Amelia Blackwell laid in her bed staring up onto her roof which she had filled with glow-in-the-dark stars. All she could hear was her breath and her steady heartbeat. It was kind of peaceful.

She was deep in her mind, thinking of everything and nothing. It was when she was all alone and everything was quiet she finally got to think. It wasn't always a good thing though.

She heard an odd noise from downstairs, waking her up from her thoughts. She debated if she should brush it off as nothing or go down to investigate. But, if it happened to be what she thought it was she had to check if everything was ok.

She made her way down in a hurry, careful to make as little noise as possible. The worst-case scenario would be that a serial killer had broken into her home and had intended to kill her, the rational
one whatsoever—

She turned the corner, peeking into the dark living room, only lit by the television screen. On the couch a middle-aged woman laid, her eyes closed and mouth halfway ajar, her makeup smudged all over her face and her hair a ruffled mess. Amelia quietly drew closer, her gaze dropping to the woman's hand which held a burnt-out cigarette, then onto the floor where there was scattered glass from a wine glass.

"You got to be kidding" She rolled her eyes in frustration, having witnessed this scene too many times to feel any sad emotion.

She took up the broken pieces on the floor and laid them on top of the table before she put a pillow under her mother's head and a blanket over her body. Then, she headed back upstairs.

As her back landed on the bed, she let out a deep breath, putting on her headphones, her eyes trailing back onto the stars on her roof. She laid like that for a few minutes, listening to music to drown her thoughts out. Suddenly a song she didn't like came next and she took out her phone to skip when she saw a shadow climbing through her window in her mirror.

She let out a scream, extra startled by the fact she didn't hear anything, then she saw who it was. A brown-headed boy, sitting on her windowsill, now with an amused expression on his face.

"Holy shit!" Amelia breathed out, her heart about to jump out of her chest.

"Hey to you too, neighbor" He laughed.

She threw her pillow at him, annoyed by how funny he thought scaring her was, even more vexed when he managed to move his head to the side before it hit him.

"How many times have I told you that you can't just climb through my window whenever you feel like it, Marcus?" She rolled her eyes with a small huff.

"Oh, yeah, Blackwell? Don't act like you don't like it" He said jokingly as their eyes locked, the room growing quiet as she unintentionally said nothing in response. Their eyes stayed on each other until he broke eye contact, picking up her newest book from her counter and skimming through it.

In the many years Amelia had been friends with Marcus, he must have made himself feel at home in her room at least a thousand times. A warning could have been nice, but, she didn't mind it. Not that she would ever tell him that.

"So, hear this..." He let out, He let out, putting down her book and sitting down beside her on her bed. "I was outside and the new neighbor lady ran up to me and asked me for weed"

"No way?" She laughed as she dropped her head down on the pillow. "And, did you give it to her?"

"Of, course, easy money" He responded, laying down beside her. "Anyway, I heard she has a daughter our age. Hope she's cool, we need someone to spice things up around here. Everyone's so boring."

"Gee, thanks," She said as he turned to face him, hitting him playfully in the arm.

He gave her that charming grin of his, pushing some of his hair away from his eyes. If she didn't know him she'd be intimidated by his capability to hold eye contact as long as he did. "You're the only exception"

Her lips turned upwards as the words left his mouth, but only for a second. "What about your girlfriend?"

He rolled his brown eyes, shaking his head as if to signal — I've already told you. "Padma isn't my girlfriend"

"Sorry, I forgot, you don't do girlfriends"
She let out mockingly as she quoted him.

"I guess I just enjoy my freedom too much...unlike you" He joked as he put his hands under his head. An obvious jab at her boyfriend Peter which Marcus didn't like at all.

"Shut up" She chuckled as she took the pillow under his head and smacked him hard across the face with it. His hair which he used a good amount of time to style every day ruffled, and his facial expression changed into a slightly shocked one.

"Oh, alright..." He let out seriously, his gaze abruptly turning intense. She was about to apologize, maybe she hit him too hard? But, before she had the chance a mischievous grin made its way onto his lips. "so you want to play that game?"

Before she knew it, he was sitting on top of her, his hands reaching out for both pillows on her bed, starting to hit her with them over and over again. Still more gently than she hit her.

"Marcus, stop!" She chuckle, her hands up in front of her to prevent the pillows from getting to her face.

He let go of the pillows and took hold of her arms, pushing them back onto the bed, his face getting closer to hers as he let out a laugh. "Not so tough now, huh?"

Her laughter grew lower, realizing just how close they were and in mere seconds the room had grown completely silent. By now she would have moved, pushed him off her, but for some both of them stayed still.

His eyes traveled over her face and for the first time in their friendship, she was completely unable to decipher the expression on his face. Her body was tingling, she couldn't explain it but there was something about the way he was looking at her. Before she was able to blink, he had leaned even closer.

"Marcus!" A voice shouted. It was coming from outside.

He let out a small huff, running his fingers through his hair as his head turned towards the window. They had both snapped out of it, whatever it was.

He got off of her as he moved towards the window, her following right behind him. When they looked outside they could see his twin sister and her friend, Maxine hanging halfway out the window of his room.

"Marcus!"

"Chill, I can hear you" He spoke out with a roll
of his eyes. "What do you want?"

"Hi, Amelia," Max said with a huge smile before
her eyes moved back to her brother. "Mom's looking for you"

"Ok, then what does she want?"

"As if I should know" She shrugged with a bit of annoyance in her voice before she disappeared
from the window and back into the house.

"Better hurry, don't want your mom to find another box of your stash" She smiled amusingly as she looked up to the taller boy.

"You're hilarious" He answered sarcastically, be he started to climb out the window, struggling a bit.

"It's way easier to just use the door, you know" She chuckled as she put her elbows on the window frame, resting her face in her hands.

"But, way less fun," He said smoothly as he jumped onto the ground flawlessly, giving her the salute he always used when he said goodbye.

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬𝐧'𝐭 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 - Ginny and GeorgiaWhere stories live. Discover now