Never Would I Ever (Previously A Wink, a Smile, and a Kiss)

Chapter 4

NAME CHANGE FOR KEZIAH. I have decided to change the name of the protagonist to Amanda. Why? I don't know. I've just always liked Amanda. If any of you are wondering though, I mainly take inspiration for these characters from qualities I sometimes find in my friends. The physical qualities are all made up, but I really get the personalities of these girls from some of my closest friends. Of course, they aren't completely like each person, just little bits show up in them.

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It'd already been a week since the last dance. There was already new gossip circling around, and people didn't even mention the dance they'd been anticipating for weeks. There was an eery silence at the group's lunch today at the cafe, but they tried not to notice it. The only noise being made was Amanda's foiled up sandwich. She tried to wrap it slower, so it wouldn't annoy other people.

"God, will you stop that?" Selena slammed her drink down.

"It's so quiet here, anyways. It's not like I can help it," Amanda said defensively.

"That's only because Layla is missing, guys. She'll be back soon," Jessie said, trying to diffuse the anxiety.

"She's not coming back, and you know that," Castor whispered, looking down at her lap.

"No, she always comes back. Just wait."

The girls went back to looking away from each other, trying to avoid making more of a fuss. It was clear this time wasn't like the last times when she'd dissapear for only a day. It'd already been a week since Layla's disappearance. They all knew where she had fled to. "I'm moving to Berlin someday, you guys. That's the only place that's like home. Of course, you all are home to me too. Come visit me when if you're ever in Europe," Layla would say over and over whenever the conversations would become dull. None of them actually took her words seriously. She'd only visited Berlin once in her life for a week, but according to her, it was the best place to be.

The days of constantly texting and calling Layla had ended. She sent them all just a brief text that she was safe in a small town near Berlin. They tried to get more out of her, but her phone stopped receiving messages. Her parents reassured them that she'd come back, but Layla was stubborn.

It was always apparent there were family issues at her place. Everyone knew. It was the gossip of the town. Layla would hear the chatter, and she hated it. She hated all the people in this place, especially her parents. The last straw was her performing at the dance despite her parents' orders to stop the "nonsense." Now, everyone was talking about how she actually made her great escape. People would stop to apologize to the group and wish that Layla would come back. They'd act like they appreciated the fake apologies.

"Do you think she's having fun?" Amanda chimed in.

"Even if she is right now, she's going to have to realize this plan is awful. She'll come home," Selena said, trying to reassure herself of that.

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"Emerson, Emerson, Emerson," Amanda pushed his elbow.

"What? What? What?" he replied while they walked down the hall. Ever since the dance, they'd been talking. She, of course, wasn't looking for a relationship, and neither was he. Amanda just thought of it as enjoying each other's company.

"I was thinking," she said, pursing her lips.

"You do that a lot," he laughed, walking in those long strides. She always thought his legs were too long for his body, and that made it hard for her to keep up.

"What do you think about hiring those private eyes to find her? They always do that in the movies, right?"

"Ha, and you think that'd really work?"

"I'm not saying hundred percent guarantee, but what else can we do? Jessie's just been so on edge ever since she left." Jessie was the one to always jump at the chance to make fun of Layla, but Layla always favored her the most.

"Honest opinion, your whole group is better without her. She's kind of crazy," he said with a shrug.

"No, she's not. You just say that because you never tried to get to know her. She'd be your type." Emerson gave her another shrug.

"Want to hold hands?"

"Not really." He took her hand despite her answer.

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"Okay, like do you understand why that girl is wearing a tube top? Her muffin top is like a flotation device or something," Selena said, looking at a random girl in the cafe.

"It's because she doesn't own a mirror," Jessie looked over. Gossiping about bad fashion was their usual form of entertainment aside from watching Netflix. They were all staring intently at tube top girl.

"They say if you saw your clone in real life, you wouldn't recognize it as yourself. Maybe her self-image is that she's a badass who can wear tube tops. That's kind of good, actually," Mandy said, sipping her juice.

"No, she's making us suffer because of her overconfidence. That's not right," Castor whispered.

"Layla would've told her straight-up how bad she looked, if she'd gotten the chance," Mandy sighed.

"She also would've been bugging you nonstop over what's going on with you and Emerson," Castor wiggled her eyebrows while fixing her make-up. A boy tried to approach her to probably ask for her number, but she shook her head without even glancing to him.

Selena gave the boy an apologetic look and said,"He was cute. You didn't give him a chance."

"I know him. He's desperate. Can we move on to Mandy's hub bub. When is the wedding?"

"You're so funny. I bet that guy that you just rejected is pretty funny, too. Emerson and I are just talking."

"Like talking or talking?" Jessie asked with the tone that the two were very different things.

"No, he's a friend. He even tells me about all the girls he gets with, so you tell me if we are talking or talking."

Jessie looked at her phone again, waiting for the text message from her date to the dance. He texted her, but at a very slow pace. They all knew where this was heading, again, but Jessie didn't know what else to do except try.

"Hey, can we talk?" a husky voice asked as all the girls turned around to see who it was.

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I'M SO SORRY THIS CHAPTER IS BAD. I HAVE SO MANY IDEAS FOR WHERE THIS STORY IS GONNA GO. THIS IS JUST A FILLER CHAPTER TBH AND I APOLOGIZE. Leave me a comment below if you want more romantic scenes.