Ocean Of Lies

The Party.

I glance at the clock that sits on the wall above the door, realising its 10 to 8 I ask Dan if I can leave the table as I need to get ready for the party. He excuses me but before I leave the table I notice Jessica has picked but her phone and is rapidly texting someone with a scowl on her face.

I find a dress in the back of my wardrobe in a box. I open it to find a knee length ocean blue dress, I hug it and realise the colour reminds me of pa. It was the same colour as his eyes. I wipe a few tears from my eyes and get ready, as I don't want Avery to get too annoyed.

I managed to get the zipper up on my own, apply the necessary makeup and grab my clutch bag after placing my phone and some money inside. I walk down the stairs and into the kitchen, I grab my watch from the table. I glance at the time and realised I'm 15 minutes late, I give Dan a quick kiss on the cheek and reassure him I will be home in time for us to leave. I walk outside the front door and come face to face with a rather angry Avery. I apologise and jump into her car; we ride in silence to Michael's house.

I thought I would never have to come face to face with this house ever again, but lady luck is never on my side. I turn my phone on and see a message from Dan reminding me that we need to leave at midnight and no later. Turning it back off again, I look over at Avery and smile. She offers a small smile back, but I can see that she wants to ask me a question.

I walk into Michael's house and get pulled into the crowd by what seems like an already tipsy Matt. We dance along to 'Uptown Funk' by Mark Ronson. Matt was still drinking so I had to pull him out from the crowd and outside so he can get some fresh air and try to sober up. As we are sitting on the bench in silence, I feel him rest his head on my shoulder, still sipping on his beer he whispers to me that he has always loved me.

I sit shocked for a moment but don't say anything and let him explain. He tells me it's not in a best friend way, he explains that he has always been scared to tell me as I've always been with Xavier and he didn't want to ruin my happiness. He thought it was better to keep his feelings to himself. He's also scared because he didn't want to lose our friendship.

We sit in silence for a couple more minutes while I register what he has just told me, he turns to me and leans in to kiss me. I sit frozen, unsure of how to react until his lips meet mine. I push away and give him a small smile.

"I can't do this Matt; I don't love you that way." His face turns red and he gives me a small smile.

"I know, I just wanted to know how it would feel. I have loved for since that night we spent sipping milkshakes at the dinner. You'd always been there for me." I nod and place a small kiss on his cheek before resting my head on his shoulder. We sit in silence for a little while, that is until his favourite song comes on. He takes another big swig of his beer and pulls me up.

I look over Matt's shoulder and see Michael and Noah coming towards us. Michael looks very drunk; his eyes never leave mine and before I knew it, he's right behind Matt and trying to grab my wrist. Noah tries to pull him away, but he just pushes him off. I keep hitting his chest telling him to let me go, I don't want to dance, but he pulls me closer to him making it nearly impossible for me to hit him. He starts to whisper in my ear that he still loves me and wants me back, he's sorry for ever cheating on me and promises to treat me better next time. I tell him there will not be a next time as I'm with Xavier now, but he insists that he will get back with me.

He starts to pull me further into the crowd while I'm pounding him on the back, out of nowhere Michael goes flying backwards and lands on the floor. Next thing I know Matt is sitting on top of Michael throwing punches here there and everywhere. Michael pushes Matt off him and stands up giving himself time to compose himself. Matt stumbles backwards into me but regains his composure before he was able to trip.

A very angry Michael approaches Matt and throws one punch at his face. It knocks Matt to the floor where he hits his head against the edge of the pool and falls in. Seconds pass as I stare at Michael then at Matt's body in the pool. Noah comes pushing through the crowd and drags Michael inside. Realising that Matt isn't coming back to the surface tears start pooling in my eyes, Avery rushes out of the house after hearing the chants coming from the surrounding people. She sees me sitting beside the pool crying, she comes up beside me and looks in.

She takes of her trainers and dives into the pool to retrieve Matt. She pushes him over the edge of the pool towards me where I start CPR trying to bring my best friend back. It feels impossible and I feel like I have lost him, it's been minutes since I started CPR. Tears start to stream down my face once again, Avery grabs hold of my wrists trying to pull me away from the dead body of my best friend. I won't give in; I push her away and start CPR again but it's no use. He isn't coming back. Michael Jones killed my best friend.

I stare one last time at Matt's face, placing a kiss on his cheek I tell him I love him and stand up. I compose myself before turning around to the crowd of people that was standing behind me watching. Michael standing at the very back, I walk up to him. Tears streaming down my face and punch him, right on his nose. I hear a satisfying crack as I turn away from him and walk through his house. I need to tell his parents that their son was killed so I decided to walk to his house. I hear the sirens as I walk down the road and the tears fall even harder now.

After talking to Matt's parents and helping pack away a few of his belongings for storage. I take a picture of Me, Matt and Avery that was taken on my first day of arriving in this town. They were both so welcoming. Once again, I break down in tears, I thank Mr and Mrs Daniels for bringing such an amazing person into the world and I head home. As I'm walking, I think about everything that has happened throughout my life. The accident. The orphanage, the many, many identities I have had before this one and the people that have all died because of me. The fighting that has kept me safe. Finding Xavier because of that.  And finally, the love I feel for him.

I have never loved anyone as much as I love him.