[edited]
I woke up on Sunday with a text from Max:
Max: You wanna hang out today?
Emmy: Sure. Where were you thinking?
Max: Cool. I'll pick you up at 1. It's a surprise ;)
Emmy: Ok....
Max and I had gotten closer, and had been constantly texting and talking. He was hilarious and really sweet. He told me he was class president, and an honor roll student. Not to mention he was also on the varsity track team, just like me. He was also quite popular at school. Basically, he was perfect.
I head downstairs, where Elliot and Evan are both in the kitchen, both shirtless and wearing only boxers. They were huddled around Elliot's laptop.
"Whatcha doing?" I chirped, skipping into the kitchen and grabbing the box of cereal from on top of the fridge, where I could barely reach. I swear, these cruel people I lived with didn't want me to have my nutritious breakfast. I mean, why else would they put the box so high?
"Talking to Mum and Dad," Evan answered, showing me the screen, which was open to FaceTime.
"Hey Mum! Hey Dad!" I said, waving to the camera.
"Hi, sweetheart! How are you doing?" they asked.
"I'm great," I answer, "Everything's going pretty well. How are Nan and Pops doing?"
"They're getting better. But the insurance is still holding up their claims, so we may be staying a little longer," Mum explains.
"Really? Aren't you guys supposed to come back in three days? Is that cancelled?" Elliot questions.
"No, honey, we won't be coming back. We're staying a little longer. Will you be okay?"
Elliot and Evan are grinning to each other. That can only mean one thing. They're definitely up to something. We say our goodbyes to Mum and Dad and hang up.
We sat down to breakfast. "What are you guys planning to do today?" I ask.
They shrug, "Maybe meet up with some friends. You staying home like every weekend?" Evan sneers.
"Actually, I'm meeting up with a friend of mine," I say matter-of-factly.
"Friend?!" Elliot gasps, "WHO?!"
"Haha," I fake laugh and roll my eyes, "Yes, I have a friend. His name's Max Harper, and he's very nice. He's coming at one."
"Max Harper? As in golden boy Max Harper? Track team star and teacher's pet?" Evan says, shocked.
"Yes. Is there a problem?"
"No, Emmy, it's just, you've never gone out with a friend, much less one that was boy," Elliot says quietly.
That was true. I was very quiet and liked to keep mostly to myself. I had a few people that I talked to during school, but no best friends or any of that stuff. I was picked on and bullied quite a lot, which was why I had been so excited to have a fresh start here.
"Yeah, but I trust Max. I'll call you guys if anything happens, okay?" I compromise.
They look at each other for a moment, as if they're having a whole conversation consisting of eye contact. They both nod, and give weak smiles. I could tell they were totally faking, but I ignored it. I knew they were concerned about my safety, but they didn't have to be, what could possibly happen?
I smiled back, and quickly drank the last of my milk from the bowl. I ran upstairs and tried to find an outfit. I got a text from Max while rummaging through my messy closet.
Max: Wear something comfortable. Especially shoes.
That was weird. Maybe we were doing something that involved a lot of walking. Maybe it was a hike in the forest or something.
I finally decided on an outfit that satisfied both Max and my own standards. It was black jeans that hugged my legs, but were still comfortable to move in, a baggy burgundy colored sweater that reached my mid-thigh, and a pair of gray Nikes. I put a black colored beanie that I knew went well with my eyes on my straight hair and positioned it, studying myself in the mirror. I looked presentable.
I ran back downstairs, since it was about 12:45. Elliot and Evan were arguing in the living room.
"She shouldn't go!" I heard Elliot yell. Figures. He was the more protective of the two of them. "What if something happens? Mum and Dad aren't even here. We can't handle this on our own, Evan."
"Elliot, bro, I feel exactly the same way, but what are we going to do? We can't tell her not to go out, she'll just yell and say how annoying and nosy we are. I know this is the first time she's gone out with a boy, but you're just gonna have to let her learn from her own mistakes," Evan reasons. Wow. Who knew Evan was so wise?
Elliot sighs loudly, "Guess you're right, Ev. Thank God she's hanging out with Max and not some weirdo. He seems like a good enough guy."
I choose this moment to walk in, and both my brothers fall silent. "I'm about to go, guys. You want anything?"
"We want you to be careful, Emerson," Elliot says sternly. God, he sounded just like Dad.
"Alright, alright. I'll text you guys once we get there."
"Good. Do you have your kit with you?" Evan interrogates me.
"My goodness, YES! I always have my kit with me, idiot. I've been living with this way too long to forget it," I say, exasperated.
"Good. Have fun, Emmy," they both say, giving me a hug.
I hug them back, and head to the front door. Max's Jeep pulled into our driveway, and I gave one final wave to my brothers before heading out.
I open the passenger door. "Hey, Maxwell," I greet, using his full name, which really annoys him.
"Hello, Emerson. Come on in."
"So, Max where are you taking me?"
"That is for me to know and annoyingly keep from you and you to find out once we get there," he grins.
I pout jokingly and we drive down the driveway and onto the main road. We begin talking, "So, I heard you were friends with the Dolan twins," he says.
I shrug, "My brothers are close friends with them, since they're all on the football team, but I'm just partners with Grayson on our world history project," I explain.
"Oh. Cool," he responds, making a sudden left turn.
"MAX! Do you know how to drive?!" I exclaim, stabling myself on the car dashboard and door.
"Sorry, Emerson. Almost missed the turn," he apologizes, giving me a sheepish smile.
We drive for about three more minutes before pulling into a complex. Max parks the car and we both jump out. I look at the building in front of us. It was HUGE. It looked like one of those old factories they have. I read the big sign, Climber's Edge. What the hell does that mean?
"Come on, Emerson," Max whines, grabbing my hand and pulling me inside.
I take in my surroundings. We were at a rock climbing gym. Oh my God. This was so cool. Giant "rocks" lined the walls, going almost vertically. People wore harnesses and helmets, queuing for their turn to try. Colorful grips lined the walls, ranging from right next to each other to quite a great distance apart.
"Max, this is so awesome!" I squealed, jumping up and down and clapping my hands.
He laughs at me, "I thought you would like it. Let's go register and get our equipment."
We each sign a waiver and get fitted in harnesses. A fit trainer wearing a shirt that said 'staff' comes up to us, "Which course are you kids gonna do?"
"We'll start with the beginners', and move up from there," Max suggests, and I agree.
"Alright. Follow me then." We do as he says. He begins to give us safety tips, "Since this is the beginner's course, your harness will be hooked up to a pulley at the top of the rock. If at any time you can't continue or slip or anything like that, LET GO! I repeat, LET GO! You will float down to the ground, and you try again. Don't try to grab onto the grips, which can be very dangerous. Also, don't kick, hit or push any other climbers while on the rock, understood?"
We both nod, and he hooks our harnesses to the pulleys, and we begin climbing. Max jumped up and grabbed a red grip a few feet off the ground. I steadied my feet on the two closest handles, and began making my way up.
I was about halfway up now, and Max was right beside me. He kept joking and making me laugh, which was causing me to lose my hold.
"MAX, stop, you're going to make me fall!" I exclaim.
"Oh, come on, Emmy. We're almost there."
"Easy for you to say, Mr. Athletic. Not all of us are state winners in track and field," I whine. I'm kind of sweating in my heavy sweater, not gonna lie. The gym was pretty hot. I was panting as I continued upwards.
Max was slowly getting closer to me, and I couldn't help but smile at his grin. Wait, do I like Max? No, I had a crush on Grayson. But Grayson didn't feel like me that way. I was just one of his friends' little sister. I sighed. Maybe Max would be better.
I reached for a blue grip that was pretty far away, and felt my hand hit something soft. It was Max's hand. He grinned, "Hey, you been getting closer to me or something?"
"Hell no! You've been getting closer to me this whole time!" I chuckled.
"Sure. Mind letting me go ahead?"
"I can't really," I say, "I'm only holding onto this one. I'm literally hanging in the air." This is true. My other hand was holding onto a handle on the opposite side, but my legs couldn't reach the grips underneath me.
"Me too," he laughs. I look, and he's in the same position as me, except his hand isn't even holding on to another grip. I laugh, "What are we gonna do?"
"Let go?" he shrugs his shoulders slightly.
"On three. One....two....three!" I say. As soon as Max lets go of his hand that's on top of mine, I do the same.
The harness tightens suddenly, and I feel it loosen just as quickly. What the heck is happening? I hear a ripping of fabric and see that the part on my thighs had ripped, making my only support the strap wrapped around my waist, which was slowly doing the same thing.
"MAX!" I cry out. I was descending, but it was still scary. I fumbled with the clasp, trying my best to do anything. I was holding onto the pulley, which had abruptly stopped.
"Emmy! What's going on?" Max asks from below. How the hell did he get down there so fast?
"My harness ripped, and this pulley is busted. Max, do something!" I yell.
I look down. Thank God, I wasn't that high. Only ten feet off the ground. People had begun to gather to see what was going on. Max ran to get a trainer, and he came back with the same one that had warned us earlier.
"Are you alright?" he asks.
"Just peachy. I would just like to get back on the ground if that's not too much to ask," I say, making a weak attempt at a joke.
"I'll be right back. Don't do anything!" he yells, and runs off in one direction.
My grasp had begun to slip. Oh no. "Max! I'm slipping!" One hand slid off where I was holding, and I couldn't get it on again. I was now dangling one-handed ten feet in the air.
"Emmy! I need you to jump!" Max yells.
"Are you crazy? What the hell do you mean jump?" I scream, panic rising in my voice.
"I'll catch you, Emmy. You're going to have to trust me. The trainer won't be back in time!"
"Max, I don't know about this!"
"Emerson, come on. You have to trust me!" he calls out.
Oh God. My other hand is slipping. Do I trust Max? Yes, I do, but that much? I wasn't too sure. But I had no other choice. I had to warn Max or I was going to fall and hit my head on a hard gymnastics mat.
"Ok. Give me a countdown. Whenever you're ready," I say firmly.
"Alright, Emmy, I got you. Ready? One...two...THREE!" As soon as he yells, I feel nothing in my empty hand, and my body floating through the air. I close my eyes, and scream. That's all I can say. I scream.
I land softly. I open my eyes and see Max looking at me with a concerned face. I feel so much better when I see him.
He sets me down, and I collapse on the ground. I feel so dizzy, and everything looks kind of blurry. Max runs to my side, "EMMY! Are you alright? What's wrong?" he yells.
"I'm fine, Max. Just really tired," I say weakly.
He picks me up in his arms, "Let's get you to somewhere where you can lay down."
He sets me on a bench near the lockers where we put our stuff, and I see the same trainer running to us, "What did you kids do?"
"I caught her," Max explains simply.
"What? That was extremely dangerous. You can't do something like that. Didn't I say to wait for me?" he yells at me.
"Excuse me, but her grip was slipping. She couldn't help it, sir, you were taking too long. It was your harness that broke in the first place," Max defends me.
The man recoils, "I'm truly sorry. The other staff members and I were looking for some mats or anything we could find," he apologizes.
Before Max can reply, I speak up, "It's alright. I'm just thankful I wasn't any higher. But do make sure that doesn't happen again. That is a fright I do not wish upon anybody," I laugh lightly.
Max goes and gathers our stuff, and helps me stand up. We walk out to the car, and sit down.
"Emerson, I'm so sorry. I thought this would be fun. I never meant for any of this to happen," he says hurriedly.
"Max, of course you didn't mean for this to happen. It's not your fault, or mine. The harness breaking was an accident."
He sighs, "I'm just thankful you're okay."
"Aww, does little Maxwell care about me," I tease him.
He blushes slightly, "Of course I do, you're a good friend. I don't know if you feel the same way, but I just thought that-" he rambles.
I interrupt him, "You're a great friend, too, Max."
He smiles, and begins driving. A few minutes later, he says, "Oh, shit, how am I gonna explain this to your brothers?"
I am shocked for a minute. I totally forgot about them. The first time I go out with a boy, I almost get severely injured. They're never gonna let me go anywhere now.
I think for a minute, "I'll explain it to them, Max. You just come in for some ice cream."
He smiles again. Damn, that smile was getting to me.
We arrive at my house, and I ring the doorbell. Max is standing right next to me, and I can tell he's very nervous. He's playing with his keys, and tapping his foot repeatedly.
Evan opens the door. "Emmy, you're back. Hey, Max. Come on in."
We go to the living room, where Max sits on the couch. Elliot comes in from the kitchen and gives me a hug. "I'm just gonna change upstairs really quickly," I say, rushing out of the room.
I change into sweatpants and a baggy t-shirt, throwing my hair into a messy bun. I run back to the room, and hear Max and my brothers talking.
"So, Max, where did you guys go?" Elliot asks.
"We went to that indoor rock climbing place. You know, the one on Elk St."
"Sweet! I've been wanting to go for a while," Evan says.
"Yeah, it was pretty fun, until..." Max stops talking.
"Until what, Max?" Elliot asks. I could tell he was angry.
"Uh..."
"What the hell happened, Max?" Evan's voice rises.
Poor Max. My brothers were attacking him, and he was just trying to be a good person and admit what happened. But when my brothers got overprotective, they got scary. I need to do something.
"What happened was that some creep started hitting on me, and Max defended me," I lie. It's silent for a minute, and I think that they've figured I'm not telling the truth.
Then Elliot speaks, "Oh. Thanks for helping Emerson, Max." Both of them have relieved looks on their faces.
"Uh....no problem," Max says going along with the lie, "I should probably get going. See you guys at the party tomorrow," he waves, and I walk him to the door.
"Emmy, why'd you lie?" he asks when my brothers are out of hearing range.
"They would have blamed you and their hardheaded brains would never have understood that it wasn't your fault, so I just decided to totally avoid that problem," I explain, smiling.
He beams at me, "Thank you." He gives me a big hug before getting in his car and driving away.
I close the front door and turn around to find my brothers standing there. "Is little Emerson cheating on Grayson with Max?" Evan teases.
"EVAN! Grayson and I aren't a thing, and Max is my best friend!"
They both laugh, and we all go down to the basement, where they told me how they went over to the Dolans' house. They also described a pretty girl with them who kept joking with Grayson.
Pretty girl? Who kept joking with Grayson? Was this his new girlfriend? I knew Grayson and I weren't dating, but it still hurt to hear about other girls he was with. God, I was being so stupid right now. Grayson obviously didn't like me, so I guess I would just have to get over this stupid crush.
There was only one problem: I didn't think I would be able to.
* * * *
The next day, I was getting ready for the party tonight. Elliot and Evan were going as vampires. I was going as Tyler Joseph from the Stressed Out video.
My outfit consisted of the following: a black t-shirt under a black button-up shirt, black basketball shorts that were baggy since I had borrowed them from Evan, and black tights. I had on a red beanie and black Vans with red socks that went up to my ankles.
I smiled as I looked in the mirror. I didn't doubt that most people wouldn't recognize me, or that I wasn't wearing a "sexy" costume like most of the other girls, but I didn't care. I was going to have fun tonight, and I was going to be comfortable while doing it. What else could you ask for?
I headed to the front hall downstairs, where Elliot and Evan were waiting with the car keys. It was Elliot's turn to drive. "Let's go, Emerson. We still have to get the Dolans."
"I'm here. Let's go."
We arrived at the Dolans' house, and Ethan and Grayson climbed into the car. Can I just say, DAMN! Grayson looked stunning as the joker. The suit fitted him perfectly, and he had done his makeup really well. He did makeup better than some girls I knew.
We made it to the house where the party was being held, and headed inside. As soon as I had a foot inside the door, I remembered why I hated parties.
Couples were all over each other everywhere, and the air reeked of booze and old beer. Were we really that late? Half of the people here were completely wasted. When I saw Elliot and Evan running off to wherever, I knew they would soon be joining them. I, on the other hand, would not be drinking. I had never tasted alcohol, and I did not plan on doing it anytime soon.
I walk past a bunch of varsity wrestlers playing beer pong, and make my way to another room. Did this house have no limit? I found a place to sit down, and saw someone sit next to me. It was dark, so I couldn't see them very well. The fact that they were wearing a mask didn't help anything.
"Emerson?" they say, taking off the creepy mask.
"Max?" I laugh, "Why the hell are you wearing that mask?"
"Because we're at a Halloween party, genius," he retorts, grinning.
I shove him playfully. "Whatever."
"I'm going to go get a drink? You want one?"
I shake my head, and he nods and walks away. I begin walking around out of boredom, and see Evan in a shots competition with someone. I was really tempted to take a picture and send it to Dad, but I was no snitch.
I see Elliot talking to some girl near the stairs, I wave, but he doesn't see me. I make my way to the backyard, where it is just as crazy. Girls are dancing and boys are shouting and yelling. Intoxicated teenagers were running around everywhere, and I personally didn't even want to think about what was going on upstairs.
But the thing that bothers me the most was what I saw next. Grayson was dancing with some beautiful girl. She had strawberry blond hair and was dressed like Catwoman. This stupid crush was so annoying. Grayson and I are not dating, and he can do whatever he wants. I repeated this to my brain several times, and I almost convinced myself I was right.
Almost.
There was still that one part of me that felt we had a special connection. That thought just needed to stay deep in my head. He was free to do what he wanted, and I was bothering no one but myself thinking otherwise.
I headed back inside, where I could see a large group huddled. I could also hear shouts coming from the inside of the circle.
I pushed my way through people. The one time I was thankful for being short. I'm finally in the middle, and see Evan and Elliot in a fight with some boys I recognized from the basketball team. Oh God, they were drunk.
I didn't know what to do. I needed to get someone to help me break this up before someone got injured or did something they would regret. I was mostly leaning towards Evan. He was an angry drunk, and he had just taken six tequila shots.
I ran back outside to the backyard, and saw the Dolan twins. "Ethan! Grayson!" I called.
"What's up, Emerson?" Ethan asks.
"Elliot and Evan are in a fight," I pant, "Please....help me.....before something happens," I plead.
They follow me inside and back to where the fight is. They shove people out of the way effortlessly, and I quietly follow behind.
Ethan goes to Elliot's side and grabs his hand in an attempt to stop him. I go with Grayson near Evan, who's currently throwing punches at two tall basketball stars.
Grayson tries his best to push Evan back into the people, but Evan is determined. I try to push myself in between both of them. Big mistake.
I feel a hard fist land on my jawline. I fall to the floor, clutching my palm to my cheek. I see a basketball player towering above me. He looks confused. He's drunk, and probably thought I was Evan. Serves me right for trying to get in between them.
All of a sudden, the boy is thrown to the floor, and all I see is a flash of purple. He grunts, and he's now taking a bunch of punches and kicks. I looked to the person who was doing it. I saw someone wearing a purple suit on top of him.
What the hell was Grayson doing?
~ ~ ~ ~
SONG OF THE CHAPTER: I Know What You Did Last Summer
ARTIST: Shawn Mendes
ALBUM: Handwritten, 2015