Eric P.O.V
After the girls left to Helen's place, after my ego once again didn't let me said 'Stay', and after she left ignoring my pleading eyes. I felt heaviness over my chest. I didn't know why, but I wanted her to stay with me at my house instead of going with them but since I didn't voice out, there was no way for her to stay.
I was, slowly and slowly, getting aware of these unknown strange feelings. I was going on a path where I had never even pay a small visit before. A path where you fall and I had already fallen, but too egoistic to accept that. So, I was just denying it.
Disappointed and injured, we came back home and tried to talk to Owen but he didn't pick his phone. So we considered giving him some time alone.
I still couldn't believe what Owen did today. It was so unexpected and unlikely of him yet we all knew he lost control of his sanity in anger. But today was too much.
"This issue is not going to die down easily. Once Helen's father will be back it would be a boom!" Zack said as he pressed the ice bag on his jaw where I landed a punch.
I nodded and closed my eyes, crouching down on the couch. I put an ice bag over my eye to reduce the swelling and pain. At first, it didn't feel anything but now it was hurting like hell. In addition, the strange dilemma, going inside my head was doing very little help in reducing the deadly throbbing in the veins of my head.
"I know I have said several times that I don't like her but after today my sympathy is with her and I even doubt what happened last year was not wholly her fault." He added.
Helen was part of our group until last year, which was so exceptional, after that incident, Owen was so devastated that we hardly controlled him. I wanted to talk with Helen about that issue but she unexpectedly left the city for a few weeks and when she came back, she ignored us and we ignored her.
However, I tried to talk it out but instead, she started to flirt with me, always ignoring the topic. She just wanted to push Owen. It was so obvious, but that guy just held himself on the verge. Knowing her effect, she flirted more with me and with few other boys. Yet she even made all of those girls expelled who tried to get near him but that bufflehead never noticed it.
I knew what happened last year must have another side. I believed every story had two sides, and my friends and even my own sister just believed what they heard and saw. I tried but couldn't change their viewpoints so eventually, I gave up. Even Helen tried to explain herself but Owen never heard her explanation. And then she gave up trying to explain since she didn't want to explain to anyone but Owen, who never bothered to hear her out.
"By the way, what's with that behavior?" Zack said, breaking my thoughts. I heard pure amusement in his voice but chose to ignore it.
"What?"
"Come on, don't act now. I know you like her." As soon as these words escaped his mouth, I sat straight and shoved a pillow towards him. He chuckled in return.
"I don't like anyone." I huffed, pressing the ice bag on my eye.
"Keep saying that to yourself." He paused and put a finger on his chin. "Or should I say whatever helps you sleep at night?"
Only if I'm not already sleepless.
"Zack!" I glared at him but I knew better. I knew it was true yet I was denying it.
"You will see. If you like her, you will miss her presence here." He winked, ignoring my deadly glares. "Terribly." He added.
"Can you stop this now or do you want me to change the geography of your face?" I threatened him with a pointed finger and one open eye.
"Says the guy who has one black eye. Dude, can you even clearly see my face right now?"
Obviously, no!
"You..." Before I could actually launch over him, his phone rang and he showed me the screen.
"Brother Nick is calling since we left school. Why aren't you picking his calls?" He asked and I groaned.
"Because I'm not in the mood to hear any lecture right now." I reasoned out. I knew Nick would give me a long-ass lecture for not behaving and blah blah.
"Fine. I receive it then."
"Don't!" I said but it was too late as he had already received it and now was talking to him. I grunted, such rebellious friends have I got.
"Yes, brother."
He talked on the phone while my mind drifted off to a particular person. She stepped in to help Helen when all the other students were just watching the show and Helen herself wasn't even kind to her previously. Yet she chose to help.
At that moment, I felt a strange kind of feeling knowing she wasn't one of them who just watched the show and let the worst happen. I smiled at the thought but then a frown appeared on my face. When Owen tried to attack her, I couldn't make myself stop and I could care less he was my friend if she had gotten even an inch scratch.
What I said to him, I heartily mean it.
At that moment, I found a strange possessive side of me. A feeling, I didn't know even existed yet I felt it. It only appeared for her. These uninvited feelings were crushing my brain cells. I didn't want them to overtook me yet when they had already taken control, I didn't mind but let them control me.
A feeling that was yelling at me that she was mine, mine to irritate, mine to protect, mine to hurt, mine to tease, and mine to adore, only mine. Yet she was not even mine. Strange, right?
"Earth to Eric!" Zack yelled, breaking my thoughts. I looked at him annoyed.
"Brother is on speaker. Talk to him." He grinned extending the phone towards me. I glared at him before answering, "What is it, Nick?"
"You idiot! Why aren't you picking my calls?" He growled and I made a whining face.
"Just because of this," I stated.
"Well." He cleared his throat. "I saw the CCTV and how you guys fought and all, but I haven't called you for this. I need a promise from you."
I exchanged a confused look with Zack.
"I'm all ears," I said.
"Can you take care of Skylee until I'll be back?"
I was taken back by his question which was a promise instead. But wasn't it what I wanted? To be near her, to be her one and only.
"Why? What's wrong with her? Don't she have two poker face muscles to protect her?" I asked. I didn't want to sound sarcastic but I couldn't help it either.
"Eric!" He growled again making me flinch again. "I am dead serious. She is your responsibility from now onwards. I can't trust anyone but you."
My heartbeat quickened because of the way he said this. He sounded as if, her life was in danger. The thought itself was enough to give those uninvited feelings a trigger and I immediately said, "Okay, I will take care of her."
"Good. Don't leave her alone anywhere and don't try to stick with her like bubble gum either. Just do it in a way she won't find it suspicious. Don't tell her that I asked you this. Okay?"
"Okay." I furiously nodded my head and the line dropped. I looked at Zack's face who seemed lost in his thoughts with a knowing expression on his face. It clicked something in my mind.
"You know something?" I asked him and the way his face went pale only for a second, then he regained his poster, it proved everything.
"Why would I?" He shrugged.
"Zack, who is she?" I asked him in a significant way but he grinned before saying, "That's for you to find out."
I rolled my eyes at him. I knew he would never tell me if he did not want to. So, instead of wasting my energy over him which was already so limited. I let the topic go and again closed my eyes, leaning back on the couch, I put the ice bag back over my eye. Ouch! It hurt like hell.
A few seconds passed in peace, with all weird thoughts about her coming into my mind and I shut them off. When someone pulled the ice bag away from my eye.
Huffing in annoyance, I yelled. "Zack you dimwit! Can't you stay calm for a moment!" I opened my eyes to found Zack was still sitting in front of me, on the opposite couch, with a confused look. I creased my brows and angled my head to looked at the intruder and found Owen pressing the ice bag over his bruised jaw which was my deed.
I looked back at Zack and titled my head. He shrugged in response.
"Don't look at each other like that. I got kick out of my house. We didn't know Mom was coming back today. So, she kicked me out until..." He got interrupted by our laughter.
"Well serve... You deserve that..." I commented in between my laughter.
"Normally, people got house grounded but he got house kicked out! Oh, God!" Zack joined me, laughing so hard that he fell off the couch. I burst into more laughter looking at him.
After 10 minutes, we both were done laughing, we sat straight on the couch with a serious look plastered on our faces.
"You guys done?" He asked us and we both nodded simultaneously.
"Great. Now listen to me..." I cut him off with a glare.
"Owen you behaved like a certified idiot today. I'm sure you know that. You almost killed that poor girl."
"I agree. We all know from the start it was Helen and we didn't tell you just because when you found out and you behaved recklessly with her? I'm so disappointed. What if she had died today? What would you tell to her parents? What would you say to your parents? You do know it was a very stupid stunt?" Zack joined me, early humor was long gone.
"But guys, how could she do that? I was upset and mad..." He trailed off in a reasoning manner and I felt the need to beat him again.
"You still have not moved on yet. Stop doing this kind of sick thing if you really, I repeat really loved her." Zack added.
Sometimes, I couldn't understand how Zack became the most mature one here when he was the most childish one.
"And I advised you, Eric. If you ever like or love someone in the future. Don't be like him, be like me. I'm not joking." He gave me a most serious look. Ignoring him, I looked at Owen and said,
"For the record, I'm sure she must be drunk when she has sent that video to your father."
Though, why she even recorded that still didn't have logic.
"We all know drunken Helen is a worse version of Helen," I added.
Helen was a responsible girl and somehow the innocent one too. But when she drunk, it was all the opposite, you would encounter a wild and reckless version of her.
Suddenly, his eyes widened as if realization hit him and his face lost all colors. His head automatically fell down, he groaned clenching his eyes shut.
"Fuck! She was drunk that night. Shit! I was the one who dropped her home and saved her from a drunken man! Damn! How could I be so stupid?" He hid his face in his hands, grief, guilt, and pain all were evident in his voice. I sighed.
"Indeed you are, Owen."
"Guys, I'm sorry for today. I behaved like a mad man. I shouldn't have done that. I am ashamed. Please forgive me." He said and my heart immediately melted for my best friend.
"That's fine. But you should be apologizing to someone else, not us." I patted his shoulder and added mischievously to lessen the tension in the air. "Though, your punches had changed the geography of our faces. Idiot! Look at that ugly black eye on my handsome face. Girls won't look at my face now without wincing."
He slightly chuckled while Zack added, "Don't worry, Skylee still likes your face because you got that for saving her." I threw the nearest thing on his face which happened to be a TV remote. They both laughed.
"But on a serious note..." Zack said, passing a concerned look. "You should make an appointment with a consultant. You need one for your anger issues."
"Don't worry, my Dad has already arranged one," Owen said and weakly smiled.
"There is something I need your guys to help me with," Owen said as if he remembered something, his eyes glinting with a faded hope.
We both nodded as he told us.
"Forget it. She won't agree." I shook my head and added, "And after what happened three days ago. No, she will never agree on it."
"Even Rosalyn won't agree on this let alone Helen." Zack too shook his head.
"You guys take three days just to tell me you don't have any plan? Where are those genius Trios who know how to flatter girls? And Zack, can't you even persuade your own girlfriend?" Owen huffed, glaring at us with his piercing black eyes.
"Dude, firstly, you are kicked out not we and secondly, your mom won't know the ego of those girls and now they have patched up. I can't handle it. It's impossible." Zack said and sipped his drink.
"And what do you think? It's a drama or film shooting? Dude, no one in her right sense agrees on having dinner with the person who almost killed her." I added.
Practically, we were sitting in the club, totally unaware and ignorant towards the ear-blasting music and girls. And trying, I repeat, trying to find a way to not only invite but persuade Helen for coming on dinner at Owen's place.
"But guys, Mom was so angry and she clearly told me it was all my fault and she wanted me to invite her to dinner so she could apologize properly. And I can't go back home if I won't make her agree to come." Owen reasoned out, making a sad face which was a sight to behold. I would have laughed at him only if the situation was different. His mom was a strict and cute kind of person.
His mom clearly said that if he didn't make Helen come for lunch and dinner on Friday at his house. She won't let him enter his own house and this piece of trash was staying at my house since then. Because he didn't know how to face her after what happened three days ago. And luckily, tomorrow was Friday.
"And I am not only inviting her. I want all of you to come to keep me sane and even Skylee can come too. The real problem is how I am gonna invite her." Owen sighed and sipped his own drink. While I was twirling my wine glass nonchalantly.
"Geez, how long these girls are planning to stay there? I have not seen my girlfriend for three days and I'm missing her too badly." Zack groaned loudly.
Me too.
I internally groaned. Through, the person I was missing, strangely very badly, had nothing to do with me yet it seemed like she had everything to do with me. But for some strange reasons, it seemed an obsession to me. I missed her annoyed stare, annoying sweet voice, and hypnotizing scent too much for my liking that I couldn't control it yet I was bearing it.
It wasn't like I had not seen her for the past three days. I was fulfilling my promise to my brother, and I had been secretly stalking her. She didn't know but I was everywhere around her except for inside Helen's house. I stalked her at every place she visited in the last three days.
And I found another addiction of mine, I was so obsessed with her oh-so-sweet-and-cute smile.
"Then let's go there," Owen said, placing the glass on the table and broking my thoughts. Lately, I had been often spaced out in her thoughts.
"Where?" We both asked in unison.
"To Helen's place, of course, we will talk face-to-face and I will try to talk to her. Normally." Owen said and we exchanged worried looks.
"Bad idea," I stated. Normal talk, Owen and Helen, it was like two different points of a straight line that could never join together.
"Then do you have any better one?"
I ignored him and looked towards the dance floor with a boring look where girls were dancing. Strangely I didn't find any of them pretty, enough pretty to attract me and made me left my seat.
It was strange and for the first time with me that we had been sitting here for three hours and I had not left my seat once let alone have found anyone attractive. It seemed like my dictionary had chosen someone for the meaning of perfection, distraction, addiction, and attraction.
"Have we come here just to drink and find solutions to our problem?" Zack said, making me look back at him.
"I'm a committed man that explains why I am behaving like a good boy but what's wrong with you two?" He had a strong point.
"I don't feel like enjoying." Owen retorted in a bored voice.
He rolled his eyes and turned to me. "What about you?"
"I don't find any of them attractive." I shrugged with a nonchalant look and they both looked at me like I had grown two heads.
"What?" I asked.
"That's a new case with our player Eric Xander who doesn't found anyone attractive enough to enjoy tonight," Zack said in a sing-song voice.
I rolled my eyes at him. Only if he knew everything. I decided to ignore them by looking around our booth. To found someone that could save my reputation as a player for tonight. But at some point, I didn't care about it anymore.
I found a blonde head staring at me, drinking her wine with a pretty inviting smirk on her face. But again, she didn't have black hair and annoyingly emerald green eyes.
Suddenly, I wanted to see her. The urge to go and see her overwhelmed me no matter how hard I tried to resist it.
"Alright. We are working on Owen's plan. Let's go to meet the girls. We will try to convince them together." I said, looking back at my annoyed friends who annoyingly smirked in return.
"Well, why don't we go and you have some fun here. I'll meet my girlfriend and he will meet his ex-girlfriend and you have no one to meet there but here..." He trailed off, indicating with his glass to look behind.
Again, only if he knew how desperately I wanted to see her.
Rolling my eyes at him, I turned around and found the early blonde head standing right next to me. She had a very beautiful face no doubt with ocean blue eyes but I didn't feel like flirting.
"Hey, I'm Clara Olsen. I think I have seen you guys before." She said, looking at the three of us and flashing a smile.
"Somewhere else." She added as an afterthought and clicked her tongue before again saying, "Owen Garnett, Zack Synder, and Of course, the very famous person in girls here, Eric Xander."
"Sweetheart, I'd love to have a drink with you if I don't have to go right now. Will see you another time." I said and stood up, then looked at two idiots who smirked at me, and also stood up.
"No. I'm not here for a drink. I guess I remembered you guys now." She laughed and left to the other booth.
"What a weird girl," I commented before we walked towards the exit.
On the way out, I bumped with a guy. He shortly stopped to mutter a little sorry and walked ahead. But I was taken back because of his eyes and hair. He had dark emerald eyes and black hair just like a particular person who was driving me insane.
"What happened?" Zack asked.
I looked back in the direction where the guy disappeared then back at him. I shook my head and smiled.
Was I really missing her at the level of insanity?
"Let's go," I said and walked towards the exit.
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