Blue

4- i'm slowly learning not to give a shit

"Alex! Harry! They're here!" Dad called from downstairs and I frowned. I didn't even know Dad was here.

I slipped out of my bedroom and met Harry at the top of the stairs.

"Dreading this?" He asked with a smile and I rolled my eyes.

"No," I said, sarcasm dripping off of the word. "I've dreamed of this." He laughed and rolled his eyes as well as we reached the bottom of the stairs. We walked into the kitchen to see Sophie and Marilyn Porter along with Lola Stewart sat on the couch and their two sets of parents chatting with ours. Sophie looked up and met eyes with me, my gaze immediately shifting to the Christmas tree that stood a few meters from her, sadly waiting to be decorated. 

"Ah, here they are." Mom smiled at me and I forced one back at her, but given the look on her face she didn't believe it for a minute. Mr and Mrs Porter and Mr and Mrs Stewart looked up at the two of us and I smiled at them nervously.

"Alex, I haven't seen you in years." Mrs Porter rushed over and squished me in her arms. 

"I've been... busy."

"Well, dear, you must come round again. The house is just too silent without you and Sophie disturbing it." I smiled nervously at her and threw a look at Harry, pleading him to steal the attention, to see him already talking to Mr Porter and Mr Stewart. 

"Mrs Porter." He smiled at her as she pulled away from me. "Mom told me you were leaving Ainston."

"Well, it's not certain yet..." I tuned out and lent against the wall, hoping to fade away into it. I was so focused on staring down at my hands that I nearly had a freaking heart attack when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I jumped and turned my head only to find myself looking at the dark brown eyes of Sophie Porter.

"You know, you're bright blue skirt makes it hard for you to be invisible." I smiled a bit and continued to pick at my ridiculously chipped nail polish. "I haven't seen you around for a while."

"Yeah, well. I haven't been in a very party mood lately."

"I live next door. When did you forget that?"

"What do you mean?" I furrowed my eyebrows at her.

"You used to come round every weekend; you and Laurence, and then one weekend you just didn't show and then you never came round again."

"Sophie-" I pleaded but she cut me off.

"No." She didn't say it aggressively, she said it in a soft warning tone, one my Mom uses. "I want an explanation. Because you refused to talk to me for the last, what, three years?" I exhaled and looked over to see nobody was paying any attention to us.

"I went to a party."

"Yeah, I know. Facebook blew up over that party."

"I went to a party, I'd never been to a party before, and I got drunk, starting dancing, made out with a few guys and found myself talking to Chloe." I remembered the party well enough, getting a bit hazy towards the end when I got really drunk.

I had turned up in a black pencil skirt and a baggy t-shirt which I immediately ditched, leaving me in a tank top and the skirt. Chloe was the head cheer leader at the time, a gorgeous red head who didn't date just slept around.

"By the end of the night she knew some things you didn't even know, only her and Laurence, and apparently I started doing back-flips and next thing I knew I was on the cheer squad." Sophie was watching me with a blank expression so I pressed on.

"Before that party I was a nerd who had, like, 2 friends, so yes of course I took the chance. I was a cheer leader for crying out loud, that was all I'd ever wanted to be. So I left every trace of the old me behind, which included my grades and my books and Laurence and you. And I wish I'd never done that, because we all know how well that ended." She took a breath and met my eyes again.

"Laurence changed, you know that right? You changed him."

"Just because I left you guys behind doesn't mean I stopped noticing you." I paused. "Do you still talk to him?" She half smiled.

"Haven't spoken a word to him for about two years. It was always you two anyway, never really got along; me and Laurence. Have you?" I shook my head.

"Although he called me last week. I stared at my phone until it rang off. It's weird."

"What is?"

"You used to suck at school, now you're little miss future valedictorian. I used to be cheer captain and now my ranking is lower than it was before that party; and Laurence...I don't know him anymore. The people we were three years ago, I don't know them either." She held out her hand, as if for me to shake it.

"Hi, I'm Sophie Porter, future valedictorian." I smiled and shook her hand.

"Hi, I'm Alex Evans, and everyone hates me but I'm slowly learning not to give a shit." 

******************

"Alex!" I shut my locker door and looked up from my locker to see Harry stood before me. "I can't drive you to therapy today."

"Should it out, why don't you!" I put my hand over his mouth and he licked my palm. "Gross. Why not?" 

"I'm going round to Kim's place."

"Ditching me for your girlfriend, classy." I teased and he ruffled my hair. 

"Ah, you know you're my favourite girl."

"Gee, thanks." He peered behind me and gave me a lazy salute.

"Later." I spun on my heel and watched him as he wrapped his arms around Kim, walking with her, still in his arms, down the hallway. I smiled slightly and spun around to head to Economics when I collided with a hard chest. My phone dropped to the floor and landed face down making my heart race. 

"Fuck." The boy beside me muttered and lent down to pick it up, making my heart freeze all together. He looked up and a wave of recognition passed over his face. My eyes flitted over his dark brown eyes, his brown-black hair, his pink lips and the tattoos peaking out from under his shirt. He had a grey beanie pulled over the top of his head and was wearing black jeans and a dark grey v-neck which clung to every inch of his torso. He handed me my iPhone but I didn't look to see if it was cracked, I only opened my mouth as if I was going to say something. I closed my mouth when no words came to mind.

"Hey." That would have been a good word to say.

"Hi." I replied, swallowing the lump in my throat. i glanced down to see my phone crack free so I shoved it into my back pocket. "Thanks, for.. picking up my phone." I cringed at my awkwardness.

"No problem." I took a deep breath.

The boy stood in front of me was Laurence King.