Bruise Me Twice (Twice #3)

Chapter 16

                                                                                          Brooklyn 

For once I woke up alone, Vaughn had to go for some business meeting on their expansion to Paris, meaning I was alone today. I clicked on my phone to see a message from Vaughn.

"Morning Brooke, I'll be back around 4 and we could go out with everyone"

I replied to his message, agreeing and then went to call the girls

"Hey!" Audrey squealed on the second ring

"Morning!" Bella said as I said good morning to them

"Meet me at my apartment? We haven't all hung out in a while" I invited as they agreed and then I cut the line after a wave of 'see you later's

I hopped out of bed, slipping into a pair of jean shorts and a blue crop top and made my cup of coffee and soon enough, there was a knock at my door.

A red haired girl with freckles and a girl with brown hair and a lean figure squeezed me into a hug before we all sat down on my couch.

"So Bella, I called you guys here to go over your wedding plans" I said as I made more coffee

"I have some ideas for the theme" Audrey commented

We went over our ideas, deciding to make it a grand blue wedding; based on the ring, going over Pintrest and contemplating on whether to use flowers or blue netting. We ended up on blue netting and ribbon.

"Guys, guess what I found" Audrey said, pulling out a small VHS tape

"Where'd you find this?" I said, observing the tape that would be called old now

"You have a player right?" Bella asked me

"Yeah" I replied, remembering when they gave it as a birthday gift back in 12th

Grade.

I sprinted to where I set it, on my TV stand in a small cubby, now with cobwebs

I hastily shoved the VHS into the player as we all say down on the couch.

"Audrey, did you get it!" I heard my squeaky voice call as the person behind the camera shouted yes.

Mateo, Vaughn and Conan were on a table at Conan's house, clearly drunk to the brim, singing along to an old song that was playing. I immediately remembered the song. Hotel California by Eagles. They were screaming the lyrics as we were watching them, bursting with laughter.

"Audrey, come up here" Said Mateo, getting down and slow dancing with her next to Bella and Conan. 12th grade me shot Vaughn a look as if asking him to make it work for the moment. He just pulled me in his arms as I set the camera down.

It was a world that was less complicated back then, every weekend we'd meet up, sneaking drinks and singing along to songs. I knew Vaughn would never dance with me if he was sober but the next morning, we'd go back to being enemies.

Part of me wished to go back then, before the accident, before James but I loved how it was now as well. Time has cruel ways of wanting us to go back and wish the past was different; but without everything that happened, we wouldn't be here no matter how much it affected us. I remembered Audrey and Mateo weren't together anymore as the tape ended and the screen was black.

"Just an year before we graduated" Bella said tenderly

"Yeah, things changed" Audrey added

"You still love him don't you" I said softly

"But what he did is something I never thought a person could do" She sighed

"I knew you're trying to let go Audrey, but there's a lot more people" Bella comforted

I knew that Bella knew the real reason, Conan must have told her, but how much

Longer can we watch both of them hurt? I felt terrible not being able to mend the gap between them. But I know that Mateo didn't have the heart to tell her and we couldn't tell something that big to her. He had to tell her.

"We know you try to hide it, but you deserve some closure" I said

"I've moved on" Audrey shrugged

"Are you just telling yourself that?" Bella sighed

"Anyway, let's go now the boys are probably there now" Audrey said, getting up

We left in Bella's car, without a driver, cruising down the road to the little bar at the corner of the city where we used to go to in high school.