What I Wish You Knew | ꪜ

Chapter Twenty

To Landon,

20. I wish you knew that no matter what, I'd always be there for you.

Hayley's POV

"Okay, look. I just think that you have a shot at something great. Were you not the same person who kept telling me how much you wish your life were normal? And by normal you meant as normal as a teenage life could get!"

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?" She lowered herself down beside me, "what's more normal than having a boyfriend? Enjoy yourself, making memorable but cringey moments with him and your friends. Yes, having a guy won't magically solve all your problems but it's one step closer to having the cliche YA protagonist life you've always wanted."

"You remembered?" I mumbled and she nodded her head vigorously. I only brought that up to her once, once when I had a mental breakdown. It wasn't my best of days but I told her a lot of things that day. So much it surprised me that she remembered this.

I've always immersed myself in cheesy Young Adult and coming-of-age movies. Sure most times the protagonist does have their own struggles and inner demons but even if I know it's not real, seeing them get their happy ending has always made me wish I was them. Their problems always get solved one way or the other and it's rare to see the protagonist get a sad ending. 

I wanna be like that. I want to live that life even if it's only fiction and meant to feed my dreams. Jenna tugged me into her arms, "instead of wasting time sulking around, enjoy it with whoever willingly walks into your life. Because sometimes, we may not wake up the next morning, so we cherish today."

~ ~ ~

When I made my way down the hallway, I didn't expect to find Parker leaned against my locker peering down at his phone waiting for me. At that moment I felt it again: that flutter in my chest at the mere sight of him. I just kept getting hauled back to the moment we almost kissed as if my mind ran on an automatic system.

See Parker equals envision kiss. "Hey, are you waiting for me?" I asked when I finally approached him. It was obvious that he is but I don't really know what to say considering I can barely keep myself together. He tucked his earphones into his pocket and smiled at the sight of me, "yeah, I was."

"So. . ." I trailed off, "my house right?" I inquired as I unlocked my locker to load my bag. He leaned against the one beside me, "yeah, my house isn't the best place to be at this afternoon. My parents are home and I'm hoping by the time I get back they're already gone for their business trip." I understood, plus I'd feel more comfortable in a space I wasn't prone to get lost in. 

"My house is okay. Drayton won't be home from work until 10 so you don't have to encounter his. . .madness." I slammed the locker shut when I was done and side by side we fell in pace down the hallway towards the front door leading out of the school. Parker's hands dove into the pockets of his washed-out jeans and he sighed.

"I was actually hoping to run into him there. He seems like a lot. But the good kind: the one that makes you laugh unintentionally and always want to be around, kinda reminds me of someone." He mumbled as he bowed his head low, his gaze fixated on the ground. 

Seeing as Parker stood 6ft, it was easy to see his features despite his head hanging low. It was useless to hide the obvious discomfort and disappointment on his face but I'm glad he didn't plaster on a smile instead and lie about being okay. "Your brother?"