Bookworm (A KSI Fanfic)

ELEVEN

I was sitting in my room, staring up at the ceiling, when Simon came in. I tilted my head when I saw the grin on his face and his hand behind his back.

It had been a few days, and JJ and I still weren't on the best terms. When we ran into each other, we'd just nod and walk away. It was obvious we were avoiding each other, but at least we hadn't had another screaming match. I felt like he was avoiding me purely so we wouldn't fight again, so I just left it.

"What's with the face?" I smiled at him.

"JJ has a press conference in Los Angeles for his fight," Simon started. I bit my lip at the mention of his name, but didn't say anything. He continued. "Have you been to LA?"

I laughed nervously. "No. I hear it's sunny."

"Well, pack your bags and grab your passport," He pulled his hand away from his bag to reveal a plane ticket and I widened my eyes.

"Oh my God, really?" I stood and ran over to him, wrapping my arms around him and squeezing him in a hug. "Thank you! As soon I get a job I'll pay you back and—"

"It wasn't me," He said. "It's JJ's apology gift."

I bit my lip. "We were supposed to get one of those? I hate to break it to him, but I don't do 'apology gifts.'"

He chuckled. "No, there's no need. But get ready, we're leaving in a few hours."

"A few hours?" I stepped back and hit his arm. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"You were hiding away in your room," He countered with a grin. It was true. I'd been sitting in my room and reading for the past few days, and I only left the house when Vik offered to take me to the library. A part of me wanted to think it was just because of mine and JJ's argument, but I knew it was partly because Sam had broken up with me.

"Give me a few minutes and I'll be out," I stated. "I should change, too."

He nodded and walked out of the room, and I couldn't contain my excitement as I rushed to pack all of my summer clothes in my suitcase. I then barreled down the stairs and crashed into Harry, who picked me up and spun me around.

"Cassie!" Harry squeezed all of the breath out of me. "It's been ages. Vik told us what happened with your boyfriend, sorry to hear it. None of us really liked the bastard anyway."

I giggled and bit my lip as he pulled away from him. He never failed to lift my mood.

My smile faded slightly when I caught JJ staring at us, but I shook my head and left it.

"Ready?"

*****

I couldn't stop bouncing my leg once we landed in LA. It was beautiful, and even though it was dark when we got there, it was still warm. I wanted nothing more than to change into shorts and go for a walk.

"I can't believe it's this warm in November," I giggled as Harry wrapped his arm around my shoulder. We were all walking in the airport, towards the cars, and I breathed in the warm air once we made it outside. "Look! A palm tree! I've never seen one before."

"Really?" Tobi came over to Harry and I. "Never?"

I shook my head, but my grin grew wider. "So, what's the plan? Go for a walk on the boardwalk? Go out for drinks?"

"The plan is to get settled at the hotel and go to sleep," Josh said from behind us. "We've got a long day tomorrow and we need the rest."

I sighed. "Fine. Be boring. By long day, I hope you mean a fun-filled one."