[edited]
Elliot and Evan left for Jake's house right after breakfast. Max was coming over in half an hour, and I sat waiting on the couch, flipping lazily through channels, but not really focusing.
I heard the doorbell ring, and I ran to open the door, and it was Max. I attacked him a hug, and he stumbled back on the front steps.
"Hey, Emmy," he chuckled.
"Hi, Max! Come on in!"
He followed me up into my room, and collapsed on my couch.
"So, what do you want to do?" I asked him.
"Uh, whatever you want," he shrugs.
I think for a moment before Max interrupts me, "You wanna do some hurdles in the backyard?"
I smile, "Let's go."
We ran downstairs and into the backyard, where I had my hurdles set up for practice. Max was a master of hurdles and the long jump, while I was better at sprinting and long-distance.
Max lined up, and waited for me to give him the signal to start. "READY......SET......GO!!!"
He took off, his legs a blur and his arms pumping up and down. Max was the most amazing runner ever, and I couldn't wait for the county qualifier in a few days.
He finished, and came towards me. He wasn't even breathing heavily. "Your turn," he grins at me. He knows he's fast, he's been told that all his life. He had the perfect figure for it. He was tall and skinny, with lean muscles. He was also insanely strong.
I took my position at the start near the fence on one side of the backyard. "GO!" Max yelled unexpectedly, startling me a little. I, totally unlike Max, was not build for running. I was short and stubby. I didn't have the same long, quick-moving legs as he did, and wasn't strong by any standards.
Nevertheless, I pushed myself after Max's cry. Whenever I ran in any competition, I simply ran like it was any other day. I had found my love of running long ago, running around the garden with Elliot and Evan. They would chase me with mud in their hands, and I would cry and run away, not wanting to stain my dress. I had gotten so used to it, I had begun to run to relieve stress, exploring the woods near my grandmother's house whenever we visited.
I leaped over the third hurdle, my legs already aching. It wasn't the jump that was particularly hard, but continuing to run afterwards that was the real challenge for me.
I guess I was distracted, because I came crashing into the obstacle in front of me, falling to the ground. I groaned as I felt the hard wooden barrier under me.
"Emmy, you ok?" Max said, running to my side.
"Fine," I moaned, "It seems like every time I'm with you, I come close to injury," I joked, grabbing his outstretched hand and pulling myself up.
He laughed, "I guess I'm your bad luck charm."
I dust myself off, fixing my hair. I suddenly feel very uncomfortable, and find Max staring at me. "What?"
He doesn't answer, but continues staring at the same place. I follow his gaze, and find it on my stomach, where my shirt has been lifted up, revealing my tan skin and my glucose monitor.
Oh shit. I hadn't really planned on telling Max about my diabetes. It wasn't too easy of a subject for me, and I didn't want him to treat me differently than he did now.
"Emerson, I-" he begins.
I stop him, "It's ok, Max. This isn't nearly the first time I've had to deal with something like this. I think maybe I should explain."
He nods, gesturing for me to continue.
"I was born with Type l Diabetes, and I've been dealing with it my whole life. What you just saw was my glucose sensor, which monitors my blood sugar and tells me if I'm high or low."
"I understand," he says, "Is running track hard for you?"
I shake my head, "Sometimes I get dizzy or lightheaded, but nothing major has ever happened. I drink Gatorade or some shit like that before running to get my energy up," I explain.
"Emmy, why didn't you tell me? I thought we were closer friends than that," he puts an arm around my shoulder, pulling me into his chest.
I shove him playfully, "I don't just normally go up to people, tell them my name, and explain how I have an endocrine disease," I laugh.
"Does anyone else know?"
"No, and I really want it to stay that way," I say pointedly.
He nods quickly, "Gotcha."
I groan, "This is boring, and it's so hot, let's go back inside."
I go inside and into the kitchen, where I get both Max and I a Coke. We sit on the couch, and I scroll through channels again looking for anything to watch.
"Emmy, can I ask you a question?" Max says, looking at me.
I automatically assume it's about my diabetes, so I agree, "Uh, sure, go ahead."
"Do you have a crush on Grayson?"
I have to do a double take. Where the hell did he get that from? How did he know? Did I really make it that obvious?
I deny it, "Of course not, that's ridiculous!"
"Em, I see the way you look at him. Just admit it," Max pries.
I sigh and give in, "Ok, you're right, I do have a crush on Grayson. But not like it does me any good, he's all over Addi," I grumble the last part.
Max's ears perk up, "Addi Peterson?"
"Uh, yeah."
"Dude, she's been best friends with them forever. God, I remember in kindergarten those three were glued at the hip. When did she get back in town?"
"She's staying for about a month for he brother's graduation or something, and then she's going back to Minnesota. And also, them being best friends just makes their romance even more perfect."
Max bursts out laughing, and I look at him, completely confused, "What's so funny, Maxwell?"
"Addi and Grayson were never a thing. It was Addi and Ethan. Grayson third-wheeled them hardcore, even for sixth grade. Damn, poor guy."
It took me a moment to process everything. Addi liked Ethan? Ethan liked Addi? And Grayson liked no one? This was great. That means I could still have even a slight chance with Grayson.
"Really? They must really be close if I assumed they liked each other."
Max shrugs, "Guess they just act like that."
I jumped on him, making him grunt, "Thank you so so so so much, Max. I couldn't stop thinking about it."
"No problem. Listen, I've got to go home and drive Levi to baseball practice. I'll see you Monday, though, right?"
"Sure, I have to go get my parents from the airport anyway."
Max says goodbye and gives me a hug before walking out the door and driving away. Since I still have about an hour to kill, I decide to finish some homework.
About forty-five minutes later, I get up from my desk and get dressed in black sweatpants, and a gray hoodie, putting the finishing touch of the outfit - a hat - on my head because of the rapidly cooling weather.
I climb into the car and begin driving to the airport, turning up my music super loudly since Elliot and Evan were finally not here.
I arrived at the airport soon enough, and look at the text Evan sent me with the flight details.
Flight 827 [International]:
Destination: New Jersey, USA
From: London, England
Takeoff: 2:15 pm
Arrival: 6:15 pm
Gate: 7B
Passengers: Samuels, Nicholas – Samuels, Genevieve
Passport Nationality: British
Seats: 35A, 36A
I asked an official where to go, and headed to the direction he pointed me in. I heard over the loudspeaker, 'Flight 827 from Heathrow Airport, Delta Airlines now landing,'
I waited as the passengers all came out the gates, greeting their awaiting families. I searched for my own family, wondering where my mum and dad were.
I finally saw them, my mother with her strawberry blond hair and my father with the same brown hair as Elliot, Evan, and me.
I waved my hand in the air, and my dad finally spotted. He gave me a big grin, and pointed out where I was to Mum. She smiled as well, and I ran to them, engulfing them in a giant hug.
"Hey, Emmy, how you doing?" my dad asked as I choked my arms around his neck.
I laughed, "Great, Dad. How was the trip back?"
"It was fine, but we're absolutely exhausted. You think you can drive back home?" he smirked at me. He knew I loved to drive.
I nodded my head quickly, and grabbed the carry-on bag from my mum, to which she gave me a grateful smile.
We grabbed the two big suitcases from the luggage claim, and I had to wait in one more queue for passport checks. When we were finished with all that, we made our way to the parking garage, and loaded up the trunk.
"How did everything go with you three?" my mum asked from the backseat as I started the car.
"It was all good. Nothing too eventful," I lied, avoiding her eyes in the rear-view mirror. I wasn't a very good liar, especially to my mum, and I didn't feel like having her interrogate me about everything that had happened over the last three weeks. If she wanted to know about my retarded brothers' drunken brawls and messy food fights, she could ask them herself.
"Are you excited for your birthday?" my dad asked.
I groaned internally. I was not excited at all. The county qualifier was on the day of my birthday, but I hadn't quite explained that to my parents. They also didn't know about the fact that I had absolutely no friends except Max to invite, and he would be at the meet with me. If I stayed at our supposed party, there would be nobody there except the football, basketball, and wrestling teams, which didn't sound too fun to me.
"Uh, about that..." I hesitated, "I kind of have something to do that day."
"What do you mean, sweetie? You have the party, right?"
"Um....not quite. I have the county track meet that day starting at 10am," I said nervously.
"What are you talking about, Emerson. What is this meet?"
"Mum, it's the track meet for the county. If I win in my races, I could go to state," I argued.
"But what about your party? This is supposed to be for all three of you, honey," my mum said, sounding sad.
"Mum, I wasn't going to invite anyone except one friend named Max, and he's going to be at the track meet too."
"He?!" my dad cut in, giving me a look.
"Dad, it's not like that at all. We're just good friends. Like the Dolans."
He didn't reply, but my mum was still obviously upset, "Emerson, I thought you wanted a party. That's what Elliot and Evan told us."
"I never said that! They came and told me we were having a party, and then having a sleepover with a few people. My opinion was never given. Besides, I hate all of El and Ev's friends except for Ethan and Grayson," I said, raising my voice.
"Emerson, lower your voice right now," my dad said firmly.
"Sorry, Dad. But I just really need to go to this, it's an amazing opportunity. Imagine if I win?!"
Both my parents stayed silent for a minute, before my mum spoke up again, "How about this: you go to the track meet while Elliot and Evan invite over their friends. Then you come back and have a sleepover with the Dolans and this new friend of yours."
I smiled, thinking about it, "That sounds cool. I'll tell Max about it," I agree, suddenly getting an idea, "Maybe I can invite Addi too!"
"Who's Addi?"
"This old friend of Ethan and Gray's, she's really nice and funny, I met her a few days ago."
"That sounds wonderful, Emmy. I'm so glad you've finally made so friends."
I cringe slightly. Thanks for reminding me, mum. I knew I wasn't great at making friends, but I really did try my best.
We pull up to our neighborhood, and I see Ethan and Grayson loading a large box into the trunk of their car. Huh, wonder what's in there.
We turn into the driveway, and Elliot and Evan come running out the front door, shirtless and with big joker grins on their faces.
"BOYS! SHIRTS ON, NOW!" our mum yells, making all of us laugh.
She and our dad give them hugs, and they take the suitcases into the house. I grabbed leftover pizza from the fridge, and put it in the oven for dinner as my parents went upstairs to change.
"Emerson, is it true you're going to the track meet on our birthday?" Evan asks, sitting next to me.
"Yep, I'll be back at night though. I'm going with Max."
He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively, and I push him, making him laugh.
I couldn't wait for the day to finally come.
~ ~ ~ ~
SONG OF THE CHAPTER: Keep Up
ARTIST: KSI ft. JME