by Thomas Gomez
“Wow, looks like you were ready to move without me,” I said laughing.
“Well, you're not the only one who's excited you know. I can't wait for you to move in,” he smiled.
We each grabbed a box from the living room and headed toward the door. Right as we got there Cheyenne walked in.
“Perfect timing. I wasn't sure if I would be able to open the door or not.”
“Oh, well you're welcome then,” she walked past us to go grab a box.
We started loading all of the boxes onto the truck and some of the smaller pieces of furniture. It took us about an hour and we were exhausted when we were done.
“I didn't think this would be that hard but walking up all of those stairs is absolutely horrible!” Cheyenne exclaimed.
“At least John’s building has an elevator!” I added.
“You guys are wimps,” John retorted.
“Hey! We don't spend all of our time at the gym unlike you!” Cheyenne snapped.
“Yeah, clearly,” he answered.
“All right, all right you guys. Let's just get to his building already so we can finish.” I said as I got off the couch and headed for the front door.
Brittney got there about ten minutes before us. “Gosh, you guys couldn't have taken longer. I've been waiting for like ever!”
“Stop exaggerating, Britt. You called me like ten minutes ago,” I retorted.
“Yeah, that's ten minutes of sitting in my car just waiting. I was bored!”
“Well we're here now so you won't be bored for much longer,” John said as he opened the back door to the truck.
“Whoa! I didn't realize it was so much!” She proclaimed.
“Yup, this should be fun,” Cheyenne added sarcastically.
I placed a box on the floor as John walked in. “There's only one more box, but it's pretty heavy,” he said.
“Okay, Cheyenne and I will get it,” I said as I walked out.
“One, two, three lift!” Cheyenne yelled.
“Agh, what's in this thing? It's so heavy!” I said as we walked in the building.
“It's your box, how should I know?” She said as we placed the box on the floor while we waited for the elevator. “So, are you ready for this?”
“Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?” I answered.
“I don't know. I mean you've practically been living together this whole time, but now it's official. You're not worried about anything?”
We stopped talking for a moment while we pushed the box into the elevator.
“You know, I really do love your pep talks,” I said sarcastically.
“I'm not trying to bring you down or anything. I just want to make sure you're ready. I may be sarcastic all the time but I still care.”
“Thanks, but you don't have to worry about it. I know what I'm getting myself into,” I half smiled.
As we walked into the apartment John came out of the bedroom. “I put some of your clothes in my closet. I'll clear out some drawers for the rest later.”
“Okay, sounds good,” I said as we placed the box on the floor. I sighed, “Finally!”
“All right! Now that we're officially done do you guys want to order some pizza and watch a movie?” John offered.
“I can't sorry, I've got a date tonight with Jackson,” Cheyenne answered casually.
“Ooh, Jackson!” I teased.
“Shut up! It's only our third date.”
“Sounds like someone might get lucky tonight,” Brittney mocked as she walked out of the kitchen.
“No, we agreed to take it slow.”
“Well I hope you have fun, Chey,” John said sincerely.
“Blah! Give me a break John. You know you want to tease her,” Brittney retorted.
“Unlike the two of you I'm a supportive friend!”
“Yeah, thank you John!” Cheyenne said.
“Well I guess we'll go ahead and get out of your hair. We'll stop by tomorrow to help unpack,” Brittney said as she walked toward the door.
“Awe, you’re leaving too, Britt?” I said childishly.
“Yeah, I'm beat. Sorry.”
“Okay, we'll see you guys tomorrow,” John called as they walked out the door.
I walked up behind John and wrapped my hands around his waist. “It's our first night in our condo,” I said happily. “How should we celebrate?”
“I would love to do anything you want… but I'm kind of beat too. It's been a pretty long day,” John said as he turned around to face me, still wrapped in my arms.
“Awe, alright. I guess we can just lie on the couch and watch TV or something.”
“Sounds good to me,” he said as he kissed me.
John was walking in the front door as I was passing by with a box in my hands. “Guess what? This is the last one. Once I unpack this box I'll officially be moved in!”
“That's great! Finally, no more unpacking,” he said with a smile on his face. “Hey, once you’re done go get ready.”
“What for?”
“Today’s Friday… remember? You wanted to go see that new movie?”
“Oh yeah!” I said as I put the box down on the table. “I completely forgot!”
“Well I didn't, so make sure you're ready within an hour. The movie starts at nine,” he said as he walked to the bed room.
I took out the fragile items Brittney packed from my room. I unwrapped the picture frame and brought it to the bed room. “There, now you have a set.” I said as I placed my picture frame next to his Christmas frame.
He laughed. “It's funny how so much has changed. In my picture I was jokingly kissing you for a cheap laugh. In your picture I was kissing you because I love you.” He stood there for moment, vacant and distant. “Anyway,” he shook his head. “How about I finish unpacking that box and you go get ready?”
“Okay, sure,” I said as I walked toward the closet.
I took a quick shower and then got dressed. Before I knew it were in the car and on our way.
“Wow, that movie was intense!” I proclaimed as we walked to our car.
“Yeah it was! I wonder if they'll make a part two. They kind of left us hanging at the end.”
“I know! Ugh! I hate when they do that. They make this big scene and then all of sudden it just ends. I have a million questions but I don't even know if they'll be answered. If they make a part two we are definitely coming to watch it!” I said as we climbed in the car.
“Of course we are. I want to know if that guy survives or not,” he said as he pulled out of the parking space.
“Yeah, me too. I would be devastated if he dies though, his girlfriend was so in love with him. She would have nothing left without him.”
John reached over and grabbed my hand, “Don't worry, I'm pretty sure they'll be together in the second movie.”
“I hope so; movies can be so unpredictable though… Oh hey! I love this song!”
“Me too!”
I reached over to turn up the volume and that's when I noticed it. The clock read eleven-fifty nine. My heart nearly stopped. I couldn't believe what I saw. I didn't want to believe it.
“John…” I whispered, I couldn't muster the courage to look up. I was terrified.
“What? Is something wrong?”
“No I just…” I was interrupted by a harsh and terrifying chill shooting down my spine. My hands began shaking. My heart was racing. My throat dried. It was getting harder and harder to breathe.
I looked up at John, and my heart sunk into my chest. I was horrified at what I saw. Headlights emanated from the window behind him.
“John!”
A Letter from the Author
If you are reading this that probably means you’ve read my book and I want to say thank you. I am just a 17 year old boy who came up with an idea for a novel and you gave it a chance. It means a lot to me and I really hope you enjoyed my work. I spent a very long time on this and I am very glad that I’ve finally had the chance to release it.
&n
bsp; As I mentioned, I am only 17 so I don’t have all of the knowledge most authors have, but I gave writing a chance anyway in hopes that I would surprise myself with my ability to write. Though I believe this novel came out better than I initially expected, I plan to learn more so that my next novel (the second part to this story) comes out even better. I look forward to writing more stories and I already have many ideas in mind. Again, thank you.
Thomas Gomez
Acknowledgements
Allison F. (my 9th grade English teacher)
Thank you for your encouragement and your help in getting this book published. I came to you hoping that you would help me with my work, and you gladly accepted. I am forever grateful.
Myyah W., Samantha K., Chandria B., Thomas P., Cheyenne C., and Daniel S.
All of you are some pretty amazing friends! Myyah, you were the one who encouraged me to turn my dream into a novel. Cheyenne, you pushed me to write by constantly asking if I was finished yet. The rest of you were constantly encouraging me to do the best I could. You all always reminded me that whether my book was loved or hated the fact that I tried was the most important thing. If it wasn’t for all of you, this book would not have been written.
My Family
Thanks to all of you for forcing me to write. I waited until after my first year of writing to tell you about the book and when you did find out you were supportive and helpful. Thank you for telling everyone you know about this book. You did a lot to encourage me and now I just hope that you are proud of my work.
Every single one of you played a big role in this and every single one of you were helpful and encouraging. Thank you for supporting me and for believing in me. It means more than you know.