editing ; e.n.

{ 5 }

Her outfit^
—
Belle's POV
As I finished getting my things together, I felt my phone vibrate. I took it out of my purse and saw that Ethan texted me.

Ethan
Hey
Is it okay if I pick you up
We can carpool

Belle
Sure
You know where I live
Right?

Yup
I'll see ya in a few
Bye

Bye

I made sure I had everything and I scrolled through twitter, waiting for Ethan. I saw Mark tweeted about me. I smiled, 'Everyone is so sweet' I thought. I stared down at my Grandma's ring, thinking about home. A small smile went across my lips as I relived my childhood in my thoughts. It was interrupted by my phone buzzing.

Ethan
I'm outside

Belle
Coming

I got my things and made my way outside. When I did reach the exterior of the building, I saw a navy blue 2017 Chevrolet Malibu. The tinted window rolled down and it revealed Ethan. We exchanged a smile and I jogged over to the passenger side. I got in, admiring the interior. "Wow, your car is really nice." He chuckled, shifting the gear out of park. "Thanks." He paused, looking at me. "You look really nice too."

My cheeks heated up. No one has ever complimented me, except Grandma. Huh, kind of pathetic. I smiled back at him, shoving all these thoughts aside. "Thanks."
—
I sighed, leaning back in my chair after completing my first video. I took my headphones off and put them on the table. I rubbed the bridge of my nose. "Hey guys," Tyler spoke, "wanna' grab a bite to eat?" Everyone agreed and we stepped out.

We got into a van and Tyler started driving. We all started talking about the most random things, from Mark's "shortness" to Ethan's intro. It was fun. Then, we got to the topic of me. I froze up. "So, what was your childhood like?" I looked down, fiddling my thumbs. "Uh, not really something I'd like to talk about." It was tense. I felt really bad. Ethan looked at my worryingly. I could've just made something up.

"Don't worry. We won't force you." Amy rested her hand on my upper arm, smiling. I nodded, thankful for these amazing people. "What are some of your hobbies?" She asked. I rubbed the back of my neck.

"I like to draw and I used to sing." I saw Ethan smile to himself. "Also, gaming." I saw everyone get excited. "What's your favourite?" I got in a more comfortable sitting position and I continued.

"I actually don't know." Everyone nodded. "Oh, makes sense." Mark said. We kept talking until the van came to a stop. I looked outside and saw a building that said 'CrackerBarrel' on the outside. I followed everyone out and into the building.
—
After one of the best lunches I've ever had, we went back to the office. When we did reach there, we didn't do any sort of work. We sat around, more talking and laughing. "So Belle," Tyler started, "where are you from?" I shot my eyes at Ethan, a small smile creeping up. "I'm from just outside of Portland." Ethan chuckled quietly.

"Maine or Oregon?" Kathryn asked. "Maine." As I said the one word, everyone was taken back. "Ethan, aren't you surprised?" Amy asked. He smiled at the ground, shaking his head.

"We met up the other day. We then realized we were neighbours back home." Everyone was more taken back. Ethan and I stared at each other, smiling. We did for a while. Our cheeks getting hotter and the urge to look away grew less. I remembered a lot. How I used to have a crush on Ethan. How we would practically be around each other all the time. How people would say that he supposedly liked me back.

But what I remembered the most is all the names people would call me just for hanging out with Ethan. I started cutting when I was ten. Ethan tried to stop me multiple times, I didn't. I had finally gave in when he said he wouldn't let any harm come to me. Despite his efforts, he couldn't stop it. In high school, people started taunting me with fake promposals. I knew I wouldn't get a date to go with and I'd just go with Ethan as a friend but, he had different plans.

He had asked me and I of course said yes. We went with some of his friends and had a great time. We slow danced, we joked, we had fun. But the most important thing was that we kissed. It was in the middle of my favourite song. After that, it wasn't awkward at all. We both knew we wanted to be together, but no one stepped forward and asked. After a couple of years, I didn't hear from Ethan and I thought that was the end of our story,

It wasn't.