This is not what I intended
I always swore to you i'd never fall apart
You always thought that I was stronger
I may have failed but I have loved you from the start

Chapter 20 – How to Crash Your Archenemy’s Stupid Party

I paced back and forth the living room, momentarily glancing at the door to the basement, trying to overhear whatever Nathan and the gang were up to. They’d locked themselves up in there all morning. I wasn’t at all okay with the idea of letting Nate in my studio. He’d wreck the place for sure. But Dad was a lot more trusting than me. Of course, he’d let Nate do whatever he likes. It was Dad’s idea of making up for all those years he owed my brother.

“Give him a chance, he says,” I grumbled under my breath in frustration. “A chance to wipe out my studio.” So far, all I could hear was a bit of a frenetic drum solo and few guitar leads.

“Leon!”Someone bit my shoulder. It didn’t hurt, but I jumped away in surprise. I rolled my eyes before facing she-who-dared-to-eat-me. I knew who it was.

“Sarah,” I sniggered, knuckling her on the forehead. “You’re worse than Jer. And Kidnap.”

She recoiled, hiding her face behind the stack of books she was balancing on her arms. “I’ve been calling at the door for forever. What are you, legally deaf?”

I adjusted my glasses and faked a laugh. “Very funny. Why’re you here so early? I thought you’d be busy dressing up for the stupid party,” I muttered taking more than half of the books off her hands.

As if to ignore me, Sarah stepped towards the basement door. But before she could reach for the doorknob, I shoved her away from it. A loaded personal recording studio. She’d definitely ask questions. So despite her objections, I blocked the stairway and told her to get a move on. That she was imagining whatever she heard. After a glaring contest, she went up to my room grudgingly, looking unconvinced but dropped the matter nonetheless.

With a big sigh, I plunked the books on my study table. There was hardly any room to put them and though I loved her so, I despise clutter with a passion.

“You don’t always have to bring a ton of books every time you come here, you know that, right?” I said, trying to keep my cool. It’s Sarah, I reminded myself. Everything’s fine. “My room’s starting to look like a library.”

 “I’m trying to be convincing here,” she mumbled, giving me a rueful look.“Mom’s going to pull all my hair out if she knew I wasn’t studying for the retake. She kept snooping in my room and I’ve pretended to read Hamlet twice already. She’s getting suspicious.”She jumped into my bed and turned on the TV. Dog-whisperer was airing.

She tapped the bed, gesturing for me to sit with her and when I did, she rested her chin on my shoulder—where she bit me. It actually hurt, mind you. But I didn’t let it show on my face.

“It can’t be helped then,” I breathed out, looking at her. “You’ll eventually have to tell her that you don’t want to go Yale anymore.”

For a while, Sarah fell silent, staring blankly at the TV. “How can I do that? It was our dream since I was five. We swore,” she whispered, taking my hand and making a pinky promise. “Like this.” Then, she dropped her gaze and reluctantly let go of my hand, looking like the world was on her shoulders.

“Ah, what’s with that face?” I complained loudly, flicking her on the forehead. “Quit moping, will you?”

Blinking and dumbfounded, she rubbed the reddened gap between her brows and bared her teeth. I scrambled away from her, knowing that she’d take any chance to sink her teeth in me. She couldn’t help it. I was just so irresistible. A second too late to grab my arm, she hurled two pillows to my direction, which I swiftly dodged. I was just too awesome for her lack of coordination. Note the humility, people.

“I’ll get you!” she yelled angrily, skirting the bed to get her hands on me.

I smirked, wagging my index finger at her before vaulting to the opposite side of the bed. As she was about to charge again, Sarah tripped on the books she left scattered about the floor. Before she broke her neck on the edge of the bed (or worse, get another amnesia) I rushed to catch her. Unluckily, her head hit the carpeted floor with a muffled thump faster than I’d imagined.Cursing under my breath, I kneeled beside her and tapped her cheek lightly.

“Sarah!” I called her, my heart pounding inside my head.

Still, she didn’t open her eyes. She wasn’t moving. All of a sudden, a horrible memory flashed through my eyes—the night Sarah had the accident. Feverishly, I cradled her head in my arms, about to scoop her from the floor to get some help, mindlessly holding my breath as I gazed at her for any sign of life.It must just be a mild concussion, I kept telling myself. But for some reason I couldn’t make myself believe that. Oh, maybe, now she’d remember, a part of me voiced out. But that was total, utter bull. That never really happened in real life.Before I was able to yell out for help, Sarah’s hand lifted up and slapped me on the forehead.

“Gotcha,” she said grinning, opening her eyes.

Without thinking, I pulled her in and folded my arms around her in a tight embrace. I swallowed the swelling in my throat that seemed to be preventing air from coming into my lungs. Sarah just froze in my arms. She didn’t try to push me away. Like I’d let her go. I couldn’t seem to do so. I won’t.It just dawned on me how I missed this—being able to hold her.

“L-leon?” she stammered, barely a whisper. “Y-you’re… shaking.”

“You scared me,” I murmured. With my chest still pounding, I raised my good arm and offered it to her. “If you want to bite me, go ahead. I won’t move a muscle. Just… don’t do that again.”

I forced myself to let go of her, sprawling weakly onto the rug. Staring at the ceiling, I caught my breath. It was hard to calm down but I tried.Silently, she took my hand and placed it on her lap. She bit her lip, unable to look at me as she traced something on my palm. She was spellingS-O-R-R-Y. I grunted in reply, half-heartedly annoyed that she got me fooled and worried sick.

“Go get me a glass of water,” I muttered, putting on my stoic face. “Before I die of heart attack.”

Bossing Sarah for the rest of the day was more fun than I thought it’d be. She was eager to make up for what she did. She offered a back massage which was more painful enough to break a few bones. Cleaned up all her clutter from my room. Made me some snacks for the first time in two years—slightly burnt microwave popcorn. And she made me gobble it to the last bit. What could I say? The girl couldn’t cook to save her life. Could anyone please remind me why I fell for her? At least she tried.

I made up some excuse about getting us some drinks from the kitchen. Truth be told, I went straight to the toilet to throw up. Remembering to stop by the kitchen to get us a couple of soda, I eavesdropped a familiar tune coming from the basement studio. I sneaked down the steps and pressed my ear against the sliding door.

“Okay, great stuff.” It was Freddy’s voice. “Reed, can you do that again? This time, try it two notes higher and hammer the E in the intro.”

I heard a short drum solo fading before Reed went on with the lead guitar intro that was later joined by a rhythm strumming with keyboard accompaniment. The tune was so familiar I was literally singing it in my head. But instead of mine, I heard Nathan’s voice singing. He wasn’t much of a singer but he managed to stick to the tune.

When I walked you home, I wanted to ask

Please say yes, make up your mind fast

Run away with me on a midnight train

And you’ll dance with me under the pouring rain

How can you feel it… when I know you’re that far?

This feeling… is wreaking havoc in my empty heart

Now I’m sick to death

So heart sick to let… you know

There’s a cure to this… those forgotten three words

From your lips… But I’ll say it for all its worth

That I am sick to death

Too damn sick to let… you go

I stopped myself from kicking the door open. Wasn’t Dad’s attention enough? First, he wanted Sarah and now he stole my song. The soda can’s lid flew open and spun on the floor. I hadn’t realized I was squeezing the can too hard. My patience with Nathan was runningout. He could have the song. I’d just have to make a new one. But this would be the last time he’d cross me.

Fuming, I went back up to the kitchen, leaving orange soda trails along the stairs. I couldn’t care less if Nathan found out that I was snooping on them. I was fed up having to give way to him all the time.

Sarah was already asleep when I got back. I placed the soda on the side table, careful not to make a noise. This was one of the few moments I got to look at her freely so I took my time. Carefully, I pushed back a lock of hair that fell on her face. Her lips was slightly parted while she slept, her body curled with both her hands under her cheek. Again, I was in a daze. Like a stalker, watching her rhythmic breath. Wanting so bad to kiss her though I knew that’d be so wrong. At least, maybe for her.

Cursing silently, I hit my temple with my fist. I know I shouldn’t. Weakly, I sagged on to the rug and fixed my eyes on the TV. It was a talk show, mostly about Hollywood gossip. All the while, it felt like I had eyes on the back of my head, observing Sarah’s every move.It was sick. Maybe I was sick. She was an obsession I won’t ever get over.

Leon Walden on rehab? That was the next segment of the show. Apparently, some people believed that my sudden disappearance in the Hollywood scene wasn’t due to an accident. I was on rehab for drug addiction. That was what they wanted to believe. It was more scandalous. Viewers were suckers for drama. Tiredly, I turned the TV off and went behind the piano to get my composition notes. Of course it wasn’t there. Nate stole it. Now what should I do to get my mind off Sarah?

Yeah. Sarah. Who was sleeping in my bed. Trapped in my room. Weak and sweet and trusting. So near me. So easy to overpower should I give in to some unthinkable urge inside me.

No. I slapped my own face. Get a hold of yourself! Got to do something distracting, Got to do it fast.Next thing I did was drop on the floor and do push-ups until my arms felt like they were ready to fall off. When I got to number one hundred and ninety-two, Sarah woke up, looking bewildered. I collapsed on the floor, dog-tired.

“What are you doing?” she asked, rubbing her eyes.

“Err… Working out,” I answered, blinking my eyes since the ceiling seemed to revolve around me.

Sarah knotted her brows. “Working out?” she repeated dubiously. “In those clothes?”

Frantically, I looked down on myself. My button-up shirt was drenched with sweat. As with the Tee underneath. Oh, and the denim pants too. A wry grin spread across my face. “Yeah… you should try it sometimes,” I replied, about to pass out.

One by one, we got out of Ricky’s truck and slinked our way in between the parked cars in front of Matt Adams’ house. It seemed like the party had just started. I saw some familiar faces as we went in. Jocks, cheerleaders, some juniors, a few former student body officers. People filed in the yard of the two-story duplex, wanting to get in. Matt sure was popular.

We shouldered our way into the house with Reed and Chuck as our front liners. No one minded us. The crowd was busy dancing to Maroon 5, drinking or both. There were chanting voices from the dining area and I saw two girls doing a chugging contest. One was a former cheerleader and the other was a familiar blondgirl, slightly small for her age.

“Becky,” Sarah muttered beside me, frozen in her spot, mindless that she was being shoved and pushed by the crowd.

Before she was thrown off the dance floor, I grabbed her hand and towed her to a corner. Ricky gave me a salute before following Nathan, Chuck and Reed to the kitchen. I caught a whiff that they were planning something. I just didn’t know what.

“You sure you want to be here?” I leaned closer to Sarah, raising my voice so she could hear me through the blaring music.

Reluctantly, she nodded, eyes still fixed on Becky. It must be hard for Sarah seeing her best friend like that. Becky had been around, alright. And got some serious issues. Why she did this to herself was still a mystery to me.

I didn’t argue with Sarah. I knew she needed a break. A change of atmosphere from her quiet bedroom. She even took an effort to put on a light make-up. But to me, Sarah in her black plaid button-up shirt, faded jeans and sneakers was the best the world could offer. The look on her face told me that she felt out of place. Sarah wasn’t really a fan of parties. Or going out. With just a good book, you’d find her where you left her.

“I’ll get us something to drink,” I said to her, waiting for her nod before nudging my way to the punch table. After grabbing a beer and a soda, I run into Chuck.

He gingerly grabbed the soda bottle from my hand. “I wouldn’t try to drink one of these babies if I were you,” he said with a sly smile. The glint in his eyes told me that something awfully smelled of trouble.Behind him, Ricky just threw me a nervous look, clutching his laptop. He looked pale, almost green, his eyes shifting everywhere as if he was expecting a meteor to hit us anytime soon.

“Where’s Sarah?” Ricky asked, peering behind me.

“She’s right—“ When I looked at the spot where I left her, she was gone. “Ugh, Crud,” I muttered under my breath.

Chuck nudged me on the shoulder and smirked. “You better find her, lover boy. The real party’s going to start soon.”

I knew it was no use trying to talk some sense out of him. So I hurried my steps, craning my neck over the crowd. Flo Rida blaredfrom the speakers, pounding on my ears, making my head hurt. I kept looking for Sarah and tried to ask people if they saw her. Leigh, a girl I knew from class told me that she saw Sarah with Matt. And they were heading upstairs. I didn’t stay longer to thank or chat with Leigh. I shouldered my way to the stairs and hurried up, taking two steps at a time.

This was what I was afraid of. Matt taking advantage of Sarah’s naivety. I flung open the first door I laid my eyes on and heard a scream. I caught a quick glimpse of a couple making out in the bed before quickly slamming the door shut. Okay… When I saw another door, I pressed my ear against it and listened first. Nobody home. The next two rooms were empty and the third turned out to be a bathroom.

In the end of the hallway leading to abalcony, I heard hushed voices. It was Sarah’s and unfortunately, Matt’s. Stealthily, I approached them, pressing my back on the wall. I drew a deep breath before sneaking a quick peek. It was them, alright. Side by side. Elbows on the wooden ledge. Stargazing under the summer night sky. How romantic. I got to hand it to Matt. He was good. But not good enough if for example, I dunno, I accidentally pushed him off the ledge, straight down the yard. Homicidal, I know. I seriously needed to be on medication.

A deep sigh came from Sarah’s lips. Was she enjoying this?

“I’ve been thinking,” she started, fidgeting with her fingers. “M-maybe you’re right. Maybe… maybe it’s worth the try.”

“I knew you’ll eventually see it my way,” Matt said. I could just picture the big grin on his face right now and it was ticking me off. When I looked again, Matt was already holding Sarah’s hands. “You’ll never regret it, Sarah. I’ll make you the happy. Just give me a chance to prove to you that I’m better than him,” he said.

“Better than w-who?” Sarah questioned him, gently withdrawing her hands from his clutches.

I wanted to jump out from my hiding place. Better than me, I wanted to tell her. But before I could move a muscle, Matt grabbed Sarah around the waist and pulled her in. She struggled at first. I wished she fought back. Pushed him away. Got so amusingly angry. And hit him so hard in the face. But after a while, she let him. And it was tearing me to pieces to see it.

“It doesn’t matter,” he said to her before letting her go. “I’ve been waiting since kindergarten for this.”

Heavily, I stepped away from them. I couldn’t make myself stand it anymore. I only had one plan so far—to be with Sarah. And now that didn’t seem possible. What was plan B?

I heard yells from downstairs, mostly from girls. The booming music shifted to an ear splitting static noise. Then a recorded dialogue came from the speakers, echoing throughout the house.

“Hi Matty!” a woman’s voice said. “Ready for your potty?”

I literally hurdled down the living room and made my way to the center of the commotion. People were watching some sort of home video on the wide flat screen. People including Matt’s buddies—Drake and Larson. And for those who couldn’t see, the amplifiers were loud enough to hear. In the video was a chubby little boy screaming his head off while running away from a woman who could only be his mother. The boy was Matt, if I’d not mistaken. The audience seemed to be entertained, laughing and whistling. Drinks were handed out liberally.

There was a loud pop as Drake opened his bottle. Even he was making fun of Matt. A series of popping sounds filled the room followed by small spurting fountains of soda and beer, shooting in all directions. Soon, the girls were screaming like they just saw Godzilla or ruined their party dress. Shaking my head, I skirted the puddle of booze on the floor and headed to the porch. So that was what Chuck was planning. Beer bombs and shame cannons. Pretty lame but effective. Must be a blast on Matt’s hard core reputation. It’d suck to be in his shoes right now. But even that won’t cheer me up.

I saw Reed and the guys sneak out the back door and run straight for Ricky’s truck.

“Leon!” Reed called, sticking his blond head out of the shotgun seat window. “Hurry up!”

As I was making a run for it, I stopped and turned around. I had to find Sarah first. Cursing, I sprinted back into the house, catching a glance of Matt from the LCD, clinging on his Dad’s leg while his Mommy chased them trilling, “Bath time, Matty!” Just in time, Matt and Sarah hurried down from the second floor, apparently clueless what the ruckus was all about.

“Party’s over!” Matt shouted angrily. But people just stared or ignored him. “Everyone out!” He snatched a bottle from one of his football buddies and smashed it on the wall.

Cries of panic filled the room. I felt a huge stampede coming. So before all hell broke loose, I grabbed Sarah’s hand and dragged her out of the house whether she liked it or not. We barely hauled ourselves at the back of the truck before we hit the road.

“Now that was a party!” I heard Chuck scream from the backseat.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Please inform me of any errors, okay? I haven't got any time to edit this. We're halfway through the story. And Leon will soon need to be in LA. Hmm... Wanna know what happens next? *zips mouth* BTW my twitter and facebook accounts are in my profile. :)

See ya soon ~shim