Let Love In

I was right. Right from that moment Jenna announced that she was joining along for the tour for a while, I knew things wouldn’t be the same or as I expected it to be. Cameron was slowly distancing himself from me, spending every second with her when he could. Was I jealous? Well yes, but not in the way you may I think I was. I felt like I was beginning to lose my best friend. Speaking to each other one on one was rare. If we did have the opportunity, it would last for only a minute. Of course, I always had Nathan, Michael and Zach to rely on but Cameron was the one I would always turn to and the fact that I couldn’t turn to him without Jenna in the way was difficult for me. The last time we actually spent time together was when he brought me to this unusual theatre. Jenna had to head back to San Diego to pack up so I only had one day left to actually spend time with him.

“Please tell me we’re not going to some creepy, old factory,” I begged. Cameron and I decided to walk around town while the opening acts did soundcheck. We ended up in what seemed to be a sketchy neighbourhood which had death written all over it. “I really don’t feel safe around here. Can we please turn back?”

“No way. I promise that where we’re going is not scary…hopefully,” he whispered. My eyes bugged out and my heartbeats began to accelerate. “I’m kidding,” he tried to calm me down. After a few sharp turns and very close encounters with some sketchy people, we finally arrived at an old theatre.

“How do you find out about all these places?” I asked, staring at the entrance.

“On our last tour, I would often walk around town to see if I could find any cool places. I never had the chance to share them with someone so you just happen to be lucky.” We stepped inside the abandon theatre, surprised that it was left unlocked. Once the door was closed, everything was completely dark. I hid behind Cameron, holding on to his shoulders so he could guide me.

“You do know where the switch is, right?”

Within seconds, the lights illuminated the entire theatre, revealing its beauty. The ruby red curtains, the velvet red chairs and wooden stage came into view. I stood there in utter awe and tried to take in everything.

“Follow me,” he led me towards the stage. Cameron climbed onto the stage and reached out to grab my hands and pull me up on the stage. I stood at the center of the staged, mesmerized even more by the view. The stage reminded me of something you’d see in the early or mid 1900’s. The architecture of the theatre was phenomenal.

“Whoa,” was all that escaped my mouth. Behind me, I could hear furniture being moved but my mind was focused on the view in front of me. It brought me back to my years in high school, how I loved to join clubs but even though I didn’t interact with most of the students. My high school was doing Romeo and Juliet and when I auditioned, I met Jonathan. Jonathan. The time I saw him that night at the hotel haunted me again, sending chills down my spine.

“Ta da!” My thoughts were interrupted by Cameron’s voice. I turned around and saw a circular, wooden table covered in a red and white chequered tablecloth with two matching chairs facing each other. On the wooden table were 2 glasses filled with water and beside it were, yes, burritos.

“What’s all this for?” I asked, amazed at all the effort he put into this.

“Well,” he said, pulling my chair out as I sat down and pushed me towards the table, “I figured that since Jenna is joining us for a while, I should at least make it up to you. You know, since I’ll probably be spending a lot of time with her.”

I frowned, looking at the glass of water that was still. I hung my head low a little, just enough so he couldn’t see me frowning. Clearly, it didn’t work.

“Hey,” he said, placing his warm hand over mine, “I’ll try to spend as much time as I can with you.” No matter how much I wanted to believe this, his reassuring look didn’t convince me one bit.

Instead, I held back my words and slightly smiled and took a sip of my water. I could feel my guards go up and my walls rebuild within me. So much for opening myself up to the world.



Cameron was clearly oblivious to the fact that I was dying a little on the inside. I could feel him distancing himself from me each and every day. I was slowly losing the only friend or rather, person, who was able to see right through my lies and dig up my feelings. He no longer had this power nor did he seem to really care. He was caught up in his and Jenna’s world, a world I was not a part of.

I discreetly watched Cameron and Jenna splash water in each other’s faces, laughing and smiling. My sunglasses hid the fact that I was watching them while I sat on a lounge chair, a book in hand and iPod right beside me. I shifted my gaze on Michael and Nathan who were talking to 2 girls lounging in their bikinis. Typical guys. I went back to watching Jenna and Cameron when I heard a voice beside me speak.

“You like him, don’t you?” I heard Zach say.

I turned my head around, giving him a crazed look as he lounged in his chair, his sunglasses on, headphones in his ears and soaked up the sun. “What?”

“You,” he restated, arising from the lounge chair and sitting up straight, planting his sunglasses on the top of his head, “like Cameron.”

I shifted my body so I was now facing him without having to turn my head. I did the same, removing my sunglasses and placing them on the top of my head. “You’re obviously looking at it the wrong way. I don’t like Cameron, I love him but in a friend kind of way.”
“Denial,” he simply said. “I see the way you look at him. Every time he’s around you, you’re all happy.”

Ah yes, but you don’t know that he makes me happy only because he was the only person who bothered to break down my walls, I thought. “I’m not denying it. Cameron is a great friend who just happened to make an impact on my life.”

“Come on, Emma. You and I both know that he treats you the same way he treats his own girlfriend, maybe even better than he treats her. He obviously likes you and you obviously like him, maybe even love. Just admit it.”

I bit my lip, not wanting to believe anything he was saying. “That’s not true,” I whispered. “Love just doesn’t exist in my world. Relationships only last for so long before they fall apart.”

He got up from his seat and sat scooted down beside me. “I don’t know your story or anything, but love does exist. If relationships only last for so long, how are your parents still together?” I looked away, making absolutely no eye contact. “Don’t be afraid to love someone or have someone love you.” He placed his hand on my shoulder, ending his pep talk with a grin. I returned his gesture but with less meaning.

I looked back at them, watching them dive underwater just like Cameron and I had once done when were hiding from the man. In an instant, they disappeared into the water leaving no trace that they were even there. If only feelings were like that, things would be so much easier.