Reality

Sitting in a Tree...K-I-S-S-I-N-G

A/N: I don't know if this helps to imagine anything or whatever, but I have Lyndsy Fonseca as Scarlett and a dirty blondish Chace Crawford as Bradley. Just for those of you that like to match a face to a character, and the reason for the manips up top ^^ I'll post both on my instagram

Harry

"I don't understand," Aubrey says as she stares at the ceiling. She lies down on her back at the foot of my bed, slowly rolling over onto her stomach to look at me as I stand at my bathroom door with my toothbrush in my mouth. "How can someone flip a switch so easily? One moment Brooke is this sweet girl that wouldn't hurt a fly, and the next she's such a hateful and insulting person."

I attempt to answer her, but my words come out incoherent as my toothbrush and all the saliva-toothpaste mix get in the way. I hold up one finger as she flashes me a confused expression, excusing myself to spit in the sink. I wipe the back of my hand against my mouth and set my toothbrush on the counter before walking back into my room.

"It's a defense mechanism," I continue to speak. I sit down in the desk chair and spin around. "That's her way of protecting herself and her feelings from getting hurt."

Aubrey shakes her head as she moves to a sitting position, her legs hanging off the side of the bed. "Okay, but that's not acceptable to treat people the way she has been treating you or me recently."

"I know," I nod my head and sigh. Everything has been so complicated and so exhausting. I don't know whether to keep going or give up. Half of me has been urging that I keep going, but the other half has been pointing to all the signs that read TURN BACK NOW and DON'T PUT YOURSELF THROUGH THAT and JUST GIVE UP ALREADY. The constant push and pull is a lot harder to deal with than I was expecting, and honestly I wasn't expecting much. "I wasn't trying to defend her actions. I'm just giving an explanation for them."

"Well it doesn't matter if it's a defense mechanism or what," Aubrey rolls her eyes as she runs one hand through her curled hair. "Brooke was rude and made comments that were far below the belt. I'm not doing anything that deals with her until we receive an apology."

"You're expecting her to apologize?"

She stares at me with one brow raised, as if what I just said was stupid. "Of course I am. Just because she's protecting her feelings, doesn't mean she doesn't have to say sorry for the shitty things she does. It's not a Get Out of Jail Free card."

"We'll see how long that takes," I try to laugh, but it doesn't quite come out. 

"Anyway. I'll just stay in Liam's room until then."

My eyes flicker toward her as I grin. "How was that, by the way? I take it that the two of you are talking again?"

Aubrey forces a laugh and shakes her head as she glances at the carpeted floor. "I don't know. He's weird. I screw his friend, he doesn't want to speak with me, and then he takes me to dinner and offers his room for me to stay in. I don't get it."

"Maybe he likes you," I smirk, watching as I notice her face turn pink for the first time. A hint of a smile touches her lips, and I know that if I keep going at this, there will be one bright smile on her face as well as beet red cheeks. "Aubrey and Liam sitting in a tree," I say in a singsong voice. "K-I-S-S-I-"

"Stop!" She laughs, throwing a pillow in my direction that smacks me in the nose. Her face is gradually turning red as she tries to hide behind her hands.

"I might be going out on a limb here, but I believe you fancy a little bit of Liam."

Aubrey stands up from the bed and raises a brow at me. "And I believe it's time for me to go."