End to Promises
chapter five
Just before we got to the door, Kayleigh unlinked our arms and pushed me behind her. "Do not jump out until I give you the signal." I smiled and nodded, remembering exactly what our signal was. She began walking and I stayed crouched behind her. We walked through what I thought was the entire backstage before she finally called out, "MOTHER FUCKERS! I HAVE SOMETHING TO SHOW YOU!"
"What did you pick up off the beach this time?" Steph sighed, most likely rolling her eyes. Kayleigh gave me the nerd fighter sign behind her back.
I smiled and jumped up on her back, her catching me easily. "A HOE!" Everyone stared at me for a moment, maybe not recognizing me. "Are you fucking serious?" More silence.
"No, I'm Remus." The biggest smile spread over Bria's face and I jumped off Kayleigh's back, running toward her. "OH MY GOD, MY SKANK, I MISSED YOU!" She gave me a death hug, almost crushing my rib cage.
I closed my eyes and hugged her back. "You don't even know." We pulled back and I went and raped Steph with my arms.
After more hugs and i missed yous, it got kind of silent, which is beyond out of the ordinary for us. "Did you guys really not recognize me when I came in?"
They kinda shrugged and Bria said, "Well, we're not exactly used to you pounding on the make up like that." I reached up and touched my face. Fuck. I forgot to take it off.
"Oh, well, you know. I was just kind of trying a new thing." I shrugged, trying to play it off. They saw right through me.
"You do that everyday, don't you?" I sighed and nodded. "Why?"
"I'd really rather not get into it right now. Someone please explain to me what I missed in these past five years."
"I GOT THIS!" Bria shouted crossing her legs as she began to go into great detail what had happened with the band. They had gotten signed to Hopeless records senior year. All of our seniors years. They only had one senior year, though. I was in the process of my third. After explaining how fast they blew up and how the guys always asked the girls to go with them, not wanting to lose more people like the way they lost me. I thought it was cute, but I couldn't help but wish they had asked me to go too.
"So what's been going on with you, Magic Jord?" I smiled softly at Kayleigh's nickname for me. It faltered when I looked at how much I had screwed up my life.
"Well, I'm, you know, going to school." They all smiled.
"You would get into Pepperdine." They laughed and I looked at the ground.
"No, actually, I'm going to Malibu High School." I could feel their eyes on me, disbelieving and waiting for that joking smile to break across my face.
"Good one." I heard Kayleigh laugh and the others join in, nervously.
I sighed and looked at them, "I'm not kidding. I can show you my ID card if you want proof." They stopped laughing and just looked at me.
"You didn't... graduate?"
"Nope. I'm on my third try. But it doesn't look like it's gonna happen this year either." They just kind of stared at me. I sighed and began to explain, "After a few weeks of living in this hell hole, I kind of just gave up everything. My grades got fucked up, no one in this damned town talked to me, my mom was gone more than ever, and I lost touch with you. I didn't feel like there was any more reason to even try to please anyone anymore. So I stopped caring, and here we are." They all stared at me in disbelief. I knew why. Back in Baltimore, I was an absolute perfect student. I had good grades. All my teachers loved me. I was in AP and honors classes. I was headed for my dream college, University of Michigan. Everything was fine. My life wasn't fucked up. I wasn't throwing up my food to stay skinny. I wasn't cutting my arms with a razor blade to keep from spilling out my feelings. I didn't feel so guilty for breaking promises. My life was perfect. I was happy. Why did it have to change?
Bria, Steph, and Kayleigh just sat next to me on the floor and gave me a hug. I sighed and let them, but for once, I really didn't want a hug. I wanted to reverse time. Or at least have more time than today with my best friends. After a while, they sat back down and it went silent again. I decided to break the silence, "So where are the guys?"
"Probably signing some whore's boobs," Steph said through gritted teeth. I looked at her. She was glaring in the direction that the crowd had stampeded to.
"She gets jealous easily." Bria interjected.
"I can see that." I kept looking at Steph, watching her soundlessly mouth words. "So still in love with the kitten then?"
"And he loves her back." I looked at Kayleigh. Then back at Steph, who had started smiling at Kayleigh's comment.
"OH MY GOD, YOU'RE FUCKING IN A RELATIONSHIP! OH MY GOD! I KNEW IT WOULD HAPPEN! I TOLD YOU! OH MY GOD! WHO ASKED WHO? TELL ME. OH MY GOD! I NEED DETAILS NOW, BIITCH!" She laughed and shook her head.
"No time for that. We have to get ready for the party." She stood up, giving one more death glare toward the meet and greet, then linked arms with me and walked out the back door. "We have to get you ready, missy. Zack needs some cheering up and this is the only way it'll happen." Bria and Kayleigh followed and linked arms with us as well as we walked down the beach towards my house.
"Party? Zack? Cheering up?" I looked between them, confused.
"There's a party tonight. We're in Malibu for a few days and one of our friends invited us over for a party." Steph looked at me. "Don't tell me you're busy."
I shook my head, "I'm not. But what friend? Why does Zack need cheering up? What is the only way?" They all seemed to ignore my questions and ask which way my house was.
I stopped at the door and faced them, glaring slightly. "Look. It's been years. I want to go out to dinner with my friends without any people I don't know. Why do we have to go to this party?"
"Well, we don't. But it's with some of our really good friends." Kayleigh said. They all gave me the puppy dog eyes and I sighed, walking inside, not bothering to tell them to come in. I walked over to the stairs and started walking up. I looked back and they were still outside the door, kind of staring off into space.
"Are you guys going to make me look pretty or what?"
"What did you pick up off the beach this time?" Steph sighed, most likely rolling her eyes. Kayleigh gave me the nerd fighter sign behind her back.
I smiled and jumped up on her back, her catching me easily. "A HOE!" Everyone stared at me for a moment, maybe not recognizing me. "Are you fucking serious?" More silence.
"No, I'm Remus." The biggest smile spread over Bria's face and I jumped off Kayleigh's back, running toward her. "OH MY GOD, MY SKANK, I MISSED YOU!" She gave me a death hug, almost crushing my rib cage.
I closed my eyes and hugged her back. "You don't even know." We pulled back and I went and raped Steph with my arms.
After more hugs and i missed yous, it got kind of silent, which is beyond out of the ordinary for us. "Did you guys really not recognize me when I came in?"
They kinda shrugged and Bria said, "Well, we're not exactly used to you pounding on the make up like that." I reached up and touched my face. Fuck. I forgot to take it off.
"Oh, well, you know. I was just kind of trying a new thing." I shrugged, trying to play it off. They saw right through me.
"You do that everyday, don't you?" I sighed and nodded. "Why?"
"I'd really rather not get into it right now. Someone please explain to me what I missed in these past five years."
"I GOT THIS!" Bria shouted crossing her legs as she began to go into great detail what had happened with the band. They had gotten signed to Hopeless records senior year. All of our seniors years. They only had one senior year, though. I was in the process of my third. After explaining how fast they blew up and how the guys always asked the girls to go with them, not wanting to lose more people like the way they lost me. I thought it was cute, but I couldn't help but wish they had asked me to go too.
"So what's been going on with you, Magic Jord?" I smiled softly at Kayleigh's nickname for me. It faltered when I looked at how much I had screwed up my life.
"Well, I'm, you know, going to school." They all smiled.
"You would get into Pepperdine." They laughed and I looked at the ground.
"No, actually, I'm going to Malibu High School." I could feel their eyes on me, disbelieving and waiting for that joking smile to break across my face.
"Good one." I heard Kayleigh laugh and the others join in, nervously.
I sighed and looked at them, "I'm not kidding. I can show you my ID card if you want proof." They stopped laughing and just looked at me.
"You didn't... graduate?"
"Nope. I'm on my third try. But it doesn't look like it's gonna happen this year either." They just kind of stared at me. I sighed and began to explain, "After a few weeks of living in this hell hole, I kind of just gave up everything. My grades got fucked up, no one in this damned town talked to me, my mom was gone more than ever, and I lost touch with you. I didn't feel like there was any more reason to even try to please anyone anymore. So I stopped caring, and here we are." They all stared at me in disbelief. I knew why. Back in Baltimore, I was an absolute perfect student. I had good grades. All my teachers loved me. I was in AP and honors classes. I was headed for my dream college, University of Michigan. Everything was fine. My life wasn't fucked up. I wasn't throwing up my food to stay skinny. I wasn't cutting my arms with a razor blade to keep from spilling out my feelings. I didn't feel so guilty for breaking promises. My life was perfect. I was happy. Why did it have to change?
Bria, Steph, and Kayleigh just sat next to me on the floor and gave me a hug. I sighed and let them, but for once, I really didn't want a hug. I wanted to reverse time. Or at least have more time than today with my best friends. After a while, they sat back down and it went silent again. I decided to break the silence, "So where are the guys?"
"Probably signing some whore's boobs," Steph said through gritted teeth. I looked at her. She was glaring in the direction that the crowd had stampeded to.
"She gets jealous easily." Bria interjected.
"I can see that." I kept looking at Steph, watching her soundlessly mouth words. "So still in love with the kitten then?"
"And he loves her back." I looked at Kayleigh. Then back at Steph, who had started smiling at Kayleigh's comment.
"OH MY GOD, YOU'RE FUCKING IN A RELATIONSHIP! OH MY GOD! I KNEW IT WOULD HAPPEN! I TOLD YOU! OH MY GOD! WHO ASKED WHO? TELL ME. OH MY GOD! I NEED DETAILS NOW, BIITCH!" She laughed and shook her head.
"No time for that. We have to get ready for the party." She stood up, giving one more death glare toward the meet and greet, then linked arms with me and walked out the back door. "We have to get you ready, missy. Zack needs some cheering up and this is the only way it'll happen." Bria and Kayleigh followed and linked arms with us as well as we walked down the beach towards my house.
"Party? Zack? Cheering up?" I looked between them, confused.
"There's a party tonight. We're in Malibu for a few days and one of our friends invited us over for a party." Steph looked at me. "Don't tell me you're busy."
I shook my head, "I'm not. But what friend? Why does Zack need cheering up? What is the only way?" They all seemed to ignore my questions and ask which way my house was.
I stopped at the door and faced them, glaring slightly. "Look. It's been years. I want to go out to dinner with my friends without any people I don't know. Why do we have to go to this party?"
"Well, we don't. But it's with some of our really good friends." Kayleigh said. They all gave me the puppy dog eyes and I sighed, walking inside, not bothering to tell them to come in. I walked over to the stairs and started walking up. I looked back and they were still outside the door, kind of staring off into space.
"Are you guys going to make me look pretty or what?"