Breathe

Chapter 4- Enough Shock to Last A Lifetime

"Wait...Liam did what?" Alex asked in disbelief as he choked on his water going down his throat.

"Yeah, I know. He actually talked to me and told me that he wanted to be partners," I repeated more clearly this time so Alex could comprehend.

"That doesn't make sense though! I was supposed to help you two become partners," Alex said kind of offended.

"Sorry Alex. Liam kind of took matter into his own hands and trapped me into his little web of partnership," I said, filled with guilt.

It's not like I was really upset that Liam had ask me to be his partner. In fact, I was almost relieved that I wouldn't have to be doing the project all by myself for the whole year.

"Well, since you two are so buddy-buddy now.."

"We are not friends," I cut Alex off. "We're merely partners for a year long project."

"Yeah yeah," Alex said rolling his eyes back into his head.

I couldn't understand why he was so upset about Liam taking the inniative to ask me to be his partner without the help of his semi-controlling brother.

"Did you guys decide what your topic is," Alex asked, breaking our silence.

"Well, after about twenty minutes of constant bickering, we managed to come up with a video on how people change. We're both going to record ourseleves now talking about our lives, and see how we change over the course of a year."

Alex stared at me as if in a daze until he started laughing hysterically.

"You..you really think that someone like Liam can change over the course of a school year?" Alex managed to speak out inbetween chuckles.

"It's not just going to be Liam who changes,Alex. I probably will too a little bit," I admitted.

"Well, let me know how well this "changing of heart" project goes," Alex said sarcastically as he stood up from the lunch table that was consumed by only us two.

Sometimes Alex took things too seriously, and sometimes his actions would make me get really upset with him. For instance, when we were in sixth grade we had ice cream day every Friday in class. One Friday I had taken the last chocolate panda-paws cup and Alex made a huge deal out of it. Throwing his arms in a hundred different directions while blattering out some nonsense at me.

He eventually got over being "mad" at me and told me that I could be his best friend again.(About two weeks later.)

I understood that he would be upset that I would be working with his brother more than hanging out with him at their house. I understood that it was probably going to be awkward when I was with Liam instead.

Boy, had I predicted my future pretty much right on the ball there.

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After school I drove over to Liam/Alex's house to start the project with Liam. Alex wasn't home from school yet and both of their parents were at work so it would be stuck all alone with Mr.Popular himself.

It had never really dawned upon me how jealous girls might get of me. Getting to spend time with "the hottest guy in school who is secrectly a huge jerk underneath who doesn't like to wear sweatpants and who puts up with his annoying girlfriends complaints all night so he looks like a walking ghost when he comes into school the next day." Big whoop.

I pulled into their driveway and turned the ignition off in my car. Reaching into my backseat, I grabbed my video camera and a few chords that we would need to hook up the camera to the computer to edit.