The Moment

Chapter Forty

"Well look who it is!" Tayler shouted from the top of the stairs as I entered his house. Smiling at him, he came down the stairs and I was unsure if he was standing next to Casey in the line of people who were currently mad at me. "Come here." He said, pulling me into a hug.

"I was going to tell you." I mumbled against his shoulder.

"I know," Pulling away, we began making our way towards the others. "but to think of this as our last week together and maybe not having known at all...I think that's what's getting to Casey."

"It's not like I'm going to be gone forever?"

"Regan, your parents go away for months at a time. I mean, this is the first time you've physically seen your parents this year and it's September. So you can't exactly blame Casey for thinking she wouldn't see you for months."

Tayler was right. Sure, I haven't known about this for that long but I should have told Casey as soon as I knew; I should have told all of them. But I was scared of this happening so I tried to avoid it as much as possible. But it happened anyway...

"You're not going because of Noah, right?" Bryce entered the conversation and I didn't really know how to answer that. I mean, I don't want to be one of those cliché girls that has to leave town just because a boy broke her heart but sometimes...those girls have it right.

"My parents just think it'll be best for me, you know? Get away from LA for a bit, away from the tabloids who can't wait to eat me alive and away from all the unnecessary drama."

"It's just going to be weird not having you around, Regs." Looking over at Jaden, I couldn't help but getting a little sad. This group of idiots are my family and to think of spending months without them, it makes me realize how much they actually mean to me.

"What did Noah say after you saw Dixie last night?"

"He pretty much just came by to defend Dixie and his actions and in so many words, I told him to fuck off, basically. If he thinks what he's doing is right, why does he feel the need to defend himself so much? Like, I've never had so many conversations with someone who feels the need to explain every little detail of their actions. At the end of the day, I don't care and-"

"You do though." Tayler said, cutting me off. "Regs, we're not stupid. You really liked him and you still really like him. Forgive me for saying but I think you like him a hell of a lot more than you're letting on."

The room fell silent as Tayler's words filled the air and I couldn't help but think about it. Maybe pretending like I didn't care wasn't the answer. Maybe that wouldn't help me feel better at all. Maybe actually coming to terms with how I really felt about Noah would be the answer to all my problems. If I accept exactly how I'm feeling and put it out there in the open, maybe that would do me a hell of a lot more good than leaving would...