Indie Rock and Her Shoes

Chapter Twenty-Four: Collected Chaos

Six Months Later

"SURPRISE!"

Sloane gasped in the doorway and her hands flew to her mouth in shock. The living room of her parent's house was filled with all of her closest friends and family: James, Olivia and Grayson, Jade and Jake, and her parents. Her sister, Hannah, wasn't able to attend because she was currently studying abroad in Paris... "Studying." At least that is what she said.

James grinned and walked over to her, throwing an arm around her shoulders. "Were you surprised?"

"I honestly had no idea," Sloane said, still shaking her head in disbelief. Her eyes traveled around the room, from the long, hot pink "Congratulations" banner that hung over the kitchen entryway to the dozens of party balloons in shades of purple and pink that bounced against the ceiling. She couldn't help but wonder if someone had placed Jade in charge of the color theme.

Sloane's mother made her way across the room, tossing aside a bunch of balloon strings that cascaded down to the floor.

"I am so happy that you finally graduated," her mom smiled, pulling Sloane into a hug.

"Thanks, Mom," Sloane said.

"Now take that cap off; it's going to flatten your hair," her mom complained. Sloane rolled her eyes and lifted her blue graduation cap from her head, carefully setting it aside on an end table. A comb miraculously appeared in her mom's hands and she went on to fluff Sloane's curls while Sloane continued to study the room. She spotted James in the corner, talking to Jake and Grayson as his hands gestured animatedly around him. 

"Psst... James. Are you awake?" Sloane whispered across the bed.

"No," came James's muttered reply.

"Then why are you talking?" Sloane whispered.

"I'm not," James whispered back.

Sloane just shook her head and turned back toward the small notebook that sat in her lap. She was lying in James's bed with her knees pulled up under the comforter. The lamp on his nightstand illuminated her side of the room. James's side was dark while he attempted to go to sleep.

It had been two months since James confessed that he had an engagement ring in his possession and it was driving Sloane absolutely nuts. She found herself second guessing James's intentions anytime they went out to dinner, or anytime he got down on his knees, which was usually just to tie a shoe or peruse his CD shelf. She knew he did it just to make her crazy.

Sloane turned and gazed at him. His hair was tousled and damp, his bangs shabbily smashed against his forehead. His lips were full and curved up at the corners, and his chin revealed a slight amount of stubble. He had the sheets pulled up and draped around his waist. She watched his bare back steadily rise and fall with every breath. Inhale in. Exhale out.

"What?" James asked, his voice deep and gravelly.

"How did you know I was looking at you?"

"I can feel your eyes penetrating my skull."

"Sorry," Sloane said. "I just wanted to tell you about my list."

"What list?"

"My list of plans."

"What plans?"

"Life plans," Sloane replied. James opened his eyes and glanced up at her, one half of his face collapsed into his pillow.

"You're making life plans without me?"

"No, my life plans include you," Sloane smiled. "Do you want me to read them to you?"

"Mm," James groaned tiredly, his eyes closing again. "Ok."

"Ok, so graduate college," Sloane started, going down her list. "Get engaged. Find a job. Get a job. Find a place to live. Then, get married, but I'm not sure about the honeymoon. I know that I want to go to Paris. And Disney World. And I want to see the Pacific Ocean. But I can't choose between those three."

"We'll have time to do all three," James mumbled into the pillow.

"I know, but which do I want to do first?" Sloane frowned, chewing on the top of her clicky pen. "I guess I'll put down Paris for now. It seems more romantic, I think."

"Then we'll honeymoon in Paris," James sighed.

"Really?" Sloane's face brightened.

"Yeah."

"Ok," Sloane smiled. "The only thing I'm not sure about is where I'm going to live after graduation. Sophie suggested that we could maybe find an apartment in the city, but I don't have a job that pays enough for that. There's no way I could afford it... I guess I'll just have to move back in with my parents for a while."

She sighed and brought the pen back down to paper, quietly making room on her list for "move back in with parents" somewhere in between "graduate college" and "get engaged."

"You should move in with me," James said. Sloane scoffed and looked down at him. His eyes were open and on hers. He didn't look like he was joking.

"What?"

"Well. My apartment is still a little empty, so I could use some of your furniture. And your new bed," James said. "Plus, there's a Starbucks right around the corner you could transfer to. At least, while you work on finding a job."

Sloane stared down at him while she contemplated what he was suggesting.

"What?" James asked.

"Nothing, I just," Sloane started, stammering over her words. "I just figured we would be engaged before we moved in together."

"And we will," James said, closing his eyes again. "After all, it is part of the plan."

Sloane glanced back down at her list.

-Graduate college.
-Move back in with parents.
-Get engaged.

She quietly smiled to herself as she scratched out "move back in with parents" and wrote down a new plan, directly underneath "get engaged."

-Move in with James.

Now she just needed to find a dang job.