"If we ever stop talking, send me a song"

Song- All we do; oh wonder

The warm sun shining through my windows woke me up. The sound of birds chirping filled my ears as I sat up with a smile.

Or at least that's what I wish happened.

Instead the icy freeze of water pouring on my head woke me up accompanied by my twin brother laying on top of me. His weight knocked the breath out of me. Shoving him off, I curse loudly.

Theo and I argue all morning. We basically yell at each other while walking to the kitchen where mom and Grayson sit at the table. Mom looks up at us and Grayson stays trained on his breakfast.

"Mom, can I kill him? You would still have 2 out of 3 kids left and I think that's a pretty good deal" I ask mom grabbing a water bottle from the fridge.

"As long as you don't get caught" mom shrugs standing up.

"Mom!" Theo exclaims with wide eyes.

"Kidding, no murdering each other while I'm home." She pats Theo's arm. "Now why are you guys at each other's throat"

"Your daughter threw my taco cat shirt in the toilet." Theo whines, glaring at me.

"Only because your son poured water on me and suffocated me this morning" I reply, crossing my arms over my chest.

"At least I didn't ruin your favorite shirt!" He shouts at me.

"I was doing you a favor!" I argue back wanting strongly to punch him if mom wasn't here. "That shirt was a hate crime against humanity"

"It was a fashion statement you bitch" he gasps, Grayson chuckles and mom just places her hand on her forehead. I immediately lunge at him, hopping onto his back at trying to tackle him onto the floor.

Growing up with two brothers I've always been wrestling them. I'm a pro at it by now. Mom, of course, doesn't expect anything less. Grayson just watches, glad he isn't the one getting pummeled to the ground right now.

An hour later we walk into first period joking about a Tik tok I showed him.

I sit down next to Brianna and Miles, throwing my feet on the table and leaning back.

"Marlee Rain Gardner!" I freeze looking up to see Sara glaring at me from the front of the room. "Get your feet off the table, I thought I taught you better than this?" She shakes her head, her plump, curvy, beautiful figure walks out from behind her desk.

Mom and Sara and different in every way possible. Mom is tall and slim while Sara is short and curvy. Moms hair is straight and blonde but Sara's hair is dark and curly.

"You did, she's just a disappointment." Addie chuckles earning a high five from Theo.

"Sorry Sara- I mean Mrs.Taylor" I smile sweetly, planting my feet on the ground.

"Mhm" she mumbles before writing on the dry erase board. Asher snickers quietly so I slap him in the head.

That made my day better.

After study hall I split up from the group to go to the bathroom. Walking down the hall I hear two people making out. Disgusted but oddly curious I go to peek under the stairwell which is the notorious make out spot here.

When I get close enough I hear a boy mumble "oh Serena"

Cringing at the fact that Cameron was hooking up with Serena under the stairs disgusted me until I realized it couldn't be Cam. I was just with him less that 2 minutes ago and he would've passed me to get to the stairs.

That and it wasn't his voice.

I felt a sinking feeling in my stomach but it was replaced with anger. I stormed under the stairs well causing both of them to jump. A guy from the football team was shirtless and red.

"Marlee" Serena gasps sending me a fake smile "what are you doing here?"

"Shut up" I cross my arms over my chest, shooting daggers at her. "Everything that comes out of your mouth takes a point off of my IQ and I'm not in the mood"

"Um-" the guy scratches his neck, embarrassed "should I stay or go?"

"Leave" I demand but he looks to Serena for conformation "are you deaf or just dumb, I said go!" I point away and he scurries off.

"Listen Marlee, could you-"

"No, you listen to me." I turn back to her. "You have been a shitty girlfriend and all around shitty person for years now but because Cam is my best friend I gave you a chance"

I take a deep breath trying to keep my anger in.

"But I'm done! You don't get to treat him like this, he deserves way more than this and I thought your brain was at least big enough to see that he's the best guy you can get."

She seems shocked, a hollow shell of her usual self.

"You never deserved him and this proved it." I finish off my rant.

"You can't tell him" she begs, trying to seem as sorrowful as she can but it was a load of bull.

"You can't tell me what I can or can't do" I retort "even daddy's money can't buy your way out of this one"

I turn to walk away but she speaks again.

"Should've kept your big ass nose out of my business" she calls after me "there's a line of guys waiting to date me next when I'm done with Cameron"

Anger pulses through my veins. Cameron is the best person I know and doesn't deserve this. She's treating him like some toy that she can just throw away when she's done.

So that's why I punch her, straight in the face.

"Don't know how much of that line will be left when they see your broken nose" I comment before walking away.

As I walk back to the cafeteria I hear two familiar voices. Addie and Brianna come into view as I take a turn. They seem to be bickering about something that I only catch the end of when I get close enough.

"Strawberry is so much better than grape" Brianna tells Addie shaking her head.

"You're insane! Grape is superior." Addie argues, rolling her eyes.

Her hair was now black with purple highlights instead of pink. Her small, hooded eyes were painted with bright colored eyeshadow that only she could pull off. Her entire outfit was black down to her boots.

On the other hand Brianna was dressed in a white golf skirt with a yellow sweatshirt tucked in. Her hair was in two French braids that ended in buns and she wore makeup that made her face shimmer.

"Hey Mar" Brianna says ignoring Addies argument. I smile, mumbling a 'hello' as we all start walking.

"You okay girl?" Addie questions, wrapping an arm around me.

"Oh yeah, I'm just really tired." I lie putting on my best convincing smile.

"Theo told us he woke you up this morning" Brianna says, shocking me.

"He did?"

"Actually he was complaining about you flushing his favorite shirt" Addie corrects Bri.

"But then we asked him why you did that and he explained the whole story" Brianna adds, dropping the book she was holding but picking it up quickly.

"What's that book about?" I ask and she immediately dives into a long rant about the book and how good it is. I try so hard to listen but my mind keeps drifting back to Cameron.

How am I going to tell him?

It's going to hurt him so much. He loves her and he thought she loved him. He's going to be heartbroken and that's going to break my heart.

Suddenly I wish I punched Serena harder.

We get to the lunch room and sit down but I barley notice, my brains too cloudy to even join in on the conversation of the table.

It's like all the thoughts in my brain were fighting each other. I couldn't decide how or when to tell him. I wish Charlie was here, he always gives the best advice.

I'm aware he's a stuffed animal but he's very wise.

Cameron bumps my shoulder. His hazels brown eyes peer into mine with care and worry "what's up Mar?"

Taking a deep breath, I decide I'm just going to tell him now. "I need to talk to you"

He snorts, smiling with his dimples shining through. Why does he make this so damn hard. Maybe I should punch him in the face too.

Just kidding... maybe.

I think Miles might be right about me needing anger management classes.

"Cause you never do that" he chuckles lightheartedly. When he notices I'm not joining in he calms and says "okay, let's go outside"

I nod and we excuse ourselves from the table. Escaping the smell of burnt lasagna and weird looking broccoli we head outside.

The cool breezes meets my skin sending goosebumps up my spine. Walking straight for the baseball field, Cam follows behind. When we get there I turn straight to him.

"I don't know how to say this" I admit, fiddling with my fingers anxiously.

"That's a first" he snorts aggravating me.

"Cameron"

He stiffens, when I use the full name he knows it serious.

"You know I've never liked Serena" I start, looking anywhere but his face. If I do I'm afraid I'll wimp out. My fingers trail to the bottom of my black, cropped hoodie.

"You've made that pretty obviously" he says defensively, crossing his arms over his chest.

"But I've always supported you guys because she made you happy."

I was mad at first, sure. I ignored him for weeks but when I saw him with her at school and saw how happy he was I pushed my anger aside.

"And I'm really grateful for that" he tells me cautiously.

"I would never do anything to hurt you, well besides physically" I semi chuckle, picturing the last time I punched him. "So thats why this makes this really hard to say..."

I inhale deeply, finally looking up at him. His eyes were narrowed in confusion and the little crease in his brow was very visible.

"When I was walking down the hall earlier i heard a noise from under the stairwell. So of course I went to see who it was but when I did..." I pause gathering all my confidence up "Serena was cheating on you"

He's silent for a minute. He looks me dead in the eyes with no emotion. I feel the silence will swallow me alive. His demeanor suddenly shifts completely.

His jaws clenches, his fist tighten, his gaze becomes cold. I suddenly become even more anxious. Of course I've seen him like this before but it was never to me.

I know it wasn't directly at me, it was for Serena but I felt like it was at me.

"Not funny Marlee" he says dryly, barley putting the words together.

"I'm not trying to be funny" I tell him feeling my gut sink.

"Then what type of bs are you trying to sell because I'm not buying it." His words were cold and this time they were for me.

Now his anger is directed at me and it hurts. I mean really hurts.

It was to random guys who hit on me or someone who was mean to Bri never at me.

"I get your jealous but you can't screw with peoples relationships Marlee"

What the hell did he just say.

A inaudible noise, that was like a scoff and laugh mixed, escapes my lips. I'm shocked, genuinely shocked for a minute.

"I don't know what's worse" I cross my arms over my chest, feeling my hurt bubble into anger "you not believing me or you thinking I'm jealous"

He doesn't say anything, instead shooting daggers at me with his eyes. My entire body stiffens as the frustration and annoyance pulses through my veins.

"I know that it hurts but I'm not going to sit here and let you take it out on me" my voice becomes louder and the thoughts once again cram together in my head, forcing an escape through my mouth.

Cam just sits there, brooding as I rant.

"I have been with you through everything and never once had I lied to you about something serious! It's pretty hysterical that you think I would" I take a deep, shaky breath trying to hold in my anger but it's already escaping.

Picture one of those cartoon characters with steam going out their ears. That's me right now.

"I wish, I truly wish I was wrong and didn't see what I saw but I did" my voice softens slightly "from the second I saw it, all I could think about was you. How much this was going to hurt you."

He stays silent for a moment before running his hand through his hair. His eyes softens and his demeanor changes so I expect the next words to come out of his mouth to be a lot different than the ones that do.

"I'm sorry that your relationship failed but you don't have to take it out on mine. We're happy and you can't change that."

His words stung in a way I never though that he could do to me.

He knew why my last relationship didn't work out. He knew how much it hurt me. He was the one who held me while I was crying or sat with me when I couldn't sleep.

He knew that and he still said what he said.

Done with the conversation, I start to walk away but say one more thing "Maybe you guys deserve each other more than I thought"

Walking away I felt a little part of my heart chip away. It's crazy that the people who you think care about you the most can tear you down in more ways than I thought were possible.

People were always calling me horrible, hurtful things. They would throw stuff at me, write on my locker and trip me. But it never got to me too bad.

That's because I knew the people who really mattered didn't feel that way.

I feel my feet take me back into the school but I'm too stuck in my head to notice where I'm going. Somehow I end up in Sara's room, the only place I feel safe at school.

"Marlee, what's wrong?" She questions, looking up from her computer.

"Long day, can I stay in here for a bit?" I ask, plopping down in the bean bag chair.

"Of course, do you need a snack?" Brushing her dark hair out of her face, she opens her snack drawer she keeps for me and the boys.

Mostly the boys, they eat like crazy.

"I'm good, I'm just going to rest my eyes"

A freshman class files in and I doze off to the sound of Sara teaching about the theme of "to kill a mockingbird"

😬