As It Happened Chapter 3, a short story by mgibson55. Date added: 2012-07-04. Times viewed: 1348.

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Ch 3

Everything was running through my mind. Betrayal, hate, anger but also love and friendship and then more anger because of the fact that even though it had only been about two days of knowing Neill, to find out that it was Erik was both good and bad for myself. When he left me back in my second year of high-school I was dead and lost inside. Probably because somewhere deep inside me I loved him. It could have been the type of love that friends’ posses or possibly a brother and sister type but that wasn’t me and Erik. Guaranteed he was my best friend and now that I look at him it is completely obvious it is him. I feel so stupid because here he was all along and in front of me and I was to giddy to see behind the fake name and good looking hair, so to say his style changed a little wouldn’t be surprising.

I remember one of the last nights before he disappeared, we were sitting on my bedroom floor going through a box full of pictures that we had taken that past summer that didn’t make it up on “The Wall”. “The Wall” was more or less a scrapbook collage of pictures that defined not only who I was but who my best friend was to me. I walked up to my room because Neill who is now Erik or flip flopped had rushed out of here after my mother made the comment. “The Wall” was finished more or less. It stopped because of him leaving right at the three quarter mark. I was so sad that the only thing that could fix me was finished “The Wall”, because I thought then that maybe if he somehow telepathically knew he would come back, but it obviously didn’t work that way.

My mother couldn’t get me out of bed for the next two days. All I did was sleep and sleep some more. It wasn’t my ideal way to spend two days of the first week of school, but Erik gave me no choice. It was sickening and just the smell of food made me sick. My mother thinks that I am purposely hurting myself to make him feel bad, but that isn’t the worst part. The reason is because he lied, he left, and he broke my heart and left me practically lost and stranded and all alone. But after the two days and the weekend passed by, I finally went back to school because I needed to. My main focus;

Stay clear of Erik.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

 

I went back to school and everybody starred at me. Personally I didn’t realize that somebody could become so famous in two days and a weekend away but there wasn’t really anything anybody could say because I was now the girl who was deserted like back in 10^th grade. Only now it was happening in reverse. I was still the deserted girl who everybody stares at but now the person who deserted me is back. But is he back in my life like he probably planned. No.

“Emberlynn, I heard what happened with you and Neill.” one of my besties, Holly said to me as she attempted to embrace me. Attempted and failed.

“It is not Neill anymore Holly. His name is Erik, it has always been Erik and as far as anybody should wonder or concern his name will always be Erik. Not Neill. Neill is made up and fake and dirty and a lie and it should have never covered up a secret that Erik should have told me.” The words that had come out of my mouth were so fast and so sharp that my friends around me had a look upon their face that made me feel horrible. I wasn’t the type to blow up on my friends about personal problems then again I really wasn’t the type to be lied to or to open up and let people in. But the look upon their face didn’t really have anything to do with me, it was something or someone behind me. I could only imagine that it was a puppy or my mother but no it wasn’t. As I turned around, Erik stood there with a sorrowful face and a card in his hands. Like he could really make it up to me with a card.

“What do you want?” I blurted.

“For you to somehow forgive me Ember.” He spoke.

“Why should I even try?”

“Here, take this, read it and you’ll figure it all out.” And with that him and his laced up black boots walked away.

“Read it!” Holly exclaimed

“It should be a more private thing Holly, it isn’t really any of our business” Becca stated. She was also a close friend of mine.

The bell had rang and I walked to class. All through it I was trying to decide whether or not I would open the card or not but I eventually decided that I had to open it. I had to know Erik’s story. But this card wasn’t a card, it was a letter.

Ember,

I am so sorry, extremely sorry that I left and that I lied and didn’t fight to stay. I didn’t know what I wanted. I didn’t know who I wanted. You were my best friend back then and seeing you now two years later is amazing. You are all grown up and I barely recognized you. I know me lying was not the best way of you seeing that I came back but at the ice cream shop I was trying to tell you that it was me, but you freaked out and ran and I am sorry that I scared you off or embarrassed you or moved to fast. It isn’t as easy as you think to just go up to your best friend that you left two years ago without any clue and say “hey it’s Erik and I am sorry for leaving but now I am back” because I know you way to well and you would have killed me or hated my guts. I am guessing that you hate my guts right now because of all the pain and hurt that I caused you by disappearing. I really have wanted to tell you that it wasn’t all my fault. My father was in trouble, trouble that was imaginable by anybody and we had to leave right away. We moved up north and things went badly. My parents were basically thrown out of my life and I had gotten adopted by a man which is why my last name changed. He told me we were coming to this town and I knew that somehow you never would have left because your parents love this town. Mr. Jones decided I should go by my middle name so I could have somewhat of a new start and change into a person that I always wanted to be. So here I am Ember. Writing you this letter because I am sorry for everything I have done to you, all the lies and secrets, I know I should have been open to you like before. So I will be open with you and try to get to know the Ember that I left and never forgot about. You have changed and I can see that which is why I am making this effort and I hope you will give me that chance. The chance to show you that I am still the Erik you used to hang out with when we were little but a little bit older, and  so I can get to relearn all your quirks and passions and love interests even though it kills me to say that. All I can say is I hope you forgive me and if you do meet me in the Bridge Mount Park and 3:30.

Erik

My face was heating up and I was tearing up and I just couldn’t help it. He was being his old self that I loved. It was hard to stay away. I couldn’t stay away because I had too many questions and he needed to answer me all of them for me to trust him again. So I decided I would meet him in the park.

He was sitting on a bench staring at his watch on his wrist and I checked my phone. The time read 3:28pm and I could see that he was getting more and more nervous to see if I would show up and now was the time to show him that I would.

I walked up behind him and tapped his shoulder.

“Ember, you came.” He sounded surprised but then again so was I that I was even here standing in front of him.

“There are some rules so do not think you can just jump right back in to my life and be my best friend again. I haven’t forgiven you yet but I am willing to give it a try because you were my best friend once.” I was laying all these things out on the table that all he was doing was nodding his head and making positive humming sounds.

“Ember, thank you so much for giving me this chance to show you that I am still the Erik you knew two years ago. I will not let you down again.” He took my hands in his and brought me into a hug. I was afraid that he was going to kiss me or something but that was only something that I thought I wanted him to do.

“Just don’t screw it up Erik. I have already lost you once and I know that if you screw it up you may not get another chance and I may not be able to stay.” I tried to hold back tears because I didn’t want to have him see me remember the past and be affected by it. We talked about a lot of things for about two hours and he bought me something to drink and it was almost as if I had never lost him and he was the same Erik that I knew.

“Can I drive you home?”

“Sure I guess.” I needed to take a chance with him and see if I could trust him and forgive him.

“Okay lets go.” He replied. He seemed so casual. More than he was at the beginning of this intentional meeting.

The car drive was a little bit awkward because I didn’t really know what to say and I felt like what just happened back at the park was more us and less awkward than now. We pulled up in front of my house and walked me to the door until he stopped me before I unlocked it.

“Ember, you won’t forget this I promise. I promise that I will do everything that I can. If you can’t forgive me in the end then I will understand but I hope that you will Ember because I really care about you.” He said and it gave me the chills that rolled down my arms and spine and then he whispered in my ear, “Ember, you are my best friend and so much more for you to find out, so please do not give up on me.”

He pulled away and then kissed my cheek and walked away from my door way and got in his car and left. I was just standing there trying to come to the fact that he kissed me. Maybe not on the lips like I have always pictured but the cheek was close enough.

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