Where to Begin

Chapter 35

This kiss didn't feel as good as our kiss in the kitchen. It didn't feel impulsive like my kiss with Chase.

It felt better.

And this time I didn't worry that I was kissing Connell, I embraced it.

I was released from Bay Area Hospital two days later and Connell and Zero came to pick me up. I was prescribed a whole bunch of medicine and told that I should use a wheelchair for four days and then I can move on to crutches and eventually graduate to one crutch. My blood tests came back fine and I was finally starting to feel human again.

When we got back home to Mapleton, I was pleasantly surprised with a welcome home and get better soon party combined. Luckily, the boys hadn't held any grudges but it was still sort of awkward between Chase, Connell and I.

Apparently the boys wanted to come and visit me in hospital but Connell wouldn't let them and neither would the care ward. I could only have one visitor.

The next day, Lillian left the house early to go see Aaron and I explained everything to the boys again and finally they understood.

"So, you are a refugee?" Chase joked.

I laughed. "I guess. But I am never going back to Tofino."

"That means you need to get citizenship here," Sawyer said quietly. "Unless you go back to Knysna?"

I scoffed. "No thanks,"

"Citizenship? That'll be a long, fun process." Dale teased sarcastically, leaning back into the couch.

"It's a problem for another day, Caveman." Aubrey smiled. It felt so nice to be welcomed by the boys again and to not have any secrets with anyone. Before, I felt like I had to conceal myself around them, constantly being careful not to release any information about my parents or where I actually lived but now, now that I had told them the whole truth, I could be my real self.

Benjamin's funeral was in three days, on Friday, and I really didn't want to go. Max and Calvin took the news quite well and said that 'Hawkeye' had been into that sort of stuff for a while. They were hurt but not as much as I had expected because they kind of expected something like this.

"Yeah, he tried to get us to do it, but we didn't want to go down that road," Calvin nudged Max playfully who was sitting next to him on my bed.

"Yeah, and besides, he was always kind of a douche anyway. He was always hitting on Bumblebee."

"It's still sad he's gone though," I said quietly, looking at my lap.

"I know and we're sorry, Ladybird," Calvin hugged me. "We're going to miss him too. He was still fun," he said quietly and smiled sadly.

"How are Stevie and Conor?" I asked, trying to change the morbid topic. I hadn't seen them since the accident but I was obviously going to see them at the funeral.

The twins looked at each other. "They're good," Max smiled.

"What is that smile?"

Max had a secretive grin on his face.

"Well, they're actually dating now," Calvin said.

"What? Really?"

"Yep, started a week before you came home."

"Wow, and Max? How are the movies coming?" I asked wiggling my eyebrows, which actually hurt because of the stitches.

"Well, I had a successful screen test with 'The Noise' on Sunday and I should be hearing from them in a few weeks and I met the most amazing girl in the chemistry test for 'Changers' and I had a pretty successful screen test for them as well, so I guess you could say they're coming on good."