Alex lives in New York. He doesn't want to move to L.A, but when he does, he meets his YouTube idols; the Dolan Twins. After a seemingly benign injury, he can judge people's moods instantly and has awesome motor skills. But because of a botched inje...
My parents are already in L.A, so Nate and Josh are driving me to the airport. I had stayed at Josh's house because the furniture in our house is already in California. For once, we didn't play XBox, but we did chat up a storm and play basketball for a few hours outside. If my mom was here, she would be happy "You play too many video games, Alex. Go outside and play basketball or something like that!".
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Then we watched The Gallows for old times' sake and went to bed. Now I'm in a Toyota GT86 on the way to JFK. I really don't want to leave; New York is my home, and I love it. The skyline, Aunt Liberty, my school, especially Nate and Josh.
And because I'm so nice, I pull out my headphones, and start watching my favorite YouTubers' video (the Dolan Twins). About 5 minutes into the video, Josh says, "Put the phone away, Alex. Watch it on the flight, and talk to me right now. We're not going to meet for a while." "But it's the Dolan Twins! What was Skype invented for?" I ask. Nate's irritated, "Josh's right, bro."
Wow! Nate never agrees with Josh on anything other than video games and basketball. That's when he's trying to be nice to him. Them teaming up is usually a bad sign, because it means that I'm doing something wrong.
Woopsie! (I blame that on The Gallows)
"So when are you visiting Manhattan? We still need to play Call of Duty! Plus you owe me Infinite Warfare," Josh continues, "and a Rocket Bunny kit for Nate".
"I told you guys, Infinite Warfare is a yes, but that Rocket Bunny kit is 4000 dollars! No way I'm spending that much on someone else's car. And then it becomes a two-seater. Where will I sit?" I argue.
"Oh yeah, and you told me like yesterday you didn't want the game, Josh, remember?"
My trump card.
We continue arguing for the next 15 minutes, then we reach JFK. I suddenly have tears in my eyes. Go away, tears. I'm 16. I don't cry over stuff like this. Josh pulls me in for a selfie (#Instagram), and Nate photobombs us. Good job, Nate. 10/10.
I'm hit by a wave of nausea. I'm about to start bawling, when Josh gives me a handshake-turned-into-hug, and Nate just says bye. I don't want to go. Everything here is so familiar.
I don't remember check-in, customs and luggage deposition. I remember (blurrily) getting into the plane, then looking at a night view of the Manhattan skyline (look at the pic at the top). I think I fell asleep, because when I wake up, I'm in L.A.
I step out of the airport. A garish neon billboard smacks me in the face as soon as I walk out the revolving door. Everything is so alien, glittery. Suddenly, my phone rings. It's Mom. She says, "Honey, I'm to your right, Can you see me?" She waves furiously. I reply, "Yes, are you next to the guy with the Lakers jersey?"
"That's me."
I say hello, she hugs me, and we get into our car. "Dad's at home, he's got some work to do right now, so say hi quietly."
I hate Los Angeles already, and resentment levels are rising in my body. Mercifully, I realise that I didn't finish the video from New York, so to distract myself, I pull out my phone and continue the video. It's buffering really quickly for the quality I'm watching it at. The video's called the Ice Bath Challenge, and Ethan, my favorite twin, loses to Grayson. Anyway, it's hilarious either way to me.
I get into our new house in a good mood, and Dad's like "Hello Alex! Give me a hug! I've missed you." He's enthusiastic and is probably being honest with me. I don't know why(Sorry. I can be über sarcastic at times).
I may not like the Big Orange, but I love our house, and it's in a beautiful neighborhood. This might not be so bad after all.
Hey guys, Grit here. I know this was a really long chapter, but Alex has had a really long day too (that's probably my fault too). I need your ideas. Should I make all the chapters this long, or should I limit it to the 1st chapter's length (If no one answers, I'll ask OceanGrapher).
If you're reading this, you finished the chapter. Thanks for that. You guys are awesome!
