Secret Love Affair

I woke up extra early this morning. Four to be exact.

Arabella was already awake, packing things she forgot to yesterday. She told me she felt like crap this morning. Who could blame her? Her hair was a bird’s nest.

"I'm going to go down to the drug store and get about a dozen packages of gum." I say to a yawning Arabella. She distractedly waved me away so she could grab all of contents out of one dresser.

"m’kay I'm off." I say smiling. I was quite tired myself but I was going to see Dougie so it was worth it.

I walked past early birds going into the office early.

The whole block probably looked like the color black was moving because everyone seemed to be wearing black and everyone was moving.

And then if there was a plane overhead, they would see my stupid bright outfit consisting of a spider man shirt, jeans, and if people had super vision, they'd see my spider man design underwear too.

I went to the place where Dougie and I hung out at around three in the morning.

As I walked by Simon Amstells place, I saw Dougie get out of Tom's cute car.

At first, I thought Tom was in it.

"What are you doing with Tom's car?" I ask as Dougie hugged me tightly.

Warmth!

"Mine's getting fixed and Tom doesn't know I have his 'baby' so we can't be long."

"Oh." I frown already knowing I can't stay for more than twenty minutes because I actually have to get some gum for the plane ride anyway.

He kisses me, "Come on, let’s go to a place where we won't get caught."

"You're right. We're sitting ducks out here." I laugh.

"Where should we go?" Dougie asks me as we walked around.

"That Simon guys place?"

"Nah he had a huge party last night and he's most likely drunk and naked on a couch.

Haha we should put a cowboy hat on him and take a picture! Uh...yeah...

"That art studio below it then."

Dougie kisses me, "Perfect."

"You're an amazingly good kisser you know that?" I say cuddling up next to Dougie on the dusty couch.
It was warm in the room and the sun was slowly coming up because it was dark when I first left the hotel.
I could smell his cologne.

That’s when I realized that those warnings on those TAG commercials were telling the truth.

Girls be warned: you will end up wanting to jump any guy with perfect cologne.

Guys be warned: Don't buy it...no matter how good it is.

I look away and bite my lip as Dougie plays with my hands.

"You know you should get a taste of what I feel when you kiss me someday." Dougie looks at me with a twinkle in his eye.

I smile and kiss him, "Maybe I already feel it. And you just don't know it."

Yeah I was talking flirtatiously...what did Dougie really mean because I have no idea. But I do get fireworks exploding in LaLa land when he kisses me!!!

Goodness he smells so good...I could just melt...

or kiss him. Whichever one is better...

"Ah don't do that!" Dougie said as I kissed his jaw bone. He was acting like he was trying to control himself about something.

"Why?" I ask smiling.

"Because I'm trying to be a gentleman!" Dougie laughs, "I don't trust myself."

"Aw how sweet..." I say and get off him.

"But don't stop!" Dougie says grabbing my arm and pulling me back.

I laugh and kiss him more.

Five minutes later:

"Crap I have to go." I say jumping up.

"What? Why?"

"It’s been twenty minutes since I left. And it’s crazy back at the hotel."

"Do you have to go?" Dougie asks holding my hands to stop me from moving around.

I look at him and smile, "I'm going miss you for the whole two days that I'm gone."

"I'm going miss you too." Dougie says kissing me.

"Mmmm Dougie you're going to make me late!" I giggle.

"Fine." He whines, "When can I see you again?"

"When you, your sister, Danny, Tom, and Harry help me get settled in when I come back. And then we'll figure out some way for you to come to my apartment after hours."

"Perfect plan." He kisses me again.

"Okay no more kisses. I have to go!" I smile and hug him tightly, "See you in two days."

"Alright...be safe...Uh yeah I'll miss you." He hugs me tightly again and I turn to leave.
As I'm walking down the stairs, I crave another kiss and run back to Dougie.

"Just one more kiss."

Just one more...

"Oh I'm going to miss this place!" Lena whines.

She kept throwing the colored M&M's out of the packet and they landed on the floor.

People stepped on them without noticing and continued on walking.

A blue one hit me on the forehead.

"Do we have to leave?" Mina asks no one in particular.

Arabella and I stay silent.

Leaving isn't a problem for me so I shut up and drink my over-300-calorie milkshake dry.

Arabella reads a magazine knowing they could stay at my new place but for some reason, she doesn't point that fact out.

And why is she always PMSing at the airport?!

Finally, she looks up from her magazine, "We did have a lot of fun."

"Yeah. That spider in the tube was hilarious." I laugh.

"Don't remind me!" Lena says sinking into her chair.

"Are you sure you want to work here?" Arabella asks me.

"Please, Arabella, don’t!" I say as I sip the rest of the milkshake. My straw makes that sound that the cups empty.

I guess blowing milkshake bubbles in the cup didn't last that long now did it?

"I know...I'm just going to be lonely." She says crossing her legs.

That song by Akon called Lonely with the chipmunk singing the first part runs through my mind.

"You have Lena and mina in the same building."

"Yeah but without Lara Keating it’s different." Mina said swiping on lip gloss.

I sigh and twirl a strand of hair. My blue chunk of highlight began to fade.

It was one of those temporary ones. Same with my henna.

Hopefully my memories won't fade when I leave in August.

They can't change my mind. I'm staying here and that’s final!

I mentally stamp my foot which will most likely cause an earthquake in LaLa Land.

I know...I sound like a looney...

We were silent for awhile as passengers walked around trying to reach their gate in the crowded international airport.

Arabella kept huffing. What? Was her tote bag suddenly too heavy?

Lena asked her if something was wrong and all we heard was this thick British accent. All in mumbles...
Something was up.

"Lord help us she's on her period..." Mina mumbled.

I threw a chocolate bar at Arabella.

"Eat, you look like a skeleton today." I said and cross my legs beneath me.

She obeyed. Which is actually very rare.

I watch a little brother and sister press their faces against the glass window to look at the planes.

I blast my fully charged ipod and blink 182 plays in my head.

I remember three weeks ago, I felt this terrible guilt about sneaking around Arabella's back. And now as I'm about to leave London temporarily, there was not a trace of guilt in my mind or tummy...at the moment.

I do have times when I just want to punch myself sometimes but it goes away.

It’s just that Arabella's got to find out someday and when she does, I won’ t guaranteed we'll be friends after that.

I know she would get over me dating Dougie but it’s the fact that I lied to her.

"Fact: Guitarists are hot." Lena mumbles as this cute guy walked by with his guitar.

"Fact: Lena craves Danny Jones so much that she bites her lip like me when I see a hot guy." I reply.

"I do not crave Danny!" Lena laughs.

Mina snorts as she reads a magazine.

Arabella sighs and looks at Lena, "Lena, Honey, you see- when Danny hugged you goodbye the other day you nearly melted in his arms." She said sweetly and patted Lena's arm.

She blushes.

"I hate coach!" Arabella mumbles next to me as she wrestles with an itchy blue blanket which is somehow wrapped around her.

Don’t tell me that she’s never dealt with an itchy blanket or pillow on a plane!

I watched in amusement as she had on this look of murder.

Lena was sitting next to me on the other isle, using my laptop to do some blogging and Mina was waiting in a long line to use the bathroom.

"I...hate...coach..." Arabella mumbles again, still flushing about.

Do you hate coach as in the designer or as in the section?

"Do you want to punch the itchy blue pillow too?" I ask nicely.

Arabella glares at me.

What? I asked nicely.

Arabella was in coach only once in her glamorous life. That was when she was eight.

She told me that she and her parents were on their way to Italy and somehow, her rich dad decided to put HER in coach.

She got stuck with an old lady who always snored in her sleep and had green stuff in her fake teeth which were always popping out.

She never took coach again.

"Why did you put us in coach!?" Arabella whispers finally throwing the blanket on the ground.

"First class costs money you know!" I reply unbuckling my seat belt as the captain turned off the seat belt sign. I heard hundreds of clicks as people took off their seatbelts so they could stretch.

"No duh but you have loads of cash!"

"So do you honey!" I smile.

Arabella groans.

I hear a baby cry and then burp.

"If it makes you feel better I got my mom’s limo picking us up." I said bursting Arabella's bubble space and putting my face close to hers. I bat my eyelashes and smile.

She pouts and looks around.

Is her chin quivering?

"...I guess that okay."

"Oh we're going in a stretchy!" Mina says looking over at us.

See! She doesn't mind coach! She's been keeping herself preoccupied with sleep and a movie.

"Yes we are." I say matter-of-factly.

"What time is it?" I ask arabella.

"Not sure."

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet."

"No."

"Are-"

"No."

"-You're not going to take that bag of peanuts? Okay then!" I say and snatch the small bag.

We have like two more hours on this germ-infested plane and the captain had turned on the seat belt sign back on. My bum had fallen asleep.

My ipod froze on me...again!

Lena's a computer hog!

And a baby stunk up my part of the plane!

Damn I should've picked first class.

Two hours + boredom + A plane = Trouble.

I open the small bag of over-salted peanuts...usually there are about ten in a bag.

I got 5.

Not enough to eat and use as ammo when I throw them as Arabella.

I sigh and rest my elbow on the small table and my forehead rests on my palm.

"Entertain me." I say to Arabella.

"I can't"

"Why?"

"Because I'm sleeping."

I looked at her. Yeah she was kind of sleeping. Because if she really was sleeping, she wouldn't have replied.
Don't I sound smart!

I lean back in my stiff chair.

Ten minutes later, Arabella really was asleep. I checked by lightly lifting up her eye mask.

I would've screamed if I lifted it up and I saw her wild eye staring at me.

I began to draw on myself with a pen.

And as my bad luck comes into action, turbulence comes and my writing hand flies over to Arabella's white, pretty, designer, clean, favorite...expensive...hard to wash jacket.

"Oh shit." I mouth, wide eyed. It was a big messy mark.

I grab Lena’s attention and I point at Arabella's jacket frantically. I'm like waving my arms, sort of fanning myself.
"Oh shit." Lena mouths and starts to fan herself in a freak outish way too.

Mina looks at us fanning girls, "What?"

I block Arabella because of Mina sees Arabella marked jacket, there will be an uproar in this cabin and we might crash and burn in the water.

"Uh...nothing." I whisper.

Wow did the pressure change in here?

I'm dead.

You know- I don't know how many times I've said that over the past three weeks
.
"Why are you whispering?" Mina asks trying to see why I'm hiding Arabella.

"I...uh...Don't look!" I say and twist around to find a blanket to cover the ballerina and instead, I end up hitting her in the head with a big slap.

Crap- I've unleashed the monster.

"Ow!"

If I didn't have a life I'd run and jump off this plane right now.

The weather was warmer here in New York City than in London.

Familiar smells and sounds met me the moment I stepped outside to look for my mom's limo.

"Home." Mina says taking off her jacket.

The sky was blue...whereas I was used to London's frequent bright overcast gray with sun peaking through.
I smiled, "It IS nice to be home for awhile."

Its weird, three weeks ago before I came to London, I was actually kind of innocent, nothing to hide.
I feel like I'm grown up now...ready to get punched in the face by the world.

"I can't wait to sleep in my own bad!" Arabella laughs happily.

She still didn't notice the mark on her jacket.

From far away, you can't notice the blue ink, but up close, it looks like Mickey Mouse’s signature at Disney Land.
How can that guy write all day long in the heat and using a big two pound glove?

"I can't wait to take a nap!" Lena says.

"I can't wait to clean my room..." I say. Throwing all my dirty clothes in a hamper and just piling clutter under my bed. Is that what you would call cleaning?

Arabella laughs knowing that she still has to teach me to take on the vacuum cleaner.

A white Honda that was remodeled to street race came up to us.

"Sweet ride." Lena says. I lift an eyebrow.

The design of the car looked familiar.

Where's my mom?

The loud music was familiar.

Where's the limo!?

"Lara..." Arabella begins tugging at my sleeve.

"Yeah I know." I say.

The little Forty-niners Football team logo sticker in the corner of the window shield was too familiar also.
The driver door opens up.

"Oh hell how did HE know I'm here?!" I say putting a hand on my hip.