"Shut the hell up!" I scream, running down the hall after my brother. "I will hit you!" He threatens, backing into Mom and Dad's room. "Give it back!" I demand, reaching for my phone. He holds it above my head with a smug expression. "You're such an ass!" I complain. "Oh my god, give Amara her phone back." Our mother snaps, positioning herself upwards in her kingsized bed.
Aidan rolls his eyes and tosses my phone to me. "Thank you," I scoff, leaving the room. I laugh to myself as my mom's voice echoes through the second floor. "How many times have I told you guys not to take each other's stuff? You have your own phone, do you not?" She says, starting her 30-minute lecture. I stop, listening for my brother's response. I love getting him in trouble.
"I only took her phone 'cause I wanted to see the texts between her and some guy she's talking to." He explains. The fuck he didn't. Bestie really gonna expose me like that? I start sprinting to my room before my mom calls my name. I sigh and make my way back in the other direction. Shit.
Aidan flashes one of his annoying smiles as I walk through the thin double doors. "Who's this boy Aidan is talking about?" She questions. I shift my weight to one leg, "What boy?" "Amara," My mom scolds. "He's just some guy I met on Instagram." I shrug. "You're talking to a stranger on the internet??" She asks, staring me down. "No, no...Well, technically yes. But no. He's an actor, you've seen his films. He was in the Adam Project. You know, with Ryan Reynolds." I explain. "Wait, the little blond kid?" Aidan chimes in. I nod, waiting for my mom to say something. Aidan interrupts again, "Dude, he's like 9!?" "He's 14. My age." I tell him. "Whatever," He says, leaving the room.
"Do you like him?" My mom asks. Yes. The obvious answer is yes. But if I tell her that, she might have a weird reaction. With parents, it's better to avoid any reaction if possible. "I don't know him." I shrug. She can tell I'm lying. She always can. "You do! What's his name?" She says, patting a spot on the bed for me as if I were a dog. "Walker. Walker Scobell." I smile, sitting next to my mom. She pulls the bed sheets over her torso, "Tell me about him."
I could go on for hours. "Well, he's sweet and very funny. And he has the most beautiful eyes, they're the prettiest shade of blue- almost teal. And he's got curly blond hair. I love it so much. And we have a lot in common, we both like Deadpool, and he was on a swim team a while ago, and we have similar music taste." I gush. "Oh, my little girl has a crush." She squeals, pulling me close to her by my shoulders. I giggle and fix my hair.
TIME SKIP,
I did my makeup and changed out of my pajamas. Dad made Pancakes and sausages for us before he left to take Aidan to soccer practice. I swear, my brother is the dumbest person I've met. He's almost 17 and still doesn't have his license. He failed 6 times. Like, how does that happen?
I slide my finger over the hang-up button on my screen. Emaline and I have been on FaceTime for over 2 hours. We're going to the park now so she can help me practice my lines for the series I will be filming in a few weeks. I'm very excited. Nancy Drew is such a good book series, I've read them all more times than I can count and the films are also fantastic.
"Mom, can I go now?" I ask, leaning over the counter. My mom looks up from her laptop and nods, "Be careful. Don't get lost. Don't take anything from strangers." "Damn, there goes all our plans," I joke. "Wanna get drugged and die?" She says. "How'd you know?" I laugh, covering my mouth to act surprised. "Go, Amara." She shakes her head. "The disapprovement is wild," I mumble. "You've been hanging out with your brother's friends too much," She laughs.
I run out the door, heading towards the park. It's not very far. Maybe half a mile. I run there almost every day. The prominent plastic structure comes into view and I head toward Emaline who is flicking mulch into the sky with her dirty Converse. "Emaline!" I sing, dragging out the 'e.' Her face lights up as I sit on the swing next to her. "Mars!" She says, matching my energy. "What's up," I smile, leaning my head against the swing chain. "Nothin', lemme see your script!" She beams. She has the prettiest smile.
"Start from the first highlighted line," I tell her, pulling a packet out of my back pocket. She reads over the script, swinging slowly. "Did you hear about the new Percy Jackson series?" Duh. "Yeah, Walker's in it." I laugh. "Your husband," She giggles, grabbing my hand and examining my bare ring finger. "He's so amazing," I blush. "You're like in love, Mars," She giggles. "Shush," I say, swatting her hand away. "Be careful though. You don't want a repeat of what happened with Trey." She says. "Walker's different. Don't worry." I assure her. And he is. There's such a difference between him and my ex.
