If I Stay

Chapter 28

I remember being little & always thinking that growing up, with a loving family, would be easy. I would wiz through highschool with no problem at all. No family problems, no drama.

I dont know what I was thinking.

Having an abusive brother, a mother who takes sides, & a father who is almost never home isnt your typical 'happy' family. Actually, its not even a family. It feels like theres no love in the house whatsoever. To make matters worse, moving to California made everything much more difficult, hard to cope with.

Meeting Rickys friends, falling in love with one of them, & having one of them practically wanting you dead isnt easy to deal with. No.

So I take back what I said, about growing up being easy.

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Its been almost a week since I last saw Jc. Ricky went to florida for some DigiTour crap, leaving my mom, Nalla, & I behind. I didnt tell my mom about the whole story about Acacia, Jc, & I.

"So, wait. Jc & you are no longer together because Acacia wants to protect you?"

I roll her words around in my head, thinking about what to say next.

"Yes mom. Now can we please just eat lunch like a normal family?"

I didnt want to talk about it anymore, let alone think about it.

"So how are you Al?" I look over to see Nalla picking at her turkey sandwhich. I smile. "Ive been good, I guess." She shrugs off my polite question.

Ever since she witnessed the real Ricky, she hasnt been the same. She flinches at the slightest movements, & shes been having reoccuring nightmars of god-knows-what. I didnt like the fact that she had to witness that, she didnt deserve to. She doesnt need to be dragged into this.

The rest of the day went by slowly, Nalla playing in the yard, Teala spending the night, & my mother going out with some friends.

"So how are you?" Teala asks me. Shes the first friend that I made here thats a girl, & I honestly dont regret going to the Awesomeness TV shoot.

I tug at the loose strands of my blanket. How have I been? Ive been so absorbed in Jc & the drama with Ricky that I havent really paid any attention to myself.

I shrug. "Ive been better. What about you?" I watch as her lips pull into a small smile. Her & Connor have been seeing eachother & its honestly one of the cutest yet bizzare things. "Amazing. Absolutely fantastic." She says, throwing her hands up in the air.

The rest of the night was spent talking about our future & boys.

***********

The next morning I get up tiredly & tug my brush through my hair. "Good morning." Teala says cheerfully. She picks up her pink toothbrush & covers the brushes with toothpaste before scrubbing her teeth. I grin, the foamy toothpaste dripping onto my chin.

I walk downstairs with Teale behind me. "Mom?" I call. No response. We must be here alone. "Lets go to Connors." Teala suggests as we're sitting on the couch. I shrug not really up for the idea. I dont want to see Jc or Ricky. "How about we go to the board walk?" I suggest. I know for a fact that Jc, let alone Ricky, would be there all by themselves. She smiles before nodding.

When we get there, the board walk is empty. Thank god. I hate crowds of people. Teala & I walk along the board walk, letting the salty air fill the silence that hangs between us. "How are things with Jc?" She asks. I blink, surprised. She caught me off guard with the sudden question. I chew on my bottom lip.

"I dont know." I admit. I dont know how things are with us. Part of me blames Acacia for all of this, but part of me thanks her. If it wasnt for hwr, I would continue dating a player, basically. I shake my head to clear my thoughts.

"Hey Teala!" A familiar voice calls from behind us. I turn around to see Ricky, Connor, Sam, Kian, Andrea, Trevor, & Jc trotting behind us.