The Ones That Got Away

Spill all the tea, sis

I nearly die trying to find Henry's contact in my phone and run to my room at the same time; tripping over shoes and clothes I was supposed to put away and even sliding across the floor on an old sketchbook. I fall onto my bed, my hair falling in tangles all over my face. I hit Henry's contact and listen to the ringing of Henry not answering his phone. Voicemail.

"Ugh, you dick." I hang up and call again. It rings twice before Henry answers. "Alright. Can you video chat?"

"Yeah, just hold on."

"Holding," I say setting my phone down. Henry's face pops up.

"Spill all the tea, sis."

"Okay, so I got to the car first, right? And Sam comes running up to me, literally, and says 'Ro, there's something I need to tell you.'"

"Wait, he was running?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I don't know. That's irrelevant, at the moment. Anyways, he says 'will you be my girlfriend.' But he was speaking so fast, I didn't think I heard him right."

"Bruh."

"And I said 'what?' And he grabs my hands and looks me in the eyes and says, slower this time, 'will you be my girlfriend?'"

"And you said?"

"I said 'I'd love to.'"

Henry doesn't answer for a second. "I'm coming over. I'll be there in ten." And he hangs up. I sigh, "okay..." I change out of my school clothes and throw on a sweatshirt, leggings, and fuzzy socks. Looking around my room, I realize I need to clean desperately. I quickly shove everything on the floor into my closet and close it.

I text my mom "Henry is coming over, apparently is important."

She sends back "Okay, tell him to stay for dinner."

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A few minutes later there's a knock at the door. "Come in!" I yell. Henry walks in and looks around. "Huh." He says. I cock my head to the side like a confused dog, "What?" He motions his hand around the room, "I imagined drawings or something taped to the wall. Your room is... normal." I stand up from the bed. "What's that supposed to mean?" I say, crossing my arms.

Henry sits in a chair in the corner and says "Nothing. Just didn't know what to expect." I sit down again. "Is there a reason you came or..." He blinks and then goes, "ohhhhh, yeah there is." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out what looks like an old iphone. "This," he tosses it to me, "is Sam's old phone." I press the home button and the screen lights up with an old picture of Sam and Henry. Sam's brown hair is tousled and on his face is a big smile, next to him Henry's ginger hair is neat and his brown eyes are happier than I've ever seen them.

I look up at Henry, my mouth open. I ask, "Why are you giving this to me?" He shrugs and says, "I stole it almost immediately after he got his new one. I don't really know why. But I've looked through it a bit and I think it's a good insight on who Sam is." I swipe to unlock the phone and the wallpaper is Sam, Henry, and Laura in a swimming pool. They look about twelve years old. Laura has braces and she's standing next to Henry who has never looked more pale, and Sam has his arms around both of them.

I hold the phone out to Henry. "This feels like an invasion of privacy." I shake my head. "I can't take this." He shakes his head. "Keep it. He's a good person, there's nothing he has to hide." I put the phone down on my bed and walk over to him. "Let's go out somewhere. Oh, and by the way, my mom is making you eat dinner with us." He stands up and looks at his watch. "Dinner wouldn't be for a few hours. What do you want to do?"

I stand there and think, staring at a point on my wall. "You could come to the building with me and help me paint. We could also talk there as well." he grabs his jacket, takes out his keys and says, "I'm down." I smile. "Let me grab my paints."

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"Ma! We're gonna go paint! We'll be back in time for dinner!" I yell as I close the door. "Shall we?" I link my arm through Henry's and walk to his truck. "Whatcha gonna paint this time?" He asks, starting the car. "Whatever I feel." I answer simply. "And what do you feel?" He asks. "Happiness." I look out the window and continue, "I have the best, best friend a girl could ask for. And I recently, also acquired a boyfriend." I smile and turn up the radio, singing along.

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Red paint glides along the concrete wall in front of me. I hear Henry's voice form behind me, "... Rome?"

"Yes?"

"I thought you said you felt happy."

"I do feel happy."

"Then what the hell is wrong with that heart?"

I step back and look at my painting. It's an anatomically correct heart with stitches and band-aids on it. "My heart has been through a lot." I turn and look at him sitting on a desk. "Meeting you all has helped heal it." I go back to painting. We're both silent for a few minutes.

"Did you know that Sam wrote about you?" Henry laughs. I look at him again. "You're kidding." Henry pulls out his phone, scrolls a little and reads: "I didn't know love at first sight was real. A girl walked into my life, literally, and suddenly colors are more vibrant, and every love song on the radio is about her." I put my paint brush down and go look at Henry's screen. There's a picture of Sam's handwriting on lined paper. "How did you get this?" I ask. "He sent it to me. There's more, if you want to hear it." Henry smiles at me.

"How do you know it's even about me? There's no name in it." I sit in a conference chair in front of him. He reads more: "I've never seen a more beautiful woman. Big, green eyes, pale skin, dark brown hair. Her body is smokin'. Just the perfect height. Has her own style. And her personality is even better than everything on the outside. An artist with a troubled past and a genuine sense of humor."

Henry looks up at me. "Who else would it be?" I shift in my chair. Henry continues talking, "Rome, he's been head over heels for you since the day he met you." I hold up my hand to tell him to stop talking. "So, you're telling me," I pull my knees up to my chest, "that this kid has waited a few months to actually make a move?" Henry looks at me with a "duh" look. "Am I that intimidating?" I ask, suddenly self-conscious. "No, you're hot. He was probably scared of getting turned down. I mean I would be too."

Before I can even form a proper sentence to voice my thoughts, Henry stands up and says we should probably go soon if we want to get back before dinner. I shake my head and stand up. Henry grabs my shoulder and I face him, "be careful with the kid's heart, Rome. And he'll be careful with yours."

yo it's 3 am and i'm not entirely sure this chapter makes total sense but ya know we'll work with it. I feel like it's a nice "bond-building" chapter. maybe? I need sleep.

-holly