New Kid on the Block *h.s [completed]

Chapter 91

       

I let the hot water from the shower head fall directly onto the top of my scalp, plastering down my wet hair like clay. The water drips down the front of my face, falling from my chin downwards. I run my hands through my hair a few times, relaxing in the gentle pulse from the water hitting my skin.

Eventually, the warm water gets to be too much for me, and I'm forced to wash the remaining soap off of my body and turn the tap off. I step out of the bathtub, wrapping a warm, fuzzy towel around myself before I catch a chill.

As I'm gathering my dirty clothes from the bathroom floor, I catch a glance of myself in the mirror. The steam is almost too thick against the glass, but I can see the outline of my face through it. It occurs to me, in this moment, that this is the last time I'll see myself as a 16 year old.

I make it to my bedroom, throwing on some pyjama pants and a random t-shirt. I run the same towel through my hair a few times to dry it, and then leave it hanging on the back of my desk chair.

I turn off the light, and then stumble awkwardly across the room in the dark, praying that I don't trip on anything. I make it to my bed safely, breathing in a sigh of relief when I successfully find the switch on my lamp.

Dull light floods the room, and I pull back my mess of blankets so I can climb into bed with them. I shift myself so I'm comfortable, and then reach for my phone on my nightstand.

I press the home button, expecting the lock screen to be blank. I'm surprised, however, when I'm met with a flood of texts. The contact name says they're from my group chat with Maddie and Ashton, which in itself is not surprising.

It's a few minutes before midnight, which means it's about 9 at night right now in California. Technically, I turn 17 at 4 am, but knowing these two the way I do, I'm guessing they want to give me their happy birthday wishes now.

Ashtray: PIPE

Bestfriend: PIPER

Ashtray: PIPES

Bestfriend: BEST FRIEND

Ashtray: BAGPIPES

Bestfriend: PARTNER IN CRIME

Ashtray: MY FAVOURITE SCOTTISH MUSICIAN

Bestfriend: EXCUSE ME THE WARDROBE AND THE LION REQUEST THE APPEARANCE OF THE WITCH

Ashtray: ASS HERE NOW MISSY

Bestfriend: DON'T MAKE ME COME OVER THERE

Ashtray: I WILL BOOK A PLANE TICKET

Bestfriend: HE WILL HE HAS A BACKPACK IN HIS CLOSET FOR THESE TYPES OF SITUATIONS

Ashtray: MADDIE NOBODY WAS SUPPOSED TO KNOW ABOUT THAT

Bestfriend: THEN WHY DID YOU TELL ME YOU KNOW I HAVE A BIG MOUTH

Ashtray: ITS BIGGER THAN I THOUGHT AND FOR THE RECORD IT'S FOR EARTHQUAKES

Bestfriend: AN EARTHQUAKE HASN'T HIT SAN FRANSISCO IN LIKE 8 YEARS

Ashtray: HAVE YOU NOT LIVED HERE YOUR ENTIRE LIFE CALIFORNIA IS KIND OF THE EARTHQUAKE CAPITAL OF AMERICA

Bestfriend: WHO ARE YOU DONALD TRUMP

Ashtray: EW DONT EVEN COMPARE

Me: ...hi

Bestfriend: PIPER

Ashtray: THANK GOD YOU'RE HERE

Bestfriend: I WAS ABOUT TO LOSE MY MIND