Forever Is A Lie ~ A StarKid Story

Chapter 7

"I can't believe we're quarantined..." Joey murmurs, taking up the whole couch as he stretches across it. 

"Yeah, people are idiots," I reply. "But hey, more puzzles for us!" 

A smile spreads across Joey's face. "Yeah, of course. Puzzles."

"And we always have each other," I grin. 

"That is so cheesy!" he laughs. 

I plop down on the couch, laying on top of him, stretching out as much as I can. I place my arms above my head to lay my hand across his face, making sure he has no chance of escaping. Excluding the part where he could easily throw me off of him. 

"Hey! What are you doing?" Joey exclaims. "You're crazy, get outta here!"

He says it all with a smile on his face. I don't need to see his face to know that. 

"So I guess the moving is off then?" I ask him, turning serious. 

Joey sighs. "Yeah. There's no way we're moving in the midst of all this."

"Is Curt staying here then?" 

"Uh, actually I think he and Kim are moving in together."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I think the show really brought them together. Or maybe they have been a thing and finally decided to take the next step."

"Aw, how sweet. When's the wedding?"

Joey's chest stops moving, and I realize he's holding his breath. 

"I don't know," he says finally. "I guess we'll have to wait and find out, huh?"

I don't say anything to him, but I know his mood has shifted a little. 

"Yeah, guess so. I should go finish washing the dishes."

"Mmm," was his response when I slid off of the couch and headed to the kitchen. 

As I scrubbed dishes I thought about what was to come. There was a lot happening, the move, the virus, the phone calls. I hadn't thought about that in a while, I didn't want to let that affect me and my life. My happy, normal life, that although was plagued by bad thoughts and lasting effects of past events, was completely fine. I was fine the way things were, and I didn't mind quarantining with the one I loved, especially if it meant keeping us both safe. I didn't need to worry about those damned phone calls, I-

"Lauren?" Joey had his hand on my shoulder, shaking it lightly. 

I looked down. My hands floated in the cold dish water as it slowly drained, and the clean dishes were placed on a towel on the counter to dry. 

"Sorry, what?" I asked, turning to him. 

He handed me a hand towel that was hanging on the stove. "Lauren, please, talk to me. I know there's something up."

"I'm sorry, JoJo. I just...I just can't. I mean, I want to, but I just can't bring myself to say it," I explain, my heart aching. 

I want to tell Joey, and I know he's hurting because of it, because he can't help me, but it's probably better anyways. I know Jaime told him a little bit about the anonymous phone calls but other than that she's kept it a secret since I asked her to. She wasn't happy about it, but she agreed that she wouldn't say anything until I was ready. I'm not ready now, but Joey deserves to know. He doesn't deserve to be left in the dark the way I've let him be. 

"Listen, I can't say anything, but Jaime...Jaime can tell you, okay?" I continue. 

"I..guess so. Does this have anything to do with those prank calls on William's phone?" 

"Yeah, yeah it does. Um, I usually talk to her about that stuff, so just tell her I said it was fine to tell you and she'll probably tell you."

"Okay. And Lauren? I'm always here for you. I love you."

"I know Joey, I love you, too."

I knew it was weird as hell and kind of childish to have someone else tell him, but if this was the only way I could manage it, then so be it. At least he would know. To be honest, I have no idea why I've been losing so much time. It just tends to go elsewhere sometimes, nothing to worry about. Everything's totally fine. 

A/N: Hii, sorry that I haven't posted in...well, forever. I want to say that I'll be posting a little more frequently, but most of my focus has been on school at the moment. I hope that on the weekends I might be able to post a little more, or at least push aside time to work on things.

I'll at least be posting one more chapter on one of my other stories, so if you read them, be prepared for that, I suppose. Otherwise, good day!