"So is this the Justin you were at dinner with a few nights ago?"
I swallowed hard, I was hooping my mom wouldn't ask this.
"Um ye-yeah mom."
She was silent for a few moments, probably thinking about what embarrassing thing she could say next.
"So now Justin please tell me that you and my daughter are at least using some sort of protection, I work to many hours to help take care of a baby now.."
I practically chocked on my water when she had said that.
"MOM!"
"Emily there's no need to scream, I'm just making sure we never finished that conversation the other day about it.."
"OH MY GOD MOM JUST STOP TALKING PLEASE JUST STOP TALKING RIGHT NOW."
"Mrs. Johnson me and Emily, we're um... We're not um..."
"We are NOT screwing each other so here's an idea lets stop talking about it."
I could feel how hot and red my cheeks were, I was beyond embarrassed and at that point I just wanted to crawl under a rock and stay there for the rest of my life. Just then I felt Justin's hand find mine and intertwine our fingers together under the table. I couldn't help but relax a little more from his gesture.
"So Justin, Emily told me you were only staying until it was time for your tour, when are you leaving?"
"I'm here for another week and a half and then I'm leaving for Paris to start the tour."
My head shot up when he said Paris. It's been my dream to go to Paris, it didn't matter that I wouldn't be able to see the amazing things there, but just to say I've been to Paris and had dinner under the Eiffel Tower, come on that's every girls dream.
"Your going to Paris?!"
"Yep first concert for the believe tour...I love it there,it's amazing."
"It must be amazing, getting to go travel around the world, not staying in the same place."
"I love it, wouldn't wanna be doing anything else."
What I would do to be able to do that. I mean I'll probably never even leave Canada. Not with my mom around, she barley lets me go outside to get the mail by myself.
"Maybe one day you can come with me."
Did he just say what I think he said?
"Really?"
"Yeah! Scooter wouldn't mind, and my mom would love having another girl around, it wouldn't be a big deal."
"Oh my god ye-"
"That's really nice of you Justin really, but I don't think that would be good for Emily, but what a very kind offer."
I could practically feel the steam coming out of my ears, I hated when she did this. Make all my decisions for me. It's like she lays out my life for me and I don't get a say In anything.
The rest of dinner I was silent, I knew if I said anything it turn into a screaming match with my mother. So instead I was silent the rest of the night, until I went to go walk Justin out.
"Em what's wrong? You been quite all night."
"Nothings wrong, I'm fine Justin, I'm just tired."
"Emily..."
He brought me closer to him, I wrapped my arms around his waist and buried my head between his neck.
"You know you can talk to me, about anything." He said while rubbing my back.
I sighed. "I know, I just don't wanna talk about it now."
"Well when you want to," he lifted my head up with his hands and rubbed his thumb on my cheek. "I'm here for you, okay?"
"Thanks Justin."
He kissed me one last time before I heard him go back into his car and drive away. I didn't even bother saying anything to my mom, I just went right into my room and laid in bed, trying to hold in all my tears. Until my phone went off, telling me it was Kyle calling. Thank good, I knew if I could talk to anyone about my mom, it would be to Kyle.
"Hey Kyle."
"Was that Justin leaving just now?"
"Wait what?"
"Where did you even go, he didn't hurt you or anything right?"
"Kyle what the hell are you talking about?"
"Dammit Emily just answer me!" He yelled through the phone.
Okay what the fuck was his problem.
"Kyle what the hell is your problem? Obviously your in some kind of mood acting like a jackass so u till you stop acting like a dick right now don't bother calling me back!" I yelled back.
I let out a frustrating sigh. First my mom, now Kyle... Fucking Kyle! Of all people.
I heard my mom knock on the door.
"Emily I'm coming in."
"Mom I'm not in the mood to talk to you right now."
"Oh but I am. Emily I don't want you seeing that boy anymore. He's not right for you."
My mouth went dry at her words. Not see Justin anymore? Not right for me?
"Wh..what?"
"You heard me, he's not right for you, putting ideas in your head that you can just go out and do everything he can, as if he forgets your blind."
I felt my blood boiling. And I couldn't hold back anymore.
"Not right for me? We're not even dating mom! How can you tell me who's right for me and who's not! You don't know nothing about him! Maybe, that's what I like most about him, he doesn't treat me like some handicapped girl, he treats me like any other 18 year old girl, he doesn't let my blindness stop me from doing things I want, he sees me as Emily."
"Emily you have no clue what your talking about, I'm just doing what's best for you."
"What's best for me? Mother you have no clue what's best for me. You go around and pick all my decisions for me, I can't do anything on my own, for Christ sake I can't even pick out what college I want to go to!"
"Emily we talked about this, your just going to go to the local college here, it's better for you."
"No mom we didn't talk about this, you just made the decision for me, because if we did talk about it, you would of known I got accepted to Stratton in California. Don't you understand that's my dream school, it's where I wanna go, not here in Canada. Not here so that you can continue to lay out my life for me! Why can't you understand that!?"
"Emily that is enough. Your talking nonsense. California... Oh no what are you thinking? Going all the way to California for school, someplace you never been, hell Emily you can't see how would you know what your doing, it's not right for you, you need to stay here where I am."
I couldn't take this anymore. No matter how hard I tried she wouldn't understand.
"IF JAKE WAS STILL HERE YOU KNOW HE WOULD BE TELLING ME TO GO! HE WOULD BE SO HAPPY FOR ME. HELL HE WOULD EVEN BE HELPING ME PACK! INSTED OF ALWAYS WORRYING ABOUT ME I NEVER ONCE HEARD YOU WORRY ABOUT JAKE, OR WHAT WAS HAPPENING TO HIM! YOU TREATED HIS NAME AS IF NOTHING BAD WAS GOING TO HAPPEN TO HIM BUT YOU TREAT ME AS IF DOING THINGS ON MY OWN IS GOING TO GET ME KILLED!"
I didn't care that I was screaming at that point. My heart was beating so fast it felt like it was going to come out of my chest. And when my mom didn't say anything back, I knew I struck a nerve by bringing up Jake. A part of me regretted bring up his name, but a part of me didn't at all. I knew if I brought him up, it would shut her up. And with not even another word, I heard her walk out the room, closing the door behind her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I woke up to the sound of Lauren's voice trying to wake me up. I tried my best to curl back up, going to school and getting up was the last thing I wanted to do after spending all night crying.
"Lauren just go to school without me." My voice was dry and soft, almost as if saying anything would make me break down in tears again.
"Oh Em sweetie what's wrong?"
"Everything."
And with that, another crying breakdown began.
I knew I could always talk to Lauren about anything, but I didn't want to, and as much as I knew she wanted me to tell her so she could help, she didn't push me to. She just said okay and we got ready for school.
"You sure your going to be okay?" She asked while stopping the car.
"Yeah.." I whispered back.
We walked to the lockers, it was the. It hit me that Kyle was going to be there, and from the little mini fight that started between us last night, that alone made me want to break down and cry again.
"Hey babe, hey Kyle." Lauren spoke.
I just did my normal thing at my locker, but without speaking to anyone.
"Kyle where did you even get those crutches?"
Kyle in crutches? That would mean he's hurt...
"I've had them since that time I broke my leg in like 9th grade... Who'd know I need them again...it's a good thing I saved them..."
"You're hurt?" I silently asked. It was the first thing I've said since I first got to school. And to him since last night when we got into that fight.
"Yea.. Did something to me knee, hurts like a bitch though. Been killing me all night, I didn't even get any sleep last night I was in so much pain."
"How'd you do that?" I asked
"He wasn't focused, had his mind somewhere else during practice. Ryan caught him off guard and slammed him down." John answered.
"Kyle really you should go get that checked by the trainer. Maybe she can take a look at it." Lauren said.
"I'll go with you."
"You will?"
I nodded my head yes and I placed the rest of my stuff away.
"Okay, I'll um.. I'll go now come one."
I grabbed his arm and followed him as he took me to the trainers medical room. We didn't say anything to each other, and it was weird, not talking to each other.
"Hello Kyle, Emily, what can I help you with?"
"Well yesterday at practice, I messed up my knee, it's been killing me all last night and this morning and I was hoping you could help me out."
"Hmm okay come and lay down and I'll check it out, Emily I can grab you a chair next to him."
I sat next to Kyle while he was laying down and I could feel how much pain he was in, even while he was laying down he sounded so uncomfortable.
"I iced it for a bit, then put on the knee brace but it didn't help at all."
"Well it defiantly is swollen, I can't really do anything while its swollen this bad so Im going to ice it for awhile and maybe it'll go down and then I can take a better look at it."
A while later Mrs. Burke came back with the ice.
"Here, now don't move at all, don't get up or move your knee, okay? I'll be back after 1st period and take a look at it again. Emily your welcome to stay here the rest of the day with him I'll let all your teachers know."
We were silent for awhile after she left, neither of us wanting to talk first. And I hated this, there was so much I wanted, no needed to tell him.
"Kyle?"
"Yeah Em?"
"Are you still mad at me?"
I couldn't hold in the tears anymore. It was as if everything was catching up to me from last night. And I just needed to vent and let it all out.
"Hey no no I'm not mad at you, shhh Emily what's wrong? Don't cry."
"It's just that last night when you called and, and you were yelling, and, and I thought I did something wrong to make you mad at me, and.."
I just couldn't stop the crying at that point, I tried my best to talk through the tears.
"Emily I'm really sorry I didn't mean to yell at you, I was just in so much pain from my knee, and it was killing me and I didn't mean to yell, I'm not mad at you or anything okay? You didn't do anything wrong... Shhh come here don't cry."
He pulled me closer to him in my chair and laid my upper body on top of his chest. He had his arms wrapped around me and just held me and rubbed my back while I just cried into his chest.
I don't know how long we stayed like that, to me it felt like forever. I knew Kyle would always be there to help me. He always knew when something was bothering me.
"Emily what else is wrong? I know there's something else bothering you. I mean I know I'm amazing and everything but you wouldn't be crying like this just over me."
I smiled and let out a small laugh while I smacked his chest lightly.
"Everything's wrong Kyle. After you called, my mom Came up and we got into a huge fight... Like really bad."
"Oh come on Em, I've seen you guys fight before it couldn't have been that bad."
"No Kyle this one...this one was bad... I... I brought up Jake."
"Jake? Like our Jake?"
"Yeah.."
"But Em you haven't talk about jake since..since he-"
"Yeah I know but... But she just wouldn't understand me! I knew if I brought him up she would listen!"
"Emily.."
He grabbed my hand and rubbed his thumb on the back of it.
"What happened? Tell me."
I let out a sigh.
"Last night Justin stayed for dinner, and she was asking him about his tour, and he said how he was leaving for Paris for the first concert, and I said how I always wanted to travel around, you know get out of Canada, and he said how he can take me one day, and I was so happy and then my mom had to answer for me and say no it wouldn't be good for me. Then after he left I went to my room and then after you called she came up and was telling me how I shouldn't see him anymore and how he's not right for me, like just because he kissed me doesn't mean that we're dating! I mean he hasn't even asked me out and she's going on saying how he's not right for me and how I shouldn't see him anymore!"
I let out a big sigh and stopped to catch my breath.
"Then I told her how I got accepted in Stratton and that's where I wanna go, not the local college here, but she kept saying I didn't know what I was talking about, that I was going here so I could be by here but... But she doesn't get it. I wanna make my own choices, not have her plan out my life for me and its like no matter how much I try to tell her she doesn't listen to me! So I brought up Jake, and how he would be happy that I got in. I mean come on you even know he would want me too! He would be helping me pack if he was still here! And after I said his name, she...she just walked out and she hasn't said anything to me since."
I felt good to finally let it all out and tell someone. It was practically eating me up alive I just needed to vent to someone.
"Wow.. That was bad.."
"Ugh tell me about it... And I just don't know what to do anymore."
I laid back onto Kyle's chest closing my eyes and calming myself down. The sound if his steady heartbeat relaxing me.
"Why don't you just go?"
"Go where?"
"To Stratton.. I mean your already accepted, I know how much you wanna go there, so I think you should just go. I mean I'll even help you pack if you want."
"But...but my mom..."
"Em your 18 years old, your an adult you can get up and go whenever you want. So if going to California to college is where you wanna go, you can go. Your mom can't keep you hostage at your house...besides I'm pretty sure thats illegal if she does that."
I smiled. "I never though about it that way...your totally right..."
"Of course I'm right Em when am I ever wrong? This is why you got me as a best friend."
"We'll there was that time in 4th grade when you-"
He quickly placed his hand over my mouth.
"I thought we said we would never bring that up ever again.."
"Okay okay I won't say it..."
"Thank god."
"I'll just say it at graduation while we're walking across the stage. I'll scream it out for everyone to hear."
"No...you wouldn't dare.."
"I don't know...we could always find out.."
"Emilyyyyy!" He started whining like we were five again.
"Okay okay I won't... Well I won't say it now at least..."
"Ugh I hate you you know..."
"Nah you love me Kyle...you love me."
I rested my head back onto his chest.
"So you kissed him huh?"
"Ugh Kyle..."
"So did you like it?"
"Kyle....."
"Was he a good kisser? Oh my god you defiantly like it..."
I found his mouth and placed my hand over it to shut him up.
"Ew gross! Hey I didn't lick your hand when you put your hand on my mouth!" I yelled while giggling at the same time.
"It's called the element of surprise babe... Element of surprise...."
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Okay so here's chapter 8, don't forget to VOTE and COMMENT!!!
Also, I posted the first chapter too my new book, it's called Keeping Him Alive so make sure to go check it out.
Also, if your wondering who Jake is, you'll find out in the next chapter I just wanted to make this a Kyle and Emily chapter to show sorta how close they are to each other and the type of relationship they share with each other. Oh and next chapter will have a lot more Justin in it (;