My Life with O2L

Chapter 12

You know how when something major happens, you go to sleep and end up dreaming about it? That's what's happening to me.
Derek is in the living room, and I'm watching him yell at Jc. Fists begin to fly and suddenly I'm running toward them. I feel the pain as Derek hits me. I sob into Sam's chest, watching as Jc and Kian fight Derek. The cops arrive. Then my eyes fly open. I'm not screaming or crying. I just lay in bed, shock overwhelming me. It was all real. Real. But how? My brain is being sluggish. But then again it could just be that I hate the very mention of Derek.
I glance at the time. 4:36. In the freakin morning. How? Especially after that party last night! Oh well. For the next thirty minutes or so, I try to go back to sleep but it doesn't work. Thoughts of Derek and the events of last night fill my head. But I'm exhausted, so I go to Jc's room.
I knock on the door and don't get a response. I knock several times, not wanting to risk seeing him naked. Eventually, he gives a grunt, "Come in."
I open and close the door behind me. "Can I sleep with you?" I ask him.
Jc nods and pats the bed, signaling for me to lay down. "Bad dream?" He asks.
"Yeah, you could say that. I hate Derek." I say, cuddling up next to him.
"Me too kiddo," he says, playing with my hair. I feel him kiss my forehead. "Me too."
It doesn't take for me to nod off. Probably five minutes. Tops. I feel safe with Jc laying next to me. I know that this first week has been a rocky one with him and the guys, but him adopting me has been one of the best things to ever happen to me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The sunlight flooding through the window wakes me up. I yawn and stretch. Jc isn't in the room. I manage to roll out of bed, and walk down the stairs without falling. That's when I smell it: coffee. I inhale the smell and sigh. Mmm! First stop: the kitchen.
"Morning coffee buddy!" Connor says. He's sitting on the counter by the coffee machine. He pours me a mug and I take a sip. It tastes like heaven.
"Where is everyone?" I ask.
"Jenn, Jack, and Tyler went home. The guys had some meeting and they're gonna look at some houses. Jc asked me to stay here with you. Just in case."
I laugh. "So you're like a babysitter?"
Connor nods. "Although I doubt I'm gonna get paid."
We laugh. The two of us make small talk for a while until Connor blurts out, "I feel like I don't know you!"
I laugh, hesitantly. "Um, okay? What do you want to know?"
"What's your favorite color?"
"Blue and gray."
"How old are you?"
"Seventeen."
"When's your birthday?"
"This feels like an interrogation, Connor!" I yell.
Connor claps. "That gave me a brilliant video idea! Go get ready." He ushers me to my room and then yells, "Don't take forever either!"
I decide to be basic. A plain black shirt and jeans. As I take off my shirt, I feel the aftermath of Derek kicking me. When I finally manage to get the shirt off, I look at myself. There's bruises on my back and stomach. Long time, no see I think staring at them.
Somehow, I mange to finish getting dressed without too much pain. Then I tie back my hair, brush my teeth, etc. But before I head downstairs, I search the boys' bathrooms for painkillers. I find some in Kian's room and take them. Then I make my way downstairs.
Connor has his camera set up. He's even pulled some of the bar stools in from the kitchen and created a space that looks like it could be used for an interview. There's a lamp on the floor next to the chair Connor is sitting in.
"You ready?" He asks.
I take the seat opposite of him. "What exactly are we doing?"
"You'll see!" Connor winks and starts the camera.
"What's up guys? It's Connor! Today I'm joined by a very special guest: Alex Caylen!"
I wave. "Hi guys!"
"So I tweeted for you guys to send me questions for Alex with the #interrogateAlex. So here I have compiled a list of questions. You ready, Alex?"
I nod nervously. Connor grins evilly, grabbing the lamp. He turns it on and flashes it in my face. The light blinds me. "Let's get started!" Connor says, smirking.
"Where were you born?"
"San Diego."
"Fuck, Marry, Kill: Jenn, Troye Sivan, and Miranda Sings."
I hesitate. "Kill Miranda, fuck Troye, and marry Jenn. Sorry, Miranda."
Connor laughs. "How's life with the guys?"
"It's pretty good so far. They don't get on my nerves too much. But I would like some girl time."
"Of course. Are you gonna start a YouTube channel since you're surrounded by a bunch of youtubers?"
I shrug. "I've never thought about it."
"You should!" Connor says, winking. "Hint, hint."
We laugh. "Back to the interrogation!" Connor says. "Do you have any tattoos or piercings?"
"No, but I want them."
"Ooh! This is a good one!" Connor says, getting excited. "I wanna know this too! Is Salex real?" He wiggles his eyebrows.
I laugh, feeling my face burn. "Um, I really don't know."
Connor gasps. "How could you not know?"
I shrug. "I just don't. We like each other, but there's nothing official."
"Well, you heard it people! It's coming soon!" Connor says, almost fangirling. "But that's all for this video." He does his outro and we sit there in silence for a minute. Then Connor whacks my arm.
"Hey!" I protest.
"If you both like each other why haven't you done anything?!"
I shrug. "Cause I haven't."
"Well, I'm gonna have a little talk with Sam and see what's going on in his head."
I roll my eyes. "Whatever. When's the video going up?"
"Tomorrow."
I hop off the seat and plop on the couch. "You feel like you know me any better?"
Connor nods. "Somewhat." He plops down next to me. "What do you want to do?"
"I don't know," I say. "I feel like I need to not be lazy after yesterday. I need a distraction. Any suggestions?"
Connor thinks. "We could make a YouTube channel for you and make your first video. I'll help you edit and stuff."
"Sure!" I say, enthusiastically. Honestly, I pretty much figured that life with the boys would eventually lead to a YouTube account. It was gonna happen sooner or later, right? The next hour or so is spent creating my gmail, Google plus account, and changing my profile and cover pictures. Then we move on to my first video.
"What are you wanting to do?" Connor asks me, setting up the camera.
"Just a little intro. Maybe a couple facts about me." I answer.
"You could do the 25 facts about me tag." He suggests.
I nod. "That's a good idea. Just give me a minute, I'll have to make a list."
Roughly five minutes later, I'm ready to start.
"Hey guys! What's up, it's Alex!" I start. Guess that's my intro now. "I decided to start up this channel since everyone around me seems to be on YouTube. To include my cameraman, Connor Franta."
I gesture to Connor. He peeks his head around the camera and waves. "Hey guys!" Then he disappears behind the camera again.
"So for my first video, I've decided to let you guys get to know me. I'm gonna do the 25 facts about me tag! Let's get started!"
I pull my phone out and go into notes, where I made my list.
"1. My name is Alexandria; Alex for
short.
2. I was recently adopted by Jc Caylen
from o2l.
3. I was born and raised in San Diego,
California.
4. I am 17 years old.
5. My favorite colors are blue and gray.
6. My birthday is January 15th
7. I finished high school when I was
16 because I did online schooling.
8. I am 100% allergy free.
9. I love photography.
10. Eminem is my favorite music artist.
Ever.
11. Coffee! I could NOT live without it!
12. My eyes alternate between blue,
green and gray.
13. My hair is naturally brown and
straight.
14. If I ever have the chance, I want to
travel the world.
15. I would not survive without my
phone.
16. I live with five guys.
17. I hate crying.
18. My favorite food is pizza.
19. I want Jennifer Lawrence to play
me in the movie of my life.
20. Urban dictionary is the only reason
I understand any of the new 'slang'.
21. I can eat just as much as a guy, if
not more.
22. I have a newfound love for muscle
shirts and bandeaus.
23. Converse are my favorite shoes!
24. I am exactly 5 foot 4 inches.
25. I was barely able to come up with
that list.
Well, that was my 25 facts about my tag. Deuces!"
After I finish, Connor shows me how to edit. It's a long, time consuming process. We finish roughly two and a half hours later, at 3:25. Just then, the guys bust through the front door. They take turns hugging me and greeting Connor. That's when I see the McDonalds bags that Trevor is hiding behind his back.
"Ooh!" I say, excitedly. "Please say you got me something! I am absolutely famished!"
"From what? Sitting around the house?" Kian teases.
Connor pipes up. "Actually, little miss Alex filmed, edited, and uploaded her first YouTube video. After collabing with me."
Jc turns to me. "Really?"
"Yep! It was a lot of work and I'm really hungry." I turn back to Trevor. "Gimme the food!"
"Never!" He says, laughing and running upstairs.
"TREVOR MORAN GET YOUR ASS BACK HERE AND GIVE ME THE FOOD!" I yell, chasing him.
When I catch up to him, he's standing in front of his room, back to me. I do the first thing that comes to mind: tackle him. We fall to the ground and I pin him down. But he doesn't have the food anymore.
"Where's the food, Trevor?!" I ask. All he does is shake his head and laugh. So, using my best interrogation method, I tickle him. While I'm doing this, I catch a glimpse of the bag out of the corner of my eye. My eyes must light up, because Trevor suddenly yells, "No!"
I get off of him, and grab the bag. Before he can even get up, I'm halfway down the stairs.
"I got it!" I yell to the guys. "I got the food from the little food hogger!"
Trevor is just making his way downstairs when I shove a handful of the fries in my mouth. Trevor gives me an evil glare. "That was my food genius." He says.
"Really?" I ask. The guys nod, laughing.
"I have your food." Sam says.
Trevor snatched the bag from me, and I take my bag from Sam. "Sorry," I mutter.
The next few minutes are filled with awkward silence. Me and Trevor are eating. Then Connor finally pipes up. "I gotta go. See you guys."
There's a round of goodbyes and he leaves. Then everybody just kinda goes their own ways. But Jc asks if he can talk to me. We sit in the living room.
"So you know the meeting thing we had today?" Jc asks. I nod. "Well, it was about Vidcon. You know what that is?"
"Yeah."
"Well, we're gonna be going next week. Then, the guys and I found a house we like. So, after Vidcon, we're gonna move into the new house."
"Cool," I say. "Do I still get my own bathroom?"
Jc laughs slightly. "Yes, Alex. You get your own bathroom. Anything else?"
I shake my head. He lets me go.
I stop by my room, grab my laptop, and head to the roof. For the next few hours, I listen to music on my phone and play the Simms. This is really the first time within this past week that I feel like the me who was in the orphanage. Just basic. Nobody who cares about her, so she spent her time alone with her phone and laptop as company.
When I look up, the sun is setting. It's a little past 7. My phone buzzes.

From: Jc
Hey. Where are you?

Oh, crap. I grab my laptop and head back into the house. I've just closed the door to the roof when Ricky appears.
"Hey," he says. "You know Jc is looking for you right?"
I nod. "Where is he?"
"Living room."
"Ok. Thanks, Ricky." I head to my room and drop off my laptop. Then I head downstairs. Jc is pacing the living room.
"Where is she?" He mutters. "Why hasn't she answered her text? Should I be panicking?"
Somebody sighs. "She's probably fine, Jc. No reason to panic." It was Kian.
Jc faces him. "But what if Derek somehow got away? What if he took her?"
Kian rolls his eyes. "Jc, stop being so melodramatic. She's fine."
Jc's back is to me now. I decide to take advantage of it. Kian sees me and I put my finger to my lips, signaling for him to be quiet. He grins, evilly and nods. Then I put all of my attention back on Jc.
Before he can move, I jump on his back and scream, "NINJA ATTACK!"
Jc let's put a scream. Then he somehow manages to save us from falling. "Alex!" He says, setting me down. "Where have you been? You weren't in your room or the backyard or anywhere in this house."
Kian and I laugh at his panic. "Jc, I was just on the roof. Relax, take a chill pill. What's for dinner?"
"I don't know. What is for dinner, Chef Alex?" Jc asks.
I get off the couch and head to the kitchen. "Let's see."
I search the fridge and cabinets. "I could make spaghetti. It's simple and easy and quick."
"Sounds good. You wanna ask the guys?"
I nod and head upstairs. I poke my head into Kian, Trevor, Sam, and Ricky's rooms. All of them agreed, so I went into the kitchen and started cooking. After about 30 minutes, I yell, "Guys! Dinner's done!"
The next five minutes are chaos. The guys come running in like rabid animals, taking in the smell of the spaghetti and the garlic bread. They fix their plates and thank me. I stand off to the side and let them clear out and into the living room, then I fix my plate and join them. The guys are devouring their food. I sit next to Sam and Trevor.
"This is so good," Trevor says, with a mouthful of food in his mouth. "It's been so long since I've had a home cooked meal of some type."
I laugh. As we eat, we talk about random stuff. The guys crack jokes. I throw out an occasional comment. But it feels like home. Like I finally have a family. I think I like it.