The Things I Love About You (Completed)

C h a p t e r S e v e n t e e n

LelYoGirlAngel are you there?

"Can we go to the beach?" I ask abruptly while Scott and I are sitting on the couch, each doing something on our phones. He looks up and I put mine down.

"Sure. It's too cold to go in the water, though."

"I don't care. I just want to take a walk." He smiles, and the sight brings a smile to my lips, too.

"Let's go take a walk, then."

****

We walk down the beach, hand in hand. My other hand is holding my shoes, and every time I take another step I giggle at the sensation of sand seeping between my toes.

"You're so giggly." Scott says, staring ahead with a small smile playing on his lips.

"The sand tickles." Every so often, the waves will lap over our feet and I shiver, and then we move farther up the shore. The water keeps getting closer to us. By the time it is dark out, we are sitting a the edge of high tide, letting the water rush over our feet before retreating. There are a few other people out, most of them with flashlights and nets, crab hunting.

"I've never seen the appeal of crab hunting, personally." Scott says as his arms wraps around my shoulders. I lean into him, shivering a little when the water reaches me again.

"It's so fun. Have you ever even tried it?"

"No. I don't see the appeal of catching an innocent animal in a net and then petrifying it with a beam of light."

"Well, when you put it like that..." I trail off, giggling again. He locks his fingers under my chin and turns my head toward him. I grin and feel his lips on mine.

"We should probably go home. It's late."

"Yeah. Probably."

****

As we are walking back to the house, I pull out my phone and check it, remembering that I had it on silent. My heart skips a few beats when I see over fifty messages from my housemates.

"Scott, hang on."

"What? What's wrong?"

"I-" I turn the phone toward him.

"Fuck. Come on." We both break into a run, and when we get to the house, I gasp and cover my mouth with one hand. The sirens and lights are apparent from miles away, but seeing all the flashing lights sitting in my driveway makes my stomach sink. I see Todrick and Alex standing next to each other behind a police car and run up to them.

"What the hell happened?" Alex runs his hands through his hair.

"Someone broke in and lit the place on fire." Todrick says, voice small. He keeps his gaze on the ground. "It's really bad. Everything is gone. Everything." Scott shows up behind me, eyes on our charred house.

"Where are Jake and Travis?" he says, not looking away from the house.

"Not sure. I wasn't able to get ahold of either of them, but they didn't come home. We both got calls from the police and came home immediately. I thought you guys were inside still. Damn, I thought you guys died, to be totally honest." Alex says.

"What do we do now?" I ask, feeling a lump in my throat. Tears push at the back of my eyes.

"I don't know. We'll figure it out." We all stand in silence, each avoiding each other's gazes, and after a few minutes, a car comes to a screeching halt just outside the driveway. I don't turn around to see who it is. I just watch fireman and police officers line the perimeter with yellow caution tape. The red and blue lights set an eerie tone over everything, and the fire truck casts an odd shadow over the house.

"What's going on?" Jake's voice.

"Is everyone okay?" Travis. I turn around to face them.

"I think we're all fine." That's all I can bring myself to say. Seeing Travis still makes me feel sick. "I-I think I'm gonna call Kirstie real quick." I excuse myself from the forming crowd around us and walk a little down the street, facing away from all the lights and the house. I pray that Kirstie will pick up.

"Hey, babe. What's up?" I let a sob escape my mouth as tears start to flow down my cheeks. "Woah, woah, babe. What's wrong?"

"Can I come over?"

"Of course. You're always welcome here. You don't have to ask."

"Thanks."

****

I show up on Kirstie's doorstep and she opens the door within seconds of me knocking.

"What's wrong?" she asks, pulling me into a hug before I even say anything. I walk past her into the house and immediately feel a little better surrounded by the scent of vanilla and mothballs that always lingers there. From the back of the house, I can hear Peyton's squealing laughter, and it brings a smile to my face. "Did something happen with Scott?"

"No, no, nothing like that."

"What, then? Do you want some coffee?"

"No. Uh, someone broke into our house." I start. She gasps.

"Is everyone okay?"

"Yeah. No one was home. The big problem, though, is that, uh, they kind of torched our house."

"Oh, God, Mitch. How bad is it?"

"Really bad. Everything was ruined."

"I'm so sorry."

"I just couldn't be there right now." From down the hall, I hear Jeremy call, "Kirst, Peyton wants a goodnight kiss."

"Come on." She drags me by the arm down the hall and I can't help but smile at the sight of Peyton tucked in with a Santa Claus blanket draped over him.

"Hi Uncle Mitchie." he says, voice clearly proving his exhaustion.

"Hey." I say back, offering a weak smile. Jeremy silently questions Kirstie when he sees me, and she purses her lips at him before walking over to Peyton and kissing him on the forehead.

"Goodnight, baby. I'll see you in the morning." She brushes his hair back and kisses the top of his head again before walking out with me and Jeremy behind, turning off the light as she goes. After she explains the situation to him, he says, "We have an extra guest room if you need to stay here for a while. Scott can join you, if you want."

"I might have to take you up on that, I'm not sure yet. I don't really know what we're gonna do. But thanks. I really appreciate it."

"Of course, babe. Anything you need, we have it. Well, that might be a little bit of an exaggeration, but you get the idea." I laugh a little and nod, pulling her sideways into a hug.

"Okay, I probably should head back. I didn't tell Scott where I was going, and he's probably worried."

"Are you sure? If you need to come back, just invite yourself in. You don't even need to call or anything." I chuckle again.

"Thanks. I really appreciate it." She smiles sadly as I get up and leave. For a few seconds once I get in the car, I just sit there with my head in my hands, wondering how such a good day could end so badly.

****