Spotlight on Nobody

- 13 -

~ song: Put It to Bed by JHart ~

I pull up to the hotel, without Leo. I wasn't allowed to drive with him, and though I was confused – we had driven together all day in Philadelphia – I didn't put up much of a fight. I'm utterly drained and just want to curl up in a plush bed with too many pillows. I'm snapped out of my sleepy daze by the sound of screaming. Through the darkly tinted windows, I can see throngs of girls flocking the entrance to the hotel, waiting to catch a glimpse of Leo. So I guess that's why I couldn't drive with him. I feel a pang in my chest – sadness? I'm hurt that Leo didn't want to be seen with me in front of all these girls. It's like he doesn't want them to get the wrong impression, it's like he's saying don't worry ladies, I'm still single, please continue to drool over me. Again, I try to push down the bubble of jealousy that boils in my chest and stop jumping to conclusions. I slip past the crowd and check into the hotel under the alias that Logan gave me: Amelia Nelson. I giggled when Logan told me I had to use a fake name, but his somber expression gave me the impression that something bad has happened in the past.

Suddenly the loud chattering outside the glass doors amplifies into high-pitch screaming – Leo has arrived. I crane my neck over the crowd, watch him dip his dark locks out of the car, wearing sunglasses even though the sun set hours ago. It's a shame really, the olive-green V-neck he wears would beautifully compliment his eyes. Logan leads, not-so-gently shoving girls out of the way. Leo, however, reaches out to the fans, signing autographs, taking pictures, returning hugs. As I watch countless girls shamelessly flirt, touch him, kiss his cheek, bile rises in my throat. I wrap my arms around myself, hugging tightly. He doesn't push any of them away. In fact, his broad smile doesn't seem the least bit uncomfortable – he's enjoying it. A sick feeling settles in my stomach. I guess I should be laughing at these girls. Leo kissed me after all, not them. But right now, I don't see it like that. What more is a kiss on the lips than on the cheek? Watching him so effortlessly float through the crowd, I think maybe he does this to a girl at every show; makes a game out of drawing girls to him, fooling them with fake passion, leaving them broken as he moves on to a new city. Turning away, I move to the elevator, not waiting for him to get inside. He doesn't want to be seen with me anyways.

Curled up on my bed, I reluctantly pull out my laptop to catch up on the work I missed by skipping classes today. My stomach is still twisted in knots, and I can hardly focus on the future tense conjugations of avoir when my phone buzzes.

Unlock the door across from your bed.

That's not creepy at all.

Come on, pleaseeeee

As upset as I am, when it comes to Leo, I lack all willpower. Dragging my feet across the carpet, I unlock the door and swing it open, face to face with Leo.

"Connecting suites! I've always wanted to do this with someone." He says with a grin on his face, and I struggle to suppress the smile that fights its way to the surface. Pushing by me, he takes a running start and springs onto my bed, jumping up and down like a kid. I just lean against the door frame as he whoops and shouts, having the time of his life it seems. He stops when he notices my less than enthusiastic reaction, plopping down in the middle of my bed.

"Is everything okay?" He asks, a puzzled expression on his face. I can't blame him for being confused. In his mind, he just flew me out from Philadelphia to have literally the best seat in the house, and now I'm staying with him in basically the same hotel room, a nice one at that. Oh, and we kissed. But despite all that, I can't shake the sad feeling that overwhelms me.

"What are we doing?" I ask, heat rising to my cheeks as I realize how clingy that sounds. I preemptively cringe, anticipating the classic male response of confusion, leading to more embarrassment on my part that I even assumed anything was going in the first place.

Sighing, Leo moves forwards to the edge of the bed, patting the space next to him.

"I'm sorry I kissed you," he says, and my stomach sinks at his words. Of course he's sorry – only now does he realize how he's lead me on with all this. I've been playing the part of the girl who can roll with anything, who's always just glad to be there and who never puts up a fuss. But that's not me; my emotions are always about to boil over, and Leo is about to find that out. My eyes go blank as I try to block out all emotion, otherwise I'm going to start crying.

"You clearly said you just want to be friends. God, the one girl who tries to friendzone me is the one girl I want to kiss? Trust me, I know how much of a dick that makes me." Wait, what? "I want to be friends, I really do. I promised myself that I wouldn't do this to you, put you through this. Please, just give me another chance. I swear I won't try anything like that again." The look on his face is so hopelessly apologetic, as if he honestly believes I'm upset he kissed me.

I feel laughter bubbling in my throat. He thought I was mad that he kissed me. The look of confusion on his face doesn't go away. I can't help myself; still smiling, I close the gap between us and kiss him. His lips take a moment to respond but once they do, he grabs my waist and pulls me closer to him. All my sadness or disappoint or anger or whatever I was feeling a few seconds ago melts away completely. After a moment, however, he pulls back and leaves me with a frown on my face yet again.

"Wait, so is this you unfriend zoning me?" I grab a pillow and smack him on the head with it, laughing as his perfect hair becomes disheveled.

"Oh Nell Greene, you are so done for," he shouts with a devilish look on his face. Lifting me up with surprising strength, the throws me into the middle of the bed, ticking me furiously. I cry out, reaching for anything to defend myself with and grab onto a large pillow, which I hit against him until white feathers rain down over us. I shake the pillow again and again until the room looks like a snow globe, small white down lightly adorning Leo's hair and shoulders. The tickling stops and he reaches over to gently remove a feather that's resting on my eyelash. I swear my heart stops beating right then and there.

All of the sudden, I'm blinded by a flash. Only then do I realize Leo is holding my dingy disposable camera, a mischievous grin on his face.

"Hey! Those take a limited number of pictures! I'm saving them for the really beautiful stuff I see!"

"I know," he says with confidence, still aiming the camera directly at me. Is it possible to die of a heart attack twice over a span of 30 seconds? "How many more pictures do you have on this one?"

I take the opportunity to snatch away the camera before he wastes any more film on me and peer at the small display. "Ten more," I say dejectedly. I wanted there to be a million more left, and I'd probably use each one on Leo. A million pictures wouldn't do him justice, but I could at least try.

"We better make them count then," he says, pulling me up out of the bed. "Put on some clothes - we're making memories tonight, Nell."