Chapter Nine

      “Thank you!” I yelled, as my mom drove off from the park I had asked her to drop us off at. It was in the same area as the skate park, and I figured she’d feel better about us spending time at some cute park intended for little kids, rather than a sketchy skate park covered in concrete and graffiti.

      “Wouldn’t your mom notice me bringing my board?” Josh asked, as we held hands and walked through the moistened grass.

      “Yeah, but you bring it everywhere, so it’s no big deal,” I said.

      “Right. So is this place…” he trailed off, his eyes wandering about.

      “Not as nice as the one in Santa Monica, but it’s still a skate park. The crazy thing is two years ago I didn’t even know this place existed!” I exclaimed.

      “You didn’t know how to skate two years ago,” Josh oh-so brightly pointed out.

      “Darn right, I didn’t!” I laughed. “Oh, I should probably thank you for teaching me how to skate, while were on the topic.”

      “You’re right, you probably should,” he smirked.

      “Okay then, thank you so very much for teaching me how to skate!” I laughed.

      “You’re so very welcome,” he flicked my shoulder playfully.

      “Hey!” Logan greeted, approaching us right before we crossed over to the dark side of the park. It was just like the first time I had been. Hard concrete, the sketichiest vibe imaginable, and lots and lots of skateboards. It made me feel rebellious, in a way. 

      “Hi!” I returned with a smile.

      “Logan, right?” Josh questioned, draping a protective arm around me.

      “Yeah. And you’re… Josh?” Logan asked.

      “That’th be me,” Josh replied. I physically had to restrain myself from not pinching his cheeks at his absolute cuteness and dorkiness.

      “Jules told me that you taught her to skate?” Logan said lightly.

      Josh nodded. “Yeah.”

      “So, you must be pretty good.”

      “Nah…” Josh shook his head modestly.

      “Josh, shut up! He can skate. He’s good at it. Like, really good,” I said, punching my boyfriend’s shoulder.

      “Wanna show me?” Logan offered.

      “Sure...” Josh said, running ahead with Logan to the rough jungle gym of ramps and rusted metal. Oh! So that must have been what getting a typhus shot was for! So that in a place like this, if one accidentally cut oneself on the rusty metal, death wouldn’t be a consequence! Mind has been officially blown.

      “Jules, right? You’re the chick that did some sick-ass skating the other day?” a boy asked, flipping his long, blonde hair out of his eyes. I was almost positive that his name was Cody.

      “Well, that could’ve been me, but you never know,” I said, deciding to be difficult. I loved messing with people. It was so much fun, and kept me entertained.

      “Mhmm. I see you’re here with Logan again,” he winked knowingly.

      “And Josh,” I added, not liking the inference I had a hunch he was making.

      “Who’s Josh?” he questioned.

      “My boyfriend,” I pointed over to him.

      “You have a boyfriend?” I nodded in confirmation. “Logan said you were from here, but moved away to L.A..” Moved away... to L.A.—ha! It rhymed! I loved rhymes. They were the epitome of cool.

      “Yeah, but it was to Santa Monica,” I corrected.

      “Really? Awesome place. Boring, but awesome,” he commented, shaking his head and repositioning his hair.

      “Ever been?” I probed.

      “Yeah.”

      “Liked it?”

      “I like Florida more.” Florida. Huh. He didn’t look like the type: shaggy, blonde hair, ripped jeans, a black T-shirt, and scuffed up sneakers. But, then again, maybe he was...

      “I don’t really like warm weather,” I said. “I can’t stand the heat.”

      “I don’t know—you look pretty hot from over here,” someone said from behind me. I turned around to face none other than Trent Johnson ...or a boy looked a whole lot like him. Brown hair, green eyes, and height. Yeah, it was definitely Trent.

      “Hey, Trent!” I smirked.

      “How the hell do you know my name?” he inquired, completely confused. See, this was my favorite part of coming back: every person I remembered happened to forget me. It was the funniest thing! Trent forgetting who I was, was almost as funny as Taylor forgetting.

      “Trent Johnson! Are you implying that you don’t recognize me?” I demanded.

      “Believe me, if we’ve met I’d remember someone like you.” At that, the song “Someone Like You” started playing through my head. Thanks, Adele.

      “Oh, that hurts!” I put a hand on my heart to feign hurt.

      “Cody, who the hell is this chick?” Trent stared at me strangely.

      “I don’t really know, she’s friends with Logan,” Cody shrugged helpfully.

      “What’s your name, and how do you know mine?” Trent asked.

      “T.J.! I thought I meant something to you! Guess not,” I pouted, calling him the one thing I knew would boost his memory of me.

      “Only one person on the planet calls me that… HOLY SHIT! ARE YOU, LIKE, JULIA FREAKING TYLERS?!” he screamed excitedly.

      “The one and only,” I said, running over to hug him.

      “Wow. You got, like, really hot,” he remarked, his arms closing around me tightly.

      “Well, you didn’t,” I lied.

      “Yeah, actually, I did,” he said, as I could practically hear his eye roll paired with the words.

      “No, you really didn’t,” I pressed.

      “I have a six pack. Need I show you?” he asked, about to lift up his shirt as we pulled away from the embrace.

      “No! I’m good. See that hunk of muscle who probably just tripped on his own untied shoelaces over there?” I asked, nodding my head over to Josh.

      “The tan kid?” he scrunched his face.

      “Yup.”

      “What about him?”

      “Oh, well that’s my hunk of muscle who probably just tripped on his own shoelace,” I bit my lip to hide my grin. Trent looked over to me, pointed, gave Cody a look, to which Cody just shook his head.

      “Got it,” Trent said after his silent conversation with Cody. “So, Julia—”

      “It’s Jules. Please let this be the first and last time I’m correcting you,” I interupted quickly.

      “Okay? So Jules, I thought you were dead?” OH. MY. GOSH! I loved this kid one hundred and fifty percent more than I already did—if that was even possible! He just made my year! How awesome was that? There was a rumor that I died? Sick! That was, like, actually the coolest thing ever! 

      “Well, I’m alive! Unless of course this is Julia Tylers’ zombie,” I laughed.

      He poked my stomach cautiously, “No, I think it’s you.”

      “I could be a vampire,” I said.

      “Nah. Vampires suck blood ...I think. The only thing you ever sucked, was my face ...and neck.” Oh, Trent, always the charmer!

      “Ah! Those were the days!” I said, continuing to laugh.

      “So, I’m assuming you guys went out?” Cody deducted.

      “No,” I shook my head.

      “We were just friends who hooked up a few times,” Trent smiled, reminding me how much I had truly missed him.

      Trent was about a year older than me, and he may have been held back a grade. He was either in my grade, or a junior. Point being, he was older. When I was in seventh grade, I met him through Emily, and we became really good friends. The kid was an idiot, and I was an insane, which was not a good mix. We weren’t really best friends, but when I chilled with him, I felt like I could be myself …even if he had been one of the many boys on the long list with whom I had hooked up.

      “Oh T.J.,” I said, giving him a more thorough look.

      He looked good. His caramel brown hair was messed up to perfection, and the basic features on his face looked the exact same. He still had those same, deep, blue, intense eyes that could memorize any girl who dared to look, and his slightly tanned complexion was so hot that it could melt an ice cream cone. He was following the unspoken basic protocol of the skater boy look by wearing a black T-shirt that clung lifelessly to his sculpted body, and gray skinny jeans. Being me, I looked down at his shoes: Jordans. Nice, Trenty.

      “I love your shoes!” I said, not bothering to analyze why he was wearing a shoe meant for basketball while in a skate park.

      “Is that all? I mean, most people love my face …and my body,” he fished for another compliment.

      “No, T.J., I like your shoes.”

      “Eh, fine by me,” he said, though it clearly wasn’t fine by him.

      “Jules, babe! Did you just see that awesome—hi, I’m Josh, Jules’ boyfriend,” Josh said, stopping mid-sentence after running over to me, and possessively locking his arm around my waist.

      “Hi, I’m Trent, Jules’ fiancé,” Trent introduced himself. I stepped on his foot in response.

      “What?” Josh asked, confused.

      “Oh, she didn’t tell you? We’ve been engaged for two years now,” Trent said casually.

      “Trent, shut up,” I groaned, placing my foot on his once again.

      “He’s kidding, right?” Josh asked nervously.

      “Babe, if it’s illegal, then you don’t need to ask if it’s a joke,” I sighed.

      “Okay, right. Cool,” he sent me a wary grin.

      “So, your name’s Josh?” Trent pondered. I didn’t know where he was going with this one. There was another thing about Trent that was either really great, or really not: he was unpredictable. What people did was generally expected, but, with Trent, literally anything was possible.

      “I just said that,” Josh said stiffly.

      “Right. So, I think it’s great that you and Jules are together, she’s a really amazing girl,” Trent smiled.

      “How do you two know each other?” Josh questioned.

      “We were good friends,” I said. Josh arched an eyebrow in the cutest way imaginable, indicating that I should elaborate. “We were really good friends. Never dated, just friends. He’s like a brother to me.”

      “Yeah, Jules and I go way back!” Trent winked at me.

      “Got that right, T.J.,” I winked back.

      “La-La-La-La-LOGAN!” a girl yelled, ramming him into a hug. I saw a long, charcoal braid droop off her shoulder, and knew instantly that it was Kim.

      “Hello to you too, Kim,” Logan laughed.

      “Oh-my-gosh! Trent! I haven’t seen you in forever! How are you, dude?” she asked, forgetting about Logan momentarily.

      “Better—I just found out that Julia’s still alive! Since we’re soul mates and all, I always felt that special connection, that a part of her was still with us, but I never guessed that it was the whole part!” he rambled.

      “Soul mates?” Josh inquired, taking a deep breath to calm down.

      “Yeah, Joshy, that’s what we are,” I pressed my lips lightly onto his cheek.

      “Nice answer.”

      “I know.”

      “Logan! Why am I here?” Kim whined.

      “Because Owen didn’t feel like coming, I knew if Jules came she would bring along Josh, and I didn’t know who else would be here,” he answered.

      “So, you called me?”

      “Yeah,” Logan confirmed.

      “Okay.”

      “Hey, I’m Cody,” Cody said, looking over to Kim.

      “Hi, I’m Kim. Logan, I really don’t want to be here right now!” she said.

      “Then why’d you come?” he groaned.

      “Because you said we’d be at the park.”

      “We are.”

      “Yeah, but you neglected the fact to mention it was the skate park!”

      “Well, it is.”

      “I don’t like skateboarding!” she whined.

      “I bet I can change your mind!” Cody said, taking her hand, and leading her past the gates into the bleak maze of iron and cement.

      “Bye, Kim!” I called after her. She turned to look at me, and blushed.

      “So, anyways, why didn’t you call me when you got back! I missed you!” Trent said.

      “Speaking of missing, I’m gonna miss you so much when you’re gone!” I said to Josh.

      “No, you won’t,” Josh shook his head.

      “Oh, I won’t?” I was skeptic.

      “No, because I’ll always be in here,” he said, patting his chest.

      “And where is that?”

      “In your heart.”

      “Aw! That was so cheesy! But that’s why I love you, babe!” I cooed.

      “I love you too,” he said.

      “Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! What happened to the Julia Tylers I knew who said, and I quote, ‘I will never fall in love, because there’s no such thing’?” Trent stared at us with wide eyes.

      “I met Josh.”