Chapter Twenty Two
The past few weeks were rough. Mason was in and out of surgery, and then when he was done, all he was allowed to do was sit and relax. Mason got so anxious just sitting on the couch, or laying in his bed. I tried to be with him as long as I could, but since his Dad left, and when I went to school, I could tell he was lonely.
"I would skip school if I could," I told him, setting a tray of food on the table in front of him.
"No, that's not fair," He grumbled.
I pressed my lips together, and looked at him. He had on two casts, one for his left arm, and one for his left leg. He had bandages on his face, and behind his knee. He leaned his head back on the back of the chair. "The only thing left is recovering," I told him, "And before you know it, you'll be alright."
"I know," He grumbled, playing with a thread on the couch. I kissed his head, and then walked back into the kitchen. I stopped short when I saw a woman in shorts, and a blue t-shirt. Her brown hair was blown in her face, and she was laughing as the picture was taken.
I smiled at her, knowing that was Mrs. Slatter. When I walked back into the family room, Mason had his eyes closed. I sat down on the couch next to him.
"How's your sister doing?" He asked.
"Great actually," I told him, "It seems like her nightmares have stopped."
"That's great," He exclaimed, smiling.
"Yeah, and she just feels really attached to me," I muttered, "But I'm not sure if that's something she'll let go easily."
Mason shrugged, and looked back up at the ceiling. Someone knocked on the door, and I stood up to go get it. It was Kristi with Lexie. Lexie was holding bags of chips, and Kristi was holding a bunch of CDs. "We just made these, and we wanted you to hear them," She shrugged.
Lexie shoved the bags in my hand, and ran to Mason, she sat by him, and asked, "Will you be alright?"
"Of course," He told her.
"You won't die on me?" She questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Why would I?" He said, smiling.
"Because you mean a lot to my sister," She told him. "And to me. You were way better then Nikolas, I really hated him."
"Me too," Mason laughed.
"You know I'm right here," I told them, "I can hear you."
Mason smiled at me, and held his good arm open. I sat on his good leg, and kissed him on the cheek, and then the lips. "Gross," Lexie commented, but she laughed.
"I'm popping these CDs in," Kristi called from the living room. She put the CDs in, and some music played. Lexie got up and danced around the room with Kristi. Mason shifted, and I could feel his anxiety.
"I don't think the doctor would mind if you got up and danced a little," I whispered.
"Taylor," He sighed, "I can't dance. Now especially."
I stood up, and brought him gently to his feet. I walked him around the table, and put his good hand on my waist and his cast hand lightly on my waist. I wrapped my arms around his waist, and put my head on his chest. On the next song, we swayed slightly. I rested my forehead on his chest, and took in his warm scent.
He rested his chin of my head, and let me sway him back and forth. Kristi took out a camera, and snapped a picture. "Kristi, what're you doing?" I asked.
"I'm making sure we have memories," She told me.
"We've already got memories," Lexie exclaimed, and then pointed to her head, "In here!"
"Well I want pictures," She grumbled.
She took pictures of all of us even though half of the ones of me were me putting my hand in front of the camera. "Kris, stop," I laughed.
"How bout we invite Adam and James over," Mason said. I looked up at him, and smiled, because I could feel his mood lift. He smiled back at me, and kissed my forehead.
Soon Adam and James were over. "Parrrtttyyyy," Adam yelled. We turned the music up, and I put the food in bowls, and on plates. I stuck by Mason's side, because he needed my support while standing.
Ashley and Sam came over later, holding hands! "How's it going Ashley?" I asked.
"Great," She exclaimed, "I just found out that the Chemo is going great and I'm getting better every day!"
"That's awesome," I told her, "I'm so happy for you."
"Thanks," She said, and then turned to Mason, "You're looking better. Keep it up."
Mason gave her a small smile, and then she went to go talk with other people. Kristi continued to go around taking pictures of everyone- Adam jumped in most of them at the last minute- and then she tried to get everyone together for a big picture.
She set the timer on, and ran over to us. I stood in between Mason and Ashley, putting both of my hands on their backs. I smiled, waiting for the flash to go off.
"Kristi, what is wrong with your camera!" Adam asked through his smile.
"Nothing," She growled, "It's just loading."
We all continued to wait, smiling so hard our cheeks hurt. "No one moves," Kristi commanded, "Once someone moves, then it will flash. I just know it!"
"Kris, it must not have worked," Mason sighed.
"It's going to work," She snapped.
Everyone let go, and grumbled. She turned towards us, and narrowed her eyes, hands on her hips. "Just give it a few minutes," She said.
"I don't know if my cheeks can take it," Lexie complained rubbing her cheeks.
"It will flash at any minute..." Kristi snapped, and right at that moment, when everyone was relaxed, and talking with each other, the camera snapped off.
Everyone laughed, but Kristi just frowned. "Did I not call it?" She asked, throwing her arms into the air.
We all crowded around the camera and laughed. It was a perfect moment of what we all looked like. Even Kristi couldn't help but smile, because she was on the screen she was standing in fron of us with her hands on her hips, and her lips pouted.
"That's a good one," Adam laughed.
"Yeah keep it," Sam chimed.
"Fine fine," Kristi sighed, and then turned around quickly and took the picture. We were all blinded by the bright flash. We all grumbled her name. "That's what you get for ruining my picture," She announced, and I couldn't help but laugh.
I danced with Mason for a little longer, Ashley danced with Sam, Kristi danced with James, and Adam danced a funny dance with Lexie who laughed.
"Hey, I'll help you clean up when the party's over," Kristi told Mason, "Well actually, Taylor would probably be the one cleaning up, but still."
I smiled, "Thanks."
She shrugged, and walked over to James. He put his arm around her waist and continued to talk to Adam. "Is it weird that our friends are dating?" I asked.
Mason shrugged, and smiled.
He leaned down and kissed me. I wasn't scared anymore. Things were different now. Being with Nikolas changed me, and even though I saw him here and there, I knew that he was trash and I did the right thing.
When my Mother died in the fire I thought lost. When my brother died in the fire, I felt like it put a huge gap in between Lexie and I.
I was wrong though.
Being here with Mason, and the people who were truly my friends, changed both me and my sister's life. I talked with my Dad, I had Mason, and I even had more friends than Kristi, thought Kristi was still the best.
I wasn't afraid that Mason was going to graduate, and I might never see him again. I wasn't angry at my sister, and most of all I was proud of myself.
Sometimes when you waited for things, and let things go at their own pace, they would turn out beautifully, and then you know you really won. You won everything you could have ever wanted, and even though you envy others, eventually, things would turn out great. I knew that know, because I was with Mason. He changed who I was, and brought new people into my life, and that was something I would never forget. No matter how long I had to wait, I was ready for the future.
....................and FINISHED! Thank you everyone who is reading this....maybe you would like to comment/vote/become a fan??
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This story was actually really completed on December 27, 2009, it jst took me awhile to get it up on Wattpad!
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Cheesehead:)