Chapter 11
"Fuck," Dominic hissed, kicking the air.
They were all freaking out, and mad.
Was I the only calm one?
"I can't believe they did this!" Jeremy said.
"They won't get far," I said, crossing my arms.
They all turned to me.
"Why?" Alyssa asked, raising her eyebrows.
"I emptied out half of the gas tank," I smirked.
Alyssa laughed, while Dominic and Jeremy both dropped their jaw.
"Come on, it's late and I'm tired," I said, spinning on my heels.
I did not know if I was hallucinating, but I was pretty sure I heard Jeremy say, "Damn, she's amazing."
Smiling, I went back to my room.
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We didn't even do very much the next day.
It started snowing, it was the first day of December.
And it snowed hard. Like, really hard. Like, I wouldn't want to be driving, hard.
I wonder how Alison and Emma are doing driving in this blizzard?
I laughed to myself. Like I cared.
I walked into the kitchen with the popcorn.
"Took you long enough," Dominic joked, grabbing a handful of it.
"Yeah, you go try to use a million year old microwave," I said, sitting next to Jeremy in the couch.
They laughed as Alyssa bent in front of the T.V.
"What movie? Fast Five or Eagle Eye?" she asked, looking through the DVDs.
"Fast Five," Jeremy and I said at the same time.
We looked at eachother then looked away quickly, blushing. The memory of what had happened at the store suddenly came back to me, making me blush even more.
Dominic laughed.
"Fine, but next time I'm picking," he said as Alyssa popped in the movie and sat next to him on the floor.
I was smiling the whole time we were watching the movie.
Because I was happy.
For the first time, we weren't worrying about some freaking Zombies coming out of nowhere to kill us. We weren't in a hurry to go anywhere.
We were just...teens.
And I was happy because Jeremy put his arm around me, and pulled me closer to him as I rested my head on his chest.
But not only was I happy at that.
Dominic had also wrapped his arm around Alyssa's waist as she rested her head on his shoulder.
Maybe he'd taken my advice?
Overall, today was a good day.
******************************************************
I woke at exactly midnight. Quietly, I made my way downstairs, and I sighed.
Today was December the second.
I sat on the windowsill, looking out at the white streets. I exhaled onto the window, fogging it up.
Then I drew a little cake on it, writing the number eighteen in the middle of it.
"Happy birthday to me," I whispered.
Then I cried, resting my head on the cold window.
It was times like this I missed them.
Who?
My mom.
Eric.
Jenna.
My dad.
I smiled, remembering the last time they were all together, alive and with me.
It was my fifth birthday...
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"Eric, give Ella her hat back," my older sister Jenna ordered, giving five-year-old Eric a stern look.
He looked at her for a long time before giving me back my princess party hat. I snatched it back, sticking out my tongue at him.
"Mrs. Masson, Ella stuck her tongue out at me!" Eric yelled, running to the backyard.
I followed him.
"No I didn't! He's lying!"
We were stopped by my dad. He picked me up in his arms, smiling.
"Are we causing trouble here?" he asked, looking at me and Eric suspiciously.
We both shook our heads.
"No."
My dad laughed.
"Come on, it's almost time to cut your cake," he said, making me squeal with excitement. Then he turned to Eric. "Can you guys try to be nice for at least a half an hour?"
"We'll try," Eric said, smiling.
But I knew that behind that smile was an evil smirk.
My dad, still carrying me, walked over to the tables. I looked back at Eric, whose smile turned into a smirk, and he stuck his tongue out at me.
"There's the birthday girl!" my sister said as she took me into her arms.
She made a face when my dad let go of me.
"My God, Ella, you're getting too old to be carried."
She dropped me on the table. I frowned.
"I'm not that old! You're old! You're, like, thirty!" I said, crossing my arms.
Jenna laughed.
"Ella, I'm eighteen," she corrected, smiling.
I rolled my eyes. "Same thing!"
Just then, my mother brought in my birthday cake, singing. My eyes widened as she brought it to the table.
'Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to Ella. Happy birthday to you!"
"Make a wish," my mother said, smiling.
I thought about it for a long time.
"Are you going to blow them out, or am I?" I heard Eric say, annoyed.
I glared at him.
"I'm thinking!" I snapped, turning back to the cake. I couldn't really ask for anything. But I knew what I would wish for.
"I wish that we are always happy."
Then I blew out my candles.
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I wiped the tears away from my eyes.
Some things did not come true, and I'd learned that the hard way.
Just then, I heard someone walking down the stairs. I quickly wiped my tears away altogether and stood up.
I turned and saw Jeremy standing there, watching me.
"Hey, what are you doing awake?" I asked, trying not to choke on my words.
I was looking everywhere but at him.
"A better question is what are you doing awake?" he replied softly as he stuffed his hands into his pockets.
"I just came down to get - a drink," I lied quickly.
"You were crying," he stated, looking at me.
I didn't say anything because more tears were falling down again.
"I know it's your birthday," he continued. I raised my eyebrows, and he smiled.
"Alyssa told me," he shrugged. The smile fell when he asked, "Why were you crying?"
I took a deep breath.
"Because...I'm alone on my birthday."
He laughed, shaking his head. "What am I? A painting on the wall?"
I laughed. "No, I mean, like, this is the first birthday without my mom and um - Eric."
I looked at the floor.
"And Eric was your boyfriend?" Jeremy asked, looking at the ceiling.
I watched as he pretty much looked everywhere but at me.
"Yeah," I whispered, so softly I barely heard myself.
"Do you love him?"
I looked at him in confusion.
"He's dead."
Finally, he looked at me.
"I know. But do you love him?"
I looked at him hard. Did I love Eric? We'd known each other for, like, forever. He had been my first kiss, my first real boyfriend. He was important in my life.
"Yeah, I do."
"Then you're not alone on your birthday," he reasoned, stepping closer. "Your mom, your dad, your sister, and Eric are with you, looking after you." He kept taking steps until he was in front of me. "You just have to let the people down here look after you too."
He was looking at me with those brown eyes; it left me speechless. Just like every other time he was near me.
"And who would be looking after me?" I asked, looking up.
He smiled.
"Alyssa," he shrugged. "Dominic." He leaned in closer. "Me."
I laughed softly. It was a nervous laugh. I mean, this kid was only centimeters away from my face. Of course I was gonna get nervous.
"Thank you," I whispered, smiling.
He smiled back.
"And I have something for you," he added, his face turning a light shade of red. "Might cheer you up."
I raised my eyebrows, wondering what it could be. He quickly looked to his pockets until he found whatever it was he was looking for.
"Close your eyes," he ordered.
I did as I was told and waited. I heard him step closer, grabbing my right hand and lacing my fingers with his. He was holding something. I grabbed it from his hand, and just when I was about to open my eyes, I felt a sudden warmth near my ear.
"Happy birthday," Jeremy whispered into my ear, before kissing my cheek softly.
He kissed me.
Jeremy kissed me!
Yeah, on the cheek, but he still kissed me!
Finally, the shock wore off after God knows how long, and I opened my eyes only to find I was alone.
I brought my fingers to my cheek, the feeling of the kiss still there. I smiled and realized I still had his gift balled up in my hand.
When I opened it, I smiled.
It was a bracelet, a beautiful silver and blue bracelet with my name on it.
And a note.
Alyssa helped me pick it out, like it?
-J
I laughed, sliding the bracelet into my right wrist.
I absolutely loved it.
I went back upstairs to bed, with a smile on my face.