The girl next door

Chapter 28

Riley-
Todays Saturday so there's no school. I'm thankful I don't have to see James or Amanda today. I've been in bed all day. Emily came in and checked up on me, and told me she's going to a party. I'm in a baggy tshirt, sweatpants, and my hairs in a braid. I don't have the necklace James gave me on. I feel bare. Like a part of me is missing.

"Riley you didn't finish the dishes or take out the trash." My dads girlfriend says barging into my room. I rub my swollen, exhausted eyes and sit up on my bed. "Oh sorry I got distracted." I tell her about to get up and go finish. "Well you've been distracted an awful lot lately." "There's just some things going on." "Well snap out of it. You have responsibilities you can't be slacking off." She tells me. "You realize that Emily's at a party right now? You what happened last time she went to a party? She got drunk and crashed the car and gave me a fractured foot. Why doesn't she do the dishes sometimes?" I say raising my voice. "She's almost an adult." "So am I!" "Don't raise your voice at me." Water fills back in my eyes. I'm surprised there's any left in there. "I do all the chores while my dad drinks and sleeps on the couch all day, and you think I'm slacking off?" I say walking past her and out of my room crying. I go downstairs and take the trash outside, hoping that she'll get out of my room so I can continue my sobbing.

James-
Im playing basketball outside trying to get Riley off my mind. The sun has set behind the houses and trees, so I figure I'll go back inside. While I make my last shot of the night I hear footsteps coming down the driveway next door. Riley comes out wiping away the tears that fill her eyes and stream down her face. I know she sees me. But she's not looking at me. She doesn't want our eyes to meet. She throws a garbage bag into the garbage can laying beside the sidewalk, and goes back inside crossing her arms looking down at her feet.

It's Monday and we have school again. I'm sitting at my usual lunch spot with Eldon, hunter, and west. Amanda just got off of my lap to talk with her cheer friends. "Bye babe." She says putting her lips on mine and walking away. I didn't kiss back. I haven't all day. I know she's gonna lecture me about it, but I'm just not in it today. "Yo you ok?" West asks noticing. "I'm good." I say putting my attention back to my food. But they won't let me. "You don't seem good bro." Eldon tells me. "You won't even look at Amanda, she's your girlfriend." "I just.....I don't know how to explain." I say to them.

Hunter-
"Don't do it." I say to myself as James is about to answer Eldon and wests suspicions. I can see he wants to. He wants to tell us about what Amanda's doing. If he does, the boys might help him and it could ruin our entire plan. "Explain what?" West asks him. "Don't do it." I think again looking into his eyes. His weak, impulsive eyes, as he whispers, "Amanda blackmailed me into ending things with Riley." I close my eyes at the sound of those words slip out of my mouth as Eldon and west freak out. I just know the plan has gone to shit now.

"Ok we need a plan to get her back, I can't take this anymore." James tells us after explaining more in depth. "You need to get the picture off her phone. Someplace she'll be distracted." West comes up with. "Oh hey, max's end of the year party. Last year it was so lit there's no way she won't be off her phone." Eldon buts in. "That's perfect." James says. "But that's next week, so many things could happen in a week." The bell rings and we all get up and collect our stuff."Dude this is gonna work, just wait it out and you'll get your girl back." West says patting him on the back and walking off to class. Riley is my girl. Not James's. There's no way I'm letting this plan work.