Just Like You (UNDER RECONSTRUCTION)

Prologue

I met Cam the day of my eighth birthday.

Everything had been planned perfectly, everything was organized in the right places and everyone I had invited had already shown up.

Of course Mom, who had been staring out the window with a longing expression to meet the new neighbors, who hadn't said a word since they moved in a couple weeks ago, had begged me to go and invite their two boys.

My eight year old mind had be hesitatnt, thinking that boys would do everything in their power to ruin my perfect day.

"Boys are icky." Had been my statement, I had said it as a matter of a fact, not an observation.

"Boys are not icky, Blake." Mom had responded, "Boys are wonderful, you'll see soon enough. Now could you please do this for me?"

I had always been a sucker for my Mom's pleading, it was her way to get me to do anything and everything. It was how I ended up getting my cavities filled and how I ended up watching as Dad walked out the door and never returned again, completely helpless.

"Fine." I huffed, stalking out of the house and down the steps. Cameron and Jacob had been kicking around a small, partially deflated soccer ball, watching my party unfold in my backyard with sadness clear in their eyes.

A grin stretched across Cam's face at the sight of me, his hands catching the ball instead of kicking it back toward his older brother.

"Blake!" Cam exclaimed, remebering my name from the classroom, "You look pretty." He was shifting on his feet excitedly, as if he knew the exact reason I had come over to see him.

"Thank you." I whispered, not meaning it, but knowing better than to be rude.

"Mommy said I had to invite you to my party." I stated, throwing my arm over my shoulder and nodding toward the trampoline and tables set up behind my house.

"Oh." Both boys said, in unison.

"My whole family is going to be there." I responded cockily, as if it were the most amazing fact in the world, and at the time, it probably was.

"Okay!" Cam finally smiled again, "We'll be there."

The rest of that day went by quicker than I would have liked, but it seemed to slow as it got darker outside.

My arm was propping up my chin as I watched all the loud and obnoxious girls fighting over dolls and trying to pull each other's hair so they'd move out of the way.

"You don't wanna go play?" Cam appeared beside me, his hazel eyes, more green than brown, dancing with confusion as he stared from me to the girls jumping on the trampoline a few feet away.

"No. They're too noisy." I mumbled, my eyes falling on the present in his hands, "What's that? Is it for me?" I could feel a wave of excitement crash against me as my eight year old mind wrapped itself around the fact that he had bought me a real present.

"I want you to promise me something before you open it." He announced, his chin held high as he smiled across the table at me.

"What?"

"I've never had lots of friends, Jacob either. We always had each other, but nobody else. I want you to be my friend." He said. I nodded, reaching for the box in his hands, barely listening to what he was saying.

"Okay."

"That's not the promise. I want you to promise that we'll be best friends forever." This caught my attention, my hands freezing in mid-air as I stared at him.

"Best friends?" I didn't have a best friend then, not yet.

"Yeah." He replied, "Forever." I stared at the quiet boy in front of me, at the way the right side of his mouth stretched a little higher than the left side as he smiled weakly at me, at the way his eyes roamed my voice, awaiting an answer.

I took the present from him a second later, opening it to find a stuffed panda bear inside.

"This was my Panda, Mr. Bamboo." Cam explained, "He scared all my bad dreams away, and now he can do it for you." The bear looked almost brand new, it was amazing that it hadn't looked more worn.

"Thank you." I hugged him, feeling him squirm a little at my sudden touch.

"Pink promise." I said, holding my hand out, "We can pinky promise that we stay best friends forever." He nodded, taking my finger and curling his own around it.

"Me and you forever." He whispered, searching my eyes as I answered.

"You and I forever."

****AN***

*Edited*

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Hope you enjoyed!

~ChasingMadness24