Chapter Three: Surprises
Guys, I might a blog and tumblr account! Just for me to post short ideas or ideas I have!
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Life is full of surprises, twists and turns, the unexpected.
But it's those little surprises, that make life worth living. It's the two am talks, the smiles on loved ones' faces, the chat that wasn't supposed to happen. Sometimes, the unexpected is what brings two people who are meant to be, together. And that's what happened to me, that Friday night during the homecoming game. The unexpected was one of the best surprises I have ever received.
"Hurry up Luke! The games going to start soon and Mikey is already at our seats!" Calum banged on my door causing me to groan more.
He huffed, loud enough for me to hear, "If you don't come out when I count to five, I'm coming in. Even if you are in your birthday suit or not."
I moaned in pain.
"5."
I shamelessly whined.
"4."
Inhumane noise.
"3."
Loud sighed.
"2."
Feverish protest.
"1."
A loud noise echoed throughout my room, but I refuse to lift my head up from the comfort pillow. A yank suddenly caused me to concerned eyes.
"What's wrong Luke?" Calum placed his hands on his hips, trying to decipher my uncharacteristic mood.
I didn't speak, only frowned in response.
"Is it your parents again? Because I told you everything will be o-" I rolled over again, feeling more stressed out than before.
"Hey, what's taking so long?" A new voice entered, making me want to be alone now more than ever.
"I don't know Ash, he won't even talk to me." Not even thirty seconds passed before Ashton flipped me over. He stared at my agonized expression.
"It's her, isn't it?" Hearing even the word her, made me want to almost burst into tears. Almost.
The weight of the mattress creaked, as two bodies fell on top of me. "Don't be such a downer Lucas." Calum slapped my thigh, "If it was meant to happened, you two will be together."
"He's right." The pressure lifted off me. "You know you expect anything to happen, the best comes unexpected. Who knows? Just stop stressing yourself out about it or else it won't ever happen."
As much as I didn't want to admit it, Ashton was right. If I kept replying the day I meet her, if I keep revisiting her bright smile or her wondrous laugh, nothing would ever come out of it.
Who knows, maybe she even has a boyfriend? What if she didn't even feel the same way? What if she didn't even remember me?
She probably wasn't thinking about me the way I was thinking about her and that hurt. I didn't even want to put myself in that position. So instead, I stood up, assured the boys I would be fine, and headed toward the game.
Along the ride to my school, the terrible singing and idiotic commentary made me forget about her for a moment. I forgot the way her hair fell in her face when I was waiting in line. I forgot the way she almost tripped with every step, when we walked toward our seats. And I almost, almost forgot about the way she made me feel when we saw Mikey.
But life is funny like that, because when you almost forget, there's always something that reminds you.
"Hey guys!" Ivy greeted, each of us side hugging her. No one really understood how Michael and Ivy were together. In fact, the only similarities they had were their need to dye their hair. It was strange indeed, but deep down I was secretly jealous of them.
"Everyone, please meet my best friend." I didn't notice the girl next to Ivy. She was pretty good at hiding, I guess she was quite shy. But the minute she stood up, the minute those crystal blue eyes stared in my own, my breathe hitched in my throat.
The spinning world stopped around me and all I could feel was the pounding in my heart.
Ashton was right, the best does come unexpected. And the best just happened to me.
"This is Cayden." Ivy gestured to the girl I couldn't stop thinking about, "Cayden this is Calum, Ashton, and-"
"Luke?" She blurted, squinting at me.
"Cayden." Her name released a flurry of emotions inside of me.
"You two know each other?" Ivy stared at us in disbelief. A light bulb must have lite above her head. She snapped her fingers, "Wait is this the boy you meet at the lake?"
All the boys' attention shifted toward us. I could feel Ashton's knowing smirk as he inquired, "So this is the girl from lake?"
Calum pushed me slightly out of the way toward her, "Pleasure to meet you pretty girl." He took her hand and kissed her knuckle, "I'm Calum and if you ever want to ditch the blonde you know where to find me."
He winked which made her laugh, my new favorite sound. A small sliver of envy courses through me at her falling for his charm. I know Calum didn't mean it, but I just couldn't help myself scowl.
My sour mood must have been noticed as Ashton coughed extending his hand toward her. "And I'm the normal one, Ashton."
The only way I was able to notice her very brief moment of hesitance was because I was paying attention to her eyes. For a flash of a second, her eyes revealed her timidness to trust this stranger. Even if Ashton was the most friendly out of all of us, she wasn't comfortable. And that moment right there, made me want to show her how confident and beautiful she could really be.
Slowly, Cayden extended her arm and lightly shook his hand, "I'm Cayden."
"Oh, we know all about you. Luke here hasn't shut u-" I jabbed Ashton on the side of his stomach. Giving him a glared, he let go and put his hands up in defense, "Well it's true! We almost didn't make it here because you were to busy mopping about her! I'm never going to see her again! What if she hates me? What if she thinks I'm a creep?"
"Dude!" I slapped him on the arm for intimating my exact words in front of Cayden.
But to my dismay, she didn't cringe or find our interaction strange. Instead she giggled and instead of feeling completely annoyed at Ashton, I felt giddy knowing I was the source of her laughter. I would take a hundred more teasing jabs from Ashton and Calum if it meant I would make her smile.
The rest of the game went by in a blur and I actually I didn't even pay attention to anything as I was just watching Cayden. I just wanted her attention. Every time she turned to ask questions about the game, every time she cheered because our side was cheering, just every time she did anything, I was determined to have her full on attention.
Luck must have been on my side as a cold breeze whipped against us. Cayden instantly shivered as she only had a thin cardigan. Instinctively, I immediately took off my heavy jacket and placed it around her shoulders.
She turned to look at me in a questioning manner, "Aren't you going to be cold?"
I shook my head, "Don't worry, I'll be fine." She smiled at me, giving me the bravery to wrap my arms behind her, pulling her closer to me.
A jab at my side had me turning my head to see my mates. Michael was mimicking my actions to his own girlfriend, giving me a wink in the process. Calum was thrusting his hips in a way that I refused to let Cayden see. And Ashton, bless that boy, was just giving me a thumps up and an approving grin.
When the game was finished, my school's team had crushed our opponents. Everyone was in a frenzy, rushing toward the field, screaming with pride in their voices. My group remained in the bleachers, Cayden still in my arms.
"Okay everyone." Michael clapped, "Whose ready for some post game celebration?" He deliberately smirk at me.
Knowing my best friends, this night wasn't going to be end well for me.