Breathe

nine

[ cole ]

The doorbell rings.

Nora.

I rush down my stairs in a blur, not even caring to fix my messy bedhead.

I'm not sure why I care so much. She's sarcastic, rude, and offensive. She's the opposite of what people look for. She's nothing spectacular.

She means something, though. I'm not sure exactly what she is, but I know she's good enough to talk to. And she would make a good friend. A real friend.

Soon, I'm facing the door, and I hesitate. You need to stop caring about what other people think.

Her voice still rings in my mind, but there's no way I could ever stay mad at her.

My fingers twist around the knob and the door opens.

"Nora, I-"

The words fall from my mouth. It's not her.

Instead, a wide-eyed girl with bright red hair stares at me, her lips slightly parted.

"Tiffany?"

As a force of habit, my hand reaches up to smooth over the bumps in my hair. I should've at least glanced in the mirror before answering the door.

"Yeah. Can I come in?" Her voice is quiet and I catch her looking around nervously before I nod and let her pass.

"So, what are you doing here?"

There's a part of me that longs for Tiffany to be Nora, although less physically pleasing. I could use real words of encouragement, maybe even an advanced quote or two, to cheer me up. I'm not searching for the basic it's going to be okay.

Nora could possibly give me what I long for. She seems weird enough. Tiffany, though, has never been one to use words.

"I just-" She stops mid-sentence, seeming almost as if she's trying to force words up her throat and out of her mouth.

"It's okay, Tiff." I find myself coming up to her and rubbing her shoulders. It was how I always reassured her when we were dating.

At first, she looks like she's about to cry. Tiffany's never been one to break down in front of me, though. She has always got herself together easily and could always fight through what she needed to say.

"Cole, why did you do that?" Her eyes suddenly stare daggers into mine which leaves me confused. "Why would you just walk out on us? On me."

She's referring to the incident in the lunchroom. It was an event I don't think I can ever understand.

The startled expression on my face gives away my answer: I don't know.

That's the truth. I didn't really know what I was doing, then or now. All I know is how mad I still am at Derek and how much I want him to pay for it.

"Well, I hope things will be cleared up by Monday." She glances around the room before finding my eyes again. "We miss you."

I snort. "Derek misses me?"

"Why does Derek matter so much to you, Cole? I miss you. Okay? You two should just make up or something."

Coldness spreads throughout my body.

"You don't even know what he did."

"It's Derek! We all know he does stupid stuff. Just let whatever it is go."

I want to reply and tell her that he's not the only one who's made bad choices. She's also left a permanent scar in my life that can't be fixed, and I refuse to let her win this battle.

"I'm sorry, but I can't do that. Besides, he wouldn't accept an apology even if I wanted to give it to him."

"Just let him punch you back and then he'll be fine."

She waves her hand in the air like it's no big deal.

"Tiffany, get out."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Now leave."

I'm surprised by my sharpness. I've never been one to boss around Tiffany. Even when she broke my heart, I stayed a little soft and just turned the other way.

"Okay." At first, she seems shocked. I doubt anyone has ever kicked her out before.

But then a whole new wave of confidence rushes over her as she straightens and struts towards me.

She plants a soft kiss on my cheek. It's warm and her plump lips feel more than awesome against my skin.

She ignores my stunned expression and leaves.

"Bye Cole!"

Bye Tiffany.

-------------

Nora had been wrong. I hadn't seen her at all.

The day had just been boring. After the whole Tiffany thing, I didn't feel like doing much. I knew there was a party down at the Harrison twins' house, and they usually threw some pretty wild parties, but I just couldn't face anyone yet.

So instead, I sat at home, eating my weight in potato chips and leftover tacos (a weird combination.)

With the amount of friends and plans I had (none), I had a load of time on my hands. This lead me to the shameful game of stalking.

Scrolling through social media, I found a picture of Derek with Sierra and Tiffany hanging on to his arms. They're smiles were crooked in the dim lighting, but they still looked stunning. I'm glad I didn't go to the party. Then I followed my search as I went through old photos of me and Tiff, back when we were dating. She really is a pretty girl.

I had the idea to stalk Nora next, no matter how weird it seems, but I couldn't find a single photo of her.

It was like she was nonexistent.

Knock. Knock.

Who doesn't use a doorbell?

Lazily, I raise up from my comfy position on the bed. I throw on a hoodie before walking down my stairs.

It couldn't be Tiffany again, could it?

I sigh. It doesn't really matter.

As soon as I open the door, a box is shoved into my stomach.

"It's the cookies." She smiles brightly.

It's a radiant smile, a transforming smile. It's a smile too big for her face.

There's something more behind it, and I want to find out what it is.

But I don't want it to be her smile.

I think back on Tiffany's gentle kiss.

Why does my life have to be so complicated?

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Goodness this is such a mess.
Sorry, I just felt the need to post
something.
It's kind of crappy and I didn't really read it through...... But yeah that's all I got.