now or never - charlie gillespie

chapter thirty four

"LAKE BAKER! THERE IS NO WAY IN HELL YOU ARE MISSING MY WEDDING," Sawyer yelled. She was standing in front of me. One hand on her hip and the other pointed at me.

"Relax, even if I go on tour I'd find a way to be back for you wedding," I said trying to calm her down. It worked.

"No but seriously you can't leave me here to suffer the wrath of bridezilla over here," Ava snorted.

Sawyer rolled her eyes at Ava and turned her attention back to me. "If you promise to be here on my wedding day, then I shall support any decision you make," Sawyer said, taking a seat.

I rubbed my head with my fingers. These girls were no help.

I tried to get some sleep, but it was no use. My mind wouldn't stop racing.

The next morning I went to work. It was my last day as a maid.

I made sure I did everything perfectly. I even showed how to properly fold the towels.

After my shift I turned in my uniform. "Here you go," I said to the dry cleaner. I let my hand linger on my uniform.  I was actually going to miss being a maid. It's all I ever knew. It was my first job. It felt like I was letting go of something big.

I had changed into a cute white sundress, fitting for the beach. I let my hair down for a change. I spotted Carolynn lounging on the beach. I ran over to her. "Hey you," I said as I approached her, not wanting to startle her.

"Hey Lake!" She said as she looked up at  me through her sunglasses.

"Where is everyone?" I asked, holding my hand up to shield the sun from my eyes as I spoke to her.

We turned our heads left and right until we finally spotted them taking a dip in the water. Charlie, Owen, Jeremy and Kenny were all floating around in the water. "I've got to get this," Carolynn whispered as she pulled her phone out and captured her moment. "Boys will be boys," she hummed.

I took a seat next to her. The light breeze felt night against my face. I couldn't even remember the last time I had felt this relaxed.

"I think you've been made," I heard Carolynn say.

"Hmm?" I asked, opening my eyes one at a time. I was almost about to doze off. I turned my head and saw the boys jumping up and down, waving their hands.

"LAKE! HEY LAKE!" They yelled at me. I waved back at them. I watched as they all began to climb on one another. "LOOK LAKE" I shook my head and laughed at how silly they were.

After their swim the boys came running back to us.

I couldn't keep my eyes off of Charlie's body. And then my eyes darted to Owen next to him and had the same problem. I had to literally force my eyes to look anywhere but at their bodies. They weren't playing fair.

"BAKER!" Charlie screamed running up to me. He scooped me up in his arms and spun me around.

"I see someone isn't worried about being seen with us anymore," Owen teased.

"Hey Lake! Any luck?" Kenny asked and I just shook my head. "One more day," he said holding up his index finger.

After the boys dried off we decided to play some card games. Carolynn and Kenny decided to lay out in the sun and try to get some color. While Jeremy was dealing the cars Charlie reached over me and grabbed a bottle of sunblock. "Could you rub some on my back?" He asked me innocently.

I stole a quick look at Owen who gave me a weak smile and a nod. I know I promised them both just friends, but Charlie wasn't playing fair at all. I also didn't want to hurt Owen, at all. I made a mental note to talk to Charlie about it.
After an hour of playing cards I was mentally drained. Playing cards with these boys was exhausting.

"No fair, Jer!" Charlie whined, pointing at Owen as he won the game for the thousandth time. I rolled my eyes. It had been like this every single round. Owen would win, Charlie would argue and Jeremy would be the referee. It was entertaining at first. "He's so cheating. Lake, you believe me right?"

"Me? Cheating? Au contraire mon ami," Owen said, pretending to be offended.

"Whatever, I'm hungry," Charlie grumbled.

"Any chance you guys want to ditch a fancy dinner, order in and watch Harry Potter movies all night long?" Owen asked, rubbing his hands together. He was looking, practically begging with his eyes.

I laughed at the sound of Charlie's stomach rumbling at the thought of food.

"I'll take that as a yes," Owen said. We grabbed our things and headed back to the room.

After everyone took their showers and we ordered room service we all sat around the couch watching the first Harry Potter movie.

"Wingardium Leviosa," I whispered to myself as I shoved popcorn in my mouth.

Owen turned to me. "It's lev-i-O-sa," he said. I turned to him and we said the next line together. "Not lev-i-o-SA"

"Wow. She also loves Harry potter. Marry me?" Charlie said from my side. I rolled my eyes and shoved his left with my foot.

"In your dreams, Gillespie," I said, throwing some popcorn at him.

He grabbed the piece of popcorn in his hand and brought it close to his chest, then popped it in his mouth and winked at me.

Suddenly there was a knock at the door. "Ooo, the pizza is here!" Jeremy exclaimed, getting up to get the door. A few minutes later he walked in with the pizza.

I sat back and watched as everyone crowded around the pizzas. Several hands reached for slices of pizza, shoving it into their mouths, bite after bite. I couldn't help but smile. I loved these people so much. I loved this moment even more. Sitting around the TV, cuddled up together, watching Harry Potter, eating pizza and popcorn. What else could I want?

"You guys?" I said.

They all replied with hums, and a few grunts.

"I think I'll head out now, I'm really tired," I said, faking a yawn.

"Trying to get as much sleep as you can before the tour?" Charlie winked at me. I just laughed and nodded my head.

"Yeah, exactly. Well, goodnight," I said getting up and walking towards the door. "Actually..." I began to say, turning back around when I stopped. Suddenly I had ten pairs of eyes on me. My stomach dropped. "That was a lie."

"What do you mean?" Jeremy asked me. I looked at Owen and Charlie and then averted my eyes. If I was looking at either of them I wouldn't be able to do this.

"You guys have to know I really really appreciate everything you've done for me. Seriously. Words cannot express how grateful I am," I paused trying not to let the tears come flooding out.

"Lake.." Owen whispered, shaking his head. Charlie was pouting, I knew he was not happy about what I was getting at.

"I-I-I'm s-sorry," I stuttered. "I can't come on tour with you guys."

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Ahh!! Please don't hate me!! I hope you liked it!!

But honestly, how are you guys feeling about Lakes decision?

also.. I just posted my second book!! It's called "my best friends wedding" go check it out if you'd like!!

Thank you SO much for reading!!