I'm not going to break my rule about chapter names, but go check out Chelsea Smile by BMTH. Here's the link : it's my favorite song, but is totally unrelated to this chapter. The real song, Undercover Martyn by Two Door Cinema Club, is on the side, and that's the song she's singing in the end ^-^ I really recommend going out and getting their new album, Tourist History, because every one of their songs is beautiful.

Quick update, because this story is quickly becoming more popular than I thought..

xxx

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Kira left at five o clock that night, leaving Gabriel and I holed up in Lunas' room. deprived of electronics and bored as hell. I refused to watch another movie, knowing all he would pick were horror, and that would trigger my hallucinations.

So instead, we sat on Luna's bed, playing Candyland.

"Goddammit, where are all the reds!" Gabriel exclaimed, flustered over the fact that he needed one more red to win. I needed a triple pink to catch up, but it was nowhere in sight.

I shrugged as if I didn't know, looking at my little yellow gingerbread man. I was so behind him, after falling into a black hole twice already and starting over. He had laughed at me the entire time over my anger problem with this game, but he seemed to be worse than me with this game.

We played this game dirty. The board had already been flipped, cards snuck, and curses thrown, and I had a pile of red cards in my lap. I snickered as he pulled out another green card, unable to move anywhere. He groaned, running a hand through his hair.

"So," I started, feeling my heart sink to my stomach at what I was about to do. But I promised her, and I don't break my promises. "Kira's nice."

Wow, That'll reel in the boys, I thought.

He looked up from the board, a dark eyebrow cocked. "Where'd this come from?" He asked, suddenly not interested in the game any more.

So he is into her.

"It's just, um. . " I went quiet, looking down at my lap. The red cards were stacked neatly in a pile, the token to Gabriel's victory that I wouldn't allow him to have. "She, um, thinks you're cute."

"She thinks?" He grinned. "You don't think i'm cute?"

I rolled my eyes, sighing. "I never said that," I mumbled, a sheepish smile on my lips. He laughed, motioning for me to continue. My smile faded, although I tried so desperately to keep it on. "Here," I muttered, reaching over and taking his hand from across the table. His face fell and he glanced down at our hands, turning a bit pink.

I felt myself freeze at the feeling, how warm and inviting it felt to just have someone's hand in mine. But I shook it off, taking his wrist instead and pulling a sharpie out of my pocket. "What are you- - - Ohh," He realized I was giving him her phone number, staying still and letting me finish the ten digits.

"She wanted me to give you her number, in case, you know, you want to go on a date or something." I explained, kind of down that he accepted it and looked so happy about it.

He nodded, turning away. "Hey, Um, Alexxa?"

I looked up at his flushed face, furrowing my eyebrows together with confusion. He literally never asked me questions. I guess he was just being careful with me, as he doesn't know where my limits are. "Yeah?"

He scratched the back of his neck, a small smile tugging his lips. "Just wondering. . . Could I maybe have a hug?"

I rolled my eyes. "I thought you had cancer or something," I commented, but relief filled me and I leaned over to grasp him in a light embrace over the game board. Instead of pulling away after a few seconds, though, he just held me tighter.

Eventually, I squirmed from his grip, but ended up falling forwards on the game board. The pile of cards in my lap toppled onto the ground as I tumbled into his chest, making eye contact with none other than a triple pink card. "Gabriel, you ass!" I picked it up off his leg, staring at it to make sure it was real.

"Hey, what about you? You had all the reds!"

I glared, jumping off Luna's bed and standing at the other end of the room. He stood, also, a menacing look in his eyes. "Cheater!" I accused.

"You did, too!"

"Yeah, but mine was for a good cause!" I shouted back at him, crossing my arms over my chest.

"What, so I wouldn't win?" He questioned, mocking my pose.

I laughed humorlessly. "Your ego needs a little work, anyways," I replied.

He huffed. "Where did that come from?"

I shrugged. "Losing would lessen it a bit, don't you think?"

"You're just jealous!" He blurted.

I rose a brow, taking a step closer to him. "How the hell am I jealous?"

"Because. . ." He thought about it for a moment. "Because, I have Kira's number! And I'm going to ask her out!"

Okay, I admitted to myself that I was just a bit jealous. But I wouldn't let that show to him. "I gave you that number!" I exclaimed. "If I was 'jealous', " I made air quotes with my hands, "Then why would I even give you it?"

"Because you're a good friend!"

He said it like it was a bad thing. "And how the hell is that terrible?"

Before he could respond, I decided to play a bit with his emotions, taking another step towards him so there were a few inches between us. Standing on my tiptoes, I put my lips dangerously close to his ear, dipping my head down so his cheek brushed mine. He said nothing, biting his lip. "Have fun with Kira," I whispered, teeth grazing his earlobe before I spun on my heel and left the room.

---

The doorbell rang loudly, breaking me from my intense stare at the television as Workaholics played on the screen. I had hacked into Luna's netflix account and was currently watching repeats of last season over and over again.

"Alexxa, can you get that?" Luna's voice called from her bedroom.

I rolled my eyes. "Gabriel, can you get that?" I replied , louder so Gabriel would hear it from the bathroom.

He opened the bathroom door, and oh hot damn, he'd cleaned himself up. Dressed in a button down, grey shirt, and dark black jeans, he'd shaved off his stubble and put on real clothes. I rose a brow, pretending not to be affected by the god standing before me, and swallowed the cereal in my mouth before speaking. "Where's the wedding?" I asked sarcastically, stuffing my face with another spoonful of fruit loops.

He said nothing, walking in front of the television and unlocking the front door. I almost choked on my cereal when I heard her voice echo into the living room.

"Hey, you asked me to come over?"

He smiled, letting her in. "Yeah, let me just grab my keys and we'll go."

Kira sat down on the couch, dressed in a yellow sundress and flip flops. I bit the inside of my cheek, looking down at my baggy sweatpants and tank top, feeling self conscious all of a sudden in her presence. It's no wonder Gabriel's taking her out instead of me- I'm a wreck. "Hey, Shortie," She greeted.

I smiled weakly. "Hi," I muttered, looking away so she wouldn't see the jealousy written all over my face. Snap out of this! I thought angrily. You don't like him- He doesn't like you. I nodded to myself, but ended up shaking my head and laying it on the couch to wait for them to leave so I could return to watch Workaholics.

"Kay, you ready?" Kira asked, looking up at the boy blocking the television.

"Yeah," He smirked, and let her out first before turning to me. "I'll be back by twelve."

"Like. . . After eleven at night?" I asked with bewilderment.

There were so many things that could happen in that span of seven hours.

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, after eleven at night," He said, as if I was an idiot. "I'm grabbing my stuff and going back to my apartment."

My face fell, but I was determined not to care. He wasn't staying the night? "Oh. Oka-" I managed to get out, but before my sentence could even be finished, the front door was slammed shut.

What the hell has gotten into him?

I glared at the door for a good minute before turning back to the television and my bowl of cereal. Luna stepped in the room, a sad smile tugging her lips. "Did Gabriel leave with Kira?" She asked knowingly.

I nodded, chewing slowly.

"And how does that make you feel?"

I snorted. "You own a coffee shop, not a therapy office, Luna."

She pouted, sitting down on the armrest. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes- Nobody wants me to watch Workaholics today, it seems. Pressing 'end', I put the half-eaten bowl on the table and sat up straight. "I'm going to work," She told me.

I frowned. "Kay."

She rose a brow. "I was thinking. . ."

I sighed, not liking the sound of this. "Go on. . ." I waved for her to continue.

"Well, I found your guitar."

I swallowed hard. My brother had taught me to play that guitar. I purposely ignored it's presence as not to be reminded of him. She noticed the sudden sadness on my features as I thought of him, and put a hand on my shoulder. "I was just wondering if you'd play a few songs at the cafe today for the customers. They're always complaining about the lack of noise. ."

I nodded after a moment or two. "Why the hell not," I muttered under my breath, standing straight and shimmying off my sweatpants. She rose a brow at me but said nothing as I picked a pair of ripped jeans off the back of the couch and slid a tee shirt over my tank top. It was simple, with square white letters reading BMTH on the black fabric.

She took my guitar out of the closet and handed it to me. I felt my fingers graze over the wood, memories rushing back to me. For a moment , I thought the hallucinations would come to me, but the feeling soon disappeared.

I knew immediately what song I was going to play. We went into the car, me brushing out my hair with my fingers and pulling it into a loose, messy bun over my head while she started the engine and drove to the cafe.

When we reached it, I saw it was pretty packed with people. Great. I haven't spoken in years and i'm about to sing in front of thirty people. Not to mention I break down almost every time I touch this guitar; and there's nobody that'll help me even if I do.

That's Gabriel's job.

We wandered in, where Colby was ending his shift. He gave us a smile before putting down his apron and collecting tips, waving at me slightly and wandering out the door to his car. I held the guitar awkwardly in my hands. My head was spinning with Chris's favorite song, the lyrics coming back to me.

Instead of Alex's voice in my head, however, all I could hear was Chris. And it was breaking me down, slowly but surely. I forced myself to stand tall, however, and put the strap over my shoulder. Luna nodded to the corner, where I sat down on a stool and looked out at the people. Nobody even glanced my way, but if they did, i'm sure they'd find a panicked, young girl, in tears as she strummed the first few verses of the song.

My voice was quiet and raspy, growing louder as I started. I felt as if Chris was beside me, correcting my small errors and helping me strum more evenly.

"And she spoke words that would melt in your hands," I began softly, looking up to see a few eyes on me.

"And she spoke words of wisdom,

To the basement people, to the basement, many surprises await you. . .

In the basement, people, in the basement,

You hid there last time, you know we're gonna find you-

Sick in the carseat, cause you're not up to going,

Out on the main streets, completing your mission. . ."

Chris had sung this part, once, but I took it over as my own. "You hid there last time, you know we're gonna find you,

Sick in the carseat, cause you're not up to going,

Out on the main streets, completing your mission. . "

I was louder, now.

"And she spoke words that would melt in your hands,

And she spoke words of wisdom.

To the basement people, to the basement, many surprises await you,

In the basement, people, in the basement."

The door opened, but I didn't bother looking up. My eyes were closed, and I could tell I was crying, but I refused to stop and hide. Chris wouldn't want me to, not after teaching me this song.

"You hid there last time, you know we're gonna find you,

Sick in the carseat, cause you're not up to going!

Out on the main streets, completing your mission. ."

You hid there last time, you know we're gonna find you,

Sick in the carseat, cause you're not up to going!

Out on the main streets, completing your mission. .

You hid there last time, you know we're gonna find you,

Sick in the carseat, cause you're not up to going!

Out on the main streets, completing your mission. ."

My voice cracked at the end, but I hardly registered it. As I set my hand down from playing the chords, I realized the room had gone quiet. Applause greeted me, making me smile softly as I wiped tears from my face, and people went back to talking to one another.

All except one.

All except Sam.

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Remember Sam??

xxx