A Bucket List for Ella

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

                  As cliché as the movies, I woke up to sunlight streaming through Liam's window, a bed that looked like wild dogs had fought in it, and Liam's arm thrown carelessly across me...or to be more specific, across my face.

I lifted Liam's arm off of my face, and he stirred at once.

"Whoa, sorry! I'm a pretty restless sleeper," Liam said, blinking profusely.

"I can tell," I said, gesturing to the sheets that were thrown aback by the bed-headed monster beside me. I sat up, and as my head came together, I remembered the night before. I had pretty much bombarded into Liam's apartment and then proceeded to wipe my face all over him.

"Oh God," I whispered, tugging at the sides of my face and then running my hands back over my head and through my short hair.

"What?" Liam asked, looking highly concerned.

"Last night," I said. I dropped my head into my hands and shook my head back and forth.

"What about it?" Liam asked, placing a hand on my back.

"I just...ugh it's so embarrassing! I just sauntered on in here, bawling my eyes out and practically shouting 'I'm a nut case,'" I told him. Liam peeled one of my hands away from my face and brought it to his mouth. He kissed it lightly and looked down at me – though I wasn't looking up, but I knew he was watching me.

"Ella?" he pleaded, his tone softening.

I peeked up at him through my eyelashes.

"Want to tell me the real reason why you were so upset last night?" Liam was still holding onto my hand, and he gave it a little tug, signaling that he wanted me to go to him. I crawled over the bed and leaned my back up against Liam's stomach so I wouldn't have to look him in the eyes when I told him what was wrong.

"Do you want the real reason or the half-truth?" I asked him, still not daring to lift my eyes to his.

"The real reason, please," he said. His warm breath lifted small tendrils of my hair and shook them, causing me to shiver.

"Well, you remember Nico right?" I told him.

"Yeah," he said. I could pick up the slightest bit of suspicion in his voice.

"I just miss him," I whispered, a tear slipping from my eye.

"You...miss him? That's it?" he asked. A laugh escaped his lips.

"Are you laughing at me?" I asked accusingly.

"It's just...Ella, to be upset about such a small thing, that's a little bit over reactive, don't you think?"

"Liam, he's my best friend. My only friend. You expect me to not miss him, now that we're thousands of miles away with little time to talk to each other?"

"I just think that maybe you're being a little bit extreme here Ella. What did you have that you had to leave in Vancouver?" he asked.

"What did I have to leave? My family! The only people who, since my parents died, acted like parents to me! I'm not overreacting Liam! God, you're so insensitive sometimes!"

I hopped off the bed and started for the door, dressing as I went.

"Ella, don't be stupid. You can't just leave like this."