Chapter 3:

Chapter 2

We swam in that creek for hours. It was just us, together. We splashed each other and laughed. It was the best day either of us had in a long time. Alex never did anything though. Deep down I knew he loved me just as much as I loved him but I knew that I was the one who was going to have to take control of this relationship.

It began to get dark and that was the only thing to stop our fun. The water that was warm and inviting when the sun was out was gone and replaced by cold and disapproving water. We got out and put our clothes on even though we were still wet. We smiled at each other but kept silent until we were both fully dressed.

“That was fun but you’re going to get sick if we don’t get you home. Plus we won’t want your mom having cow when she finds you not in your bed.” He smirked coming to put his arm around me. I frowned at the thought of this day ending. It had been perfect even though this morning began with me crying. But the thought of it ending and me having to go home and get yelled at for being soaking wet made me not want to leave. I never wanted to leave his side. I felt safe with him.

“I’m not going home.” I pronounced. I had stopped dead in my tracks and put my hand on my hips. I was serious. If he took me to my house I wasn’t going to go in. My mom was drunk and angry, wouldn’t be anything I would want to go home to. He smiled though and came closer, putting his arms around my hips. He seemed amused. It gave me the chills with him putting his arms around me like that but I liked it. This was something I could get used to. “I want to stay with you tonight.” I said sternly so he would know I was being serious. I was going to compromise on this so he would have to agree.

“Rebecca.” He was being stern too. We kept our positions and I waited to get lectured but he didn’t say anything. He just seemed mesmerized by my eyes as I was with his. He had perfect blue eyes. I loved them. He didn’t say anything after that but he picked me up off the ground and began heading for the truck.

“I’m not going home!” I yelled into his ear. He just smiled. Stubbornly I tried to get out of his arms but no matter how much he kept his grip tight. The smile never left his face. I sighed loud enough to where he noticed I didn’t like this. We reached the truck but he didn’t go to the passenger door instead he went around to the back of the truck and put me inside. “What the fuck?” I yelled. “ALEX!” But the next minute he was in the back with me. This time I was the one clueless. He put his hand on my mouth to shut me up and picked me up again. I was sitting in his lap and I was happy even though I was shivering.

“Rebecca. I love you. You are the one thing that has ever mattered to me. I have always loved you. Ever since the day I held you in my arms. You are my best friend but if I had it my way you would be so much more. You are so much more to me. I love seeing you, hearing you, and I love how you’re so stubborn. And your smile. It’s a turn on for me.” He laughed. I smiled just for the effect. I wanted him to continue. I wanted to hear so much more. I wanted to tell him how I felt. No, I wanted to show him. “Whatever you want I will get it for you. I will stand by your side for as long as I can. I love you Rebecca Ann. And nothing in this world is going to change that.” He declared and I knew everything he said was true and came from his heart. It was this truth that brought tears to my eyes. He looked shocked until I smiled a teary smile at him and then he smiled and pulled me more into his arms. I was again sobbing into his arms but this time it was different. I wasn’t sad at all. I was just about the happiest person on this earth. We stayed in the back of the truck just staring at the stars. I was in his arms for what seemed like the longest time, his body heat keeping me from getting cold. But all good things have to end. It ended up getting too chilly for the both of us and we retreated to the truck. It was warm in there. We crawled into the back seat to keep each other warm. I never wanted to leave him.

“Alex…” I was nervous though. It slowed me down talking. “Kiss me.” It was plain and simple, wasn’t it? We leaned in to each other, our foreheads touching. “I love you.” I whispered. It was the first time I had told him that. It was the first time I had said it out loud period and it felt good. It was enough for him too. Before I realized it his lips were touching mine. We moved magically for a minute. I had to let go, I had lost my breath. He smiled from on top of me. I sprang into another full on kiss, even biting his bottom lip slightly. We did that for about an hour. We were breathless by then.

Although I wanted to and he did too we didn’t take it any farther than that. After we made out for an hour we cuddled and just talked. We talked about memories and what we wanted to do in life. And most importantly what we going to do in a few days after graduation. Around midnight I had passed out, he had sung me to sleep. Although we had been friends for so long I never knew he had such an angelic voice. I slept in his arms the entire night and into morning. He snored but it didn’t bother me much. I woke up that morning to the sun shining in my face through the windows of the truck. I turned to my side a little to see if Alex was still asleep. He was. I giggled silently to myself. He was still snoring as I began to stroke his long hair out of his eyes. I kissed his forehead which of course woke him up. I smiled.

“Good morning.” I said all perky. A big difference between me and Alex was I was a morning person and he clearly wasn’t. He tried to hide his grumpiness from me with a smile and a yawn that sent morning breath straight into my face. I didn’t want to make him feel bad so I ignored the stink. He got on top of me, holding himself up so as not to crush me, and gently began bringing his lips onto mine. It wasn’t like last night.

“We have to get you home.” He said. Before I could protest he held up his hand to silence my already disapproved face. “Birthday girl, you are going to need some clothes if you are going to be staying with me.” I don’t think I have ever smiled that big. I couldn’t help but jump in a his arms.

On the way to my house Alex let me blare the stereo even though he hated loud music and he forced a smile upon his face the entire time. It made me happy to have him. I never noticed how far out we drove from town. It took an entire hour to get to my house. The yellow painted two story looked distant as we walked carefully through the doors. Mom was on the couch snoring as usual. Hangover. I smiled knowing she didn’t even worry that I was gone. I didn’t care. Daddy had been the only thing holding mom and I together. Now that he had left there was nothing. I brought Alex up to my room where I would change and pack enough clothes to stay with him till we got things sorted out. He watched me from my bed. He laid there so comfortable watching me undress and dress. I smiled and went over to lay next to him for a couple of minutes. He was so warm and although he smelled of creek water I still inhaled happily next to him. It was a dream, I was sure of it. None of this could be possible. Yet I was still laying next to him. Him, my Alex and that’s all I ever wanted. All I ever needed.

“You should finish packing.” He smiled and kissed my forehead. Ah, have I died and gone to heaven? I finished packing my clothes in a fast 2 minutes at the most, now my most loved valuables. I looked at the pictures on my desk by my computer. They were dusty and they seemed out of place. I packed all of the pictures of me and Alex. They were just about the best memories. I never thought about the one photo that lay face down on my desk. The picture of my dad and I from when I was 7. It was the last recent picture I had of him and me together. I hadn’t looked at it in years. It was better face down where it was but knowing that this would be the last time I would spend in this house I panicked and picked up the photo. It was still in good shape seeing as it was years old. I touched my dad’s face. He was my best friend before Alex came along and no matter what he did I still loved and missed him. I hated myself for that. Even though the thought of my dad gave stabs to my heart I put the picture in my bag.

“Let’s go.” I said sniffing. Alex didn’t ask me what was wrong and I was glad. He seemed to know that I didn’t want to talk about it. He got me that way. We began to head out the door but the phone rang before we closed it. “Shit.” I ran to it before it would wake my mom up. I picked it and quickly glanced over to the couch. Thankfully my mom hadn’t awakened and I gave a sigh of relief. “Hello.” I said annoyed that whoever it was called in the first place.

“Hello Rebecca.” The voice said. He was whispering into the phone. I didn’t recognize the voice and it confused me.

“Who is this?” I asked.

“This is your daddy.” The voice said. I was speechless. What? How did he get this number. Of course we had still kept the number after he left but why? I didn’t say anything. I didn’t know what to say. Alex came over to my side, probably seeing the “what the fuck” expression on my face. “I love you. Remember that?”

“What? Dad?” I shouted into the phone but my dad had hung up the phone. I stood there for a couple of minutes, just confused. Why would he call?