Note: All this who are interested in the Imagine Thing, kindly read the author's note at the end!

Chapter |26|

It's really weird what thinking can do. Especially when you're alone.

One moment, you could be thinking about how you wished something happened and the next moment you might be reliving a memory.

I don't know what made me come here. The place that haunts me in my dreams and is the reason why my life is like the way it is. But maybe it was because mom's death anniversary was approaching and I could do nothing but be bitter about it.

It may sound a bit dramatic but I can't help but blame the place and myself. I guess that's what happens when you don't have anyone else to blame.

Sitting about twenty feet away, I stared at the blue water that moved languidly, enjoying the calmness since no one was here to disturb it.

The wind caressed my face, pricking my eyes to let the tears fall but I didn't budge. I stared back at the water with a venomous glare as if it could apologise.

"Hey," a voice startled me, making me jump with the sudden interruption.

I looked up to see Daniel standing there with his hands tucked into his pockets. Only half of his face was visible since the moon was on his left, illuminating only that part of his face.

"How'd you find me?" I asked as I watched him settle beside me.

"You seemed a bit restless at home. I figured there was something troubling you so you'd want to be somewhere alone and quiet. I checked the observatory but you weren't there so I checked all the places I could think of," he shrugged, looking ahead.

I looked at him wide eyed. "You were looking for me? Why?"

"Had nothing better to do," he replied, but even I could tell that he was lying.

I didn't prod, though. His company wasn't bad and I'd started enjoying it too. Maybe a bit more than what was required but hey, no one knew that.

We both say in silence, with me staring at the sky and Daniel throwing rocks in the lake.

"So gonna tell me what's been bothering you?" He asked after a couple of moments.

"My mom's death anniversary is coming. I usually get a bit emotional a few days prior to it," I said as I kept staring at the sky.

I felt Daniel's gaze on my face, as if examining it for some clues. Clues to what? I didn't know.

A few seconds later, I felt a hand on my head, my attention snapped towards Daniel, who immediately pulled of my wig, letting my brown hair bounce down. Next he removed my glasses.

"Wha-?"

"Shhh," he placed his hand over my mouth. "I think your mom needs Skylar more than Penny."

He removed his hand and lied down on the grass. My mouth parted in surprise but I mimicked his position, keeping my wig and glasses aside.

I stared at the black blanket engulfing the stars. I stared as it wandered into oblivion, making everyone question the unanswered.

"I'm scared," I spoke, my voice barely reaching anywhere but Daniel seemed to have heard it.

He turned to me, his body along with his face. "Of what?"

"I don't know. Of life? I'm scared because I don't know if I will ever be truly happy. If I will be able to smile without anyone forcing it into a frown," I said and then turned myself towards him," and mostly if I will ever be able to live."

I stared at Daniel, waiting for an answer. He too, stared at me, not speaking a word.

"I've been scared too," Daniel spoke, surprising me,"Before Lacey, I'd never had a girl given me proper attention. I had friends who were girls but none of them wanted a serious and a loyal relationship and I wasn't the one for what they called friends with benefits.

I'd been scared of never having anyone to love like I saw other couples but then came Lacey. I developed a crush on her and even though what we have isn't like friends with benefits-at least not from where I stand and it's not what I prefer either," he spoke and I could see that he was letting a big wall down.

I stayed quiet. Our faces were inches apart as we lay there, unmoving, gently staring at each other, trying to figure out things that hid behind the masks we carried along.

Everyone wore a mask. But the sizes of masks varied. While some wore one just to hide what they felt, some wore it to hide who they were.

And in both our cases, we were the latter.

"Let's go back before Emma starts worrying," I whispered, our noses a centimetre apart.

As much as I didn't want to interrupt this moment, we needed to go before something else happened.

And as to what might happen? I'm too scared to even think about it.

He nodded but didn't make a move to get up. Even I stayed still, enjoying it for one last time before slowly getting up.

I pulled on my wig and glasses before standing up. Daniel followed my lead and we both slowly walked back, a comfortable silence blanketing us as we went home.

Home.

****

"So, which one?" Andrew questioned as we sat on my bed, with his laptop on our laps.

It was around eleven in the morning when Drew decided that we hadn't been spending much time together so he wanted to spend some time before the pool party that had been organised today.

It was for a break and to congratulate all the participants that were left.

"I think I want to see Tangled. Never got a chance to see the full movie," I said and Andrew made a face, making me chuckle a bit.

"Fine. But nobody ever finds out," he said, giving me a light glare.

I laughed but even I knew that it was somewhat empty. Whether Drew noticed it or not, I didn't know.

The movie started and we both sat together with my head on his shoulder. It was relaxing.

My head wasn't in the movie but I kept staring blankly at the screen, my thoughts wandering to the memories that I tried to bury deep inside.

"Andrew?" I spoke, making him turn his head towards me.

"Hmm?"

"You know everything about me. I've told you all the things. Do I know everything about you?" I asked, not lifting my head.

I didn't know what made me question him like that. But I did want to know just because if there were some difficulties in his life, I wanted to be the one to help him through them. Not only that, but I wanted to know if I could ever trust anyone again.

He didn't say anything for a while. I slowly turned my head towards him, lifting it up a bit.

"Yeah. Why do you ask?" His voice seemed a little strained but maybe it was just my imagination.

I gave him a small smile. "Good. Atleast I have one person who I know will have my back, no matter what."

I was filled with relief as I lay my head back on his shoulder.

I had been betrayed too many times so I had a bit of trust issues but now that I had Andrew as my brother and best friend, I could feel a bit of happiness creeping inside me.

I trusted him so much that if there was a repetition of my past betrayals, it would definitely shatter me.

"Drew, why did you want me to become your sister?" I asked him. It was a weird request, to be honest but I wasn't complaining.

He tensed a little but I didn't pay much here to it. "It's b-because I've never had a sibling before so I wanted to experience it," he said and I nodded, accepting the answer.

He had told me that he was an only child. He'd never had siblings so probably that's why. Anyway, I was glad to be his sister because he was an awesome brother

"I'm glad you chose me," I said honesty before returning my attention to the movie.
***

"Why aren't you ready, yet?" Emma asked, barging into my room, startling me and making my book drop from my hand.

Andrew had already gone home to get ready for the pool party that was being hosted nearby. It wasn't exactly a pool party since it was taking place around the lake since the lake had the clearest water.

The same lake which I'd been to, yesterday.

It was barely a five minute walk from Daniel's house.

"I'm not going," I replied, returning my attention to the book in my hand.

"What do you mean you're not going? You have to!"

"Emma, how can I go when the bikini isn't even going to fit me?"I asked, motioning to the belts that were lying on the chair beside me.

"You can go as Skylar," she reasoned.

"Won't they find it suspicious that Skylar and Penny are never seen together? Somebody is going to point it out," I said, trying to convince her.

"But-"

"Moreover, I can't swim," I told her and she sighed defeatedly.

The reason why I couldn't go wasn't just because I couldn't swim. It was because I had the worst memory near a similar lake and because of that I suffered from anxiety attacks whenever I went close to a lake.

That's why yesterday I sat a good twenty feet away.

"Fine but just know that Lacey and Daniel will be here on a cosy date, downstairs," Emma huffed before closing the door.

My eyes widened, my attention drifting from the book. Daniel and Lacey will be on a cosy date?

Immediately I felt bile rising up my throat. I cleared my throat and shook my head. I'd rather attend the party that watch two people swallowing each other up.

I'll just have to stay away from the water and I'll probably read my book in a secluded corner.

Having made up my mind, I started to get ready. I pulled on my belts and set everything.

To be honest, I was getting tired of all this façade. There were a lot of times when I just wanted to rip these belts apart but the hope of getting away from them in college and carrying on just a little bit longer kept me going.

I could hear Emma leave with Chloe so I hurried. Not that I needed to go with them since it was barely a five minute walk.

I quickly grabbed my book and put it in a small shoulder bag along with my water bottle and a couple of crackers Incase I felt hungry.

Looking around, I thought of anything else I could need. Maybe I should grab a few more things to eat. Crackers won't be sufficient.

With that thought in mind, I made my way to the kitchen. Daniel was already rummaging through cupboards when I went in.

I opened the cabinet towards my right and tried to reach for the huge jar that had all the protein and granola bars in it. I tried jumping but ended up stumbling back and tripping on my own shoes.

Daniel started laughing as I landed on my butt and I glared at him.

"You could've asked for help, you know," he smirked down at me as I struggled to get up with my belts.

"You could've helped on your own, you know," I mimicked his tone back at him.

He chuckled at my struggling form and offered his hand. I grumbled an incoherent response as I let him pull me up, my face morphed into an annoyed expression.

He seemed to be having the time of his life as he easily reached for the jar and set it in front of me, supporting a smirk. 

Damn his height.

I rolled my eyes at his smug expression and opened the jar, with admittedly, a little more force than necessary and grabbed a few bars before closing it.

I stuffed them into my bag before closing the jar.

"Why are you stuffing the bars in your bag?" Daniel asked, looking at me confused.

"Because I'm taking them just in case I feel hungry," I told him, eyeing him weirdly.

"Taking them where?"

"Daniel, is your brain functioning? There's a lake party down the block. Just because you're not going doesn't mean you need to forget the world around you," I said slowly, as if speaking to a small child.

"I know that," he said rolling his eyes before continuing," what I meant was, aren't you staying? Mom said that you were."

"Nah. I don't feel like seeing you and Saliva Factory going at it in front of me," I explained.

He frowned. "But I brought enough pasta to make for all three of us," he said and I looked at him in surprise.

I thought he would want me out so that I didn't disturb him, I thought, confused.

"I'm sure my share of pasta won't mind being cooked for a day. I'll have it tomorrow or at night," I said before making a move to go out.

He quickly grabbed my arm and pulled me back, eliminating a lot of space between us. My eyes widened a little as I lifted them up to his.

"Please stay?"

I looked at him, my mouth opening and closing. His eyes stared into mine, keeping them locked in their place. I couldn't move and I held my breath as the space between or bodies decreased.

My heart was thrashing inside my rib cage and I felt my stomach turning and twisting.

"I-"

"DANNY!! I'm here!" A very familiar voice interrupted what I was going to say and I immediately snapped out of whatever trance I was in.

I quickly took a few steps back. I shrugged off Daniel's hand from my arm and backed away.

"I gotta go," I said and before anyone could say anything, I bolted out of the kitchen, running into Saliva Factory.

"You bit-"

"Oh, shut up!" I interrupted before quickly making my way out of the house. Once I was out, I quickly shut the door and calmed my breath and thrashing heart, leaning against the door.

Whatever was happening wasn't good. This needed to stop. I didn't need any more reasons to stay behind than I needed to go away.

I wish I could just get a good enough reason to push myself out of this place and make me want to never look back.

But they say, you should be careful what you wish for because you never know when it actually might come true.

********

Hey guys.

How was the chapter?

I hope you liked it. I usually try to update every Monday but I might update randomly if I can't keep a set day.

Hold your breaths for the next chapter because it's gonna carry a Tornado and a Cyclone of emotions with it. Stay tuned.

You guys are awesome! I love you all a lot❤️

Okay, so now for the imagine thingy. Since I can manage only two imagines in whatever time I have, all those people who are interested in it can answer a few questions I have.

RULES FOR YOUR ENTRY:

- You must have only ONE answer for each question.

-Kindly avoid repeating other participants' answers since then yours won't be counted and their's will.

-Answering all the questions is compulsory.

-Leave all your answers in a SINGLE and in an INLINE comment where it will be mentioned AFTER all the questions.

- I'll be announcing the winners in the next chapter and I will ask for the details you want in your imagine through a PM.

(Violation of any rule will result in cancelation of your entry)

All the best!❤️

QUESTIONS: (Remember to answer in one inline comment only on the UNDERLINED part after the questions)

1) Rename this book. That is, give another title you think that fits.

(I've been planning to change the title anyway so the winner's title may be kept as the permanent title of this book too) Be creative and keep it in relevance to the story.

2) Give a sequel's name.

(If Incase I end up making a sequel)

3) Name one thing you like in this book and why.

4) Be funny in one line.

5) Decide one song that relates the most to Daniel and Skylar's relationship up till now.

ANSWER HERE.

May the odds be in your favour! If I could, I would have made an imagine for all of you but that won't be possible so I hope the two winners like their imagines whenever I give them.

Oh and I'm planning to do a 'Quote of the Day' kind of a thing so here is today's quote: