for me?” I asked her. “I can try.” She said.
She oicked up the phone and called his room. “I’m sorry sweetheart, he didn’t answer. I don’t think he’s here.” She told me. “Oh.” I said, disappointment running through my veins. “You could leave him a message if you would like.” She said, pulling out a paper and pen. “No thank you. Actually, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell him anything.” I said to her. She frowned and gave me a funny look. “It’s just that he came to my house and stuff happened.” I explaind to her. Although she still looked confused, she just nodded. “Good night.” She said to me. “Good night to you too.” I said to her as I walked out of the lobby.
On my way out, I saw a bench and took a seat. I put my head in my hands and begin crying. I was being so stupid that I probably lost the guy that I love. With a loud crack of thunder, the sky opened up and began pouring down rain. I just looked up at the sky and didn’t make an effort to get up. I put my head back down and continued crying. While I wallowing in self-pity, I didn’t notice the shadow of a person approaching me.
“Elena? What are you doing here?” the voice said, causing my heart to drop. I looked up and it was him. I couldn’t even contain my happiness. I stood up and put my hands on either side of his face, making sure that he was actually standing infront of me. “James. I was looking for you.” I said to him. “On a bench in the middle of the rain?” he asked me. “Yes. I wanted to tell you something.” I said to him.
“Couldn’t you have called or something?” he said to me. “No, no I couldn’t. This is better in person.” I said. Before he could reply, I leaned on my toes and kissed him. He was so shocked he didn’t kiss back. I pulled back from him and looked into his eyes.
“James, I am so sorry. I don’t know what caused me to lie to you earlier. I told you I’m serious with someone but I lied. All the guys I’ve dated could never compare to you. You’re the only one I’ve thought of for the last 6 years. You’re the only one I wanted for the last 6 years. I’ve watched every single one of your games, making sure that you were all right. I don’t want anyone else but you. Like you said, it only took one look at you to bring back the buried feelings I had for you. I still love you to the moon and back. You’re the one I want, that is if you’ll take me back.” I said to him.
A slow smile spread across his face. Without responding, he lifted me up and kissed me passionately. That was my answer. “You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to do that Elena. I believe everything you said and I feel the same way. You’re the only one I want. And I’m the one who should be asking you to take me back. After all, I’m the one who left. I was the idiot boy who feel in love with a girl that is too good for him.” He said to me. I leaned down and kissed him.
He put me down but kept his arms around my waist. “James?” I said. “Yeah?” he said. “I want you to bet me that we’ll get married and live happily ever after.” I told him. “Okay, I’ll bet you that but you have to bet me that you’ll love me forever and a day.” He said. “You got it.” I said, smiling. I ran my finger through his hair and laughed. I’d never though this day would end like this. I never thought that today would be the first day of the rest of my life with this amazing man. I pulled his head down and placed my lips on top of his in a passionate, movie-like kiss. It feels good to know that many more of these kisses would soon be coming my way.