One of us is lonely

Chapter 11

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THE ROOSTER FROM NEXT DOOR WOKE HER UP. She yawned and stretched, groaning at the wretched animal that had disturbed her peaceful sleep. Next to her laid PJ, still fast asleep. She hadn't made it home last night. Again. She knew her mother and Finn would not be all too happy with that, especially not since she had not let anyone know where she would be. Her phone - which was still at Ares' place - probably would've exploded with text messages and calls by now. With a big sigh she moved from the bed and started gathering her clothes from the ground. In the corner of PJ's room stood a little sink with a broken mirror above it. Red stared at her tired reflection; dark circles under her eyes, a puffy nose. She splashed some water in her face and ran a wet hand through her hair. 

"Dude." She softly shook PJ awake. The blonde boy groaned, turning from the side he was laying onto his back . The rooster had not woken him up. He was used to the cackling by now. Usually, the bird started a lot earlier too. 

"Come back to bed," PJ muttered, stretching out his hands to grab Red. Red laughed and softly shook her head. 

"I can't. I need to go home."

"Boo." PJ's sleepy voice was rough and husky, Red liked it like that. 

"See you around PJ." Red smiled, ran a hand through his hair and kissed him on the forehead. PJ took that as his chance and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her to his chest. He then pressed his lips against hers. His kiss felt nice and comforting and Red wished they could stay like that forever, alas she also knew that it was nothing more than a pretty dream. "I really need to go now." She whispered, struggling to escape from his grip. 

"You coming tonight?" He asked in his sleepy voice, his eyes still closed. 

"Tonight?" 

"Rose is throwing a birthday party on the beach." He informed her. 

"Oh..." Red tugged a strand of hair behind her ear. Rose used to be one of the few people she considered her friend back when she lived on the Northside. Aside from PJ and Finn she was about the only person she fully trusted and who didn't judge her for her strange hobby. "I don't know..." 

"Come on Red." PJ now opened his eyes and sat up straight, looking at her with a hint of disappointment in his eyes. He knew she'd say no, because no matter how much she wanted it, she no longer belonged on the Northside. "Everyone misses you." 

"Who's gonna be there?" 

"Rose, Clara, the twins, Little John. It will be a small thing. Just some beer and pizza's." He said. "Like the old days, remember?" She did remember. She remembered sitting on The Patio and laughing until the sun came up. She remembered dancing and singing along to Finn playing the guitar. 

"Okay." She softly nodded. "I'll be there." She then continued to make her way towards his window, pushing it open and climbing out.

"Tell your brother to come too." PJ added, then a cheeky smile crept onto his lips. "Rose will love that."  

Next stop: The Blythe Mansion. Red had been walking around with no phone and no wallet for way too long. So, as much as she detested having to go back to Ares, she didn't really have much of a choice. It was a solid forthy minute walk from PJ's house to Ares' and by that time her ankle ached so much, she could barely stand on it. So, she dragged herself across the unnecessarily long driveway and was almost out of breath when she reached the front door. She rang the doorbell and prayed that it was not Blythe Senior or Ares' mother opening the door. She really did not feel like explaining why her stuff was still at their place. Her prayer's were answered in that way that it was neither one of Ares' parents opening the door, but it wasn't Ares either.

"Can I help you?" The with-a-french-accent laced voice of Céline asked, looking Red up and down. The girl - who already looked like a french super model - was dressed in a gorgeous white sundress, a straw hat resting on her brown hair and a pair of thin black sunglasses on her nose. Red felt like a ragged doll next to her; wearing a simple pair of light blue denim shorts and an oversized black band tee. 

"Uhm , yeah hi," Red started, a bit uneasy. "I left my stuff here the other day after the party. I'm just here to pick it up." Céline squinted her eyes. 

"Where did you leave it?" 

"I-- Uhm, is Ares home?" 

"No." The Francaise simply said. "He's out with his parents."  She tapped her manicured nails impatiently against the doorframe. 

"If you'd just let me in to get my stuff, I'll be out in a second." Céline seemed to think it over for a second, but eventually rolled her eyes very noticeably and sighed. 

"Fine." She opened the door further so Red could slip passed her. Red quickly ran up the stairs, still knowing her way around the house from the party. The place was spotless now. As if there had never been a party in the first place. The broken vases were replaced, the empty glasses cleaned and the floors wiped untill they had their original shine again. Red didn't pay much attention to it though. She raced up the stairs and into the bedroom that she had woken up in the day before. Neatly folded and organised in the ensuite bathroom laid her clothes, wallet, keys and phone. The first thing she did was check her phone, but the thing had died, of course. When she headed out of the bathroom door and back into the room with her stuff in her arms, Céline was standing in the door frame. 

"I'll be going now then," Red said, faking a smile. 

"Did you spend the night here?" Céline asked, her voice icy calm. Red heard the hidden meaning behind her words. Did she spend the night with him? She had no clue where Céline had been the moment Ares had plucked Red from the water but by her question it was clear that she had no longer been at the party. 

"I-uhm--" Red tried, but Céline cut her words short. 

"It's okay. I'm not mad at you."

"Oh no, Céline, we--"

"He's charming, isn't he? I should know, I fell for him too." Her voice sounded bittersweet. 

"Nothing happened, I swear." Red felt a bit annoyed and very awkward at the same time. She knew Ares' reputation, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that everyone who learned she spend the night at the Blythe mansion immediately assumed she and Ares had done something unholy. But she had thought his girlfriend to behave differently from all the others. "Listen, I drunkenly went into the ocean and lost consciousness. Ares pulled me out. He let me sleep here because I was in no way able to go home anymore. That's all." Céline smiled, a sense of relief washing over her. 

"I'm sorry." She said. "I just know that he can be a bit of a flirt and you are gorgeous so I'd understand why he'd go for you--" This time it was Red who cut Céline off.

"Are you kidding me? Ares would never go for me. I'm pretty sure he doesn't even like me." She chuckled. "And you are unbelievably beautiful and French and..." She looked the girl up and down. It really was unfair how beautiful she was. "Well, he loves you." Céline smiled. 

"Thank you, ma chérie. C'est très gentil." 

"Yeah, I have no idea what you just said." Céline laughed and Red joined her. Ares was a fool if he let this girl go, she thought to herself. 

"I'm sorry for being a bitch to you." Céline said. "It's just this place is so new to me and Ares already has so many friends. I feel--"

"Like an outcast?" Céline nodded. Red couldn't help but feel sorry for the girl. Even after two years of living on the South, she still felt like an outcast and she felt like that feeling would never go away. It was very out of character for her to care about a person she didn't know, but the fact that Céline felt the way she'd felt for so long, made her feel connected. So, she smiled at Céline - a genuine smile - and said: "I'm sure you'll fit in just fine." 

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