FicWad

I’d written this one million times before, but this is how it happened. How it really happened. I wish I could have written something like this without the experience but no one could just make this up. This was real. Unrequited, eternal, love at first hello; coming back to bite someone in the ass… and oh how good it felt.

I met him when I was only fourteen. He was seventeen. Oh, the mystery, the taboo. Three whole years. You see, at that age, it’s a very big difference because I was in my fourth year and he was in his sixth – our friends would never approve.

He was lovely. Not the dominant, possessive kind more of a romantic; that is a very rare find in this day and age. Obviously though, he was in love with another girl, who couldn’t care less.

She saw him as a normal teenage boy, another guitarist in another band who had the same philosophy as everyone else our age, agnostic, with average looks and a comforting nature. I saw him as some sort of God.

He really was – is – perfect. To me anyway. Dark brown hair, quite neat on his head, warm green eyes with a ring the colour of whiskey and my favourite part – his lips. The bottom one a perfect curve with a tiny upward dip in the centre and the top had a harsh cupid’s bow. They always looked deliciously soft and the kind of pink colour that looked as if he’d been bitten. His whole face was tied together by his nose, which is undeniably a little large – it never bothered me though, I always thought he had the most beautiful facial structure and his nose fit quite well. Add all of this to his height and gentle muscles and ding ding, he’s wonderful. Lets not forget the captivating way he effortlessly holds a conversation with humour, consideration and flare. And his endless talent – he was a skilled guitarist, singer and song writer on top of his acting skills which I’d admire from behind the curtains during school performances. He was also always very kind and tolerated me and the swooning state I was in well whenever we spoke. Which wasn’t often. He wasn’t exactly popular but he had a reputation to uphold and that meant not being friends with the fat, quiet girl, two years below.

So, I let go.

I was now eighteen and it had been three years since I’d spoken to him. His band were doing very well; they had a deal with a local label and were being eyed up by bigger, American labels. I’d kept track on their website. I knew he’d make something incredible of himself.

I was studying publishing in London and was visiting my home on the other side of the country for a weekend in October.. Obviously, all of my old high school friends had missed me a lot, and each other, as it was the first time we’d all been together since we left so we planned a big night out. Those details aren’t very important.

It doesn’t matter where we went, my friends don’t matter – all that matters in this story, is him. Me and him.

I’d lost all of the weight. I now had a very athletic body which on this particular night I’d dressed in a turquoise lace bodycon dress and purple patent heels. My dyed ginger hair with blue dip dyed tips had been curled and my usual cat eyes and red lipstick were painted on my face, with a fair amount of blusher, since I don’t like bases and I’m far too pale. Again, it’s also irrelevant.

We went out into town, laughing about how we could drive now, expecting a normal night out. Cocktails, beer, shots, dancing, misjudged heated looks across bars, the odd vomiting miss-hap and then ending up sneeking back into our own homes at half five in the morning, like we were sixteen again.

Our expectations were met far too early and we ended up leaving at one in the morning. As we were leaving the last bar I pulled on the wrist of one of my girls and screamed over the music that I was going to go to the bathroom and they should wait outside for me. I wasn’t feeling quite right.

When I got to the bathroom I leaned over the sink, expecting to throw up and not being able to make it to a toilet. Nothing happened. I remember a girl being asleep on the floor up against the sink next to me and I nudged her with my knee but she wouldn’t wake up. I took a deep breath, composed myself, and decided the cold night air would make me feel better so I made my way out and made sure to tell a bouncer about the unconscious partier on the floor of the ladies.

I got out and looked round for my friends but the street was empty apart from a couple dryhumping against the wall of the bar and taxis lined up for business. I was right though, the air made me feel more stable. Only now I had a bigger problem; no designated driver, hence no ride home. I grabbed for my purse, devastated to find that it was open, and empty. I’d been silently and secretly mugged in a club. Great. No money, no phone, no friends, no way home. My only option was to trawl the city streets and try to remember where we’d left the car, knowing they would never leave without me.

I was freezing and walking past a church clock I discovered it was half past two. I had been walking round for one and a half hours. The streets were eerie and no one was around. Oh fuck.

I was almost relieved to hear a woman screaming ‘NO!’ followed by the sound of high heels running. My first thought was ‘thank God, a human!’ but my second was ‘oh shit, help her!’. I listened for the sound of the running footsteps. They were hurtling towards me down a street to my right, so I ran towards them, feeling more and more sober with adrenaline.

“No! Please, No!” Came another yell.

“Hello?” I shouted down the street.

“You lied to me Gabby!” Woah, that was a man’s voice.

“No, I… I want you, I’ll leave him, I never meant to…”

“To what?! To fucking cheat on me? After I’ve given everything up for you? Risked my carrer, fought with my Mum, even gave up on a tour!” Whoever the man was that was shouting, was also crying. I couldn’t help but keep walking towards the fight, I could interrupt them and ask them for help… maybe then they’d calm down and talk things over rationally… but I really just wanted to get home.

“Cedric, I swear, he means……..” Cedric. She said Cedric. Cedric and Gabby? This wasn’t my Cedric… was it? And that wouldn’t be that bitch, Gabby, would it? My entire body froze over. I felt my blood chill and I got a shiver down my spine. The thought of him still effected me completely.

“Gabby, I don’t want to hear it. Why don’t you see if he can give you half as much as I would have given you. Don’t you ever fucking talk to me again, you whore,” he said through staccato breaths and tears.

My heart broke. I felt an actual pain in my chest and I almost cried myself. He was clearly in so much pain. My eyes were wide, I composed myself and looked towards the noise. I saw her, by street light, already walking away. Him watching. I couldn’t believe he was watching, why wasn’t he running in the other direction? When she disappeared from view, I saw his head drop and it took him a good few minutes before he turned round and began to walk towards me.

He didn’t know he was walking towards me though. Oh. Fuck. He was walking towards me. I didn’t know if I should just turn round and walk quickly so we wouldn’t bump into each other or just to tell him I was someone else and ask to borrow his phone or say who I was try to help. Obviously, I wanted to comfort him in any way I could, the poor man had just been shattered into pieces by someone who was not worth a single fibre of him. I’d always want to do anything I possibly could to make him happy, it was built into me now. A reflex. I couldn’t move.

He actually walked past me. Why wouldn’t he? He was distraught and I’m a ‘stranger’. I wasn’t letting go this time.

“Ced,” I said quietly. Luckily, this particular street was silent and he stopped. He turned round and looked at me, sniffing. He had grown into his looks more, his hair was slightly longer and his upper arms were straining the cloth of his black shirt.

“Do I know you?” He asked, obviously.

“Yeah. Well you did, I’m Leah,” I said, feeling like my fifteen year old self all over again. I mentally scowled at myself and called upon the confidence I’d gained with my new body. His expression hadn’t changed but he was looking me up and down.

“What are you doing here?”

“I’m home from London for a bit but I’ve gotten lost. I got mugged and…”

“Oh my God, are you okay? Did they hurt you?” He was suddenly much closer to me, only a foot away surveying me more closely for any damage.

“No, I’m fine, it was more of a pick pocket situation, they took everything out of my purse when I wasn’t looking and I haven’t been able to call my friends,” I looked up and let my eyes meet his for the first time in three years. I had to blink a few times and I lost my breath for a moment. “Listen, Ced, you’ve obviously had a rough night…”

“Oh, you heard that, did you?”

“Yes, but I swear, I never meant to, I was looking for help. I didn’t even catch on it was you until I heard your name and then I wanted to see if you were okay. Are you – are you okay?” I looked briefly at his beautiful mouth, but realising how inappropriate this was at the moment I looked back at his eyes which were closed.

“Honestly, Leah, no. But that’s my problem, right? You can borrow my phone if you need to and I’ll take you home in a taxi, I’m not going back into her place to get my car keys. I’ll have to send someone else up there tomorrow or something,”

“Where are you going to stay then?”

He looked like he’d just been slapped.

“It’s okay, Ced! Don’t panic, erm… Stay at my house. On the couch, I’ll explain to my Dad in the morning…”

“No, Leah I really can’t do that.”

“What else are you going to do? It’s like three in the morning,” I said watching him furrow his brow and bite his lip. I gulped.

“You’re sure your family won’t mind?” He murmured as if he regretted every word.

“No, not at all. We’re very hospitable people, Ced,” I said with a grin. He gave a small smile back and handed me his phone. I only knew one of the numbers of the people I was out with tonight so I punched it in, and when she answered I explained I was totally safe and what had happened. Apparently they were on their way to the police station but made their way home.

“All fine, okay, let’s go,” I breathed, beginning to walk back up the street. “I know this really isn’t what you expected tonight but I hope I’m hel… oh fuck.”

“What’s wrong?” Cedric said, that furrowed brow returning and he looked at me with those boiling green eyes.

“My keys… They took them too,” I said looking into my bag, “They even took my fucking lipstick, the bastard. I can’t get into the house.”

“Won’t your Dad be in?”

“No, he’s flying in from Italy on business, isn’t back until ten,” I stopped walking.

“So… we’re both stranded, in our home town, together.”

“It appears so, Ced, it appears so,” I giggled.
“Fuck,” He laughed, drawing out the vowel while pulling his wallet out of his pocket and peering inside.

“I have my card, but the bitch took all my money as usual. We can find a hotel or something?” He said, looking like he didn’t quite believe his own words. “You don’t have to pay me anything back, Leah.”

“Oh, no, I’d have to. I’ll cancel my card tomorrow, get some money while I’m at the bank and get my share to you somehow. It’s only fair.”

“If you really want to,” he shrugged. I’d forgotten how velvety his voice was.

“Okay, there’s a few in the town centre, lets go there,” I laughed again. He managed a grin this time, much to my surprise – why was he happy? He’d just been crushed by someone he loved and for some reason he was happy to be walking round creepy alleys with a ginger girl in heels that he vaguely knew three years ago.