Escape From This Afterlife

Flashback.

I walked with Brian on the sandy shores of Huntington Beach. The cold water rushed over my feet as we sluggishly made our way to the Piers. It was nice, having him with me. I was having a hard time at home, and I needed to get away.

"Thanks," I reminded him, wanting him to know how grateful I was of his presence.

"Of course." He smiled. "Anything for you."

I blushed and looked down grinning. I didn't know what was going on between Brian and I. It was obvious to me, that I liked him. I'm sure he knew. All the guys did, including Val. But I was afraid he didn't like me. He took my hand, sending an electric shock down my body. "You're beautiful." he whispered in my ear, squeezing my hand.

It was like being teleported back home from OZ. Coming home from Zacky's huge, amazing, modern, beautiful house, felt like mine was Dorothy's farm house. Not that extravagant. I dumped my keys in the bowl beside the front door, and kicked off my shoes. Today was amazing. Brian confessed he still had feelings for me, and now that he was back, he couldn't let go. This is what I have been waiting for my entire life. To have Brian back. To have the guy who stole my heart from me in High School. I couldn't believe this was happening to me.

After my nice, long shower I decided to head straight to bed. My body ached from being thrown in the pool repeatedly. Stupid, strong boys. I crawled in between the sheets that felt so inviting. I curled up into a ball on my right side, and closed my eyes with a smile on my face. Nothing was better than being in a toasty bed, clean from the gross chlorine that filled the pores of my body.

My phone vibrated violently on the nightstand next to my bed. My heart lept, as I didn't expect it. I sat up and grabbed my phone. I saw Brian's picture as the caller ID, and his name below it. I grinned. "Hello?"

"Hey. Still awake?" His voice was like music. It flowed so elegantly. Hearing anyone else's voice would have been a disappointment.

"Yeah." I was trying to sleep, but he didn't have to know that. "Why?"

"I'm coming over to pick you up." I could hear the smile in his voice.

"Brian," I laughed, "it's eleven."

"So? I'll be there in fifteen minutes." He hung up.

I laughed and blushed, realizing Brian would be with me again. The emptiness in my heart was gone. I jumped out of bed and rummaged through my closet to find something to wear. I grabbed some capree's and the Bullet For My Valentine tank top I bought at Taste of Chaos. I changed quickly, and ran a comb through my curly hair.

I ran down the steps just in time to hear a car honk outside. I opened the door and saw Brian leaning against his shiny, black BMW with his arms crossed. "Hey you," he greeted.

"Hi." I smiled and made my way over.

He walked over and opened the door for me. "Are you going to tell me where you're taking me?" I asked him with a smile.

"You'll see." He smiled.

"I have a very bad feeling about this." I joked.

"Oh shut up." He laughed and started driving.

It took about five minutes to get to the destination. It was the beach. The same beach we walked down when we were in High School before we were dating. I was drowned in memories. "You remember?" He smiled, seeing how dazed I looked, staring out the window.

"How could I forget?" I whispered.

"Come on." he opened his door and got out. I did the same. We met up in front of the car and he took my hand shyly. I smiled, and the two of us started walking towards the ocean. Perfect.

He started to swing our hands between his gently, as we got closer to the shore. "I remember coming out here with you almost everyday," he laughed a little.

"I know." I laughed. "And then we'd go to the spot and get trashed."

"Those were the days." He smiled, looking ahead.

"Mhm." I nodded, kicking the sand under my feet.

We got close to the shore, and the two of us sat down. "This is nice." I smiled and slipped my flip flops off then put my feet in the water that reached up to us.

"I know." He smiled.

"It's beautiful." I gazed out at the water and how quiet it was without hundreds of people running around and playing in it.

"I know." He smiled, but he wasn't looking at the ocean. He was looking at me. I blushed and looked down.

"I missed you so much." He brushed the hair out of my face. "I can't believe we ran into each other again."

I smiled and took his hand as he went to put it in his lap. "I'm so glad. You have no idea how hard these past few years have been for me."

"I'm just glad to see you again." He lifted his other hand to my face and stroked my cheek.

Smiling, I leaned into his soft hand. "It doesn't feel real. I finally have you back, and it seems like it's just a dream." I said in almost a whisper.

He laughed and leaned in, closing the wide gap between us. His eyes closed, hinting at something. I smirked, and splashed him with the water. "EMILY!" He wiped his face.

I jumped up, knowing he was going to try to get me back, and stumbled back a few feet. He pushed himself up and ran after me at full speed. "NO!" I screamed and ran for my life.

"Get back here!" He reached out to grab my shirt, but I darted to my left, towards the ocean. He was still chasing after me, although we both slowed down since we were running against the waves. I couldn't see where I was going.

I stopped once the water got to my hips. I was in for it. Brian grabbed me around my waist and started tickling me. "NO! STOP! STOP!" I yelled, trying to find his hands to pull them off. And that's when I realized I had him back. Not like my dreams. For real, this time.