Copyright @2012
Don't steal my shit, y'all.
"Under my skin that's where it begins right now." I sing at my best friend's surprised face. "Love me, like you've never loved before. If you want it baby, come and get it, don't leave me waiting for more. Don't leave me...waiting for more." I finish and I look to him. He has a smile on his face, that's a good sign... right?
"Now," he begins, "why did you need me to hear this?" He asks. "It was nice and all, but I'm just wondering." He adds quickly. I'm shocked.
"Did you... did you not listen to the lyrics?" I ask him offended.
"I did! That's why I'm confused." He says, dropping the smile. A look of worry slowly creeping onto his face. Oh no, I can feel them coming. The tears slowly start to make their way down my face and a look of realization sweeps over his face.
"Oh Rachel, you can't mean... I mean, we're best friends... I never thought..." He stutters out, never actually completing a sentence.
"Oh, no. My fault. I thought with all the 'I love you''s and hugs and flirting you might've felt something." I say crossly, "My bad. Forget it." I add bitterly. I look down and wipe away tears.
"Oh Best Friend... I thought you heard..." He starts, but trails off.
"Heard? Heard what?" I ask, more to the floor than to him.
"Look at me." He says. When I refuse, he continues. "I asked out Ariel today." He says and when I pick my head up to look at him, he isn't looking at me.
"R-R-Rebecca's friend?" I ask, my crying causing a slight stutter. He doesn't look at me, but nods.
"Ok." I stand. "I get it. She's gorgeous, and I'm just... me." I start to move towards the door when he grabs my wrist.
"Don't compare yourself to her, it won't end well." He says looking me straight in the eye.
"Why? Because even you know how much better she is? Well, of course you'd know, you're dating her!" I shriek as I shake myself from his grip and run out of his room. Then out of his house. I climb into my car, accidentally banging my head on the door on the way in, and start the engine quickly. I drive off as he runs out of his house and stands in the middle of the street, defeated.
I drive a couple blocks away before I pull over and break out into sobs. I knew it. I've always known it. I've always known that I've been friend-zoned into oblivion. But, there always was a glimmer of hope. And now I need to move on. I rest my head against the steering wheel. My phone buzzes in the cup holder, and I pick it up.
"4 Text Messages: Best friend <3
2 Missed Calls: Best friend <3"
I put my phone back without reading the messages. What's the point? They're all going to say, "If you hate me now, I'd understand." I sigh and look in the review mirror to inspect my reflection. My wavy, honey-blonde hair is the same as it always is; frizzy with a slight wave. There's no mascara smeared down my checks, but my eyeliner and eye shadow are a little on the funky side, but I'll live. I'm still whiter than a ghost, but I didn't expect that to change.
I pull my IPod out of my back pocket. I need driving music. I hook it up and press shuffle.
The first song to come on is Scar Tissue by The Red Hot Chili Peppers. I beat the rhythm with my thumbs as I drive. I don't automatically recognize the next song, but the lyrics hit my heart before I can change it.
"I stand and I look right at you, thoughts running through my head, how I thought you were my best friend, now it's different." The singer begins.
"Shit!" I yell in frustration. I can't pause it and drive at the same time. I end up just unplugging the damn thing and throwing it into the passenger seat. I love that song to bits, but right now isn't the time for it. I'm pulling into my driveway when my phone rings. I pick it up, ready to cuss out my Best Friend; when I see that the call isn't from him. It's from my friend Jordyn, I answer and all I hear is screaming.
"RACHEL! *muffled scream, muffled scream* LONDON! *muffled scream, muffled scream* ENTERED! I gotta call Eli! BYE!" She says before hanging up. Ok, so she entered London? Something in London? Tickets to London? We'll see when she calms down. I get out of my car and step into the hot El Paso Sun. I rush inside to escape the heat and plop down on my couch, exhausted. Slowly, but surely, my eyelids flutter closed.
My legs feel as if they can't support weight when I look into his eyes. His brown eyes bore into me, yet, I don't know him. But I recognize him, but from where? He smiles slightly, but instead of making him more attractive, it makes him look constipated. I laugh, and a confused look goes over his face, yet he says nothing. Slowly, the smile creeps back over his face, a better, less forced, less constipated smile. He reaches his hand up and places it on my face. Softly, "Hit Me Baby One More Time" starts playing.
Wait... What?
I rip my eyes open and look for my phone. Jordyn's calling again.
"Hello?" I answer.
"Ok! So, Rebecca and I won four tickets to see our favorite band in London!" She tells me quickly.
"That's awesome!" I tell her, sitting up on my couch.
"Wait, that's not the best part." She starts, "We're taking you with us!!" She practically yells.
"What? I GET TO GO TO LONDON WITH Y'ALL?!" I yell and jump onto the couch and start jumping around. I've always wanted to go to London!
"Yes! Ok, we leave Monday, the concert is Tuesday, we spend the day with the band on Thursday, then we come back the following Monday." She tells me, she knows I'll worry about what's going to happen if I don't know.
"Kick ass!!" I tell her. "So, this Monday?" I ask her.
"Yes!" she says excitedly. "It's you, me, Eli, and Rebecca!" She tells me.
"So, why are you guys bringing me? I don't even know what band you're talking about." I tell her, curiosity getting the better of me.
"We're sure that once you hear their music, you'll love it. Plus, we know how much you love British accents." She says, I can hear her smile.
"Quite true, I do love a good British accent." I say in a British accent. She laughs and tells me she's got to go. I hang up and I realize that today is Saturday.
Shit! I've got to pack!
~Monday~
I'm listening to "Just Tonight" by The Pretty Reckless when there's a honk from outside. Excitedly, I stand up and grab my stuff, lock up my house, then rush out to Jordyn's car, where she, Rebecca and Eli are waiting for me. Jordyn has the top down on her dark blue convertible, and the slight breeze makes her brown hair stir. I get in before I ask her, "When did you add the pink tips?" she turns around and looks at me with her deep brown eyes.
"Yesterday, I was bored." Eli laughs and Rebecca smiles, "But, do you know what time it is?" Jordyn asks and gives Eli and Rebecca a mischievous look. They all smile at each other and I'm a little afraid as they scream, "ONE DIRECTION TIME!" And Jordyn turns the music up and a song starts. She puts the car in drive and we're off to the air-port. They're all singing along and harmonizing, it sounds really cool.
"So get out, get out, get outta my head, and fall into my arms instead. I don't, I don't, don't know what it is, but I need that one thing, yeah, you've got that one thing." The song sings. It's kind of catchy, and I find myself humming the melody. We're halfway to the air-port, when a slow song comes on.
"Oh my God, guys! I love this song!" Eli squeals and cranks the volume up higher.
"Shut the door, turn the lights off. I wanna be with you, I wanna feel your love. I wanna lay beside you, I cannot hide this, even though I try. Heart beats harder, time escapes me. Trembling hands touch skin, it makes this hard girl. And the tears stream down my face... If we could only have this life for one more day, if we could only turn back time..." This song is sweet, and I know the chorus is coming up. "You know I'll be, your life, your voice, your reason to be. My love, my heart is breathing for this moment in time, I'll find the words to say before you leave me today." And the song continues beautifully. I'm still awestruck as the song ends and the next begins. I turn my head and look at the trees as they pass by, still thinking about the lyrics. As the row of trees end, and the air-port appears, I rip myself out of my thoughts. Rebecca is staring at me curiously, so I smile at her. Rebecca has light brown hair with blonde highlights, her eyes are dark brown, but they glow when she smiles. She looks away from me and goes back to singing.
We pull into a parking spot, and I start to get excited. Not only had Jordyn won tickets, she won a full stay at a great hotel and meals. We're not going to spend any money that we've actually had to earn. This week is going to be amazing.
We walk into the air-port, go past the check in, through security, and we get on the plane at last. We sit in the center aisle. We sit so it's Jordyn, Rebecca, Eli, and I. I settle in with my IPod and headphones and get ready for the flight to New York. From New York, we'll get on a plane to London. I despise flying, it makes me sick. If I get bothered by anyone, I'll spend the remainder of the flight in the toilet. So as the seat belt light goes on, I motion to my friends that my head phones are going in, and they nod and smile. I scroll through the songs on my IPod when a song pops into my head. Automatically, I search for, "Autumn Leaves" by Ed Sheeran. Once it starts playing, I just put his album, "+" on repeat. I lean back and close my eyes and slowly drift off into dreams.
I wake up as my headphones are ripped out of my ears.
"What the hell?!" I say, groggily.
"We're in New York." Eli informs me.
"Yippee." I tell him and shove my IPod and headphones into my pocket. I get up and grab my things from the over-head compartment as everyone else leaves the plane. As I'm ready to get off, I realize my friends have left me. Assholes. I rush off the plane, and go to the next terminal, thank God for my over bearing control issues, because I held onto my own ticket. I'm looking for the correct terminal when I run into someone. I drop my bag and we both reach to grab it.
"Hey, sorry for running into you." I say as I straighten up and look back at the person I ran into. It's a guy, probably around my age, and he has short black hair, styled in the front of his head, and really familiar brown eyes.
"Not a problem." He says with a smile and a heavy British accent. He extends his hand and says, "Zayn."
"Rachel." I say, shaking his hand. "You look really familiar, have he met bef-" I ask, but he cuts me off. He's looking over my shoulder at something, and he doesn't look happy.
"Sorry, but I've got to go. Nice meeting you!" He says, and I hear a girl scream from somewhere behind me.
"What the fuck?" I ask as I turn around to see where the scream came from, and there's a group of girls huddled together.
"Girls are crazy. Where are you headed?" I ask with a laugh, but when I turn back around, Zayn was gone.
I had been at the terminal for about five minutes when someone calls my name.
"Rachel!" Rebecca shouts. She's carrying two take-out boxes and Jordyn and Eli both have one. "We lost you! BUT, we brought you Orange Chicken from the food court, here!" She says as she reaches me and gives me the top box.
"Aw! I love you guys. Thanks!" I say and we all start to eat.
We're just throwing away our trash when the stewardess announces that it's time to board the plane. Rebecca and Jordyn squeal in excitement and I laugh at their faces. I'm just as excited as they are, but it's more the fact that soon I will be surrounded by British accents. I am über obsessed with accents. Sometimes, I just slip into an accent without noticing it. Anyway, we grab our stuff and wait in line. As we board the plane, we pass first class, and there are a couple shades drawn over the rows, someone must like their privacy.
I settle into my seat, this time we are sitting on the side and I have the aisle while sitting next to Rebecca. Eli and Jordyn are seated behind us. I'm about to put in my headphones when Rebecca stops me.
"Chica, what's wrong? When Moments came on in the car, it hit something in you, didn't it?" She asks me. I nod in reply. "It gets something in everyone. I'm here if you need to vent." She finishes with a smile. I thank her with a smile and put my headphones in as the plane begins to take off. I put out a note book and draw random lines as Gold Rush by Ed Sheeran plays. My eyelids get heavy and I put the notebook away. I curl up into a semi-comfortable position and fall fast asleep.
"I'm gonna pick up the pieces and build a lego house, if things go wrong we can knock it down." Ed Sheeran sings to me, in all of his ginger glory. I sigh in my teal dress as I lean across the table from him. He sits across from me on a stool and plays the guitar. I look like I came straight out of the 50's. My hair has that nice wave to it and I've got cherry red lips, not to mention a Monroe. He continues to sing as I watch him. He looks up and catches my eye, he smiles while singing and looks back down. A blush spreads over his pale cheeks and I glow which happiness. I smile at him and then I start shaking. I fall to the ground shaking and I hear him throw down his guitar and run over to me. "Rachel! Rachel!" I hear him say.
"Rachel! Rachel!" Someone is shaking me. I open my eyes slowly and Rebecca is shaking me awake.
"Hmm?" I mumble.
"We're here!!" She says enthusiastically. I look past her through the window and all I can see is fog. Great. I smile and get up to retrieve my bag from the over-head compartment.
"Sleeping Beauty has awoken!" Jordyn exclaim sarcastically.
"Oh, shut it! We're surrounded by British accents now! Nothing can bring me down!" I say with a smile as she laughs at my slight obsession.
"Whatever." She says and sticks her tongue out at me. "What time is it, anyway?" She pats her pockets for her IPhone as Rebecca checks her smart phone. Eli and I start to speak at the same time, but he gestures for me to go first.
"I wouldn't know, my phone's a brick!" I say.
"I was just about to say my phone's a piece of crap!" Eli says happily and high-fives me.
"Ours adjust automatically." Rebecca states, "Mine says it's 3:36 p.m., what do you got Jordyn?" She asks.
"Same, we're early, we weren't supposed to arrive until 3:45." She says, absent-mindedly.
"Sweet. Let's go grab our bags and shit." Eli says. We all agree and get off the plane. We find the baggage claim quickly and are having trouble finding Jordyn's bag.
"CRAP! What am I going to do without it?!" She's freaking out. There are less bags coming out of the hole in the wall and it's making her nervous. "WAIT!" She practically screams. "There it is!" She runs over to her neon green bag and pulls in off the revolver.
"How the hell did you manage to lose that monstrosity?" I ask as she hugs her bag.
"Shh... Its ok baggie, I've got you now." She mutters to her bag, completely ignoring me. We laugh at her as we make our way out of the baggage claim. There's a man in a suit with a sign that says Jordyn's full name. We stop dead and look at Jordyn.
"...Did I forget to mention we get a personal driver? And a limo?" She asks, nervously.
"Yes!" Rebecca says with a laugh. Jordyn walks over to the man and extends her hand.
"Jordyn." She says with a smile and shakes his hand.
"George Herman. I'll be driving you and your friends everywhere this week. May I take your luggage, Miss Jordyn?" He asks, politely.
"No thanks!" She answers. "Just lead the way!" Mr. Herman smiles and walks us out to the limo. He's a rather tall man, with thinning brown hair and dark brown eyes, he looks like he could be Rebecca's or Jordyn's father. He puts on a cap as we leave the air-port and enter into the fog. Once we get into the limo and get seated, he starts up a conversation in his heavy British accent.
"I do apologize for the weather, the fog makes everything look so dull. It's supposed to be clear by tomorrow though, then you can really have a look at the city." He laments while driving.
"I like the fog, makes it seem more Sweeny Todd-like." Eli says while looking out the window. My stomach growls and Jordyn automatically asks,
"Anyone hungry? I'm starved!" She says and gives me an awkward wink.
"I am!" Rebecca and I say at almost the same time and Eli just laughs in agreement.
"Mr. Herman, could we stop for food?" Jordyn asks.
"Certainly, we're supposed to actually. The contest director already has food waiting at a little restaurant called Nando's." As he finishes saying the name, Rebecca, Jordyn, and Eli flip out. They're screaming things like, "Nando's?! THE REAL NANDO'S?!" Mr. Herman just laughs as we come to a stop.
"Yes, the real Nando's. But we're only picking up the food, so you can eat in the hotel suite. Now, Miss, pardon me for not knowing your name," Rebecca points to herself with a questioning look on her face, "My apologies, but no. The blonde one."
"Me?" I ask.
"Yes, what is your name?" He asks, politely.
"Rachel." I answer, respectfully.
"Would you go in and grab the food?" He asks me. The others begin to protest, but he cuts them off. "You'll be eating here with the boys on Thursday. This is just for the purpose of time, and she didn't flip out when I said Nando's." He says firmly, but not rudely.
"Ok then." I say and get out of the limo while they freak about about "you'll be eating here with the boys" and go into Nando's. As soon as I step inside, I can smell the food, and it smells wonderful. Surprisingly, it's basically empty inside, well, except a group of boys giggling together in one of the booths. I walk up to the counter.
"As, you must be in here to pick up the food for the contest winner." The red-head behind the counter says in a British accent. I love it.
"Yes Ma'am, I am!" I say with a smile and the giggling from behind me dies down and becomes whispers.
"Did you win the contest, yourself?" She asks, putting four boxes into a plastic bag.
"Nope. My friend did. I don't even know what band we're here for, they just brought me because of how badly I've always wanted to see London. And I just adore British accents." I tell her, distractedly. The counter has a bunch of cool little toys on it, and I play with them while talking. I hear shuffling behind me and the girl giggles nervously.
"So you have NO idea who you're here to see?" She asks me, glancing over my shoulder every couple of seconds.
"No clue. All I know is that they are a boy band, and the amazing Ed Sheeran wrote one or two of their songs." I say as I hear a laugh and more shuffling, I really loathe eavesdropping. The counter girl sighs and hands me the bag.
"Well, good luck with that, and have a chipper day!" She says with a little wave, I smile and begin to walk out when I pass the giggling boy table again. I stop, and turn back and walk over to them, they look shocked. There are four of them, three brunettes and a blonde. Nothing horribly special, although, one of the brunette's hair is really curly, but looks like it needs to be run through with a brush.
"Hey guys, I think you dropped your eaves over there." I say, pointing towards the counter, "You might wanna go pick it up." The red-head behind the counter laughs. They all looked completely shocked. Proud of myself, I turn on my heel, wave to the girl behind the counter, who was now laughing hysterically, and walk out.
"What the hell took so long?! I'm hungry!" Eli whines as I get back in the limo.
"Just some assholes." I say as I give him the bag and he opens one box starts shoving food into his mouth.
"Cute assholes?" Jordyn asks, taking the rest of the boxes from Eli and giving one to Rebecca and me. I shrug.
"Nothing special. One didn't know how to use a comb, obviously." I said with a smile before diving into my food. As we eat, a food-induced silence settles over us and Mr. Herman chuckles to himself.
Not ten minutes later, we arrive at the hotel.