I'm Anything You Want Me To Be.

"Garrett-- Garrett!"

I stop on my way back from the bathroom to our room when I hear Dani gasping.

"That's not fair-- Garrett, get off! Ah, I'm melting!" Dani yells.

"Shut up!" Garrett laughs in reply. "Sh-- Shut up, you're gonna wake the guys up--"

"Help, I'm melting!" Dani continues her playful rage and panic. "Help!"

"Shh!"

"Oh no, we're sinking-- Dying!" Dani giggles.

"Wait, wait, you're--" Garrett gasps too. "You're hitting my rib-- Shit,"

"Oww, my elbow!" Dani complains.

I peek my head past one of the half walls and see them tangled with each other on the floor.

They're both laughing uncontrollably, like little children.

I smile to myself and decide not to bother them.

As I'm turning to leave, their chuckling drowns out.

So I decide to look again.

Garrett is now holding Dani in an embrace, one that appears more choreographed than the first one I caught them in.

"I love you." I hear Dani tell him. "I really do."

Garrett sighs, shaking his head. "No need to say that now."

"What?"

"We're melting in imaginary lava, now's not the time to say it."

"Garrett,"

"Come on, Daniella Renee," Garrett gently releases her. "Sorry for jumping after you when you fell off the couch,"

"Why did you jump after me?" Dani asked, making the idea sound ridiculous to the unknown listener of their conversation.

"You're just gonna laugh at me when I tell you," Garrett mutters, changing the mood of the atmosphere wrapping around them.

"What?" Dani's eyes widened, surprised at his sudden seriousness. "No," she insisted. "What is it?"

"It's just gonna ruin our night, I should--"

"Garrett," she calls as she places one of her palms to warm his cheek. "What is it?"

"I.." Garrett broke the eye contact they'd been making, his eyes obviously turning dark. "I just remembered something."

"Something bad?"

"Something I never wanna feel again."

"About me?"

Garrett nods. "Daniella Renee, I know you've been trying to forget somehow, but I can't." He drags her hand off his face. "When I.. When I saw you in that lake and--"

"Garrett, I--"

"When I saw you in the lake, I felt.. Scared. Seeing you drowning was undoubtedly the most terrifying thing I've ever seen in my life. I never want to lose you. Not that way."

"Garrett,"

"And now we're playing in the living room like kids and it reminds me just why I am in love with you, and you fell in the imaginary lava and.. It took just that to remind me how close to losing you I've gotten so.. I jumped in the imaginary lava and imaginary-swam to get you.." Garrett's voice trails off.

Dani stares at him with the blue eyes that matches his, not daring to move.

"I told you it was gonna sound ridiculous, you now have my permission to laugh--"

Dani has been cutting him off a lot just now, but this time is different.

I watch her as she wraps her arms around his neck after kissing him.

Garrett is obviously surprised by this, his eyes remaining wide open. After a second, the lids fall down and they get closer.

"They make it look easy, don't they?"

I hang my head at Kennedy's voice.

"Love," Kennedy says. "Don't they?"

"Yeah, they do." I honestly reply. "How do they do that?"

"This is just a guess, but could you be thinking about John?" Kennedy suddenly swings the topic.

I feel heat rush to my cheeks, glad, however, that it's dark and that I'm not facing him. "W.. Why would I be thinking about John?"

"Nada."

I somehow hear the smirk in Kennedy's voice, and this causes me to shoot him with a glare as I turn around to face him. "He told you, didn't he?"

"He tells me everything," he reminds me. "Especially everything concerning.. Feelings."

I roll my eyes and head back to our room. I hear Kennedy's light tread following me.

When we get to the door, we see John sprawled across the mattress we share.

Kennedy continues, "I didn't really need him to tell me, I could've figured it out on my own."

"How?!" I hastily inquire.

John and I have been acting so cool with each other! We were proving each other great actors. We conversed like adults, we never bicker. Heck, we made certain we were seen together so no suspicions would be raised. We never made it official, but we were at a stalemate and we felt like our relationship had just reached a deadlock.

It's been a week since that fight. And I was unbearably lonely but my pride wouldn't let me have it with John.

But with an unspoken agreement, John and I made sure that no one suspected the ice we're giving each other.

At times, when John and I were pretending to be on neutral terms, I almost gave in and pushed my pride aside. But somehow, every time I felt like I was letting my guard down, something in the back of my mind alarmed and my head enlarged time and time again.

Kennedy cuts my thoughts off when he raises his arm halfway, his index finger pointing towards something on the bed.

"What?" I hiss, annoyed that he wouldn't just go right out with it.

He is intentionally trying to make me tense, and it's working, and I hate it.

"Sheesh, just go back to bed, Kennedy." I mutter as I toe off my slippers and head back to bed with John.

Kennedy quietly observes all of my actions, even squinting at me when I free my hair from its tie.

I ignore Kennedy and push John to make room for myself on the bed. Then I start really preparing for sleep by fluffing my pillow, pulling my blanket up to my waist, and such.

"Ding dong divider." Kennedy then says out of nowhere.

I have already let my eyes close, so I just raise my eyebrows. Blindly, I spit "Huh?"

"That pillow over there."

This forces my lids to withdraw and my eyes to redirect to somewhere else Kennedy is pointing at now. A long cylindrical pillow placed in between me and John.

"We usually use it when we have to share a bed, that way we won't get over each other's sides." Kennedy says matter-of-fact-ly. "It's good practice for respecting personal space."

"Oh yeah?" I roll my eyes and turn my back to John. "Then it's working, isn't it? He hasn't touched me in a week." My voice reeked of sarcasm.

"I knew that was gonna happen when I saw him get it from the van." Kennedy shrugs, approaching our bed. He sits on the foot of it and eyes John for a second. "Iann," His tone suddenly changes from confident to worried. "What are you doing?"

I only respond to this by looking at Kennedy.

"To John. What are you doing to John?"

The concern in his voice slaps me with guilt.

I knew very well what I was doing to John. I knew very well I was keeping him from what he wanted: Me. Being with me.

If I could only understand why I do the things I do, I would tell Kennedy.

"What?" Kennedy presses. "And why?!"

"Kennedy,"

"Running away didn't work, did it?!" Kennedy hit it right on the mark. He knew the other reason I left that week with Dani. He continues now. "That only means you have to try what else there is to do!"

"And what else is there to do, huh, Kennedy?!" I shout in a whisper. "Be with John?!"

"At least be considerate!" Kennedy huffs, getting back on his feet. "Or at least act like you care, you're being a little too much of a--" he cuts himself off.

"Of a what, Kennedy?!" I demand, throwing my blanket off of myself. "Too much of a what?!"

Suddenly, Kennedy shifts back to the door in a panicked mode.

The movement beside me makes me realize what he just did that for. So I quickly shut my eyes and feign sleep.

John's pushed the 'ding dong divider' aside and taken the blanket I accidentally landed on him. His eyes are open to a squint at me, his arms are weakly putting the blanket back on me, but this time on my shoulders. That's when I realize it's okay to slightly open my eyes to watch his actions.

He closes his eyes again, ready to fall onto his back and return to sleep.

Then I feel his lips on my cheek.