Out Of Place

Unplanned Sleepovers

Hailey

Wednesday.
The day I only have one class which starts at 3:00pm which means I can sleep late.
I can't hear Jessica breathing which means she didn't come back to our room last night while I was asleep, she has a habit of that which is actually fine by me.
I roll over onto my side and check my cell: 8:00am.
There is also a message from Pedro.
Don't txt me or call me again. We are over.
Over?
We can't be! Pedro was the love of my life, my soulmate, the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.
I begin scrolling through our pictures together and before I can reach the fifth picture tears are streaming down my face.
After I look through all of our photos together I attempt-and fail-to call Pedro. I decide that my sleep in is definitely not happening so I get up and brush my teeth, fix my hair and wash my face.
8:30am.
I lay back in bed when there's a knock on my door. I ignore it because it wouldn't be anyone I know, if it was Jessica she would have a key to use, unless she has lost it.
The person on the opposite side of the door knocks again and I sigh but open the door.
Standing there is a ruffled haired, dark circle eyed Ben.
"Hi?" Oh my god! I, standing here in my pyjamas. "What are you doing here at 8:30 in the morning?"
"Have you been crying?" Ben asks.
"No" I look at my bare feet and he instantly knows I have.
"Yes you have...why have you been crying?"
"I haven't been crying" I glare at him and he shrugs. "So why are you here?"
"Right. I read your book last night and Hailey! It was great" I look at him in astonishment.
"You-you actually read my book?" He nods enthusiastically.
"Yes and I couldn't put it down. I haven't slept all night" that explains the very rough look today.
"Okay...I think you should come in" I step aside and Ben walks in.
"So, I was going to ask you a few things" he sits on my bed and pulls a small notebook and a pen from his jumper pocket.
"Um, hit me with them" I sit on Jessica's bed, as far away as possible.
"Okay. I need to know what happens to Tric?" He glances up at me.
"The next book will tell you" I grunt.
"Where is Jean?" He asks whilst writing in his notebook.
"You'll find out in the next book" I grunt again.
"Are you going to give me any answers?" He looks at me and folds his arms grumpily.
"Nope" I smirk.
He groans and takes off his hoodie. He hangs it over the back of my desk chair and then lays on my bed with his hands behind his head but I notice he has a tattoo that goes right around the circumference of his right wrist. In Chinese writing.
"Live the dream" I read.
"Huh?" He turns his head towards me.
"Your tattoo. It says live the dream" I cough.
"Oh" he takes his right arm out from under his head and looks at it. "Yeah it does. How did you know?"
"I'm half Chinese, my dad taught me when I was a kid" I shrug, feeling embarrassed that I told him about my heritage.
"You are?" I nod "you want a closer look?" I nod again.
I slowly stand up and walk over to my bed, he's holding his arm out for me and when I go to hold it he takes my hand and pulls me down so that I'm sitting beside him, I then realise how long he is when he is lying there while I'm sitting beside him.
I take his wrist and trace the Chinese symbols with my index finger. "It's beautiful" I whisper.
"Just like something else" I slowly look up down at Ben and see him looking right back at me. A tear rolls down my cheek. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you"
"Pedro broke up with me" I whisper.
"What?" Ben looks taken aback.
"Pedro, my Spanish boyfriend, broke up with me" my voice cracks when I say boyfriend and Ben tucks a strand of hair behind my ear.
"Good" I'm still holding Ben's wrist and a tear drops onto it, he resists the urge to wipe it off.
"Good?" I almost shout.
"He didn't deserve you"
"What do you mean?" I wipe my tears away with my hand that's not holding Ben's wrist.
"I mean, you were too good for him" Ben shrugs.
"What do you mean?" I shake his wrist with both of my hands and he sits up.
"You were studying with a guy and he flipped out, there's something obviously going on that made him want to break up so-so easily and quickly" he pries my hands from his wrist and holds them in his own.
"You mean, there might be someone else? Or he didn't love me anymore?" I look at our connected hands and Ben squeezes.
"Maybe" I glance up at him but he takes one of his hands and tilts my chin up so I'm properly looking at him. "But why would you want to be with someone like that?"
"Because you love them?"
"Love is never enough" he says softly.
"I can't just switch my feelings off Benjamin" I snap and he looks hurt by my words "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to speak to you like that. I'm just upset and I can't keep a simple boyfriend" I'm sobbing now, the ugly, snotty kind of crying.
Ben lays us both down and I'm lying in front of him with his arm under my neck and my forehead on his chest.
"It's okay" he strokes my hair gently while drawing circles on my back.
"It's not okay" I whisper.
"Why?" He whispers back.
"Because my life shouldn't be like this"
"Like what?" He pulls back and I can feel him looking down at me.
"Me laying her with a perfect guy when my boyfriend has just broken up with me, in college with no social life and a dysfunctional family"
"I'd like to meet this dysfunctional family of yours" his voice is beginning to sound husky and tired.
"I shouldn't be doing this" I say almost so quiet he can't hear.
Before I fall asleep, all I can remember is his lips touching my forehead lightly and suddenly feeling more at peace.
-
"Shoot" I feel the bed sink in front of me and the movement of someone.
Who is in my bed?
I rub my eyes and then open them, my sight is slightly fuzzy with sleep but I can see the figure of Ben hauling on his hoodie and running into the bathroom to fix his hair.
"What's going on?" I croak.
"I'm late" and with that he runs out of my room and slams the door shut.
Late. For what? Meeting the second girl to sleep with? Or the second relationship to break up?
I check my cell phone  and the time says 1:30pm.
Time to wake up properly.
-
I'm walking to English Lit when I see Jessica in the corridor.
"Hey, how are you?" She asks.
"Hi, I'm okay, how are you?" I smile meekly at her.
"I'm great, sorry I didn't come back to the room last night. I hope you had a boy over"
I laugh awkwardly, trying to act natural. "No, I wouldn't have a boy over"
"You did!" She screams.
"I didn't" she begins jumping up and down, flapping her hands in the air.
"You had a boy over last night" she grabs my shoulders and shakes me "was he good? I bet he was"
"You did what?" a male voice says behind me. I turn and find Callum standing leaning against the wall.
"Nothing" I say quietly "I didn't do anything"
He removes Jessica's hands from my shoulder "hey" he winks at her and I practically feel Jessica swoon.
"Hi" she twirls her hair around her index finger and bats her eyelashes.
Someone pass a bucket.
"You are coming with me" he snarls and he pushes me in the direction of our rooms.
-
So, here I am, sitting on Callum's bed with him pacing around in front of me.
"I'm late for class, Callum" I whine "I can't miss this"
"I don't care, you can catch up" he snaps "however, I do care when you're sleeping with boys"
"I didn't sleep with a boy. Not in the way you're thinking anyway"
"In what way?" He stops in front of me and glares down at me.
"We literally fell asleep together and it was at around 8:30 in the morning!" I moan.
"Who was it?"
"Does it matter?" I tilt my head.
"Yes" he crosses his arms and stands so close that my knees touch his legs and I have to crane my neck to look at him.
"Then probably not" I shrug.
"What is his name?" Callum growls.
"Jim" I smirk.
"I asked you a question" he shouts and I push him back so I can stand up.
"And I'm not answering it. I'm 16 years old and I don't need you to baby me so back off" I shout back.
"I am your older brother and since dad isn't here it's my duty to baby you" he says quietly.
"By two minutes Callum" I huff.
"I was just worried you did something stupid" he looks at me "sorry"
"It's okay" I walk over to him and he pulls me into a hug. Callum's hugs were always my favourite "I didn't do anything stupid but it was great and he's just a friend"
"I was mostly worried about you messing Pedro around because it would suck for him and you would hate yourself" he kisses my forehead and I remember the kiss Ben placed in the same spot.
"Pedro and I-we aren't in a relationship anymore" I whisper.
"What? How? When? Why?" He blurts, pulling me away by my shoulders and looking down at me in my face.
"I was studying with the guy from this morning and Pedro called me, he asked if I was with a boy and he assumed I was cheating on him, which I wasn't because we were studying" I shrug my shoulders again.
"That pri-"
-
Do you ever like to sit in the park on a crisp, fall afternoon with a book and you can read and watch the world go past? I do too.
I'm sitting on a bench directly in front of the pond and mallard ducks are floating by peacefully. I can hear the distant crunch of leaves as people step on them and the rustle of leaves on the trees in the wind.
It's cold enough to see my breath billowing in front of me but I'm wrapped up with a bobble hat and a scarf on, my winter coat and Chuck Taylor's.
My eyes are closed and I'm breathing in the crisp fall air when I feel someone sit down beside me.
"Hey" Ben says nudging me.
"Hello Benjamin" I keep my eyes shut.
"Um, how are you?" He asks.
"I'm fine" I mutter "how are you? Great I'm assuming"
"I'm okay" I open my eyes and look across the pond.
"And what are you doing here?" I ask shortly.
"I was going for a walk to look for someone"
"Looking for someone, huh?" I nod "another girl to fall asleep with? Or another girl to assist in the destruction of her relationship?"
"What is wrong with you Hailey? I have done nothing wrong" he turns towards me but I turn my head the opposite way.
"You have done one thing wrong. No, two things wrong. Three-a long list of mistakes Benjamin"
"Then tell me them" I hear a smile in his words and I try to calm down my flipping stomach.
"Why should I give you what you want?"
"Trust me, this is nothing compared to what I want" I glance towards him but his smiling face makes me look to the pond again.
"Firstly, you cause my boyfriend to break up with me. My boyfriend! You then force me to give you my first book. And then you come to my house at 8:30am which is a mistake itself. Not only that, you stay over and you make me fall asleep with you. I slept with a boy. A boy, Benjamin! A fully functioning young adult male with a functioning heart, lungs and male organs" Benjamin laughs through his nose but he begins laughing loudly which annoys me.
"It's not funny"
"A fully functioning male with male organs" he says between laughs.
"Well what else are you? A badger with fully functioning female organs?" I turn to look at him and our knees collide but he doesn't notice and continued howling with laughter.
"Hailey"
"Benjamin" his laughing is calming down now but tears are streaming down his cheeks.
"Please don't ever forget that I'm a perfect guy with said male organs.

Author's Note
Hello everyone! I'm really sorry for not publishing a chapter in a while, I did love reading all of your comments while I was away, the amount of love you guys are giving me and my book so far has amazed me and I just can't believe even one person is asking me where my next chapter is. However, here it is and I hope you enjoy it, don't forget to vote and comment your opinions on it.
QoTC: What do you think of Hailey and Ben's friendship so far?