While We're Young (Marianas Trench)

Chapter 8

Josh looks confused as I run to the intercom and warn Davis. "Davis, I'm going to buzz you up, but before I do you need to promise me that you won't say anything that you might regret. Okay?"

"Just let me in, Alexis, I need to talk to you." He replies. I pray he doesn't say anything that might hurt mine and Josh's relationship. I press the door open button and turn to Josh.

"Who the hell is Davis?" He looks angry, and he has every right to be. That is, if I were actually cheating on him.

"He's not even an ex. I haven't seen him in over a year." There's a knock on the door and, sure enough, when Josh swings it open Davis is there.

"Alexis, I can't stop thinking about you! Your voice, your smile your laugh, they run through my head at night and everyday I regret not asking you out. We have something," Davis gushes, pulling my face to his, before I can even register what he's doing. I hear the door slam and pull Davis' hands off my face. I slap him hard and call after Josh.

"Josh, wait!" I yell, opening the door. But he's already gone. I hate that I hurt him, even though it isn't my fault. "You," I growl, turning to Davis. "You are a complete piece of shit! He was standing right there, and you didn't even notice him. He even opened the fucking door for you, probably thinking that he would punch you in the face. I can't believe you!"

"I didn't think he was your boyfriend, at first I thought he was just a really tall woman. Then I saw he wasn't wearing a shirt and—"

"You're an idiot!" I cut him off. "Why would you think that, after more than a year, I would just be here waiting for you? I was never waiting for you. I thought we were clearly just friends."

"I'm sorry." Davis slumps his shoulders. "I should have never come here." Then he looks at me and up into his memory. "Wait, was that Josh Ramsay?"

"Yeah, it was!" I'm even more irritated now. I have the sweetest, nicest, most talented boyfriend, and now he's possibly my ex boyfriend, all because of freaking Davis.

"I thought you didn't like rich people? In your words, 'they're self centred assholes that only care about how many figures they make a day'."

"I've changed a lot since we last talked." I sigh, turning the corner into my messy living room. Josh left his bag on the couch, and it makes me so sad. I sit down and hug it to my chest, breathing in his scent.

"Does that mean you've made up with your parents?" Davis asks, sitting beside me. He sits farther away than I thought he would, and I appreciate that.

"No," I grimace at the thought of my parents. I still haven't talked to them since I moved out when I was 18.

"Maybe you should. If your opinions have changed, maybe you can better understand them. Maybe they aren't as bad as you thought they were. Maybe you just only saw their money and never their worth."

"If I call them, you need to leave. And don't even think about coming back until you've learned to subdue your feeling because I really like Josh." He nods, walking away without a word.

I hesitate for a moment, should I even bother with my parents? Will they even care? I'll never know if I don't try, I decide, dialing their number and waiting for an answer.

"Hello?" My dad's voice, deep and strong, rings through the receiver. I almost feel intimidated by it, remembering how it made me stop dead in my tracks as a child.

"Hi, dad." I say, holding my breath.

"Alexis? Is that you?" He asks, sounding excited. In the background I hear my mother's muffled voice.

"Is that Alexis?" She gasps. I hear another receiver being picked up and her voice comes clearer. "Alexis, sweety, how are you? Has something happened? Are you okay?"

"No, mom, nothing's happened, and I'm fine. It just occurred to me that I may have been wrong. I miss you guys, and, if I'm not too late, would it be alright if I stop by to talk to you? I have someone I'd love for you to meet."

"Of course, you're always welcome home!" My dad is ecstatic, I can imagine him jumping up and down in his posh suit and I start to giggle.

"What's so funny dear?" My mother asks, confused. I almost forgot we were on the phone.

"Nothing, I'm just glad that everything is going well." I can't help but smile at the thought of seeing my parents again. I never thought I'd want to, but now that I've called them, my heart aches for them.

"Alright, Alexis. We'll talk to you soon, make sure to call before you come, so I can tell Harriet how much food to make." Some things never change . . .

"Of course, mom. I'll see you soon, bye now." I hang up the phone and close my eyes. Now all I need is to get Josh back.

******

I'm on my way over there and you better be there too so I can talk to you. I obviously need to explain ~ A

I text Josh before I leave and put my car into drive. He better be at his apartment, because if he isn't I don't know where else to look. It's ten o'clock in the morning, no bars or liquor stores are open. I pull into his parking lot and see his car. I slam on my breaks and put the car in park in the middle of two spots. In the lobby I quickly click his apartment number and wait.

"I don't want to talk to you," Josh's voice slurs through the speaker.

"I have your backpack, and I need to explain." I hold up his bag to the camera as proof. A moment of silence passes before the door unlocks and I anxiously pull it open. I ride the painfully slow elevator until I reach the top floor, walking out into Josh's flat. "Josh?" I call out. He mumbles something from the other side of the room.

I rush towards his slumped, crying body. He's no more than a heap on the floor. "I can't believe you did that." Fresh tears fall onto his already swollen face.

"Josh, I didn't. I would never, could never, do anything like that. I swear, Davis came out of nowhere. After you left, I slapped him for kissing me and yelled at him for being such a complete imbecile. You and I, we trust each other."

"I did trust you! I thought we were perfect, then you went and did what she did. I never expected that from you, Lex, not you." He argues, brushing hair out of his face. I stroke his cheek and force him to look me in the eyes.

"I am not a cheater. I am not Amanda. I am not a bitch, unless someone is a dick to me. Please believe me, honey, I would never hurt you." He nods and wipes his eyes.

"Alright, what else did Davis say?" He asks, allowing me to sit beside him and hold his hand.

"Well, once he noticed it was you, Josh Ramsay, he was very surprised. He knows my usual stance on rich people, which I think you and the guys have proved wrong, and asked about my parents. I hadn't talked to them in seven years, until today when Davis said I should hear them out. Then I told him to leave and not come back until he could look at me as only a friend. I told him you and I were great together and that I didn't want to ruin that."

"You think we're good together?" Josh asks, looking me in the eyes.

"I think we're great together." I smile, scooching closer to him. His eyes crinkle at the sides and he lifts my chin gently, brushing his lips on mine.

"I agree," he whispers.