The Heartthrob Won't Leave

Chapter Fifty-Five (New Chapters)

She shuttered, catching her breath from another nightmare. It was strange, this one had been different. People had been laughing, screaming at her, a blend of nonsense that held more power than it should have. Her eyes fluttered, raising her head to rest on her elbows. It was still dark outside, and he was still asleep next to her, on the other side of her dumb pillow wall. She just glanced at him, a soft smile falling across her face. She leaned over slightly, pressing her lips to his cheek. He watched as he fussed, shifting slightly in response, but he didn't wake up. He stayed just as he was, falling away with light little snores. She turned, reaching for her phone on the beside table. The screen came alight when she picked it up, slighting that it was just after 4 in the morning. She wanted to go back to sleep, she needed to, but for some reason she felt a walk would have also been nice. She slipped out from under the covers, leaving her phone behind and heading out. She shut the door softly, hoping she didn't make too much noise and woke Lucian. She walked down the steps in her sandals, turning to notice that the kitchen light was still on, casting a warm glow to eventually fade amongst the darkness. She pushed open the door, looking inside. She was surprised to find Stella at the kitchen table. She was still awake, which was unusual, taking multiple nursings from a steaming mug set in front of her, gripping it with the pads of her fingers.

"Your usually not up at this time" Stella lifted her head at Blake's words, giving a nod in agreement. Blake slipped through the door, closing it behind her.

"You know...if something is bothering you, you can tell me, right?" Stella just sighed, rolling her eyes

"How many times have you said that now?" she asked rhetorically. Blake just smiled, leaning up against the countertop, looking at her friend. "I just think this year has kind of gotten to me a little bit" Blake raised an eyebrow, intrigued. As far as she was aware, much hadn't changed for Stella in the past year. Her behavior remained the same, loud spoken and flaunting. Things didn't bother Stella, she always insisted the things that upset applied to other people, not to her. She had a perfect family, a perfect body, a perfect life, it was everywhere and a constant reminder. It was one of the things in Blake's own life that she often thought about, making her feel inferior to her friend even though she didn't want it to. Everyone is always under the illusion that humans make up their own minds, they choose how to feel about certain things, or certain people. But, Blake knew that simply wasn't true. The majority of human turmoil existed simply because people lacked control over how they felt.

"Well, I was just about to take a walk. Do you wanna come with me?" Blake asked, watching as Stella perked, raising her head and giving Blake a happy nod.

"I was just about to ask the same thing" Stella insisted, getting up and placing her windbreaker over her shoulders. Blake was happy to be spending time with her friend, perhaps this time together could be beneficial to Stella. The world wasn't such a daunting place when you had to face it alone. They walked without words down the path, around the tents and makeshift blanket forts. There were even people sleeping bare of blankets under the stars, that would have been nice Blake thought, stepping across the gravel path.

"Follow me" Stella beckoned, a sudden excitement across her features. Blake knew Stella liked these woods, and didn't hesitate to follow her in. "When I used to walk through here as a kid, I found something pretty cool, wanna see?" Stella asked. Blake was happy to nod in agreement, admiring Stella's boost of mood. It had been awhile since she had seen Stella like this, it was reassuring. It was hard to see anything in the darkness, she couldn't count how many times she almost ran into a tree or tripped on a bush. But, one thing was constant, the billowing beckon of Stella's light yellow windbreaker, like a beacon leading Blake's way. There were so many noises and clicks of wildlife, but for some reason the forest also felt silent. Even in the darkness its glory was beautiful, it certainly wasn't hard to see why Stella seemed so attached to it. She could almost see her young self following along, with the child stance of Stella leading along