Can You Keep A Secret?

Chapter Sixty-Eight

           

-Brooklyn's POV-

            I woke up with Stacey next to me, her back pressed up against my chest, our legs intertwined and her hair sprawled out across the pillow, some of it tickling my face. It felt a lot better than the last time I had been alone in a bed with her. I moved her hair out of the way, and gently leaned over to kiss her on the cheek.

            Almost as if on cue, she stretched, moving around so that we were face to face. Freckles dotted her cheeks, and her face scrunched up with sleep.

            "Hello you," I said, bopping her on the nose. She smiled, and I was certain that it was the most adorable thing that I'd ever seen.         

            "Did you sleep well?" She nodded, a small grin coming to life.

            "It's time to get moving, you lovebirds." Jack's voice broke the moment as he peeked his head into the bunk. "Lots of stuff to do today."

            I scowled at him, and he gave me a 'Whatcha-gonna-do-about-it' shrug.

            "I don't think I've ever seen you angry before," Stacey said, now sporting an amused grin as she propped herself up on one elbow, still smiling.

            "Well, I mean..." I started, unsure of what to say to that.

            "It's a good thing," She added. "Brooklyn Wyatt, you are one of a kind." And with that, she leaned in and kissed me, and any frustrations that I might have had melted right away.

            Once again, we were rudely interrupted, this time by a pair of hands clapping, and the order to "Move it!" This sparked a jubilant chorus of "I like to move it, move it" and, for possibly the first time, I felt embarrassed by my bandmates.

            Stacey, however, was unfazed. She showed off her pearly whites with a radiant smile as she grabbed my hand and dragged me out of bed. I lazily got dressed as she brushed her teeth, and almost as soon as my shirt was over my head, Blair was requesting to speak with me. I shot the others a confused look, but it was clear that they had no idea what he was about to say, either. A nagging pit in my stomach feared that it was going to be about Stacey.

            Sure enough, my suspicions were on point – He started with, "You do know that Stacey can't stay with us, right?"

            "But why not?" I whined, already knowing that this was a fact, but finding myself wanting to push the limits anyways.

            "Remember the conversation we had the other day," He said, lifting a skeptical eyebrow.

            "It's not fair," I said, kicking the counter.

            "Hey." His ton was sharp – As much as he liked to be a friend to all of us, he was still our manager, and I could feel his authoritative mode kicking in. "It might not be fair, but there was certainly bigger unjusts than not having your girlfriend, who you're lucky I let you even stay with, live in an already crowded space. Think beyond yourself, Brooklyn. You aren't usually liked this." I felt as if he had slapped me.

            "How it wanting a little happiness being selfish?" I asked, my voice low, a little shocked that he would accuse me of not caring about what had happened to my best friends.

            "What you chose to take from a situation is up to you," He said, pointing to the door, indicating that it was time for me to tell Stacey that she had to go. Reluctantly, I slunk out to see her sitting on my bunk, speaking with Liv. My heart felt like it carried a weight inside of it – I hadn't known that I'd wanted it until I could picture it in my head.

            I imagined a future where I could wake up beside her every morning, watch her friendships with Liv and the boys play out, be able to see and surprise her, have the relationship that I'd always dreamed of, instead of just a long distance one...But it was what it was, and thinking of that only made it hurt even worse.

            I walked over to them and she smiled up at me. Liv left, as if she already knew what I had to do.

            "Hey baby," I said, leaning down to kiss her.

            She playfully pushed me away, saying, "Morning breath!"

            "Aw, come on," I protested. She shrugged, her carefree happiness bringing out a sort of irresistibleness to her. I kiss her cheek instead before saying, "Okay, so, we've got a busy day ahead of us and Blair thinks it's best if you head back home. Do you need any help making your way back?" I asked, trying to make the whole thing casual.

            "I'll be okay," She said, squeezing my hand and actually kissing me this time. She tasted minty fresh, like her toothpaste.

            "It's Liv and Mikey all over again," Andy groaned. I ignored him, resting my hands on her hips, wanting all of her all of the time.

            Stacey was the one to push away this time, saying, "I guess I better get out so you can continue on with your day, eh? Good luck, Brook."

            Suddenly I was filled with the absolute conviction that this girl was going to be the death of me – I didn't know if my life would ever be the same again, if I would ever be able to stop thinking about her. I felt as if I was living in a romantic comedy – As crazy as it sounded, I might even say that I was in love with her.