A New Beginning

“Layla, are you in there? Fucking answer me!”

The poundings on the door woke me up. Johnny’s screaming didn’t help the headache that I now had. Stumbling out of bed, I threw open the door and glared at Johnny. He wore a big goofy grin and the stench of whiskey drifted into my nostrils. I glanced at the clock in the hallway and saw that it was 6: 23. Are they just getting back?

“Johnny, what the hell. Go to bed now!” I groaned.

“But baby sister, I’ve tried! I just can’t though. Jimmy won’t talk to me and has locked himself in his room and you’re the only option left.”

“They weren’t kidding when they said you don’t pass out.” I mumbled to myself.

Scratching me head in thought, I planned on getting Johnny off my hands. My thoughts drifted to Jimmy and I could just feel my teeth breaking from the pressure they were enduring. I then glanced at the chair still leaned up against the door. A wicked smile spread across my lips as I got an idea.

“Ok, Johnny, follow me bro.”

I grabbed his arm and carefully led him to the bathroom. Putting the chair aside I opened the bathroom door and tried to push him into it. I stopped my actions as I heard something on the floor. Tiny sniffles were coming from the room near the floor and I already knew whom it was. Jimmy deserved to be lying on the tile right now for what he did to me earlier. What scared me was that if I hadn’t put that chair up, he would have gotten into my room. Talking to the man on the floor wasn’t something I wanted to do for a long time. The light crying died down and I heard some movement below me.

“Layla?” he whispered.

Without saying a word I shoved my drunken brother into the room. His unstableness mixed with my strength caused Johnny to trip over Jimmy and fall down. Slamming the door shut I heard Johnny’s yells through the thin door.

“Jimmy! How ya doin?” he screamed.

I slightly laughed at this before I lay back in my bed. Now it was seriously time to get back to sleep.

When I awoke from natural means, I descended the stairs and raided the kitchen. Johnny’s shopping trip a while back still kept me content food wise. The guys never saw breakfast so I was the only one who would eat that particular meal. I grabbed a pack of strawberry Pop-tarts and went into the living room to watch some TV. After flipping through the channels five times, I finally admitted defeat. The house was quiet once I turned the TV off. Being with Jimmy and Johnny most of the time I wasn’t quite used to having this peace. Grasping the window of opportunity that I so rarely got, I changed into sweats and running shoes and took off. Ever since I could remember I had always ran when my headed was clouded with thoughts. Last night’s events gave me the fuel to run a good couple of miles before I stopped for a breather at the beach. It wasn’t quite noon yet, but the tourists had begun to swarm the beach. I rolled my eyes at the tropical shirts and the overpowering smell of sunscreen. Sure, I hadn’t lived hear that long, but I’ve grown fond of Huntington and thought of it as my home. Just to make it clear, I haven’t forgot about Lexi. She informed me of a vacation she was going on and her parents didn’t want her cell phone on her at all. They mentioned something about the nasty mixture of technology and the great outdoors. Music entered my ears as I started to look where it was coming from. Down the beach the pier came to life and rides started picking up kids for their enjoyment. I knew it wasn’t too long until this place would be swamped with families, so I hightailed it out of there and began my run back to the house. Stepping through the door I still heard silence. Those boys could be dead from alcohol poisoning and I wouldn’t even know it. I would save Johnny but make sure Jimmy had his funeral. Yes, I was very bitter. But could you blame me? I never wanted to talk to that man ever again, but knew that I would have to. Thanks to all my thinking, the case of tunnel vision caused me to run right into someone. My ass landed with a hard thud on the hallway floor. I let out a whimper and rubbed my bruised tailbone. Gazing up I realized that talking to Jimmy would come sooner then I had anticipated.

“Layla, I’m sorry.” He whispered as he extended a helping hand.

I glared at his hand and tried to get up myself. Shooting pains through my butt caused me to fall back to my sitting position. I refused to look at him and just sat there. Jimmy sighed and I felt his arms wrap around my shoulders and legs as he picked me up. He just held me in the hallway and I started to squirm out of his grip. Another mistake on my behalf. I recoiled in pain as my tailbone sent sparks through my body again. He took my relaxed body position as a positive sign and took me into his room.

“Put me in my fucking room now!” I growled under my breath.

He ignored me and sat on the edge of his bed still not letting me go. I finally worked up the courage and looked up at him. My heart instantly melted but I kept up the hard exterior. Sorrow was emanating from his eyes and he looked truly sorry. His eyes were still red and puffy from the crying he had been doing earlier. His nose and cheeks were a little pink, also showing how he’s been feeling. The pressure he was applying on my skin grew as our eye contact lengthened. I could tell he never wanted to let me go.

“Please, Layla, forgive me. Look deep into your heart and find the ability to give me one more chance.” He begged.

“Jimmy, why should I? What I saw last night clearly showed me that our relationship isn’t one of your top priorities. Why Jimmy? Why did you do it?” I asked.

“Layla, you have to believe me when I say it was a huge mistake. She just came on to me and put herself on top of me. Next thing I know is that Matt and Johnny are cheering me on and you look like someone shot you. I have no excuse for why I did it because God knows I hadn’t planned on it. I normally don’t drink that much but last night I went overboard. Layla, I’ve been miserable since I saw the pain in your eyes. I love you so much and I can’t let you go.”

“Seeing your tongue down that girl’s mouth killed me. Jimmy, you have no idea how much that crushed me. You have to do some pretty amazing things for me to ever forgive you.” I whispered.

“Tell me Layla, I’ll do anything you say.”

“That’s not my place and you know that. This has to be done completely by you. I’m willing to go back to you, but you have to make the effort. Also, just because it seems like I’m forgiving you, I will never forget this Jimmy.” I said harshly.

“I will do my best to make sure you’re mine again. Now just rest here because your brother was looking for you but fell asleep on your bed.”

Before I could say anything, Jimmy had me under his comforter and walked out of the room to get better.