Page 2

Two years later - May

So oh-oh oh-oh oh-oh oh-oh oh-oh

You need to calm down, you're being too loud

And I'm just like oh-oh oh-oh oh-oh oh-oh oh-oh

You need to just stop

Like can you just not step on my gown?

YOU NEED TO CALM DOWN

I laughed softly at Brit and Kayla while they screeched out T-Swift at the top of their lungs. Instead of joining in, I just tapped my fingers on my steering wheel to the beat. As I looked in my rear-view mirror I could see my cheeks were flushed pink from unwanted attention.

I pulled out of the Senior's parking lot were many many students lulled around.

More than a few heads turned towards my car to check out the loud commotion.

I ducked my head slightly in embarrassment but I still smiled at my friends.

They were crazy together pretty much on a regular basis, but that's why I loved them.

Well, that and the fact that they never forced me to partake in the crazy.

They were perfectly content to let me sit back pretending I didn't know them every time they started causing too much of a scene.

A small pang of sadness filled my heart as I drove home.

Everything was about to change. High school would be over in a month and then the three of us were parting ways.

For four years now I had leant on Brit and Kayla more than I probably should have.

Despite all my dreams of flourishing like a butterfly after Sophomore year.

.. it never really happened. I just never felt like I could break out of my shy shell.

I tried so many times to be outgoing like the two girls singing next to me, but it just wasn't possible.

I always ended up overthinking what I was saying or doing, and then I'd make a fool of myself by blurting out something awkward.

It became easier to float to the background and let Brit and Kayla take the attention away from me.

I honestly appreciated that they were so accepting of my shyness, but now I was worried that I wouldn't be able to survive without them—at least socially.

They were always the buffer to take attention away from the fact that I was an awkward little duckling.

Without them, I was sure that I would get branded a wackadoo in college.

"Okay, you both need to calm down before my Dad rips the stereo out my car." That was a threat I got pretty often. It was usually around the lines of... Lotty, I love you, but if I hear that shitty pop blasting in my driveway one more time...

"Yeah yeah... Poppa Avery loves us too much to break our hearts like that," Kayla quipped back.

I turned the stereo down anyways as I parked the car and shut it off.

Streamers peaked through the window at us as we walked up the driveway towards my family's suburban home.

Great Mom is going all out for this dinner tonight.

"Family! I am home!" Brit shouted the second we were through the front door.

"Uhhh uh! Nope! We are not your family... Go home ya moochers," My dad shouted back from his office off the foyer.

My mom's voice drifted from the kitchen, "Don't listen to the grump ladies!

You know you're always welcome." It was immediately followed by the clang of metal bowls.

As I rounded the corner and saw the mess she had made, my heart sunk a little.

She is really going all out for this dinner tonight.

"Mom! I told you not to make a big deal about this!"

"Oh Hunny, I'm not! It's just a few decorations and a little cake for dessert."

I couldn't help it as I rolled my eyes at her.

Bless her heart, my mom didn't do anything "little".

She lived for being over-the-top. Normally, I didn't blame her, it's how she showed her love.

The only problem was that she's always shot for the Martha Stewart stars.

If I let her have free reign then we'd end up with a life-sized cake of my face or something.

I gave her one last pleading look as I silently hoped that she listened when I told her I wanted tonight to be small and low key.

The girls and I grabbed some snacks then ran upstairs to my bedroom until dinner time.

As usual, Kayla begged me to let her straighten my hair.

I managed to sway her away by promising that she could pick out my outfit.

For as long as I could remember my hair has been a point of pride for me.

I knew I wasn't ugly per se... but I also knew that I wasn't a knockout.

But my hair has always been something I got compliments on. It was dark and curly and went down to about midway down my spine. I usually wore it half pulled up with wispy curls around my face and the rest falling down my back.

The thing I loved most about it was that I didn't have to do too much to it.

I rarely got haircuts because I was terrified one wrong cut could ruin it.

It would get a little frizzy and messy for sure, but I think it just added to the overall look.

I usually just threw a scrunchy in it and called it a day.

Kayla always told me it would look better smooth and chic, but it just never felt like me.

I'm a little messy and a little frazzled so my hair should be too. At least that's my philosophy.

We spent the rest of the afternoon scrolling Instagram and laughing at our own lame jokes.

I soaked up every moment of joy and prayed that we wouldn't drift too far apart at college.

A part of me knew that Brit and Kayla would flourish at school without me.

They would make new friends easily and probably settle into their classes well.

It would be me that missed them the most. I would likely be the one trying to keep us in contact all of the time. But could I blame them? Of course not. It's not their fault that I'm a co-dependant baby who can't operate in the adult world on her own.

The doorbell rang, letting us know it was time to go downstairs to welcome my guests. I checked myself out in the mirror and sighed slightly. Kayla had tried to put me in short shorts and a frilly top but I put my foot down. We went back and forth for a while before finally settling on this outfit.

I wore high waisted, dark, skinny jeans that hugged my bum tighter than I would prefer and a slouchy, cropped, white-knit sweater.

Kayla had made me put on a bunch of thin gold necklaces and rings that seemed excessive for a family dinner but I didn't fight her.

Honestly, the outfit was better than anything I could have done myself.

I just knew it would probably look better on her or Brit.

The three of us ran down the stairs like a stampede of clumsy elephants. Choosing to ignore the exasperated look thrown at us by my mother I went to see who had arrived.

"Grandpa! Grandma!" I exclaimed as I saw my two favourite humans standing by the front door taking off their coats. They both looked up at the same time and beamed at me as I threw myself into their arms.

"Hey, sweetie congratulations!" My grandpa said as he wrapped his large arms around me for a tight squeeze. I turned my head up from its place buried in his chest to give him a soft smile. I really did not want a ton of attention tonight but my grandpa held a very special place in my heart.

He was a huge, gruff, old man but he was always so good to Oliver and I.

He didn't say too much, but he went above and beyond for us.

I spent my childhood having sleepovers with my grandparents, getting breakfast in bed, and playing on these crazy contraptions that grandpa made just for us.

I remember one of our favourites was a see-saw—except it had four seats instead of two—and when you pumped up and down the see-saw would spin around in circles.

It was like having a carnival ride in our backyard.

After greeting my grandma too I led them into our living room where Kayla and Brit had already settled.

I laughed at my dad's exasperated face as he sat in his lazy boy—it was pretty obvious that the girls had been driving him crazy.

They never seemed to be able to take a hint with him.

I relaxed into the couch and looked at the people around me as they caught up jovially.

Oliver wasn't home from work yet but he would be soon.

After he graduated everyone expected him to go to college right away, but Ollie had other plans.

He had declared that he refused to waste money on school when he didn't know what he wanted to do yet.

So instead he got a job working at a mechanics shop right out of high school and saved money to travel every few months.

My parents were...less than pleased. But they didn't press him too hard.

Of course, that doesn't stop my dad from dropping comments occasionally about Oliver, "getting his life together".

After Oliver, the only other people missing were the Johnsons.

A sick feeling crept into my stomach at the thought of them.

It had been more than two years since I realized how much I had embarrassed myself around Archer but sometimes it was still hard to face his family.

Thankfully, Archer was away at school right now so it would only be his parents and his five-year-old sister Annie.

Our families had always been close, but Oliver and Archer's friendship brought us together even more.

They didn't have any relatives around that I knew of, so they always ended up at our house for events and holidays.

Which of course was...super fun given my rules to never interact more than the bare minimum with Archer.

Thankfully, I was naturally quiet anyway so it's not like it was unusual for me not to speak too much.

The front door slammed open and immediately I knew it was my obnoxious brother.

"Hey hey! look who I found in the driveway!

" He shouted from the foyer. I got up from my seat and peeked through the walkway to see that the Johnson's had entered with my brother.

As my brother passed by me he wrapped his arm around my neck and planted a kiss on the side of my head before carrying on upstairs to change.

I turned towards the door to thank the Johnson's for coming and my heart dropped right to my feet.

Archer.

Archer Johnson standing in the doorway of my house.

Great...