Beach Bums

Screamer

I buried my face into my pillow, muffling the sounds of my scream. I could hear Brad trying not to laugh at my obvious terror. He puts his arms around me and I ditch the pillow for Brad's shoulder. Me and him are still on the sofa, but now we're both laying down with his arms wrapped around me which is quite comfortable by the way. Pinky and Jordan are both on random chairs situated in the room, and Carmen and Beau are laying down on the other couch. 

"This isn't funny!" I whisper harshly as the killer chases after someone else. These people are dumb. Scary movies are dumb. We shouldn't even be watching this. A scream wretches itself from my throat as he pops up from behind a tree. Why did the person stop and think hiding behind a tree would be a good idea anyways? She just lost precious running time. I really should have been expecting it, but it still scared me. Jordan tries to throw another pillow at me but misses. I glare at him before rolling over to hide my eyes on Brad's shoulder. 

Pinky looks bored, but Carmen looks just as scared as I am and is just as vocal about it.  Carmen screams, which makes me scream though I didn't even look at the screen that time.

"I swear if you guys scream one more time I'm pulling out the duct tape!" Jordan says irritatedly. 

"Not the duct tape!" Carmen replies sarcastically. I throw an empty candy bar wrapper at Jordan's head, though I miss pitifully. I probably should have balled it up first or something. I scream again as the killer starts to throw knifes at people. Jordan balls up the wrapper and throws it back at me, managing to hit me directly in the nose. 

I've decided to give up on even the occasional glances at the screen. Instead, I admire Brad's arm muscles, which is much more entertaining than this movie.

"I'll protect you from the scary movie...and Jordan." Brad whispers. I scoot as close as humanly possible to him, trying not to fall off the edge of the couch. The closeness and the darkness of the room makes me very clearly aware that I am still only in a bikini and shorts and he is only in swimming trunks. Brad doesn't seem to notice though, which is a good thing. I'm also very clearly aware of how cold the room is. It's summer, so the air-conditioning is on full blast. I scoot closer, trying to get warmer. 

Brad notices my goosebumps and gets Carmen to toss us a blanket. I feel so small compared to Brad. I'm not exactly short with being 5'6, but he's at least ten inches taller than me. He covers us with the blanket. I feel sleepy, but I know I won't fall asleep. Along with all my other problems, I have insomnia. I know, it sucks. I rest my head against his chest. The movie ends, but I hadn't been paying attention to it for awhile. I see everyone else has fallen asleep. Losers. 

I look up and see Brad staring at me, very much awake still. We just look at each other for awhile, something we seem to do alot. He starts to rub my bare back, and I rest my head back down on his chest, listening to his breathing. His warm, large hands feel so good on my back, spreading little tingles all over. I look at his lips, willing myself to do something, but I'm too afraid. I just stare at his lips, then back at his eyes, waiting for him to make the first move. He doesn't, and I feel ultimately rejected. I roll over so my back is facing his chest and there is as much distance as possible between us, which isn't alot since the couch is small. He sighs heavily and tries to pull me back closer to him, but I don't budge. Now I know he just wants to be friends. I'll be fine with that, I guess. I was already expecting it. 

I groan as I hear voices, waking me up from a really peaceful sleep. I try to sit up, but an arm restricts me. Brad's arm. I start to panic. I don't do well with restrictions and I don't have my medicine. They're going to see me at my worst, and then they won't like me anymore. It'll be like before, and I can't have that. The carefully built exterior of a normal girl crumbles and I can't stay still anymore. I have to get up. I try to remove Brad's arm without waking him and hurriedly grab my bag. Pinky and Jordan stare at me. I probably look like a mess. I think of an excuse to why I would be in such of a rush.

"I forgot to call my parents last night to tell them I was going to spend the night. They're probably worried sick. I have to go. I can walk." Pinky starts to walk me to the door. She's talking but I can't pay attention, so I just nod. My hands are fidgety and I'm struggling with not touching all the little decorations and stuff that are around the house. Pinky tries to give me directions to my house, but I know I won't be able to follow them. We exchange goodbyes and I hurry out the door. As soon as I'm out I let out a huge sigh of relief. 

I finally get to my house after many distractions and wrong turns. My parents are eating in the kitchen, and as soon as they see me, they know something is wrong. I start shaking and crying, the panic taking over. My mother holds me, trying to sooth me. My vision is blurred with black spots and I can't breathe. Finally, after a half hour, I'm calm again. I lay down on my bed, exhausted after the attack. My phone buzzes and I answer it without even looking. I try to sound cheery and happy when I answer.

"Hi." I say with as much enthusiasm as I can muster. 

"Hey." Brad replies. I grin, happy to hear his voice, but frown when I remember he just wants to be friends. There's silence as I wait for him to tell me why he called. 

"You never gave me a chance to say goodbye this morning, you just left." He says finally, breaking the silence. 

"You were asleep." And I was in the middle of a serious panic attack, but you can't know that. 

"You could have woken me up." He says softly. I'm aware of how sad and exhausted I sound, but that isn't because of last night. I always get this way after an attack. It's scary. I have no control whatsoever. 

"I had to go." I consider telling him what I told the others about my parents, but I don't bother. He can take it however he wants to take it. There's silence as he figures out something to say. 

"Do you want to hang out later?" He asks shyly. I almost feel bad, but I can't go out. I couldn't handle it right now or later.

"I still have unpacking to do." It's an obvious lie but I can't think of anything else. 

"Okay." 

"Okay. Well I have to go so see ya later I guess." 

"See ya." He hangs up, and I let out a sigh of relief. I doze off, not really thinking of anything but thinking of everything at the same time. I got up around dinner time and moped downstairs. Mom and Dad waited for me to get downstairs before filling their plates. I grabbed a little, but to be honest I wasn't really hungry. Mom looks at me with concern.

"I know it's rough, hun, but you're never going to get better if you don't pick yourself up and get right back on the saddel, or the convertible in your situation." She says, a worried smile on her face. I nod, knowing that she's right.

"I just need tomorrow, and then I'll be ok again." I respond. I eat quickly. I've alway been a fast eater. I walked back to my room and flopped on the bed. Seriously, why am I such a idiot. I thought Brad might have actually liked me. Dreamy, impossibly gorgeous Brad liking me. Ha. Ha. Ha. And I slept over without my medicine. I should have known what would happen in the morning. That's one of the reasons I didn't have many friends back in Illinoise, well and because of them. But they aren't something I like to dwell on. I tug on my bracelets again, lining them up perfectly then letting them fall back into place.