Forget All You Know

"Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time."
-Thomas Edison

Tom's P.O.V.

"Should I call her?" I asked, my phone clutched tightly in my hand as I paced around the studio.

One could probably say that I've been a mess since Lila left. Seriously. I haven't gone out (except to record for the album), I'm not calling anyone, and I've been playing the same sad songs every single day. I know, it sounds pathetic, and truth is, it was. I was completely shutting myself off from the world all because she left.

I'd completed the first step in my recovery, though: I realized that there was a problem. A major problem. My problem was simply that I was no longer with Lila. Now, the second step was to fix things and win her back. I've been warned, though, that Step Two doesn't always work. So, my alternative to Step Two is to go to New York and beg for her to come back home. I know, it seems a bit desperate. But, if you're concerned about that one, wait 'till you hear the alternative to the alternative to Step Two. For my own sake, I'm not gonna tell you. I want you guys to still have some respect for me.

"I don't think that's a good idea, mate," Harry said as I shot him a look. "I think it's pretty much over."

"No! It's not over! We're going to get married like we were originally supposed to!" I said as I began pacing quickly again. Harry, Dougie, and Danny exchanged some worried glances as they watched me have about the tenth mental breakdown of the week.

"But - " Danny began, only to be interrupted by my continuous rant.

"Guys, I've already completed Step One! I'm half-way done with getting us back together! I can't just give up now!" I yelled as I ran my hands through my pale hair.

"Well, Step One was just admitting that you two aren't together anymore. So, that's not really helping get you guys back together," Dougie said as I stopped pacing and looked at him blankly. "If you want my humble opinion, I suggest you scratch Step Two all together and take an entirely different approach to the situation."

"What's that?" I asked curiously.

"Forget about her," Dougie said, causing me to glare at him. "Move on! Go to a club or something! Maybe then you'll meet a nice girl who will help you get your mind off of Lila."

"Why didn't you suggest this five months ago, Doug?" Harry asked.

"No! It's out of the question! I can't just forget about Lila! It doesn't work that way," I said quickly. "We're going to get married. I swear, it will happen."

"Tom, I'm really concerned about your mental health right now," Danny said timidly. "You're talking about how you're going to marry your ex-girlfriend. You don't actually think that, do you?"

"Of course, I do," I said quickly. "I've had this planned out since I was fourteen!"

"What are you?" Dougie asked with disgust. "A chick?"

I guess there's no point in lying to you guys anymore. At this point, I'm guessing that you know me better than I know myself, so here it goes. I'm kind of a girl. Not literally, of course! Don't even start thinking that. Could you imagine the rumors that would be flying around? Dear Lord. No, what I meant was that I'm not very "macho". I'm sort of that geek who actually shows his emotions. I figured that that aspect of me could either be really good, or lead to my immediate downfall. I was leaning more towards the second one, though.

"You just don't understand," I said quietly as I looked down at my hands. "Harry, how would you feel if Kate left you right now? Would you be able to move on right away?"

"Well, no, but it's not like it happened last week, mate," he said as he scratched the back of his neck. "She left you five months ago."

"Fine," Danny finally said, catching all of our attentions. "Call Lila and try to fix things, but if she doesn't want to get back together, then you've gotta take Dougie's advice and move on. Deal?"

"Deal," I said as I shook Danny's hand, positive that Lila would want to get back together with me. I quickly started dialing her phone number as I stepped out into the hallway, suddenly feeling anxious and worried about her response.

"Hello?" I heard a male voice ask over the phone. My heart plummeted momentarily, thinking that she'd moved on. Why else would some guy be at her flat? Then I remembered, though, that Danny mentioned how she was living with some guy that she worked with. Thankfully for me, he was gay.

"Hey, can I speak to Lila?" I asked as I began biting down on my nails.

"She's not here right now," he said as I bit my lip and sighed. "Do you want to leave a message?"

"Um," I paused. "Yeah. Tell her that I miss her like hell and that I'm willing to do whatever it takes to get her back. Tell her that I still love her more than I ever did before and that...and that three coins means marriage."

"Do you want me to write this down or...?" he asked awkwardly as I sighed and shook my head.

"Just tell her that I called," I said sadly. "Can you please do that for me?"

"Yeah, sure," he said. "What's your name?"

"Tom."

"Alright. I'll tell her that you called, Tom," he said before hanging up. Part of me wondered if he was actually going to tell her that I called. I figured that if Lila had told him what Austin told her, then he'd hate me just as much as she did right now. I just still didn't understand how she could've believed him when I gave her every ounce of love that I had in me. And trust me, it was a lot. After everything I said and all of times we shared, how could she really believe that I didn't love her? These thoughts puzzled me while I waited for a call back. Just waiting.

It shocked me that Step Two was just waiting.