All Along

016

"Hey, leave her alone!" Cory!

And within three seconds, I hear a loud bang and my eyes go wide with horror.

One of two things could have just happened. Either my best friend is now dead, or my best friend is now a murderer. I can't decide which is worse...

"Cory?" My voice shakes with fear.

"Tessa? Are you in the closet?" He pulls the blanket back and smiles at me. He just killed a man. And he's smiling about it?

"You... You- you killed him...?" I say as if it were a question.

"I just shot his leg. He will be fine, sadly. He deserves much worse."

"Who... Who is it?" I ask. The man was wearing a big black hoodie and I didn't get a good look at his face.

"Um... I don't know. I've never seen him before. Hey buddy!? What's your name?"

"N-Nick," he says.

"Well Nick, why are you in my friends house?" Cory asks harshly.

"I-I needed money," He admits.

"I'm calling the cops, then we are gonna get out of here and go see a movie! You have had way too much on your mind with your brother and father and now this idiot!" His nostrils flare as he looks at the man with the bleeding leg.

He pulls out his phone and dials 911.

...

The movie ended up being complete rubbish so we left early to get something to eat.

"You know you look lovely. That dress is beautiful. And I love your hair, too," he smiles.

"Well thank you. You look quite ravishing yourself, Cory."

He pauses. "Tess... Have you ever met anyone who is just... Perfect? Like completely perfect in every single way humanly possible?" He asks and I shake my head. "Well neither had I... But that was before I met you. You are perfect, Tessa. Maybe not to everyone else, but to me, you are amazing. Your laugh, your smile, everything about you is perfect. And everyday, you amaze me more and more. I know you carry a lot of stress and anxiety on your shoulders but I think the way you carry yourself is beautiful. The way you arrange your books and how the volume on the television cannot be an odd number. Your perfect. And I think that the way you carry yourself is perfect," he smiles and I feel the sting in my eyes. I know what he wants. But I can't give it to him.

"All I want to do is be with you, Tessa Hamilton. But... You, you are the sun and I'm... I'm the moon. And I know that we will never collide." He frowns and a tear runs down both his and my cheek at the same time.

"I can only hope that one day, I'll be the one you long to have. I love you, Tessa!"

"Cory-"

"No, when I tell you I love you, I mean it! Its not just out of habit its because you are the best thing that has ever happened to me and I will want to remind you of that every single day for the rest of my life."

A tear slips down my cheek again and he leans across the table to wipe it away. "I can only hope that one day that I will be the one you long to have," he repeats.

...

Cory. That's all I can think about. Even staring right at my brother, who is about to be discharged, I can only think about Cory. Everything he said... It... It made me feel like I actually meant something. Like I wasn't the sky or an eternity of nothingness; I was the sun. Like he said. I am the sun and he is the moon. And we will never collide.

I wheel my brother into the elevator on his wheel chair and hit the button 'G' for ground. The elevator takes us down and into the dark street where my mothers car is parked, waiting for us both.

As soon as Jack is inside the car, I hop into the back seat. This entire day has been a complete mess. Everything; from our house getting broken into up until now. I shouldn't have lead Cory on like that. Now look what I've done. The poor boy has feelings for a girl who will forever be just his best friend.

Today has been a mess. And I would do anything to take back calling Cory. Maybe then, the whole night wouldn't have happened. I would do anything to have been shot by that man.