The Girl Code (a 1D story)

Chapter 26: If You Change Boyfriends So Fast...

Chapter 26: IF YOU CHANGE BOYFRIENDS SO FAST THEY RARELY ACHIEVE NAME STATUS, A MAN MUST BE AROUND FOR AT LEAST SIX WEEKS BEFORE YOU MAKE YOU’RE FRIENDS BOTHER TO LEARN HIS FIRST NAME.  UNTIL SUCH TIME, HE SHOULD BE REFERRED TO AS “THE BOY” OR “THAT GUY”

Everything had seemed to have gone back to normal.  Izzy and Niall still hadn’t returned from Ireland.  Liam and Talia had gone to visit both of their families, for a day but then had come back. 

Things had been kind of tense between Harry and me; since we got back from his moms.  Getting slightly drunk and passing out probably didn’t help the ‘her liking me’ factor much.  Harry hadn’t mentioned anything about that day since we had returned back to London but I could tell it was still bothering him. 

Talia had agreed to take me shopping for a dress to wear on New Year’s Eve.    We were walking up and down the streets of London talking while drinking coffee and tea.  Talia was telling me all about how she and Liam had meet in school when they were kids, but then her father got another job and they had to move.  A few months ago she had moved back to London and had run into Liam at Nandos.  They started talking and a few weeks later started dating again.  Talia was becoming someone I could talk to about everything.  I had told her about what had happened at Anne’s and all she did was shake her head and hug me. 

We were out shopping still for New Year’s Eve outfits.  I normally went with Izzy for this kind of stuff but she and Niall still hadn’t gotten back from Ireland.  Since I wasn’t with Harry, and thought no one would really care what I looked like, I had decided to wear black leggings, an oversized blue long sleeved shirt that said, ‘Oh la la’ on the front, and  my black Ugg boots.  

 “Ella?”

I looked up from my phone.  “Um yes?”

“Can I ask you something?”

I paused for a moment but then quickly responded, “Sure.”

“Are you sure, like 100%, sure about you and Harry?”

I groaned, “Not you too!”

“It’s not that!  I like you but I just want to make sure you know all the shit that is going to be coming your way.”

“Talia, I get that people probably won’t like me dating Harry but I don’t care what they say!  I’m happy when I’m with him.  Is it bad that I want to be happy?”

Talia walked over and wrapped me up in a hug.  “Not at all Ella.” 

We kept walking down the street, passing by a bunch of men in Navy uniforms.  They nodded their heads towards me and I responded with a sweet smile.  Talia had grabbed onto my arm while we walked but I stopped when I heard my name being called out from the group of men we had just passed.

“Ella?!”

I turned around and saw a man walking towards me with a wide smile on his face.   I pulled my sunglasses off of my face and placed them on my head.  As the man got closer I started to be able to make out his facial features.  The brown eyes I had spent hours staring into, the broad shoulders that I used to grab hold of while he carried me.  It couldn’t be could it?  “James?”

He reached me smiled then pulled me into his arms to spin me around.  He finally placed me back on the cement and said, “Hi Ella long time no see.”

“Long time no see James. Man you look good!  How’s the Navy treating you?”

He laughed lightly, “It’s good. My boys and I are doing some training with the Royal Navy.  But let’s not talking about that, how have you been?”

“Good.  It’s been forever James.  I can’t remember the last time I saw you…”, trailing off at the end I sighed.  The last time I had come face to face with James was when we broke up.

*Flashback 8 months ago*

 James is a year older than me and when he had graduated high school he had decided that he would just join the Navy, just like his dad did.  I remember the day he told me that he was leaving for boot camp.  It was pouring rain outside and we were watching a James Bond movie.  All of a sudden he whispered, “I’m leaving for boot camp tomorrow.”

I leapt out of his arms and faced him, “You’re what?!”

We talked for the next hour about him leaving as I got off the sofa I faced him.  I could feel the tears gathering in my eyes.  “James, I can’t.”  He knew exactly what I had meant when I said this.  He didn’t try and argue with me instead he nodded his head and hugged me kissing me on top of my head.  I pulled out of his embrace and watched him leave my house and my life.

*Current time*

I shook my head coming out of the daze.  James wasn’t the boy I had loved anymore now he was a man.  I know that if I hadn’t said goodbye to him then that it would have broken my heart even more to have stayed with him. 

“Ella?  Ella…”

“Sorry!”

James started laughing.  “You haven’t changed have you?”

I joined in with his laughter, “James, changing is over rated and takes too much effort!  Did you really never that from all the time we spent together?”  By this point Talia had come to stand behind me.

She lowered her sun glasses on the bridge of her nose, “Ella who is this?”

“Oh Talia, this is James.  We have known each other, what feels like our whole life.  James, Talia is one of my newest friends.”  They shock hands and smiled at each other.

“How did you two meet?”

Talia perked up and slung her arm around my shoulder.  “Oh well Ella’s boyfriend is in a band with my boyfriend.”

“Boyfriend?”  James looked at me with confusion written all over his face.

I looked at the pavement and pretended to see the most interesting thing in the world. 

“Yea she is dating Harry Styles!”  Talia chimed in.  I looked up and saw that the pain was very plainly written across James face.

One of James’s friends called up to him, “James wrap it up!  We have got to get back on base!” James nodded his head. 

“Well I guess I have to get back to work.”

“It certainly does look that way.”  I gave him a hug and squeezed him tight and whispered, “I always knew that you would make a great pilot! Just please, take care of yourself.”

“I’ll take care of myself if you take care of yourself.”

We pulled apart from each other smiling. “Always!  We’ll you go back to flying and I’ll go back to shopping.”

James laughed quietly and then turned around and started jogging to catch up with his friends.  I watched him walk out of my life for the second time.  Turning away I started up the street with Talia right on my heels.

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