You Will Be Given Love

8:15
I started the engine of my precious Bonnie, making me smile as she roared to life.

“There’s the strangest excitement today…”
The sound of familiar lyrics and calming melody filled the space I occupied as I glanced at myself in the review-mirror.
It is going to be alright, I said to myself, it is going to be just fine.

“Oh God I feel like I am in for it now, it’s like the rush has gone straight to my brain…”
One last glance at the sleeping house and I pulled out of the driveway, making my way towards the future that I knew would be amazing.

I glanced in the review mirror and smiled reassuringly – this is my life, this is my moment and I am going to make it through, no matter what!
“I will make your fear melt away and the world we know disappear…”

8:17.
“Oh God I feel like I am in for it now…”
The anxiety was taking over every cell of my body, but my mind didn’t seem to care. I also felt a slight nausea, but even that didn’t stop the smile which was permanent on my small, plump lips. The pure, warm happiness was all I felt and I knew in that very precious moment that I was where I needed to be.

The warm April’s morning breeze played with my brown curls, messing them up slightly but I was happy, I was content. I was making my way through it all, with the never-ending peace in my heart, perfect music playing in the background, a slight panic in lower abdomen and a calm smile gracing my lips.

8:20
“And now, I’ll stop the storm if it rains, I’ll light a path far from here…”
‘DULANEY HIGH SCHOOL’ was the first thing that welcomed me into my new life as I pulled in the almost occupied parking lot.

I turned off the engine and Bonnie roared happily.
This is it, I looked at myself in the review mirror. This is really happening, I’m really here.

Was the car too much? It was a five minute ride, was the car really necessary?
Am I too dressed up? My plaid purple shirt doesn’t seem to be too formal and white jeans just added some contrast to the whole attire.
Is this too much?
I didn’t have any make-up on, well, I did have mascara, but that didn’t count. Does the red lipstick count? I always wear red lipstick, well, almost always.
The voice inside my head kept repeating sentence after sentence and I felt the panic growing with each thought I had.
Stop it! Hold your train of thoughts!

The sound of the phone startled me from my thoughts and I reached for the bag.
‘One new message’ flashed on the screen as I unlocked the pad and read the message.
“From: Victoria
Hei, I just wanted to say that you should stop worrying. It’s alright, we’re with you.

Hugs and kisses,
Vic’.”

I sighed happily and looked outside.
It was a beautiful sunny morning; the warm weather of Baltimore made everything so much easier.
Back at home people would still wear winter jackets or carry an umbrella around. It’s just the weather of Europe, I suppose.

One last glance in the mirror and I was out.
This is it.

***

To say that everything was something I have never expected would be an underestimation, because I indeed didn’t expect anything to be like it was.

Dulaney High school was the typical American school in its exterior, interior, the atmosphere, and even people. Everything was just beyond anything I have imagined to be; I expected for people to stare, but it happened only in the movies, I suppose; in real life people barely noticed me.

The school’s hallways were filled with students and they were all so different and yet so similar – students with black skin tones, students with a slight Asian type to their appearance, small girls, tall boys, chubby girls, chubby boys, skinny girls, skinny boys, the cheerleaders, the jocks, the goths, the hippies. They were everywhere!

I looked around and smiled. Never in my life could I imagine this scene – me, an eighteen year old student from a far Northern Europe country, walking down the hallway of American High school.

I had my schedule and papers organized the very first day I arrived in Timonium, so everything was a lot easier. First period - Room 103 (Ms Kelly Smith); I looked up at the number board on the door – 103.
This it.

The door was opened and I was met by the sun-rays shining brightly through the window.
As my eyes adjusted to the light I took in my surroundings. The class-room was surprisingly wide; it stretched towards the end of the room with four rows of singe tables organized neatly side by side.
Some students were already there, while others were absent.

As I took small steps towards my seat I felt the growing feeling of nausea in my stomach. It’s alright. The worst part is almost over, everything’s alright! I kept repeating to myself.
Some students looked at me, others ignored and I was quite thankful.
My entrance wasn’t that dramatic.

The bell rang and it was time to face the new reality.

The rest of the students came in just before Ms Smith’s arrival.
She was a woman in what I assume to be mid-forties. She wasn’t tall, nor was she short; her black heels added some height to the slightly small frame. She was dressed business-like – a black pencil skirt and a white cotton blouse. Her pale brown hair was neatly done in a French bun making her high cheek bones more emphasized. She had amazingly beautiful features and her eyes held a little spark to them.
She enjoyed her work and it radiated through every cell of her being.

“Alright class, settle down, settle down.” Her strict but yet somewhat playful voice rang through the class room and everyone immediately stopped what they were doing. She smiled in satisfaction and leaned at her desk. “Now I know you all had a fantastic week off from school but we must bear in our minds that the exams are coming near and so is the summer. Please, do pay attention to your studies although I know it’s hard to concentrate, but dear students, you are no kids, nor are you teenagers.”

She started to pace around the classroom in slow but firm steps.

“You are young adults, each facing the final months of your peaceful realms as teenagers. Now, I’m sure that each and every one of you wants to have a break from school and everything it represents, but unfortunately I must say that this is the time when you have to focus all of your attention on graduating successfully.”

She stopped in the middle of the classroom and looked all over the students until her eyes finally stopped. She smiled widely and went back to her position.
“Ah, Miss Neiland, so nice to finally meet you,” she smiled. “Please, do come here, in front of everyone and introduce yourself!”

So I stood up and did as I was told.

I took one step at the time and began my way towards the front.
As my eyes scanned the classroom a small smile graced my lips and I opened my mouth. “Hello,” I said in a calm voice. “My name is Diana and I am eighteen years old.”
My voice wasn’t shaking; in fact it was pretty calm and I felt a sudden wave of confidence flowing through me.

“Forgive me if I say something wrong, English is not my native language nor do I come from a country that speaks English.” Some students looked at me in awe, others with boring stare, and some didn’t even pay any attention to anything that was happening beyond their minds.
It didn’t matter, nothing mattered.

The teacher besides me smiled reassuringly as I went on with the story of who I was.
“I come from a small country in the Northern Europe – Latvia, if any of you have heard of it. I don’t mean to sound offending or anything, it’s just that people don’t recognize it that often.” I stopped myself and shifted my weight from one foot to another.
“It’s a country in the Baltic region, and it is also a neighbor country of Russia, I’m sure everyone know where that is.” I smiled and heard small laughs in the class.

“Yes, well…” I stopped not knowing what else I should say and that was when the teacher decided to help. “Maybe you would like to tell us about your likes and dislikes?” She asked and I smiled and I shook my head. “Yes, yes of course, um, well, I do have many interests actually; I’m interested in life and everything it presents to me each day. For example, a year ago I couldn’t imagine that I would be standing here, in this class room and talk to people in foreign language.” I laughed a nervously and continued. “I do love cooking, art, any kind of art, painting, drawing, everything. I can proudly say that I’m a photographer.” Ms. Smith made an approving sound and I continued. “I also love music, very, very much. It is what inspires me. What else, um. I don’t know anything else to say, maybe someone would like to ask a question?” I asked but no one volunteered to do so.

“Very well, I think that was an interesting introduction, I’m very happy that you joined us and I’m sure you will gain a lot of experience here and also make a lot of new acquaintances. You may go to your seat now.”
And I did as I was told.

This wasn’t so bad, I smiled to myself. It wasn’t bad at all.

“Pst!” I turned my attention to the person, who sat in front of me.
His back was slightly arched towards me and he had these big, warm, chocolate brown eyes. I was slightly taken aback by this boy’s appearance so it took me some time to answer him. “Huh?”

“I said ‘Hey’, I’m Jack.” He whispered and extended his arm towards me. I shook it and smiled, “Diana.” He smiled and whispered. “Yeah, I knew that already but it doesn’t hurt anyone to repeat yourself, right?” I shook my head in approval and he chuckled lightly. “So, you’re from another country, huh? How does it feel like to be… you know, foreign?” He shook his dark hair out of his eyes and leaned at the back of the chair.

“Well… To be honest I was kind of scarred at the beginning but now it seems that I have nothing to worry about. The introduction is over, so I there’s nothing else to be afraid of. Although I do worry about classes, you know, I don’t know it just keeps going through my he –”
“Wow, wow, wow, slow down there!” He cut me off. “Now first of all, please, chill! It’s a high school. You should be having fun and not think about some classes and all that stuff. Chill, babe, it’s going to be alright.”

I smiled and shook my head. “Yes, yes it is, thank you Jack.”
“No problem, anyway… You want me to show you around, you know, introduce you to my school?” He smirked and looked at my schedule, which lay in front of me.

“That would be amazing, of course if it won’t bother you.”
“Nah, it’s all fine, little one, I’ll be happy to help around, you know, get to know you better, show you around, introduce you to my friends and all that, you know, like, help you blend in.”

Suddenly I had this strange feeling in my stomach that everything’s going to be even better than I imagined.

***

“So, I heard that you love music and I was wondering what do you listen to?” Jack’s tall frame towered over me as we headed towards our next period together.
I was happy because Jack and I shared them today.
Just my luck, right?

“Well, I can listen to all kind of music, but what keeps me in seventh heaven are Angels & Airwaves.” And suddenly I lost him.

Jack stopped in the middle of the hallway and his eyes grew wide. I turned around and looked at him with a slight concern. “Jack, are you alri –”

“Did you say Angels & Airwaves?” He asked, looking me straight in the eyes and taking me by my upper arms.
“What?” I managed to squeak as I felt myself being lifted off the ground and embraced in a tight hug. “Jack, what… What is –”

“I think I just found my new best-est buddy!” He squealed squeezing me tighter to his lean body.
“Um, Jack, you’re hurting me!” I managed to choke out.
He stopped abruptly and put me down back on my own two feet.
Thank God! He was too tall for me, too tall.

“Man, you know, for being my new best-est buddy, well, you’re short!” He laughed as we continued our path.
“I am not,” I said and looked up into his face. “I’m just perfect.”

“Yeah, for a gnome!”
I gasped and smacked his arm playfully. “Am not!” but Jack just giggled and skipped a few steps ahead of me.

“Jack, come back here, you did not just call me a gnome! I’m five-foot-one!” I shouted but Jack just giggled some more.

***

To say that I didn’t enjoy my first day at school would mean that I was lying and I never lie.

I learned that Jack actually was one of those persons who can light up a smile on your face anytime and anywhere. It was just his nature.

He could laugh and joke about everything, but his jokes were never stupid. Sure, they were a bit silly but not in an annoying way. He managed to pull it off just nicely and I had to give it to him – he had a natural talent of being the clown.

I also took in his appearance a bit more.
He was tall, much taller than me, but that didn’t matter, although he kept reminding me of his advantage but it was always with humor; he had this kindness to his jokes, no matter how many times he used the word “fuck” or “fucking” or “fuckidy-fuck-fuck”, or any of those.

Jack had this dark shade of brown to his hair which reached just past his jaw line in a messy hair-do, making his face appear a bit more rounded than it really was.
He had a slight stubble line across his jaw but it added an appealing masculine look to his young features. Jack’s eyebrows were big but it was alright, for a boy, I mean.
But what stood out the most were his deep, warm, chocolate brown eyes, which shined with kindness and joy.

Jack was attractive in so many ways; his beauty was unique. It was the type of beauty that became more and more expressive with time and each passing year.

Jack wore a simple black shirt with a caricature in front and black, almost skinny type of pants. He also wore black, classical Vans slip on shoes and I had to admit – the style suited him just perfectly.

“So I was thinking,” he said as we sat down at our lunch tables. “Maybe we should, you know, chill today? I mean, it’s not a date kind of thing or anything like that, I just wanted to introduce you to my town and all that stuff.”

I smiled warmly at Jack as he ate his fries. “That would be lovely Jack, really. Although you know, I have seen a bit of Timonium these couple of days. I mean, I didn’t come here just yesterday.” Jack nodded and continued with his food.
Suddenly he stood up and took his cell phone from the jeans. “Yeah… Hey man, yeah, I’m in cafeteria… Mhm, yeah, sure thing.” And with that he hung up.
“Rian’s coming.” He said as it was nothing special.

I chewed on my fries a bit nervous but curious at the same time. “Umm, who’s Rian?” I asked placing another fry into my mouth.

“Oh, right! You haven’t met the guy before!” Jack laughed. “Well, he’s a good friend of mine, like, yeah, a good friend. I met him in my ninth grade actually; he hated me at first, called me a punk-ass kid and all that, but I don’t blame him; I was a punk-ass kid with blue hair, I mean, yeah.”He trailed of eating another fry and took a large gulp of his orange juice.

“So yeah, at the end of the ninth grade he finally jammed with me and Alex, that’s another friend by the way, and we’re friends since then. I met Alex a year earlier than Rian, but it doesn’t really matter now does it? I mean, it’s good to have friends no matter how long the friendship lasts.”
He said and took some of my fries. I just nodded and stared down at my hands.
Friends.

“What about you, firecracker?” I glanced up and looked at him. “Huh?”
“How did your friends manage to let you go, I mean, the country of yours is quite far and all that stuff. Don’t they miss you? Do you guys still stay in touch?”
Do we still stay in touch?

“Umm, well. They actually, umm –”
“Hey Jack!” a voice rang through cafeteria and we both looked up to see two boys coming our way.

Jack quickly stood up and greeted the newcomers. “Hey guys!” He laughed and sat back in his seat. “I have a new best friend!” He said happily gesturing towards me.

I looked up at his friends and smiled. “Hei!” The two sat at the each side of Jack. “A new best friend, huh?” One of his friends asked looking at me. “What’s your name, new friend?”

“Firecracker.” Jack shrugged stopping me from answering and I laughed.
“No, actually I’m Diana.”

The two boys were not even similar. Actually, the one on Jack’s left was more like Jack than the one on his right.
The first one had a similar appearance as Jack only he was a bit smaller. I could tell that he wasn’t as tall as Jack either, but I mean, it’s Jack.
The boy also had the same sense of style as Jack only he had a gray beanie on his head which covered the dark brown, messy hair. He had brown eyes and a smile that held something mischievous to it.

The other one, however, wasn’t like the two of the Jack and his other friend.
His hair was cut very, very short and he looked a bit too old to be in high school. The boy had a perfect smile.

“So yeah, this one,” Jack patted the guy with the gray beanie on. “Is Alexander.”
Alexander frowned and hit Jack’s arm. “Fucker, I’m Alex.” He looked at me and smirked.

“And I’m Rian, Rian Dawson.” Rian extended his arm and I gladly took it.
“It’s nice to meet you both.” I smiled and ate the remaining of my fries.

“So Jack,” Alex turned to his friend. “How come you ditch us for a chick?” He looked between me and his friend.
“Well Alex, she happens to have an excellent music taste, not to mention that she’s new here, so yeah, thought I needed some space from you.” Jack shrugged and smiled at me which I gladly returned.

“Ouch,” Alex faked and looked at me. “So, where are you from?”
“I’m from Europe.” I said and the two of them cooed in amazement, except for Jack of course, he just smiled proudly at his friends. “Boyah! Told you my friend is awesome!”

“Does this means you’re just like that chick from the ‘Euro Trip’, you know, the blonde one?”
“Huh?” I didn’t quite understand Alex’s question.
“Dude, quit it, she’s new here.”Jack hit him in the ribs, finishing off his juice.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t quite understand.” I said looking at Alex.
“Well, you know, they say that girls from Europe are a good at fu –”

“Hey Tori!” Jack yelled suddenly bolting from his seat.
We watched as he jogged towards three girls, taking the middle one up in his arms and kissing her firmly on her lips.

“That’s Tori, by the way,” Rian said as I looked at Jack. “She’s Jack’s girlfriend.”
“And she’s a bitch.” Alex added.
I was a bit surprised, because well, she did look like a bitch, but don’t judge a book by its cover.

“They look good together,” I said turning to both boys.
Alex faked a gag while Rian just laughed and looked at me. “Yes, they do look good together, but I mean, Jack deserves something more. Not that I’m saying that Tori is that bad,” he emphasized the word looking at Alex, who just ate his fries and smirked. “It’s just that her attitude sucks. She doesn’t allow Jack to be well… Jack! I mean, look at him, he’s like a puppy for her.”
I glanced at the couple.

Jack had this look in his eyes when he glanced down at his girlfriend. He had it bad, really bad, while she just stood there, trying to avoid his kisses with a bubbly laughs and a slight annoyance to her form.

“So, this means that this is the typical American high school?” I looked at the two boys.
“What do you mean?”Alex asked reaching for my juice, which I happily gave him.
“I mean the hierarchy and all that – the Preps, the Jocks, the Castaways, the Cheerleaders and all that?”

The two of them just smiled and nodded their heads. “Yeah, pretty much.” Rian smiled. “Although the things are not as drastic as they may seem in movies, I mean, come on, we do pranks on each other but not as dramatically as you have seen in the movies.”

“Hey, sorry I abandoned you.” Jack came back ant sat beside me. “That was my girl.” He smiled lovingly glancing back.
“Why doesn’t she sit with you?” I asked looking at Jack.
“Well, umm… She has things to do and besides, we’ll meet her later.”

Alex just snorted and Rian didn’t seem to hear his friend at all.

Jack looked up from his crossed arms. “Do you have something to say, Alex?” His voice sounded serious for the first time.
“No, nothing, just thinking that’s all.” Alex didn’t even look at his friend; instead he just picked on his food and smirked all the time.
I wondered if the smirk was permanent on his lips.
Jack looked at his friend for a few seconds and then turned towards his girlfriend once again.

“Hey guys and a … girl.” A bubbly girl joined our table and looked down at me.

She was beautiful.
The girl had long, brown hair, which was neatly collected in a ponytail.
She had this genuine smile on her plump lips and eyes that shone with joy. She was short and had this bubbly attitude that didn’t go unnoticed. She shone with happiness and joy and I found myself smiling.

“Hei there,” I said extending my arm. “I’m Diana.”
She took my hand gladly and sat by my side. “I already know that, I’m Kara.” She laughed and looked at the rest of us. “Hei guys, hei Rian.” She reached over the table and gave him a slight peck.
So this is Rian’s Kara.

She looked at me and exclaimed:”Oh my God, are those real? I mean, wow, how did you get your hair so curly, mine never stay like that!” I blushed a bit.
“Thank you actually that’s my natural hair.” I brushed my fingers through my long locks of dark brown hair, looking at them in a loving way.

People always had the type of reaction when they saw my hair. At first, the locks and curls were wilder because of the length, but now they reach past my breasts in a lovely, beautiful brown locks, which I always wore on one side.

Kara brushed her fingers through my hair and moaned in delight. “Sooo soft, gosh, I never thought that curls could be so soft.”

And then I felt another pair of fingers in my hair. “They really are amazing!” Jack said and brought his face in my hair. I laughed trying to get away from Jack’s nose.
“Not to mention the scent, what kind of shampoo do you use? I want my hair to be just as pretty as yours!” I just laughed at Jack.
“Well, I don’t know the name but I got it from drug-store, like, for three dollars I think. Does wonders to my hair, doesn’t it?” I smiled happily.

Rian just laughed and Alex, well, he ate.
I wonder how long does that kid eat.
Suddenly he reached out towards me and took one lock in his fingers. “Mmm, nice. I’ll go with you and Jack next time you’ll need a shampoo.” He said taking of his beanie for the first time.
His hair was even longer than I imagined and it stood in different directions.
Does he ever comb his hair?

“Dude, do you even comb your hair, it’s nasty!” Jack laughed but Alex just frowned placing his beanie back on his head. “Screw you dude.”

“So, anyway, Diana, I heard that you’re a foreign student. What brought you to our humble town?” Kara asked as I looked at her and smiled.
“Well, I actually moved here with my sister Victoria.” I said and heard Jack gasping. “You never mentioned you have a sister!” He faked a pout.
“You, my dear friend, never asked.” I told him, pitching his lover lip.
Jack was so cute.

“Yes, well,” I continued looking back at Kara. “Umm, I don’t know, I just … needed a change, I suppose and here I am.”
Kara nodded her head and smiled. “Well, I’m very glad you’re here. It’s nice to have a nice girl in this sick group, if you know what I mean.”

I did what I never thought I would do – I hugged her. I hugged Kara in a warm, friendly hug which she returned after a while. “Wow,” she said looking at me. “You really are a firecracker!”

“Ha!” Jack shouted. “Told ya’!”

***

The rest of the periods carried on in a peaceful breeze.
I started to feel more and more comfortable with each passing hour because I knew that everything would be just fine.

On the fourth period I sat beside the window and tried to grasp at everything that happened in the past hours.

I remember myself sitting in my car, thinking about the outcome of this day but never had I imagined it all to be so perfect. Because that’s what it was, everything was perfect in every shape and form.

I met amazing people, who accepted me without a second thought.
I learned new things about them and just couldn’t believe that I actually was here, sitting in American school, talking in English and smiling happily at the way my life was going.

“Ah, Mister Gaskarth, so nice of you to finally join us.” Mr. Labbe laughed as the classroom’s door opened and in run Alex. “I’m very sorry Mr. Labbe, I have an excuse!” He said.

“I’m sure you do, you always have. Please do sit down and pay attention.” Mr. Labbe said in a strict yet playful voice and dismissed Alex.
The boy took of his beanie and walked towards me. He looked up and smirked instantly.

“Hey there,” he whispered as he sat in front of me at the vacant table.
“Hey,” I whispered shifting my gaze back to the teacher and the blackboard.

Trigonometry, my favorite.
To be honest I was never good at math. Well, not really ‘not good’, I stumbled upon various subjects, but trigonometry was just my kind of thing.
I had this strange thing about understanding things.
When the whole group didn’t understand something I did, but when the whole group understood the subject, I was sitting like a dummy not being able to put my brain around the things that teacher said.
But overall I preferred other things better than math.

I could be better at it, I suppose, if I would do everything properly but that’s the thing I had to manage in myself – I had to stay focused on doing things that needs to be done and I promised myself I would do it, I would improve my math skills.

Kara, who sat beside me, smiled and waved at Alex and then quickly focused back on trig. She was cute with her glasses on, pencil in her hair and trying to figure out the things that Mr. Labbe was explaining.

I must admit, I missed Jack.
He wasn’t in my math class so it was harder to sit and watch as the clock dragged on. When Jack was present he actually made me want to listen to him more than to the teachers and it was quite disturbing, because I needed to follow everything with higher attention than all the other kids.

“Hey, don’t focus on trig so much, you’ll get wrinkles on your little forehead.” Alex whispered looking at me.

He was sitting with his back against the wall, facing whole class room.
I looked at him and admitted to myself – Alexander was very attractive and what made him stand out even more was his mischievous smile and kind, warm, chocolate brown eyes.

He was the type of boy who melted all the girls’ hearts and he knew it by the way he acted and the way he presented himself.

His body language was quite interesting, to say the least.
Alex was opened to the world, which he demonstrated with his smile and the way he always gestured with his hands, but yet he was a bit shy and uncertain about some things.

He appeared to me as the type of person who wants to be the leader in everything and yet he let others around him take the spotlight too.
He was very kind towards his friends and people he cared about, but he was challenging towards people who was new to him.
And that was what I heard in his words, a challenge.

“Well, I must say that I’m not focusing on trig, because I happen to know it all since tenth grade.” I smirked and leaned back at the back of my chair.
Alex just smirked some more and gazed towards Mr. Labbe.

I couldn’t wrap my mind around him, Alex wasn’t so opened like Jack and that was what intrigued me even more.
I wasn’t into him; I just had this sudden desire to know him better, because to be quite honest, it bothered me that I didn’t click with the boy just as I did with all of his friends.

Even with Rian, he and Kara walked me to Math and that was when I learned that Kara and I shared the period together.
I also noticed that Rian is quite the gentleman; he said that if we needed something, we should give him a call or send a message which, of course, led to exchanging with phone numbers.
He was also madly and deeply in love with Kara and I mean, who wouldn’t, the girl is perfect in everything she did and was.

Kara was very alike me; she was open, very warmhearted and she was a person with a positive attitude towards everything. Although she had her moments of doubts but she tried to mask them with her smile. I felt myself being attached to the girl.
I had this feeling that with time our friendship would blossom and I was already genuinely happy for that.

“Hey, by the way,” Alex turned around and faced me once again. “What are you doing after school?” He whispered.
I shifted my gaze on his eyes. “Umm, me and Jack are going to see the town, well, explore to be exact. Why?”

Alex smirked and laughed. “You and Jack, huh? You do know that he has a girlfriend.” He smiled even brighter and I just rolled my eyes but never lost the smile. “I know, Alexander, and I didn’t mean it like that. I mean, we’re… friends.”

Were we friends?
Jack did say that I was his new best friend, but a word friend doesn’t come from just a few hours of knowing each other.
Was it possible to become friends with someone you don’t know that well to call something more than acquaintance?

“Chill, Di, I was joking.” Alex laughed. “And please, do not call me by my full name. I don’t like it that much.”

I looked at him with a slight smirk. “Why, I think it’s a beautiful name.” I looked down at my scribbles. “I wanted to be Alexandra when I was little, you know how little kids want to change their names when they’re little.”
I looked up at Alex noticing that he was studying me. “So you should like your name, it’s beautiful.” His gaze was making me uncomfortable.
It was like he was here but at the same time he wasn’t.

“And you should stop hiding you hair.” I continued taking of the gray beanie revealing his natural, messy long hair, which stuck in every direction.
“Just comb it out in the morning, add a bit gel here, on top of the head, then here,” I graced his bangs in front of his forehead. “And it will be perfect. Style them a bit to the left, or maybe to the right, wherever you prefer and they’ll be perfect. Takes about, five to seven minutes I think.” I said, giving him back his beanie.
He took it quietly, shifting his gaze on his hands and then just turning around.

Did I say something wrong?
I nervously licked my lips and tried to focus back on the math.

***

“THAT is your car?”Jack gasped following me to the parking lot.

My Bonnie, as I like to call her, was waiting patiently at the same place I left her in the morning.

I smiled with joy looking over at my red Ford Mustang. “Yes, Jack, I would like you to meet Bonnie, my honey.” I said introducing Jack to my car. “She’s beautiful.” Jack stared at her with his eyes slightly wide. “She’s so, so beautiful.” I chuckled.

“She is, isn’t she?”
Bonnie was my honey.
She was the perfect shade of red and the perfect model of Ford Mustang’s first generation. She was indeed perfect.

“How old is she?” Jack asked, buckling up in the passenger’s seat.
“Well, technically, she’s forty six, but I have her only for two months.” Jack just nodded as I drove out of the parking lot.
The sound of Angels & Airwaves filled the car and Jack started to jump in his seat. “You do know that I really, really like you, right?” He asked me very, very happily.
“I know Jack, I know.”

Jack was making me smile, all the time, and I wondered how it was even possible that this guy had so much energy in him.
He was amazing in every shape and form and I was very happy that I could call him my friend, because that is what was happening, we were becoming friends and I liked it very much.

“So hear this please, and watch as your heart speeds up endlessly!” Jack sang out loud making me chuckle.
“And look for the stars as the sun goes down!” He was hyper, he was crazy and that was what I liked about him.
“Each breath that you take has a thunderous sound, everything, everything's magic!”

“I have to admit Jack, you have an amazing voice.” I said happily as Jack stopped with the singing, but his hands were doing the entire guitar playing. “Yeah,” he sighed.
“I get that all the time, but well, Alex’s voice is more expressive than mine so I do only a back-vocal, you know, I love to play guitar and occasionally sing. I never could synchronize so I rock my guitar. I don’t know how Alex manages to keep it sound so cool, he’s amazing.” Jack calmed down as I turned the volume a bit lower.

“Alex sings?” I asked and Jack just hit his forehead with his palm.
“Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention. We’re in a band, me, Alex, Rian and Zack. Well, you haven’t met Zack just yet but that’s okay, everything is under control.” He said taking out his phone from the jeans.

I was about to ask more about the band when his loud voice boomed through the car. “Hey dude, what’s up? … Yeah, so me and my new friend here are going to explore the town, you in? … Cool, okay, let’s meet at the Bertucci’s? … Yeah, awesome, see you in a few.” He hung up and turned to me.
“We’re heading to pizza’s, you’re in, no buts, let’s go, I’ll tell you where to turn.” He said and looked straight ahead.

Jack was funny and I kind of liked how he made things seem so simple. He reminded me of the best guy friend that I never had.
The one you can rely on every time you need one and the one who understands you wholly and completely.
Yes, I knew we were heading that way, we just needed some time.

***

We arrived at Bertucci’s about five minutes after Jack made a call to his friend.
We parked Bonnie and headed our way towards a petite building in white with a sign ‘Italian Bertucci’s Restaurant’ on the windows. It was so cute, I couldn’t help but smile.

“Oh, there’s Zack!” Jack said and run up to a boy, who seemed to be talking on the phone.
I laughed at Jack and looked at his friend.
He was shorter than Jack, obviously everyone was shorter than Jack, and had beautiful, light brown, curly hair. Now that was something new.
He had almost the same sense of style as Jack only he wore a black, leather jacket while Jack stuck to the hoodies.

Zack looked at Jack as the boy enveloped him in a big hug. They both fought for a moment, laughing and occasionally swearing at each other.
“Hey, Zack, this is my friend Diana.” Jack said, letting go of the boy and sneaked his hand around my small frame.

“She’s new here and she’s from Europe.” Zack looked at me and extended his arm in a welcoming manner. I smiled at him, as he turned my arm and placed a smile kiss on the back of the palm.
“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Zack, Zack Merrick.” He smiled with a small, shy smile and a slight twinkle to his eyes.

“Awe, isn’t that cute, Zack’s being all gentle-man like.” Jack said making us both smile. “Likewise,” I said bringing my arm back to my side.

Jack’s arm was still around my shoulders as he started to talk to the other boy.
I studied Zack a bit more.
It was obvious that he was the one who proffered to listen to people more than actually talk. He listened to Jack with a smile on his lips and occasionally glanced at me.

He had beautiful boyish features with a slight touch of masculine to them. The light brown hair was curly and all over his head forming into a slight Afro hairdo, which I thought was funny.
Never had I met a guy who walked around with a hair like his and not straighten or complain about them being curly.
Zack seemed to be content with his hair.

“What’s so funny?” Jack poked me as I started to giggle even more.
“Stop, okay! I was just thinking that Zack is the first guy who doesn’t straighten his hair.” Jack looked at me then at the slightly blushing Zack and then back at me again. “Well, yeah, yeah he is.”
And that was it. Jack was back in his own little talking world.

“Hold! Something’s vibrating in my pocket!” Jack laughed as he took out his phone. “Yeah?” and that was when we lost him.

“So, you’re new here.” Zack asked in his slightly hoarse yet calm voice.
“Yes, yes I am.” I smiled looking at him.
“Cool, how do you like America so far?” He looked at me and then at Jack who was standing further from us, with his head hanging low, and his long hair falling down. He seemed to be a bit tense and listened carefully to the other end of the phone.

“Well, actually it’s nothing I have imagined it to be. I like America so far; the people are slightly different from Europeans.” I said still looking at Jack with a slight concern.
“Oh, how so?” Zack brought my attention back to him.
“Well, I mean, you all are much nicer and much, how do you say it, care-free?” Zack laughed and looked at me with a smirk. “You don’t strike me as a person who’s not nice. I mean you seem like a very warmhearted and caring girl.”
He caught my attention. “Me?”

“Yeah, I mean, look at yourself, you’re small, not in a bad way, I mean you’re petite and you have this shine about you.”
“Shine?”
“Yes, like there is a feeling of comfort around you.” He finished, and I looked up at him.
Zack was blushing and I found myself thinking that it was the cutest thing I have seen a guy doing.

“Yeah, so, let’s go inside, shall we?” Jack said not bothering to wait up for us as he entered the pizzeria.
I looked at Zack with confusion and he just shrugged. “Come on, let’s go.”

The interior of the small pizzeria was just as petite and neat as the exterior.
The pizzeria was accented in warm, brown tones, which added a feeling of comfort and cosines to it. My body shivered in delight at the sound of silent Italian music playing in the background and the smell of food in the air.
I took a liking in this place the moment I stepped in it.

“Jack, are you alright?” I looked up to his face and was slightly confused by what I saw. His lips were pressed in a thin line, those warm, chocolate brown eyes were distant but his movements were sharp and tense.
“I’m fine.” He said shortly and I couldn’t escape the little feeling of hurt that crept into me with his words.

“Don’t worry, “Zack said behind me. “He’ll be god in no time.” The boy smiled and looked at his friends back.
This sudden Jack’s behavior took me by surprise; I was so used to seeing him all happy and hyper that I didn’t know how to react.
I felt a bit out of place and a sudden feeling of wanting to go home crept inside of me.

Maybe I should go? I glanced at the door.
It was about five in the evening and the bright April’s sun was slowly starting to retreat.
I must admit, the view outside made me long for home, my real home.

I remember the same sky when I was there in the summer.
Mostly spring’s were all rainy, occasionally hot and sunny. But summers, well, summers were my time of the year.
I was a summer child, born on the July of twenty fifth under the sign of Leo. Although I didn’t actually believe in all that, but some things just seemed to be written just straight out of my life. For example, I was an outgoing person and I did have my heart out on my palm, but somehow in new situations I didn’t show it. I was in a new country and in a new environment. In situations like these I was the observer.
I was quieter as I listened and studied everything that happened around me.
I was taking in my surroundings.

“You should try Parma Pizza, it’s amazing!” Zack said startling me a bit.
“Oh, umm, does it have mushrooms in it?” I asked with a slight disgust. Zack looked at me and smiled. “You don’t like mushrooms?” He laughed.
“Gosh, I HATE mushrooms.” I gasped.
“Don’t worry,” he smiled, placing his arm around me, pushing me forward. “It doesn’t have any yucky mushrooms.”

We paid for our pizzas and headed towards the table that Jack was already occupying. He was chewing on his pizza slightly annoyed, looking outside with a lost look in his eyes. We sat there, eating in silence and I was so grateful to Zack.
Parma was amazing.

I moaned in delight, which caused Jack stop the chewing and Zack to burst out laughing.
I was jumping in my seat a bit and chewing on the last bites of pizza, which I ate in a record time.
“I see someone enjoys the pizza.” Zack said chuckling while Jack just stared at me a bit more, and then shifted his gaze on his plate with a slight smile on his handsome features.

“Oh, God, yes, I am a food maniac!” I laughed and started to talk even more. “I love to eat, seriously, I eat frequently but in small amounts and well, it’s quite good for me, I don’t know. I used to have problems with my stomach because I didn’t eat, but that’s all in the past.” I babbled, cleaning off my fingers in a napkin and then neatly placing fork and knife on the plate.

“Why didn’t you eat?” Jack asked quietly from his seat. The question took me by surprise and I didn’t know how to respond.
Because I didn’t like myself?
Because I thought I was fat?
Because I was young and naïve?
I don’t know.

“Um,well…” I shifted in my seat looking down at my dark purple nails.
“When I was in my teenage years I thought that I was… fat and I mean, when I looked down at myself I saw my stomach and thought that it is fat. You know? So I just wanted to get rid of it a bit. I exercised daily; I even managed to skip some of the mealtimes.” I looked up at Jack.
“I really hated myself, I mean. I wasn’t happy with who I was, what I did and how I lived.” I said quietly. “Those were the dark days of my teenage years. I had a very tight schedule. School was knocking me off my feet and I also studied at the art school at that time. I left home at about half past six in the morning and returned at about nine in the evening. I ate really badly at school and even worse between my times at art school. Besides, I was depressed that time, things with family and my boyfriend didn’t go that well.” I finished looking down at my nails.
“I carried more than I could handle at those times, so I quit. I quit my art school at the last year because I hated when people forced me to do something I didn’t want to. I haven’t picked up a pencil in four years.” I admitted looking at the boys.

It was true; I haven’t been able to draw in four years.
I tried. I did try only to feel a sense of failure. I didn’t know what to draw, nor did I have any ideas how to draw.
I still felt that I could if I forced myself, but there it goes again – if I forced myself.
I don’t like to do anything by force.
It has to come out naturally, like a second nature.

“Wow,” was all Zack said as we sat in total silence.
It seemed that the whole pizzeria was enveloped in some kind of peaceful mood as we all thought about our own things.

The sound of Blink playing startled me as looked around not quite understanding where the sound comes from. It was only then when I felt a slight vibration in my pocket, I realized that my phone was ringing.
I took it out and looked at the caller – Victoria.
“Excuse me,” I said and quickly stood up, going to the bathroom.

“Yes?”
“Hei, I just wanted to know where you are and at what time you’ll be coming home.” Her calm voice sounded through and I smiled.
“Ummm, I’m with some friends at the pizzeria, I’ll be home, in about two hours, I think.”
“Okay, than you’ll open the door with your own keys, we’ll go out for a walk.”
“Okay,” I sighed happily. “Take care.”

I looked at my white phone, smiling and thinking how lucky I am to have a sister like Victoria.
She’s just … everything.

With a content smile on my lips I walked back to the boys who seemed to argue about something. Well, mostly Zack was accusing Jack for something, while Jack looked down at his crossed arms.
He looked so vulnerable and yet so pissed off.

“Hey guys, what’s going on?” I sat down looked at both of them.
Zack muttered something under his nose while Jack kept staring at his arms.
“Guys?” I tried again and looked between the both of them. “Is everything alright?” I asked with concern.
“Yeah Jack, is everything alright?” Zack asked in a slight pissed-off tone.
“Listen, it’s been a long day, can we call it a night?” Jack asked not really looking at both of us, just standing up and taking his hoodie of the chair.

Once we were out of the pizzeria I had this strange feeling again when I didn’t know what to do and I couldn’t help to feel out of place.
What’s up with Jack?

The two boys hugged each other manly and shed a few words, like ‘later’ and ‘yeah’ while I just stood there, shifting my weight from one foot to another, sighing slightly.

“It was nice meeting you Diana, I hope to see you again someday soon.” Zack looked at me and took my arm and planted a soft kiss on the back of the palm.
This boy was something out of ordinary.
Then he turned around, placing his hands in the pockets and walked off, leaving me and Jack by ourselves.

I turned to the tall, lanky boy and took in his appearance.
His form was slouched, leaning forwards a bit, his head hung low, with the dark hair, shining almost black, falling over his sad, brown eyes.
He looked so vulnerable; I couldn’t stand looking at him like that, so I just did what any loving and caring person would do. I wrapped my arms around his waist and brought him closer to me, closing my eyes and trying to pour every bit of concern and attachment I felt for the boy in the hug.
Everyone needs love and everyone should get it.
At first Jack tensed but then he let go of all the resistance he had and leaned into me.

“Remember just one thing Jack,” I whispered closing my eyes. “The thoughts in your head are just thoughts. You have to let them go, Jack, let them be.” I looked up at him with a small smile.
“You’re the most caring, warmhearted person I have ever met in my life. Don’t you ever let someone get you down, you got it?” He smiled and that was enough.

“People are selfish and self absorbed, but that is not your problem. The only thing you need to remember is to be what you want to be and not give a damn or second thought to what others say. People state their opinions based upon their beliefs and it is only up to you to see that. Jack, no matter what others say, in the end only your thoughts count. You know?”
Jack looked down at me with the same distant look and I happily leaned into his chest once again.
“Just let it go…” I whispered.

We stood there for God knows how long until his soft voice broke the silence. “For such a small girl you sure know awful much about life, dear Diana. Even your eyes shine with wisdom I couldn’t quite understand at the beginning.” He said calmly.
“You know, the first thing I noticed about you when you stood there in front of the classroom was how brightly your eyes shone. Like, you know, it was so obvious that you knew something much more than any one of us and yet it didn’t bother you. You looked at everyone with this kindness and compassion that it was hard not to like you. You’re an amazing person Diana; just remember that and I am very happy that I had a chance to meet you.” Jack said and hugged me tightly to him.

“Come on Jack, I’ll take you home.” I whispered starting to go towards the parking lot.
Jack placed his arm around my shoulders and I silently noticed that it was the best place where his arms could rest.

Jack indeed was a person with a golden heart, he just needed someone in his life to remind him that.

***

“Hey, can you drop me off at Alex’s place?” He asked after a while in a silent ride.
“Yeah, sure, of course.” I said looking straight ahead, trying to bypass a black SUV.
“Cool, I’ll call him first; maybe he’s at Lisa’s.”
Who’s Lisa?

“Hey dude, can I come over?... Yeah, sure thing, I’ll be there in five… Yeah… Oh, Diana’s dropping me off… Yeah, cool, okay see ya’.”
I looked at Jack who kept staring at his phone.
“Alex said you can come over too if you want.” Jack said quietly; I only nodded in response.

The sun was setting and I couldn’t help but stare in awe at the beautiful view that was outside.
Everything was straight out of the summers that I missed so dearly from my home. But home is here now, home is what I have to find here and just be happy with what I have.

I mean, if you’re happy and feel peace and harmony within you than home is everywhere you go.

***

“Hey, you’re not coming?” Jack asked as I watched him unbuckle the seat-belt.
We arrived at a small suburban street, facing a beautiful white petite house which stood in contrast to the dark that surrounded us.
The sun had finally settled.

“No, I said that I would be home fast. Vic’ will worry if I don’t hurry.” I said smiling at Jack. “Well, you could walk me to the door, I’m sure Alex will be glad to see you.”
And that was what I did.

I played with my car keys as we walked those few steps towards Alex’s door.
Just as we set foot on the dimly lighted porch the door swung open and Alex appeared in the doorway. He looked at us and smiled.

Alex was dressed in his early black skinny jeans only this time he wore a plaid red shirt.
He didn’t have his beanie on and I noticed that his hair was neatly done in a perfect hairdo.

He really did listen to what I said about his hair today. I smiled at the sight of his hair and Jack gasped. “Dude, your hair! It’s amazing!”
Jack took a few steps towards his friend extending his arms out and touched Alex’s hair. “Wow…” He said slowly, with his eyes wide. “It’s beautiful.”
Alex chuckled. “Dude, this is gay, stop touching my hair.” Jack retrieved his hand but still kept his eyes fixed on Alex’s head.

“Hei Diana,” Alex said.
I stopped playing with my car keys and waved back still smiling taking in the slight change in his appearance. “You look nice.” I said.

Jack disappeared in Alex’s house as we just stood there, looking at each other.
“Your car?” Alex asked nodding towards Bonnie.
“Yeah,” I smiled with a proud feeling in my chest.
“She's beautiful.” He whispered not taking eyes off Bonnie.
“She is,” I turned towards my car.

“So, I see you got rid of the beanie. I told you a bit of gel would do the trick.” I chuckled at Alex, who lost his usual smirk and pressed his lips in a thin, chuckling smile.
He blushed and I laughed a bit more. “Come on, don’t blush. You’re a very handsome boy, I’m glad I could help.”
Alex just looked at this bare feet and the back to the house as we heard something being broken and a loud ‘oops’ echoing inside.
“I think I should go inside, before Jack takes my house down.” Alex chuckled turning around but keeping his gaze on me.

“Alex,” I said with a slight concern remembering Jack’s early behavior.
“Is Jack going to be alright?” I didn’t know if Alex noticed that Jack wasn’t the usual self, but I guess he knew. He was his friend and it was obvious that something went terribly wrong with Jack today.
“Don’t you worry your pretty little head; he’s going to be alright.”Alex said chuckling a bit. “It’s Jack, he’ll be good in no time.”

I smiled trying to believe in what Alex said but I couldn’t get rid of the worry I had all the afternoon.

“I’m serious, Diana, he’s going to be alright. Thank you for bringing him here, we’ll just jam and he’ll be the good old Jack tomorrow.” Alex said as he reached for the front door.

“Okay… I’m just worried, it’s Jack, you know…” I trailed of as I glanced up at Alex’s face. His smile was back and his brown eyes sparkled with joy. “We’ll see you tomorrow.” He said and went back inside the house.

I turned around and started to walk back to Bonnie as I heard the front door being opened again.
“By the way,” Alex said. “It was very nice meeting you. Not every day a beautiful girl joins our little team.” He said with a wink and closed his door once again.

I smiled and headed back to Bonnie.

***

The clock on my purple wall clearly showed that it was ten in the evening but I still couldn’t brace myself going to sleep.
The sound of Björk’s voice filled my room, as I tried to take some pictures.
It was a long time since I made something and I thought that tonight was a perfect opportunity to make something new.

“You'll be given love, you'll be taken care of…”
I sat on the bed, right across the camera, which stood on the tripod with a timer on, covering my bare breasts with hands, closing my eyes and listening to the music.
My hair was loose and covered my back in beautiful curls. I heard the timer going off and waited for the ‘click’.

“Maybe not from the sources, you have poured yours, maybe not from the directions, you are staring at”.

I’ll be given love. “You just ain't receiving,”
Where is my love? “Your phone is off the hook,”
Where is the other half of me? “Your doors are all shut,”
Am I not good enough? “All is full of love, be the little angel,”

No, my dear Diana, no. When you’ll learn to love yourself first, then you’ll find the love outside yourself.

“All is full of love…” And I opened my eyes.

The sound of the phone vibrating on my nightstand caught me off guard as I scrambled my bra, putting it quickly on and stopped the music.

‘From: Unknown
Hey Firecracker, can I come over?’
Only one person called me by that nickname and I quickly dialed his number.

“Hey Jack,” I smiled happily. “Are you okay?”
There was a brief silence on the other side of the phone; all I could hear was the quiet breathing.
“Can I come over?” He asked his voice slightly dull. It took me of guard to hear him so vulnerable.
What happened?

“Sure, yes, of course!” and with that he hung up. I started at my phone screen for a minute not quite sure what just happened.
He just hung up.

Then the same unknown number flashed across the screen as I picked up the phone again.
“I don’t know where you live.” He sighed as I smiled to myself.
I explained the way to my house noticing that I didn’t live that far from Alex, maybe a good ten minutes by foot.
Jack hung up once again after getting the directions and I looked at my peaceful, dimly-lighten room and started to gather together my things.

My plaid purple checkered shirt lay on the white-wooden floor, as I picked it up, and quickly put it on. I still had my white skinny jeans on so I didn’t have to look for decent clothing. I grabbed my keys of the vanity stand and quickly exited the room.

The house was quiet; Victoria and the baby were asleep and the whole house was embraced in the dim light.
We didn’t like the dark so much we had a small hallway lights installed just to make things safer and comfortable.

I quietly went down the stairs into the hallway, putting on my gray ugg’s and a small beanie hat and I was out of the house.

The wind seemed to pick up in force as I placed my small hands in the jean's pockets.
It was a black night, but the things were better because of the small lights that shined from our porch.
I walked to the sidewalk and stopped. Alex’s house was just a few blocks back, so Jack will come from my left. So I started to walk slowly back to the way I road from Alex earlier that day.

The night was warm, without the the wind that kept messing with my hair and it didn’t seem so black after all; the lights at the sidewalk made sure to lighten almost every corner of the street as did the small lights at every porch. Somewhere in the distance the dogs barked and a sound of passing cars could be heard, but overall it was a pleasant and quiet night.

I spotted a dark form approaching in the distance and the corners of my lips turned up slightly as I added some speed to my pace.

He had his arms in his pockets and his pace was a bit sluggish and uneven.
Was he drunk?
I quickened my pace and stood in front of him. Jack looked at me with glazed eyes and a smirk on his lips.
“Hey Di,” He whispered looking down at me, slightly swaying.
“Jack, are you drunk?” I asked putting my arms in front of me, trying to grab him so that the boy wouldn’t fall down.
“Nah, well, I’m a bit tipsy, but that doesn’t count now, does it?” he smirked hiccuping a bit.

“Jack, it’s Monday! How could Alex let you wonder all alone and get drunk?” I asked in disbelief wrapping my arms around Jack’s torso.
Seriously, what was Alex thinking?

“Oh, don’t be mad, honey, we drunk at Alex’s place; his parents are out of town and well, we both had a man-to-man talk, you know, girl problems and all that shit.” Jack started as I steadied him.
“What girl problems?” I looked up at him, trying to understand.
“He and Lisa are fighting again and me and Tori are broke up so yeah, girl problems.” Jack said shrugging a bit.
“What? Why Jack?” I asked not believing what I just heard.
“She said that she never wanted to be with me in the first place, not her type or something like that.” He said with a sad voice. “Besides, she said some things about my friends and I never let anyone say bad things about them, I love my friends, I really do.” Jack’s voice shook and I wrapped my arms around him a bit tighter.

“It’s alright Jack.” I whispered, stroking his back in a warm motion.
“Yeah, I know… She was a bitch anyway.” He said with a slight anger to his tone.

“No Jack, you’re wrong.” I said looking up at him. “Just because a person acts the way he or she acts doesn’t make them a bitch. She may act like one but it’s not your place to call her that. No matter what she did or does it is her decisions and it is she, who make them. It’s not your place to judge her, she’ll get what she deserves. Everything that goes around comes around.” I said with a soft smile, grazing my lips.

He just stared down at me and hugged me even tighter. “I said it before and I’m saying it again, Diana, you’re amazing. I am so happy to have you as my friend.”

We stood there in silence, swaying a bit and listening to each other’s heartbeat and just letting time pass us by.
“Is Alex okay?” I broke the silence.
“I don’t know, I mean they always fight, brake up and then get back together; it’s been like this for three years but now, I just don’t know. It seems like they’re done for good.”

“Maybe we should go and check on him?” I said and Jack nodded, taking my hand in his as we started our way towards Alex’s house.

***

It was half past eleven when we arrived at Gaskarth’s residence.
The porch lights were on but the house seemed to be vacant.
“He passed out.” Jack said approaching the stairs and opening the door.
“He doesn’t lock the door for the night?” I asked as Jack just shrugged. “Only when he’s drunk.”

I stepped into the dark hallway as Jack tried to find the light switch. “Shit!” came his voice as a dog started to bark somewhere in the distance. I froze in my spot, waiting for Jack to finally switch the light on as the barks were coming closer and closer.

“Hey buddy!” Finally the lights were on as Jack leaned down to pick up a small dog in his hands.
It was a small papillion in the shade of brown. “Good boy, good Sebastian, where’s Alex?” Jack stroked the dog.
The little one seemed to react at the name ‘Alex’ and went running upstairs to a dark second floor.
“I guess that Alex has finally learned to pass out in his bed.” Jack chuckled and followed the dog.

I sighed and took in the sight before me.
The house was beautiful not only from the outside but from the inside as well. The Hallway led to a large living room that was connected with a slightly smaller dining room. I looked to my right and noticed two doors, each leading to God knows where. And then there were stairs, covered with dark red carpet that led upstairs to where I assume, were bedrooms.

The guest room was a mess.
The bottles of alcohol and cans were lying everywhere, so I took the box which lay by the door and started cleaning up the mess.

Halfway through my cleaning I heard footsteps and then another stumbling footsteps coming from upstairs, then the door was opened and a sound of a person vomiting was heard.
The small dog came back downstairs and sat on the floor in front of me.
“Hey there little one,” I said “Is everything alright?”
The dog just sat there staring at me. “Didn’t expect you to answer anyway.” I smiled, taking the box which was now full of bottles and headed towards the dark room what appeared to be the kitchen.

It was the typical family kitchen, with a slight touch of modernism to it.
It was a cozy with a little bit of mess here and there.

I looked through drawers trying to find something I could use to get the bottles into and take out; I didn’t think that Alex's parents would be glad seeing so many bottles in their trash.
After that was done I started to clean up the dishes and placed them at their rightful places.

“What are you doing?” A coarse voice scarred me as I turned around and was met by Alex and Jack.
“I…I was cleaning up,” I said a bit out of breath. “I thought you could use some help.” I said looking over at Jack.
Jack was somewhat sober but Alex didn’t look so good.
I took the freshly washed glass out of the cupboard and filled it with water, giving it to Alex who took it gladly and drank it fast.
“More?” I asked and he just nodded, so I filled some more. I looked up at Jack who wore a tired expression on his features. “Do you want to some too?” Jack just smiled so I reached for another glass and filling it.

We stood there in silence, not really knowing what to say.
What was there to say?
I mean, I could say something but I think that they didn’t need it.
The guys were tired, hangover, maybe even drunk on Alex’s part and I didn’t think that it was something that they would like to share with me.
After all, I was a stranger to them.

“So, umm, I should get going. It’s almost midnight and school’s tomorrow.” I glanced at the wall clock and then back at boys.
“It’s dark outside and it’s really late, do you really think it’s wise to walk around alone?” Jack asked and I only smiled at the boy.
“I have been walking a lot more in my days, dear Jack, even not in the most sober form and even more sinister places than this neighborhood. I’m going to be alright, you don’t need to worry.” I said, messing out my hair and heading towards the hallway.
“Don’t be stupid, Diana, stay here, Jack’s right, it is too late to wonder around.” Alex said in strict voice. I just looked at him, slightly taken aback by his attitude.
“Come on guys, what could happen? It’s alright, really.” I tried to lighten up the mood but the tension was still there.

Alex’s lips were pressed together in a thin line and it seemed like he would bolt up any second and take me by the throat. The sight terrified me a bit but I didn’t let it show, I mean, he was just a guy, he wouldn’t do that.

“Jack, could you please prepare the spare room?” Alex asked not even looking away from me.
Jack nodded once and then disappeared from the kitchen.
“Alex, I – ”But Alex held his hand up silencing me.
“I can’t let you wonder alone in the dark, what kind of friend would do that?” He said, placing the glass on the counter and leaving me all alone.