How You Changed Me

Mikayla is such a whore sometimes. Who cares if the guy has a pretty face? You don’t have to go flirt with him. Especially not Liam. The guys always fuck her then leave, more often than I can count she has called me wailing about some guy using her. But, I am the closest thing she has to a best friend, I may not like all it entails, but I did care about her and I am going to be here for her.

Sighing I walk over to some other friends sitting near them and silently join. I didn’t want to be around Liam. At all.

“So, do you wanna do something after school together some time?” I hear Mik ask Liam.

“Sure, when and where?” He replies. They exchange numbers, his not his real number, and agree to text about it later. Mikayla is very naïve sometimes. I glare at Liam, and he must sense it since he turns and catches my eye returning the glare. I turn away and begin talking to Shay, who is completely lost in this class. I explain everything the teacher says, breaking it down into remedial levels for her. We spend all of class doing this, working out problems and agree to meet up at lunch to continue. Poor girl. Her parents really shouldn’t force her into advanced classes with subjects she sucks at.

The rest of the week is slow. More fights with Liam, his parents and him coming over in the evenings to drop off stuff so that there is less to move at the end of the week. It’s pretty boring. Only fun not dull part was when Mikayla freaked out about Liam being an ass hole. I warned her.

Now it was Friday, and I am currently at school, with Liam, arguing.

“Why the hell can’t you just stay out?” I say, not loudly but not softly, either.

“Why can’t you just accept that we get to be roomies?” He says back , venom dripping.

“Because I would sooner die than let you anywhere near where I sleep, no matter what our parents say. You can sleep on the damn couch!” I say, furious that they were actually moving in. I was hoping it was all just a thing that would happen if the Dicaprianos didn’t find a nice little bungalow to rent or something. Liam can sleep on the couch there just as easily.

“Why don’t you sleep on the freaking couch and be a good hostess and let me have the basement?” He fires back.

“It’s my house, my basement, my life! Stay out, we don’t want you there. At all.” I say, being harsh as I could. This was definitely not me. I was always nice, always said the right thing at the right time to comfort or make someone feel welcome. I never did stuff to make someone feel unwelcome or to act hostile.

“You’re parents obviously want me. They are probably hoping to get some grandkids out of this. I mean, really, they would kill to get us together. So would I, I mean really, you’re pretty damn hot.” With a wink he reaches out, and I back up.

“Just leave me alone. Don’t talk to me, here or otherwise, unless it is socially needed, such as at dinner or in the presence of our parents. If you ever touch me I will call the police.” I tell him, regaining my calm. “And if our parents ever try to force us together beyond this I will tell them the truth about you. It would be for you own good as much as mine.”

“How do you know that’s the truth?” He looks at me with curiosity.

“Simple, I remember.” I tell him, and he gives me a confused look. Turning sharply I walk away and don’t look back. At least no one was looking at us, so our argument went by unnoticed.

Why did I do that? I was supposed to forget it ever happened; it was just another night, just another reason to hate him, fuel to the fire and the spark that caught. It is why I went from just not getting along with him to hating him. He just went along, figuring it was just unearned animosity on my part. He doesn’t remember doing something that is unforgivable, and unforgettable to me, something that I shouldn’t remember but do. All because of him.

“So, what were you talking to Liam about?” Mikayla appears next to me.

“Just another disagreement.” She ‘hm’s in understanding.

“Did he say anything about me?” She sounded hopeful.

“Sweetie, he isn’t a good enough guy for you. You could have anyone in this school, why choose him when he is just pulling you around by your heart? Jack is a great guy, and I know for a fact he asked you out yesterday. I also know you wanted to say yes, but because you are waiting around for Liam you said no. Why not go ask him? He would be ecstatic.” I advise. She probably won’t listen, but maybe if I can show her that there are others she can move on, on her own.

“I don’t know. What if I go out with Jack and then Liam calls me? And why won’t he reply to my texts? He’s always texting, so I know he would see them….” Shit. She still doesn’t know that he didn’t give her his real number.

“I have no idea... Maybe you mistyped his number in your phone? Touch screens are kind of tricky.”

“Oh, that’s a good point. Would you check it?” She gives me this puppy dog look, knowing that anything that had to do with Liam would result in my refusal. Ugh, I can’t say no to that pleading look, though.

“I can look, but I’m just going to tell you if it is wrong. I am not going to correct it or tell you what is wrong; you can figure that part out for yourself.” She squeals, but then when I hold true to that she starts complaining.

“I told you I would just tell you if it was wrong or right, if you guys are meant to be then a wrong number won’t hold you back.” She brightens, loving the idea that her prince charming could be Liam. “But really, it seems more likely it’ll be someone like Jack, I mean, you guys are totally cute together and would make such a good couple.” She seems to consider it for a moment, shrugging.

“I don’t know. I’ll think about it. I mean, Liam is godly, but I’d have to worry about other girls trying to steal him. Jack would never even think about letting that happen, at least. Plus he’s totally cute, just not out of this world hot. Might be even better, you know?” She starts gushing. I smile and nod, agreeing and disagreeing in the perfect places. Class passes quickly like this, and again I help other students with things that they don’t understand.

~~~

“Ashlyn! Come help Liam with his suitcase, he can get the heavy stuff if you get the lighter, easy to handle things!” I hear Mrs. Dicapriano shout, my mom intones a quick ‘now’ and I heave myself upstairs. Grabbing a few bags and a ‘suitcase’ that was really a duffel bag on clothes I go back down.

The basement was fairly simple, one huge open area that was for me to do whatever in, couches, a huge television, comfy chairs, lamps, basically decorated how I wanted. Then there was a bathroom off to one side, a door leading to it. It was a big bathroom, with a Jacuzzi tub, big shower, nice sink with a lot of storage space. There are two more doors on either side of the one leading to the bathroom, each a bed room. My room was the farthest from the stairs, and had windows about a foot high toward the ceiling lining the edges of the two walls that faced outside. ‘Liam’s room’ Only had one wall of it, and his room was slightly smaller. Both rooms had decent closet space, mine with more of it, and doors leading to the bathroom. From now until whenever Liam was just on the other side of a door

It was a terrifying thought. At least both my doors locked from inside my room. Only his main door locked from inside his room, his bathroom door locked from inside the bathroom. He only got a chain to keep the bathroom door shut from inside his room.

I dump his junk in his room and turn, only to almost run into him. I didn’t notice how close behind me he had become.

“Here is your room. You know the basic layout.” I say and leave to get a few more items that were easy enough for me to lift and then locked myself in my room until dinner.

“Kids, the four of us are going out to celebrate the good times that are to come. We will be back by midnight, stay on the property and no one is allowed to come over.” My father announced, much to my dismay. Liam, becoming the perfect young man that our parents knew and loved, graciously accepted it, and I followed suit. We insisted that we would be able to get our own dinner and that they should have a good time, we’d be sure to follow the rules, etc. I sigh, this Friday night would be dull without my friends.

“So, bye.” I hear Liam call about ten minutes after our parents leave.

“What!? You can’t leave.” I tell him. “I’ll call our parents if you do.”

“You wouldn’t.” We glare at each other, and eventually he shrugs, we both look away and he goes down to the basement. I make myself some ramen noodles and follow, deciding to chill in the den part of it. Liam soon comes out and we watch TV in silence. This was the first time we were alone together with no fighting in years.

Around ten o’clock we are both so bored we fling meaningless insults at each other.

“Your parents said no leaving the property, right?” He asks suddenly.

“Yeah…” Suspicious, I look at him questioningly.

“Let’s go for a walk, you can show me the rest of your property." I shrug, and we leave.

The property was around two and a half acres, big for the area, small compared to our house in the mountains. But there was a small pond/ lake thing on the edge of it that was always fun to go to at night. No one knew it was there except me, and I am definitely keeping it that way. I show him everything else; shove him into the man-made ponds for koi and whatnot behind the house. We fight a lot after that. We go into the house and for the rest of the night we stay in our own respective rooms.

Around eleven I go to take a shower and see the door leading to his bedroom is slightly open. I look in and see that his little window by the ceiling is open, a chair beneath it, other room door closed, probably locked, and he was nowhere to be seen.

That fucker.