It's Not All Roses

Chapter 2

The next day, Molly went home after school. She had to take care of her little brother again. I went to my own house, and went inside. I put my stuff in my room, and took the spare house key from my bag. I put it in my pocket, and went to the front door.
"Where do you think you're going?" My step father stopped me.
"To Molly's like usual. You got a problem with that?" I turned to look at him. I wasn't in the mood for this.
"Actually, I do have a problem with that. You're going with me and your mother to the pool. Go get changed." he then got some towels, and put them into a bag.
"I'm not in the mood." I stood there.
"You never spend any time with us. Just come. If it's really that boring for you, call a friend or something." he then went to get the rest of our things.
I went through my phone, looking for someone to call. I scrolled and scrolled, when my finger fell over a number. It was my childhood friend, Dominic. I had gotten his number again a couple days ago, after not having it for at least 2 and a half years. I contemplated on if I should even call him. I figured it was worth a try, and called him. He picked up almost instantly.
"Hey Lucas, what's up?" He asked.
"Hey Dominic, I was wondering if you wanted to go to the pool down the street from me with my family, if you got nothin' to do." I sighed. "Might make the experience a little more.. alive."
"Yeah sure man, I'll go. Let me get changed quick. What's your address?" he asked me, and I gave it to him.
He got there within 10 minutes, and we left. It was pretty fun with him there. Unlike Molly, he seemed to be happy and having fun. Being with him made me feel more awake. We stayed there even after my parents left, just having fun and talking. It felt just as good as it did back when we talked all the time. We left the pool around closing time. We changed in the bathrooms, and I walked him home. He lived on the other side of town, so it took us like 7 minutes to get there, and the same amount of time for me to get back. Once I did get back, I packed a bag and went to Molly's. When I got there, her and Stacy were sitting on the couch, silently staring at me.
"What?" I was confused.
"What took you so long!?" Molly shouted at me.
"Woah, no need to raise your voice. I was at the pool with my parents and my old friend." I rolled my eyes a bit.
"Who is this old friend!? What's their name and why did you care enough to invite them and not me!? I'm supposed to be the one going places with you!" She was still yelling.
"His name is Dominic Taylor, and I didn't invite you because you wouldn't have come anyway! You would have just been mad at me for bothering you!" I yelled back at her, I wasn't in the mood to fight with her right now.
"Lucas, you are a horrible person. truly horrible. I can't believe that you would hang out with him. who's to say you aren't cheating on me?" she crossed her arms, as Stacy stared at me with a death glare.
"Molly, I'm done with this. Why can't we just get along for once?" I calmed my tone.
"You can sleep on the floor for tonight. Stacy and I are taking the couch." She sat back down.
I did end up sleeping on the cold, hard floor that night. I woke up early the next morning, and went to my house. I was so annoyed. That week, Dominic stayed with me. We got to know each other again, and I kept having that nice feeling that I always got when I was around him. He made me feel a lot better than Molly did, but I wasn't into guys. It was just.. a friendly feeling. Or was it? Either way, it sure felt nice. Instead of Molly and I sleeping in the living room, it was me and Dominic. This most certainly didn't make Molly happy, as I got a not-so-friendly text the next morning. It was molly, and she had written a whole long paragraph saying that she hated Dominic, that I couldn't hang out with him anymore, and that Stacy was so much better than I was. I had just about had it with her. It felt like she didn't love me anymore, and I knew that feeling all too well. It was a sign. We weren't meant for each other like I thought we were. We fought for 2 days before we called it quits for good. I may have been mad at her, But it still hurt me to let her go like that. Dominic helped me. He took me out to do things, he helped me make new memories. Better than the ones I had with Molly. We spent months together, just the two of us. No one else. At that point, I wasn't even sad about Molly anymore.
The last time Molly and I called us quits, I was upset for months. I couldn't even leave the house. I didn't talk to anyone but online friends. I could barely get out of bed. But when Dominic helped me, it was like I never felt the pain at all. It felt like the weight was being lifted for me. It made me feel free. I then realized something. I loved Dominic Taylor. When that realization hit me, I felt frozen. I couldn't move. I loved Dominic. The same boy that I was best friends with all those years ago. The same boy that was with me right now. I loved him, with all of my heart.