by T. K. Rapp
She looks affronted for a moment, but softens and nods her head. “I get it. Based on the way you’ve been treated, I understand. I can’t say how things will work for Joey and me, but I can tell you this: I’m not the type of girl to hate someone and talk bad about them just because. I think you’re pretty cool and obviously you can handle yourself. I wish I had your confidence. Not to sound all stupid and cheesy, but I’d like it if we could be friends, no matter what happens between me and Joey.”
“I’m not sure how good I’ll be at it, but I’m willing to give it a try.” I smile.
“Great.” She clasps her hands and flashes a larger than necessary smile. “My first act as your friend is to get you to pick a damn outfit for your party. When is it anyway?”
“Two weeks,” I sulk. “I turn eighteen in two weeks and my friends want to torture me.”
“Poor baby,” she coos as she reaches over and hands me my cell. “I think you got a text.”
I look at the screen when it lights up with Haden’s name.
Haden: It’s not what you think.
Me: I know. Sorry I freaked.
Haden: You know?
Me: It’s crazy to see us like that.
Haden: It was something that came to me after we talked.
I read the texts to Bailey and after the last one, she looks at me with questioning eyes.
“What?” I ask.
“What did y’all talk about?”
“Lots of things, but there isn’t one thing that stands out—it was a pretty overwhelming night.”
“Don’t you think you should ask him then?”
Me: What does it mean?
Haden: I guess it’s a wish.
Me: Wish?
Haden: Yeah—that maybe we didn’t meet too young.
My nose burns, my eyes fill with unshed tears, and Bailey is there to witness the whole damn thing.
“You don’t have to tell me—I already know it’s something good. Those artsy types are so romantic.”
I look at the screen again and smile before answering. “Yeah, he really is.”
Chapter 12 ~ Finding the Exit
The last two weeks have been an absolute hell.
Word spread that Braxton was having a party, and my name was simply a footnote in the description. Not that I care—which is good, because no one else does either.
They wanted to have a costume party, since my birthday falls the day after Halloween, but I vetoed that idea. After that, the guys were having a hard time coming up with a theme, so Mrs. Jameson offered to help plan it and all the guys took her up on it. What was supposed to be a small gathering has turned into the social event of the semester and I’d like to crawl into a hole until it’s over.
In fact, there were several people who commented a similar sentiment. I’d heard talk when the party was mentioned that no one would even notice if I wasn’t there.
Newsflash: I’m counting on that!
Bailey has been on my case trying to get me to stick around and prove everyone wrong.
“I don’t have anything to prove,” I told her.
“Then do it for the guys,” she argued. “The other people might not be there for you, but the guys are.”
And that leads us to our current conversation about my birthday party, which is tonight. Bailey came home with me and is staying the night. We’re supposed to head over to Braxton’s house around eight, so that gives me three hours to get sick with something.
Is that a fever I feel coming on?
“Are you even listening to me?” Bailey whines as she waves her hand in my face.
“Nope.” I grin. “I tuned you out when you said ‘dress.’”
“You are hopeless, you know that?”
“Thanks.”
“Are you seriously still planning to stick around for only a few minutes?”
“I told the guys weeks ago that I’d much rather just hang out with them—and you, of course. This party was their idea and I don’t want a part in it.”
“Don’t be a jerk, you know they’d be mad if you skip out too soon.”
“I make no promises other than this: I will show up. I will smile. I will leave. When all of this happens is yet to be determined.”
“Fine,” she huffs. “Let’s get dressed. I told Joey I’d head over early to help with the setup.”
The good thing about a November birthday is that it’s cool enough to wear my favorite jeans—though I did relent and buy a cute cream chiffon blouse to wear over a cami. There’s also a long black coat that’s been collecting dust in my closet for a year that I’ve been dying to wear.
Bailey brought over some dress selections from her house in case I change my mind, but I won’t.
She’s in the bathroom getting dressed and I drag on the skinny jeans and then pull my knee-high boots over them. The shirt sits perfect and looks good against my light skin, though I have no idea what to do with my hair.
Bailey emerges from the bathroom and her jaw almost hits the floor.
“What?” I drop my hands against my thighs. “Does it look that bad?”
“Not at all. Damn, Laila, I love that outfit.”
“Oh, wait until you see the best part.” I head to the closet and dig through it until I find the coat. It’s fitted and light, but dresses up the entire ensemble.
“Okay, you have to let me borrow that sometime.” She smiles and twirls around. “What do you think?”
She’s wearing a sleeveless navy blue dress that hugs her like a second skin. Against her olive complexion and curvy body, it works.
“You look great, but you realize you’re going to be cold, right?”
“I’ll be fine,” she argues. “How are you going to wear your hair?”
I shrug. “It’s done.”
I have never been one to do much with my brown hair. Ponytail or down, that’s the extent of my styling skills, mainly because I don’t have the patience to learn.
“Sit down and let me play with it,” she pleads, waving me toward the bathroom.
Reluctantly, I follow and watch with fascination as she twists, twirls, and pins my hair for ten minutes before pulling out her wand. No, not the fairy godmother magical kind—the burn-your-hair-off or scar-you-for-life, incredibly hot kind.
“What, exactly, do you plan to do with that?”
“Shut up and sit still,” she orders.
I stick my tongue out at her and sigh as she pulls random pieces of hair and wraps them around the rod. She grabs a mirror out and hands it to me so I can see the back.
“I love it,” I say, looking at the intricate up-do she did to my hair. It’s a messy clump of hair that she secured into a bun with a few strands left out. She finished the look off with a pretty antique-looking comb with tendrils framing my face.
“How did you learn to do this?” I ask, admiring her work.
“I get bored sometimes.”
“When I get bored, I read,” I laugh.
“What about your makeup?” She starts to open her bag of tricks again but I stop her.
“I let you get away with the hair—thank you, by the way—but no to the makeup. I like the way I do my makeup.”
She pulls out a box that has a ribbon on it and hands it to me. “I like the way you do your makeup, too. I wanted to give you your birthday present before we leave.”
“Okay, I’m a jerk,” I sigh, reluctantly reaching for the small box. “Thanks.”
“You have to open it first, you might not like it.” She smiles, but I can tell she already knows I’ll like it.
I pull the ribbon off and look inside to find a gold chain with four pieces dangling from it. Each piece has its own shape and imperfections, but it’s gorgeous. She reaches for the box and pulls the necklace out to give me a better look, and when I look at the back I see letters on the back of each oddly shaped piece that dangles from it.
“There’s one for each of the guys,” she smiles. “I know how much they mean to you, so I thou
ght you might like it.”
I’m not a girly girl, I think to myself just before I grab her and give her a huge hug.
“This is amazing, I love it,” I gush. “Can you put it on me?”
“You’re going to wear it?”
“Yeah, of course. I needed something to dress up my outfit, and I think this is perfect.”
* * *
“Laila, you look beautiful,” Mrs. Jameson, Braxton’s mom, says when she answers the door.
“Thank you,” I blush. “And this is my friend Bailey, Joey’s girlfriend.”
“I’ve heard so much about you.” Mrs. Jameson smiles.
“Can we help with anything?” Bailey asks.
“Let’s go see what trouble the guys are getting into. You know, they weren’t expecting you for another hour,” Braxton’s mom winks.
“Sorry, but this one was eager to get over here and micromanage,” I incline my head toward Bailey and laugh.
We walk into the kitchen and the guys are standing around the island chatting but all conversation stops when they see us.
“You’re early,” Cole announces, as if I’ve done something wrong. “Why are you here already?”
“We came over to help,” I say defensively.
“It’s your birthday party, you don’t help,” Braxton laughs.
“Yeah, I agree, but Bailey’s my ride and so, here I am.”
“Good one, Bailey,” Joey says with a wink.
Haden walks over and gives me a kiss and pulls me further into the kitchen. “Exactly as we planned,” he laughs and I look around at everyone who’s wearing the same grin he is.
“What are you talking about?” I ask in confusion.
“We know you don’t want to do the party thing,” Braxton starts, but I cut him off.
“Really? No party?” I jump up and down excitedly.
“Hold up, no one said anything about that,” he says. “But we are having a party for you right now, before everyone gets here.”
My mom, dad, and Luka walk in holding a birthday cake with eighteen candles, and the other parents file in behind them. Everyone starts to sing a horrible rendition of “Happy Birthday” that has me laughing. This is exactly the type of party that I wanted: my friends and family—no fuss.
Haden places his hands on my shoulders and tells me to make a wish before I blow out the candles.
I wish I could be this happy forever.
“I love y’all so much.” I smile widely at everyone after I’ve successfully blown out the candles on my cake.
“All right, Nixon,” Cole smiles and hands me a box, “my present first.”
I take the box and open it to find a concert T-shirt for Mumford and Sons and an envelope. I open it up and inside are tickets to their concert that’s coming up next summer.
“Are you kidding me? Cole, I love you, this is awesome,” I gush.
“You realize that I get one of those tickets, right?” he laughs.
“This show sold out—how did you get these?” I ask, finding six tickets inside.
“Don’t ask,” he says before giving me a hug and kissing my cheek. “Happy birthday, Lai.”
“All right, I’m not sure I can top that, but here’s mine,” Joey says, handing me a heavy box.
I rip off the wrapping paper to reveal pristine copies of all seven hardcover Harry Potter books.
“Joey!” I set the box down and give him a hug. “I can’t believe you remembered.”
I have read the entire series twice and told Joey a while back that I was tired of checking them out from the library because they never had the copy I wanted.
“I’m glad you like it.” He smiles.
Braxton hands me something large and flat that is wrapped in purple paper. It feels like a giant coloring book, but I’m certain that’s not what it is. I tear the paper off and find a United States atlas inside. I’m not sure what to make of it and Braxton points to it. “There’s a note inside.” He grins at my unease.
Anywhere you want to go.
Love,
Braxton
“What?” I ask, bemused.
“Road trip,” the guys yell, putting the pieces together for me.
“Are you serious?” I look around to see all of them nodding.
“We’ll head out this summer, one last hurrah for all of us,” he explains. “You in?”
I can’t contain my smile and jump up and down like a kid. “Yes! Thank you all so much, I love everything,” I almost sing.
“Does that mean you’re going to stick around for the other party?”
I look at Haden, who shrugs his shoulders, leaving the decision up to me.
“I’m not going to stay long, but yeah, why not?”
The guys share triumphant high fives and move outside where I suppose things are set up for the party. Mrs. Jameson takes the cake to another part of the kitchen to cut it up, leaving me with my parents and Luka. They manage a smile, but both seem sad.
“Guys, I’m not going anywhere, and it’s just a birthday. You’re still stuck with me for at least another six months.” I grab my mom and hug her.
“Happy birthday, Laila,” she says while holding my face. “The day you came into my life, I knew God had a plan.”
“You always say that,” I counter with a crooked smile.
“And she means it,” Dad interjects. “We have something for you, but we’re going to give it to you tomorrow.”
“Are you leaving?”
“Yeah, we need to get Luka in bed,” Dad says while Luka begins to cry.
“I’m not tired yet,” she argues.
“Hey, we’ll hang out tomorrow, okay?” I try to get her to stop, but it only makes her angry.
“No, I want cake,” she pouts.
“I’ll bring some cake home and we can eat it for breakfast, right, Mom?” I nod, encouraging her to agree.
“It’s Laila’s day, so whatever she wants, she gets,” she smiles. That seems to quiet Luka down and I watch them leave, looking as if something is weighing on them.
Haden walks back in and wraps his arms around my waist. I lean my head against his shoulder and relax my back into him.
“Do you really want to stick around?” he asks.
“No, but I told y’all I would.”
“Well, I still haven’t given you my present, but we have to go someplace for it.”
I turn to face him, enjoying the mystery of the gift.
“When can we leave?” I ask excitedly.
“Just say when,” he winks.
“One hour,” I tell him, pulling his wrist so I can see his watch. “Everyone should be getting here any minute, we’ll leave in one hour.”
“Anything you say.” He kisses me softly and walks outside to join the others.
I stare at the people outside chatting, but my attention keeps falling on Haden. I walk over to stand with them and he looks at me, causing my pulse to quicken. He glances at his watch and whispers “fifty-seven more minutes.”
* * *
Anyone who says they love high school must be out of their damn mind.
Over the last hour I’ve seen two almost fights, three people kicked out by Mr. Jameson for bringing drugs, and countless tears from different girls who either caught a boyfriend cheating or was dumped before getting here. All of this drama, and in six months we’ll be over it. These will all be a distant memory. But right now, in the thick of it, it’s life and death. At least for them.
“One hour,” Haden announces, breaking me from my trance of people-watching.
“I’m ready, let’s go.” I jump off the counter and make a break for the exit. “I’ll text the guys later.”
“What about Bailey?” he asks.
“She’s staying at my house. Mom and Dad are expecting her.”
“Let’s go, we won’t be gone too long,” Haden says as he threads his fingers through mine. We open the front door to leave and run into Kasey waiting on the other side.
; “Ah, if it isn’t the loser and the burnout,” she sneers.
I look around and notice that she’s alone.
“Um, Kasey, who invited you?” I ask, not at all kindly.
She’s one of the popular girls, so I guess it stands to chance that she is automatically invited anywhere she wants to go. Still, I enjoy watching her mouth agape in shock.
“That’s what I thought. I think you should go,” I finish and hear the chuckle escape Haden.
“Braxton invited me,” she defends.
“Oh, okay, hold on,” I turn toward the kitchen and call for Braxton, who comes to the door and stands behind me. “Brax, Kasey said you invited her.”
“Nope,” he says quickly with a shake of his head.
“That’s what I thought,” I say, and look at Kasey, who is mortified.
“But Braxton, I thought you wanted me here,” she says flirtatiously.
“No offense, Kasey, but this is Laila’s birthday and we all know that you aren’t her biggest fan. So no, I don’t want you here,” Brax says dryly.
She glares at me before storming off in a huff. The three of us watch her make her way down the street and disappear into the darkness.
“Sorry about that, Lai,” he says before addressing Haden and me. “Y’all leaving?”
“We’ll be back,” I tell him before he rejoins the party.
Haden closes the door behind us and we make our way toward his car.
“So where are we going?” I ask, smiling at him.
“How do you do that?” he asks in awe.
“Do what?”
“Let it roll off.”
“What am I supposed to do? Break? The way I see it, I’m going to graduate and leave this town. There’s a huge world out there and I want my chance to make the most of it. I’m not going to let someone like Kasey ruin it for me.”
He leans over and places a soft kiss to my lips. “You’re amazing.”
“Are you ever going to tell me where we’re going?”
“It’s a surprise.”
Chapter 13 ~ Finding Courage
We continue walking down the street and end up passing his car as we go. I look back at it to question, but realize exactly where we’re going.