Highmore Manor

I stood at the door and watched as Ricky and Payton walked down the driveway, the last people to leave my house after the party had finished. The party had been amazing, definitely a better welcome home then I’d been expecting.

Seeing everyone’s faces was great and talking to people I hadn’t spoken to in about four months made me feel happy to have come home, everyone had seemed so happy to see me and all sad that I was going to be leaving again in a few days.

I was suddenly torn between staying here where everyone was so nice and wanted me and going back to Highmore and all the drama I was preparing myself to deal with – not something I was exactly looking forward to.

I turned after my two best friends had disappeared into the dark and went back into the house and through to the kitchen where Callie was sitting at the bar with a tub of ice cream.

“You ok? You look kind of down?” she commented as I sagged down onto the bar seat beside her.

“I’m just tired I guess, I wasn’t planning to stay up this late the night after a huge party and a 20 hour plane ride. I’m still getting used to the time differences for one,” I sighed, flopping down on my arms.

“Ah yeah, that takes quite a bit of getting used to,” Callie agreed, shoveling a spoon of ice cream into her mouth. I just groaned and glared at the counter top.

“So, are you looking forward to going back to school?” Callie asked with a joking smirk in her voice. I shifted my glare to her face and growled slightly.

“What do you think?” I replied dryly. “Staying at home is looking like a much better idea.”

“Well, I’m afraid that isn’t an option. Even if I have to kidnap you and take you back to England myself, you’ll be back at Highmore at the end of this week,” Callie commented calmly, shooting me a hard glare. I pulled a face at her.

“Hey you don’t get to run away from your problems if I don’t get to, and at least you have a whole lot of witnesses – I’m only going on a rumor,” Callie commented, pointing her spoon at me.

“Yeah I guess you’re right,” I nodded slowly.

“I am! At least you’ve got Jesse to look forward to going back to.” Callie wiggled her eyebrows at me suggestively.

“What do you mean? I can look forward to going back to him ignoring me?” I laughed sarcastically. Callie rolled her eyes at me.

“You cannot tell me there is nothing going on between you two!” she exclaimed.

“There’s nothing going on between us two!” I retorted.

“Oh yeah, then why’d he seem so intent on looking after you after – well you know – and then you two disappeared to a room for the rest of the night – hmm, hmm?” Callie teased, reaching over to poke me in the shoulder repeatedly. I groaned and got off the chair to get away from her.

“How many times do I have to tell you, nothing happened in the room – we just went to sleep?” I walked through the lounge and started ascending the stairs, Callie trailed behind. We crept quietly up the stairs until we got to my room.

“Mm, well I don’t blame you if you want to never speak to him again, after what he did with Camilla,” Callie said flopping down on my spare bed.

I spun around suddenly and pointed at her, a memory suddenly dawning on me with the words that Callie had just said.

“Oh my God, I knew there was something I had to tell you!” I gasped.

“What?” Callie asked confusedly.

“When we were on the roof Jesse told me he didn’t sleep with Camilla!” I let the words out in a rush, with the breath I’d been holding in. Callie stared at me skeptically.

“He could’ve just been saying that to get you down into that room with him,” she said suspiciously. I groaned and hit her with my pillow.

“That’s not what happened! Stop saying that!” She cracked a grin and held her hands up in surrender.

“Ok, well you tell me why those – sounds she was making we so – uh – real sounding!” she replied, pulling a weird face.

“Well Jesse said she must’ve been – doing it herself,” I said, scrunching my eyebrows over the awkwardness of the conversation.

“Or someone else was doing it –” Callie trailed off.

“But the only other guys in the house were Chase’s dad –” I stared.

“Ew, no, don’t even go there. It must have been –” her eyes raised to meet mine slowly in realization.

I could feel my stomach slowly feeling sicker, the heavy feeling weighing down whole body as I realized what must have happened, or what could have happened if Jesse was telling the truth.

“Chase,” we said in unison. I raised my hand to my mouth in shock. Callie stared at me like a deer in the headlights.

“Oh – my God,” I moaned.

Callie suddenly leapt off of her bed and was across the room and sitting beside me in seconds, her arms wrapping around my shoulders as the tears started trickling down my cheeks.

“Hey don’t cry, baby. He’s a jerk and he doesn’t deserve your tears,” she crooned, holding me against her. I felt her take a shuddering breath and it was then that I realized she was crying with me.

It felt good to have someone there to cry with. Everything was so messed up it was just a relief that there was someone there who at least understood a little bit of what each other was going through.

We held each other and cried into each others shoulders, thinking about the mess we had to look forward to in four days.

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

For the next couple of days we spent our time looking around Ferncreek and Auckland, meeting up with all the people I knew and just hanging about at mine, Ricky’s or Payton’s.

Payton explained to me what had happened with the Fiji trip. They’d ended up traveling there for just a week before coming back to New Zealand to welcome me back. The plan had always been organized but it served as a perfect cover for the party.

Tamati became a permanent fixture in our little group; Callie had warmed to him quite quickly and the chemistry between then was extremely obvious.

Payton revealed to me her little secret one afternoon when me and her had headed down to check out a sale back in the mall after a day shopping with the group.

“Hey Hayls!” Payton had asked randomly as we walked.

“Yah?” I asked breezily.

“You don’t like Ricky at all that way do you?”

“Uh, no, I thought we already knew this, why?” I asked, turning to her suspiciously. She dipped her head, her face turning an interesting shade of pink.

“Well with you not being here and going to Fiji, we kind of got a lot closer then we used to be. And we were hanging out at the pools one of the days in Fiji and well – we kind of kissed,” she said, not looking at me as she spoke. Considering as it was a mall, I managed to restrain myself from screaming and pulling her into a huge hug right there and then and kept my face composed.

“Oh, that’s awesome Pay – I’m so happy for you!” I said genuinely happy. She raised her eyes to meet mine and the look on her face knew exactly what kind of reaction I was hiding behind my composed expression. I leant closer to her and nudged her slightly.

“Finally!”

Her smile suddenly turned into the hugest grin I’d seen in a while.

It cheered me up instantly, just knowing the she was completely happy.

But that still didn’t stop me from feeling unbelievably lonely whenever we all went out as a group.

Payton and Ricky had each other and Callie had Tamiti, and I felt like the five wheel all the time. They made an effort not to leave me but sometimes it was all they could do.

The other thing that half cheered me up and also made me madder and more upset then anything was a very interesting conversation I had with Jesse one night on MSN. I’d even saved the file to my laptop so that it was always there for me to go back and read.

JesseReed: Hey…?
HayleyE: Hi :)
JesseReed: How’s New Zealand?
HayleyE: It’s going pretty well, yeah.
HayleyE: Can I ask you something?
JesseReed: Ok…
HayleyE: Tell me honestly. K?
JesseReed: I will.
HayleyE: Ok, well I remember from Chase’s party that you said something about not sleeping with Camilla…is that right or am I imagining things?
JesseReed: That’s right.
HayleyE: Ok, so you didn’t sleep with her…? Completely and honestly, you didn’t do anything…
JesseReed: Completely and honestly.
HayleyE: :)
JesseReed: Would it have mattered if I had?
HayleyE: Uhh…yes.
JesseReed: Why?
HayleyE: Because…
JesseReed: Not an answer…why?
HayleyE: Well, oh fine. She doesn’t like you like that…
JesseReed: Is that the only reason?
HayleyE: ….yes.
JesseReed: Sure?
HayleyE: Mhm…
JesseReed: Ok.
HayleyE: Thanks. :)
JesseReed: For?
HayleyE: Everything. Mostly for being there after the whole Chase thing. And for not sleeping with Camilla.
JesseReed: It’s fine. And no problem, I guess.
HayleyE: Well I’d better go, it was good talking to you :)
JesseReed: Yeah. Can we talk when you get back?
HayleyE: Sure… :)
JesseReed: Ok, good. See you soon then, have fun!
HayleyE: Thanks, you too xx
JesseReed: x
JesseReed has signed out.

Knowing at least a little bit more surely that Jesse hadn’t done anything with Camilla made everything equally worse and better at the same time. The talk Jesse had asked to have when I got back was nagging on my brain though, like a monster knowing at my stomach every time I thought about it. I really wanted to know what it was about.

All I knew is that part of me couldn’t wait to get back to England.

The other half wanted to run, and run as far away from England as I could possible get preferably really, really far away where I wouldn’t have to see any of them again.

Like Pluto or the next galaxy perhaps?