Stranded/Episode 3

This is the third episode of Stranded, entitled, Far Away.

Episode 3; Far Away
October 30th, 2014

The young redhead sits alone in a local restaurant, sporting a pink sweatshirt and light blue jeans. The restaurant, often referred to as 'Young Mountain's most fantastic eating establishment'. It's celebrated for its fresh (supposedly) meat and delicious coffee, although the girl didn't think it was anything too special.

The restaurant itself was relatively small, a few booths here or there, but mostly consistent of two-person tables, which is where the girl sits. However the other seat was empty, a half-drinken iced tea and half-eaten omelet lying on the plate. On her plate was a ham omelet that was barely even poked at, and a small tea to the left of her.

She hated being alone like this; sure, she knew it wasn't going to be for too long, but it still made her quite nervous nonetheless. In fact, if she had not lifted her tea to take a sip, no one would've noticed a thing -- but, as she lifted it to her mouth, it was almost unnerving how much that one tea shook.

She took a sip and placed it hastily back onto the table, sighing intensely as she does so. Next, the red-headed girl poked at her omelet awkwardly with her unnecessarily small fork, before placing it back down.

She waited in silence for a few more moments before the seat in front of her is occupied again, a boy her age smiling as he looked up at her.

"Kenton," she smiled.

"I didn't take too long, did I?" he asked, taking a sip of his iced tea, as he said so.

She shook her head. "I-It's okay."

"Lizzie…" he started as he cut another piece of his omelet. "…if anything's bothering you, anything at all, you can tell me."

Lizzie, or Elizabeth, nods understandingly. He means well, they've been friends long enough to know that, but the way he says it…it's almost like he's scolding her or something. It was weird to her. She appreciated and hated it at the same time.

But, time drags on. "Thanks again for dinner." she yawned, graciously smiling at him. "It's good."

Kenton squinted his eyes at her, almost as if he was looking to read her mind through her facial expression. But, after a bit, he only shrugs his shoulders, finishing off his iced tea. "Well, the offer's always on the table."

Kenton and Elizabeth continue to idly chat as they ate their dinner, courtesy of Kenton's mother, for a while.

Once they were finished with their dinners, the two started their long journey back to Kenton's house. It took about forty five minutes, but to them, it felt like two hours out in that cold breeze.

The two best friends entered the house one after the house, slowly wandering to the living room. Kenton rubbed his hands furiously together to warm himself up, while Elizabeth opted to just keep her hands in her pink sweatshirt's pocket. Kenton practically jumps onto his green leathered couch, stretching his back out as Elizabeth quietly sat next to him.

"So," Kenton exclaimed, throwing his hands together. "Oliver today asked me about getting the old gang back together...opinions?"

Elizabeth sighed upon Kenton's confusion. "The…'old gang'?" she repeated, looking up at him. "You mean…?"

Kenton chuckled to himself, interrupting Elizabeth. "Yeah, everyone."

Elizabeth herself was shocked. Sure, she'd thought about it before, but Kenton and Tyler were the only ones who bothered to try and stay with her. They didn't like her anymore; or worse, scared of what she became.

Her silence, or lack of reaction, is when Kenton decides to continue. "What do you think?”

“W-W-Well,” she paused, staring from Kenton to the floor. She was still unsure what her answer was -- this was all too much for her. Too much, too soon.

“You don’t have to force yourself to answer right away.” he chuckled, interrupting the stuttering girl. “It’s not like it’s happening tomorrow.”

Elizabeth slowly nodded. “R-Right.”

Kenton then threw his arms around Elizabeth’s shoulders, wrapping her into a tight and rather forceful hug -- to which she squealed from the shock.

It’s not like she wasn’t used to it, in fact, Kenton does this all the time to her. Every single morning he greets her with a tight hug that always takes her off-guard. However, in a weird way, it really made her feel more comfortable…

As Kenton keeps Elizabeth in this tight grasp, it’s only a mere few seconds before the both of them erupt into a fit of giggles. This is where Elizabeth felt most comfortable. Where all of her problems seem to abandon her...right there in Kenton’s arms.

While Kenton and Elizabeth giggle and act like newlyweds, just down the hallway, behind a closed pink door, on top of a pink mattress, lies Miranda. In a pair of Kenton’s black sweatpants (which are way too big for her), and a pink tanktop, Miranda lies on her bed, quietly humming to herself to the rhythm of More Than a Feeling.

Now, is this the way she’d like to spend her thursday, the night before halloween? Of course not, however, it’s not like she can really do much else. If she goes out, Kenton will bug her and ask if he could tag along with Elizabeth, and even if she does manage to get out, on the off-chance she runs into Jordana or Oliver…

Not worth it.

Suddenly, from directly beside her left hip, her phone vibrated. She sighed to herself, not bothering to look at it, but instead picking her limp arm up and grabbing it.

''Who could it be? Dad? Marley? Kenton?''

Miranda sat up as she brought the phone slowly in front of her face. Wiping her sore eyes with her free hand, she brought the blurry screen closer to her. “Jor--Jordana?”

She confusedly looked at the name of the sender of the text, before opening her flip-phone, with the screen already waiting for her on Jordana’s message:

''“Miranda, why weren’t you in class today?

Remember our deal?

Oliver and I will be their first thing in the morning.

Be ready, you’re coming with us no matter what.”''

Miranda sighed to herself again. There was no escaping it, she knew that, but that didn’t stop her from feeling the need to protest it. She begins to quickly type out her reply, her fingers being shaky though just makes her half-assed response look even more half-assed.

''“Sorryyyy Jordana.

Won’t happenen again.

Promise.

Give meh 1 moer chane.”''

Reading it over again before pressing the “Send” button, Miranda knew just by looking at the amount of typos on her screen that it probably wasn’t a good idea. She sighed to herself, and she quickly discards the message, setting her phone aside.

Goddamn it…

….I really messed up this time, didn’t I?

Almost directly after putting her phone down, there is a knock on her door, and again, she sighed to herself. Can’t she just have a few moments of peace?

This just sucks…

Who could it be this time?

“What?” she mumbled, just loud enough to be heard from outside her door. “What is it?”

She yawned as the door slowly opened. She warily watched as Kenton poked his head through the door, offering a light smile to his step-sister. “Hey, Miri.”

“Hi.” she mumbled, stretching her arms out in front of her. She was relieved it was Kenton of all people, but she was still annoyed at the prospect of her alone-time being interrupted. “What’s up?”

Kenton shrugged his shoulders, his gaze shifting from his sister to the floor in front of him. “Nothin’ much. You feeling any better?”

This time it’s Miranda who shrugs her shoulders. If there was one person who could ever understand her, it was Kenton. He had always been there for her...even if she was wrong or overreacting, he always stood up for her. But, that being said, she could just as easily read him…

Why does he seem upset?

Is he mad at me?

What did I do?

“Hey,” he started, his smile not once fading. “Remember that I’m here for you, okay? If you need to talk or anything at all you can just call me or come get me.”

Yeah, yeah I will.

You know I will...you’re the only one left on this Earth who cares about me, after all.

“I guess.” she mumbled, giving a noncommittal shrug to her step-brother, who in turn left her room, lightly closing the pink door behind him.

Jordana sits on a stool at the gray counter in Joshua’s kitchen. With one hand on a glass of water that’s positioned in front of her, and her other on Jennifer’s shoulder who sits beside her, she casually speaks to Jennifer, Samantha (who stands on the opposite side of the counter), and Joshua (who tiredly sits on the other side of Jordana, his head resting on his counter).

“...Understand?” she finished, her eyes moving around to the three before her. Jennifer shrugs her shoulders in confirmation, Samantha slightly nods her head, and Joshua just lets out a tired groan. “Is that a yes, Joshie?”

“Y-Yeah,” he shakily replies, to which Jordana releases her grip on her water and uses it to give Joshua a slight tap on the shoulder.

“Well, what did I say then?” she questioned, looking from Joshua to Samantha, who just silently watched Joshua.

“You told me not to do too much and to drink a lot of water, mom.” he mumbled, slowly lifting his head off of the table, to which Jordana smiled and nodded.

Jordana then got up from her spot at the counter, grabbing her bag from the floor beside her, and sighed. She quickly set it on top of the counter, before going into her jean pockets to check her phone in case Miranda responded to her...which, of course, she didn’t. Instead was a message from Oliver, notifying her that he was outside of Joshua’s house to pick her up.

“Well, I’m out.” she beamed, putting the phone back in her pocket and the bag over her shoulder. “Feel better, Joshie.”

“Wait,” Samantha blurted out as Jordana turned toward the front door. “No hug goodbye?”

Jordana both rolled her eyes and smiled as she turned back around to face her three friends. Before Jordana knows it, Samantha has her wrapped in her arms, followed by Jennifer, and last but not least, Joshua.

Joshua gives Jordana a weak hug, just barely getting his arms around her before she initiates it. “Feel better, kid.” she smiled. “Don’t forget to take your motrin.”

“Thanks for everything, mom.” he mumbled as Jordana released her grip. “And I won’t.”

Jordana turned back around, smiling to herself. As she started to walk out of the house, she couldn’t describe the joy she was feeling in that moment. Sure, Jennifer and Jordana talked all the time and hugged and what-not...but Samantha? Joshua? They haven’t had a full-lengthed conversation in three years...yet they treated her like they would’ve if they were still friends.

“I love you guys…” she mumbled under her breath, before exiting Joshua’s small house.

As the sun sets on that thursday, Oliver drives down the empty road with Jordana sitting in the passenger seat. Oliver, one hand on the wheel and the other rubbing Jordana’s sore neck, silently stares at the road before him.

At the same time, Jordana just stares down at her cell phone silently going her texts she sent to Miranda that she hadn’t responded too. She sighed as she laid her phone on her lap.

“So, what’re we in charge of for the party?” she asked, looking over at Oliver who quickly looked back over at her and then back to the road. “Snacks? Alcohol?”

“Both.” he smiled, letting go of her neck and putting it back on the wheel. “Ty’s getting ice, but he said he’s gonna be an hour late or so.”

Jordana nodded. “Why’s he going to be late?”

“He has to wait for his parents to get home.” he shrugged his shoulders. “He gotta take care of the twins and he can’t leave ‘em alone.”

“Aren’t they, like, twelve?” she asked.

“Yeah, but they’re still babies according to Ty’s parents.” he mumbled. “Shouldn’t matter too much though, there’ll be a lot of people to keep Duane busy before he gets there.”

Again, Jordana nodded. It’s not like Oliver was wrong, she wouldn’t trust her little brother home alone at that age either. At the same time however, she knows Tyler better than most. He’s probably sitting at home, watching his little sisters, stressing out over this party full of people that bully and fuck with him.

“Hey,” Oliver said, putting his hand on Jordana’s shoulder and giving her a little shake. “Don’t worry about it, alright? Ty’s strong. And we’ll be there to keep him company if need-be, right?” There’s a pause, and once Jordana nods, Oliver changes the topic. “So, how was your time at Joshie’s?”

“Surprisingly fun.” she mumbled, smiling to herself. “I mean, I was really nervous seeing Joshie again after three fucking years, but he treated me like he used to…” she trailed off as Oliver smiled at her. “Sammi was there too...gosh, those two really haven’t changed at all.”

Oliver chuckled at the last sentence. “They dating yet?”

Jordana giggled and nudged his shoulder. “Nope. Joshie’s still oblivious to her feelings -- Jen’s too.”

Oliver shook his head as he continued to chuckle. “That’s just sad. It’s been over two goddamn years.”

While he spoke, he parked his car in front of a liquor store. He quickly unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the door to the car. “Well, I’ll be right back, babe.” he said, leaning over to Jordana and planting a kiss on her lips -- to which she faintly blushed -- and then he exited the car, shutting the door behind him.

As Jordana watched Oliver walk into the store, she quickly picked up her cell phone from her lap. She went through her contacts slowly before landing on a “Tyyylllerrrrr”, and she quickly pressed call. She needed to make sure he was okay with this…

Tyler sits on a brown leather couch in his living room, blankly staring at the small television in front of him. His two little sisters, Braede and Sarah, sit on either side of him, watching the television as well. The two girls look nearly identical to one another, the only difference really was that Braede had a daisy clip-on in her hair, which she almost always wore.

The living room has bright yellow walls that really catch the eye, especially when the dark brown couches are pushed up against them. The room was mostly empty, aside from the couches and the television, the only thing really notable in it was a little pink toy-castle in the corner of the room.

As Tyler sighed to himself out of mere boredom, his phone randomly started to vibrate in his pocket. He jumps a little at first from the initial shock (which, in turn, scares his two sisters), and he quickly reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone.

Incoming call:

Jordy ;)

Tyler smiled to himself and rose from the couch. “I’ll be right back.” he smiled, looking at the two girls who silently watched him stand up. He briskly walked out of the living room and into the kitchen, answering the phone as he did so. “Hello? Jordy?”

“I thought I told you to stop calling me that.” the voice on the other end muttered back...well, at least now he knew it was definitely her. “I was just calling to see how you were doing…?”

“Fine.” he quickly replied -- maybe a little too quickly for Jordana’s liking however. “I’m fine.” he repeated.

“You sure?” she asked. “We can always do something with Duane later if you don’t feel comfortable, y’know? I don’t think he’d mind…”

Tyler sighed. “I know, but tomorrow’s Halloween and he already invited me to Jerri’s party so we can’t do anything then either.” he paused, lowering his voice as he looked at the back of his sisters’ heads, whose eyes were still glued on the television in the next room over. “I don’t know what to do, Duane’s other friends hate me.”

“Well, why don’t you just talk to Duane and tell him you don’t feel comfortable? Or, if that still doesn’t really help, then just invite him out later yourself.”

“I already promised I’d go, Jordy.” he yawned. “I ain’t going to back out now, I’ll see you then.”

“Okay, Ty.” the other voice came back faintly. “See you soon.”

Tyler hangs up the phone and sets it on the kitchen counter in front of him. He knew Jordana was probably right, but he can’t cancel on Duane now...Bowe’s expecting him, after all.

About a half an hour later, at a local park, Duane sits with a group of five other people around his age, Jerri and Mackenzie among them, in the grass. They group had just finished setting everything up for Duane’s party (a couple of speakers sit beside them, a large blue cooler for drinks which resides beside a girl with blonde ponytails), now all they need to is...wait. Wait for it to get darker out, wait for everyone else to show up, wait for all the little kids and parents to go home.

Duane himself sits in between Mackenzie and another guy from his basketball team, six-foot eight Bradley. Next to Mackenzie is the blonde girl with ponytails whose name is Alexis, and beside Bradley is Jerri. And of course, beside Jerri, is her best friend Jenny.

“So Duane,” Jerri asked, eyeing him from her spot next to Bradley. Duane simply looked over at her, nodding as if to tell her to continue. “What’s your plan for tonight?”

“Isn’t it kinda obvious?” Bradley interrupted, not even giving Duane a second to answer (even though he was going to say the exact same thing). “We’re having a party to celebrate Duane’s coming-of-age.” Bradley smirked, nudging Duane who smiled back at him.

“No duh, morons.” she continued, crossing her arms. “I meant, are you going to make your move tonight?”

“Move?” Duane scoffed, dramatically turning his head back to Mackenzie and Alexis. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

That was a lie. He knew very well what she was talking about...it was something they all knew (aside from Alexis, who confusedly stared at Jerri and Jenny who were trying their best not to giggle). Duane admittedly had the biggest crush on Alexis, it was something he was pretty open about, but not something he really wanted to admit in front of her.

“Anyways,” Bradley continued, trying to change the topic for poor Duane, who shook his head at the still-confused Alexis. “How much longer before the rest of these people bounce?”

“Should only be about an hour or somethin’.” Mackenzie muttered, looking to the sky. “The stars are starting coming out.” Almost directly after finishing his sentence, Alexis lets out a loud yawn, to which the five other friends chuckled and giggled among themselves.

“Tired already?” Duane asked, shaking his head. “The party hasn’t even started yet.”

She shook her head. “Only a little.”

“Hey Duane,” Jenny whispered, leaning over both Jerri and Bradley to get to him as Mackenzie and Alexis started drifting off to another topic. Jenny flirtatiously smiled at Duane when she notices she has his attention. “If the princess falls, it’s your job to pick her up.”

Duane sighed, shaking his head while doing so. “Why am I the one faced with this responsibility?”

Jenny leaned back as she continued to smile at Duane. “Just because…”

Duane smirked as he turned back toward Alexis who was being teased by Mackenzie over something stupid. Even though Duane was still quite mad at Mackenzie over what happened with Miranda the day before, fighting wouldn’t solve anything right now...after all, it’s a day to celebrate. That doesn’t mean he won’t let him get off scotch-free though. Duane will make sure to give him a piece of his mind later.

Tyler walks through a convenience store about forty five minutes later, a shopping list in his hand. Really, all he needed was ice, but he figured he’d bring some chips or pretzels or something just in case Jordana and Oliver ran out of money or decided to be cheap and only get one or two bags.

The store for the most part was empty, a couple of people here or there going through the aisles, but nothing really notable. He turns down the snack aisle, picking up a few bags of chips as briskly walks through the aisles, not really paying much attention to what he’s actually grabbing.

However, as he reaches the end of the aisle, distracted by the list in his hand, he accidentally bangs into someone who was just entering the aisle, who too was not paying attention to where she was going.

Tyler takes a few steps back instinctively, dropping the bags that were in his hand to the ground. Mumbling a quick “Shit.”, he hurriedly began picking the bags up, not even noticing the girl he walked into was on the floor holding her head. Once he does look up and notice it, he immediately dropped all the bags again and rushed over to her frantically apologizing.

Once he’s right beside her does he get a good look at the girl, and that he actually knows who she is. “Sammi?” he curiously asked, holding his hand out to her.

Samantha stared up at him, with one hand on her head and the other free, she quickly grabbed hold of his hand. “Ty?” she asked as he helped her off of the ground.

“Are you okay? Oh my god I’m so sorry.” he frantically apologized as he helped her regain her balance.

“It’s fine.” she smiled, shaking her head. “I’m sorry though, I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

Tyler giggled as he bent back down to grab the chips back up from the floor. “I wasn’t either. So, looks like we’re both at fault then.” As he finished gathering the bags from the floor, he stood back up straight and turned his attention back to Samantha who stood in front of him, scratching her head. “So, what are ya doin’ out this late?” he asked.

“Late?” she asked, looking down at her gold wristwatch. “It’s only nine.”

“Yeah but it’s dark out, is it not?” he questioned, shrugging his shoulders. “And you don’t drive, so, don’t tell me you’re walkin’ all the way back home.”

Samantha sighed, grabbing a bag of potato chips from the shelf in front of them. “I came out to grab a couple of snacks and some motrin...for Josh.”

“So you’re still walking to his house in this darkness? he asked, to which Samantha nodded almost instantly. “Well, that just won’t do, now will it? I can give ya a ride, y’know?”

“No thank you.” she mumbled, before walking past Tyler and continuing down the aisle.

But, Tyler’s too stubborn for his own good, so instinctively he follows her, making sure to put in as much pep into his step as possible. “Are you sure~?”

“Yes.” she smiled, looking back at him as the two left the snack aisle and into the aisle that has a shelf or two dedicated to medicine, proteins, and vitamins. Samantha quickly went through the aisle while Tyler tagged along, and before she knew it, she had a bottle of aspirin in her hands.

Just as Samantha grabbed that bottle, she slowly started to make her way to the cash register. But, before she can walk more than five steps, she’s suddenly grabbed by the shoulders, and is spun around so that she’s facing Tyler. “I actually wanted to ask you something.” he said, nudging her shoulder.

Samantha sighed, stretching her arms out as she did so. “Fine.” she mumbled, before smirking menacingly at him. “You can ask me as we drive back to Josh’s house.”

Tyler’s smile grew wide, before putting his hands up into the air in victory.

“I con~vinced her!” he exclaimed, while Samantha gently smiled and shook her head.

“You’re too much for me.” she yawned, as Tyler grabbed her with his free hand, and started leading her through the store.

“I only have one more thing to get then we can go.” he enthusiastically said, looking back at Samantha and smiling. He really was stubborn, and while that’s not normally a good quality to own, Tyler rocked it. He made the most of every situation and he got what he wanted most of the time, but if it wasn’t hurting anyone, why should he care?

Only five minutes later are Tyler and Samantha pulling out of of the convenience store, and onto the road in Tyler’s dad’s car. Tyler sits buckled up, two hands on the steering wheel, and just a lot of effort goes into concentration itself.

Samantha is more relaxed in posture, her head resting on the back seat as she takes a deep breath. She keeps her eyes, which are barely open, on Tyler. “So,” she started, taking a pause to yawn.

“Tired?” he interrupted, giving her a quick glance and a smile. “Aren’t ya glad I asked for you to come along?”

She nodded and smiled. “Yeah, but, what'd you want to ask me?"

Tyler, without taking his eyes off the road, put the car stereo on. It was very faint, but it made Tyler feel a bit more at ease. “So, today Oliver called me…”

“So?” she interrupted. “Aren’t you two friends? Isn’t that normal?”

“Well, yeah, but if you’d let me finish…” Tyler teased, leaning back in the driver’s seat as he turns his car into a sideroad. “He asked me if I’d be down to get our old group back together.”

“Our ‘old group’?” she asked, turning her head in thought -- to which Tyler giggled, before nodding.

“Our old middle school group.” he smirked. “The two of us, Oliver, Miri, Jordy, Kenton, Lizzie, Duane, Jen, Joshie, and Mack.”

“Ah,” she mumbled, stretching out her back on the soft, leathered seats. “I don’t know, Ty.”

Tyler sighed, he knew that was the answer he was going to get from Samantha, but now’s his time to persuade her. “Just think about it. The ten of us together again, chillin’, reminiscing about the good ol’ days...”

“Ty.” she forcefully interrupted him, catching his attention. “It’s not going to happen, okay? You know why Josh and I can’t see all of you anymore.”

Tyler fell silent; of course he knew what Samantha was referring to, but the past is the past, they can’t dwell on it forever. Well, that’s what he’d like to say. But, knowing Samantha, she’d probably get really offended or do something irrational in the heat of the moment. She is the kind of girl who acts first, thinks later, and that’s because she’s just so over-emotional at times. So instead Tyler opts to stay silent, and drive Samantha back to Joshua’s house.

Despite the weather being very chilly out, the party for Duane’s birthday at the park had just gotten into full swing. It was very dark out, the only light coming from the moon and a streetlight in which a group of four positioned themselves under.

The music was loud, and at the moment Timber by Ke$ha and Pitbull rang throughout the rather-crowded park. The party itself was divided, the largest group of people were dancing by the speakers, a majority of them with drinks in hands, and then there were three or four groups scattered around that chose to rest and stare at the beautiful scenery before them. One of the groups being Oliver and Jordana.

The two rested next to one another on a blanket Oliver brought, the two of them just looked so out of it. If it wasn’t for the loud music or the screaming teenagers, the two would’ve fell asleep by now, so instead they just watch the night sky together.

“It’s really pretty.” Jordana said, removing her glasses from her eyes, and placing them next to her opened and half-drunk bottle of beer.. “Too bad we can’t enjoy this in peace.”

“Yeah,” Oliver mumbled, before turning onto his side, and giving Jordana a peck on the lips. “And too bad I’m the designated driver of the night.”

Jordana smirked as she too turned onto her side so the two were face-to-face. “You offered.”

“Yeah, yeah…” he trailed off as the two looked into one another’s eyes. “I’m just happy I get to stare at your beautiful face all night…”

“Oh, Romeo.” she mocked as she gave him a kiss.

“Heyy, l-losers~!” a sudden enthusiastic and clearly slurred voice came ringing out to them. Simultaneously, the two lifted their heads and they looked to the direction the voice was coming from, just in time to see Tyler collapse onto the blanket beside Jordana, who slowly sits up. “This. Is. A. Partyyyy.”

“Yeah, and you’re drunk.” Oliver chuckled, reaching over Jordana’s body to pat Tyler on the head. “Maybe you should call it a night, buddy. We got school tomorrow, y’know?”

“Okay,” Tyler mumbled as he span around and put his head on Jordana’s lap, staring up at her pale face. “But you two are being soo~ooo lame right now. It’s Duane’s big day and you two are just flirting the night away.”

“Well, we have a pretty big test in math first thing in the morning, Ty.” Jordana said, running her fingers through Tyler’s hair as Timber slowly faded out, and My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark by Fall Out Boy started. “So we really can’t do anything that’ll make us feel like shit.”

“Can one of you at least dance with me~?” he asked, before grabbing Jordana’s bottle of beer and taking a sip. “Please?”

Jordana looked back at Oliver and smirked. “He’s all yours.” he said, taking the bottle out of Tyler’s hand. “Just make sure he doesn’t drink much more, alright?”

“Yes, sir.” Jordana said, as Tyler practically jumped to his feet. Tyler turned to Jordana who groggily stood up, stretching out her legs, before grabbing her by the wrist, and practically pulling her to the group of people whom were dancing, amongst them was Mackenzie who was dancing with a group of his guy friends.

Meanwhile, on the other end of the park sat Duane, his face buried in his hands. It was quieter there and much empty -- but in this situation, that’s just what he needed. Sure, everyone who had gathered at the park had gathered there because of him, but a drink or two ago he got a pounding headache and had to step away from everyone. Not to mention that his closer friends Oliver and Jordana weren’t really doing much of anything, and Tyler took one too many shots so he can’t really babysit him all night…

“Hey, Duane?” a small, yet calm voice suddenly called out from behind him.

Duane’s head instantly turned in the direction of the voice, and there stood the timid Alexis, who held her arm behind her back as she waited for Duane to notice her. “Hey,” he said.

“Can I sit?” she shyly asked, looking up to the sky as she did so.

“Yeah, of course…” he said, and with that, Alexis briskly walked over to Duane and sat down next to him. “Did you need to get away too?”

“Yeah,” she mumbled, looking up at Duane, who looked down at her. “You?”

Duane nodded in return. “There’s too much going on over there for me.” he said, leaning back, planting his hands onto the ground, which he uses as a support system. “Too loud.”

Alexis timidly smiled and nodded in agreement before a gust of wind decided to traverse through the air, sending shivers up the duo’s spines. “Not to mention cold…” she whispered as she grabbed her own arms.

“Yeah, this is when I wish I brought a blanket or jacket or something.” he said, shrugging his shoulders. “If I had anything I’d lend you it.”

“I know you would, Duane.” she whispered, before lying down on the grass. Duane looked back at her, before smiling and joining her.

The two blankly stared at the night sky in silence for a while, idly chatting and awkwardly smiling at one another for a bit. In that moment, between the peaceful atmosphere, and the beautiful moon and stars, Duane truly felt amazing.

October 31st, 2014

The following morning, Miranda lied sleeping in her pink bed like any normal day. With her big pink blanket covering her entire body, face included, she was ready for just another average day. She hadn’t decided if she was going to school today, or rather, she was going to stay home and sleep all day...but on this particular day, that decision wasn’t hers to make.

At five thirty in the morning, Miranda’s pink bedroom door slowly creaked open, and Kenton popped his head in. “Miri?” he called in, rather loud too. There was no way she didn’t hear him, and he knew that.

Kenton...it’s wayyyy to early to be waking me up.

Can’t you give me ten or twenty more minutes?

She turned away from the door, pulling the blanket tighter over her head, groaning as she did so. “Go...away…” she mumbled. “It’s too early, even for you.”

“Well,” Kenton sighed, pushing the door completely open. “She’s all yours.”

Wait, what?

Miranda, like a five year-old, threw the blanket off of herself and turned toward her door to see what Kenton was talking about...or rather, who he was talking to. And, well, she should’ve guessed…

Oliver and Jordana stand in the doorway, smiling to each other upon seeing Miranda’s reaction to the duo. Oliver, wearing a orange sweatshirt and dark blue jeans, and Jordana, wearing a black jacket and black skinny jeans, both enter Miranda’s room slowly, their hands in the air as if they were approaching their prey...it was a pretty scary visual image for Miranda.

Miranda, who wore a pair of pink pajama pants and pink tanktop, quickly pulled her blanket over her head…

Go away...

But it was too late, before she could even muster out any words, she was swiftly picked up and thrown over Oliver’s shoulder. She wanted to scream at him to let her go...or maybe scream at Kenton for letting this happen...but she just hung from Oliver’s shoulder defeated. She knew there was no escaping.

Aren’t they gonna let me get dressed first?

As Oliver marched out of Miranda’s room with her over his shoulder laughing as he looked back at Miranda’s face, she looked up at Kenton who just stood there, smirking at her. “Can I at least get a pair of jeans?” she mumbled.

“On it!” Jordana called from Miranda’s bedroom.

Is she going through my closet right now?

Today’s gonna suck, isn’t it?

At Joshua’s house, an older man, around fifty years old, sits alone in the kitchen. He has a black briefcase sitting on the counter, and despite it being around six in the morning, the man appeared to just be getting home.

“Josh,” the man whispered to himself, before rising from the counter. “How could I be so forgetful...?”

The man was soft-spoken, genuine...but clearly losing it. What was he losing? Well, simply put, everything. He slowly limped through the house, taking twice as long as it’d take any other person to walk through the hallway.

Once getting to his destination, he put his old, fragile hand onto the doorknob, and slowly twisted it. Opening the door, the old man initially walked into Joshua’s bedroom, but stopped as soon as he entered.

In Joshua’s bed lied a sleeping and still-red Joshua, and beside him, Samantha, who was barely awake herself. Hearing the door had opened, Samantha lifted her head and she slowly looked over at the door, where she saw the old man.

“Samantha, you stayed over?” the old man asked. “I wish I’d known, I would’ve brought breakfast for everyone.”

“Yes, Mr. Shallow.” she yawned, before smiling and looking back down at Joshua. “Joshie wasn’t feeling too well when I got here so I decided to kinda stay over, just in case he wasn’t feeling too good in the middle of the night and needed anything.”

Mr. Shallow, Joshua’s father, gently smiled at her. “Thank you so much. He’s quite lucky to have you around.”

Samantha shook her head, but the smile on her face remained. “I know he is.”

Mr. Shallow continued to smile, before turning around and exiting the room. “I’ll leave you for now, come get me if you need anything.”

“Thanks.” she called out as he closed the door. Samantha sighed when Mr. Shallow was gone, before stretching herself across Joshua’s bed and yawning even more.

Once she was done though, she found herself face-to-face with the sleeping Joshua -- a mere three centimeters separating their faces. “Joshie,” she whispered, staring at his restless face. “When you wake up we have a lot to talk about.”