It's Just Not Meant To Be || Brad Simpson (The Vamps) Fanfiction

part 2: Monday

I never got the chance to say goodbye to her.

I should've known from the way my mum tucked me into my bed that night—from the longer kiss to the warmer emotions, I should've picked up the hints. I should've said goodbye before she closed the door completely. I should've not let go when she held me for one last time.

How naive can a 12-year-old boy be?

When she left, my dad tried to be as strong as he could. He would put on a brave face, keep himself busy and assure us that everything will be fine. But beneath his strong facade was a broken man—someone who was lost, confused and heartbroken. You could see it through his eyes and through how he did anything; he acted as if the breath of life had been taken away from him.

But, believe it or not, he was a strong man, just not in the way most people expect. After all, a crying man was a rare sight since they're expected to be as strong as Superman.

I sat at the foot of the staircase and watched my dad as he drank the bottle of alcohol he had in his hand. He allowed my sister out for a sleepover at her friend's house, which secretly made him feel lonelier, but he thought that her happiness was much more important than his. In fact, he tucked me to bed earlier with a happy bedtime story, but I still couldn't sleep. I couldn't stop thinking of him.

It took a while before I finally stood up on my feet, grasping my Goofy stuffed toy as I tiptoed towards my dad. I patted his shoulder once, then he turned to me in surprise, wiping his tears away when he realised that it was me.

"Bradley, what are you doing down here? Aren't you supposed to be in bed?" He asked me, but I didn't answer him. Instead, I wiped away the tear that formed at the corner of his eye, then I leaned towards him and gave him a big hug, not caring about the stench of alcohol on his shirt. He hugged me back, then he started to sob softly.

"I love you, dad. I love you," I said, then he brushed my hair down and kissed the top of my head, allowing me to hug him tighter.

From that moment, I knew how strong he was. He wasn't afraid to show me how much he was affected from what happened. We both felt sad, but we were also determined to overcome whatever it is that is left in front of us and look at the future with hope.

After feeling a little better, my dad and I walked to his room, and although he was drunk, he still made sure that I was okay the whole time. We slept next to each other, ignoring the fact that I was on my mum's side of the bed.

If she wanted to leave us, then, fine, we'll do whatever it takes to live.

---

"I'm sorry about what happened over the weekend," Rocky told me while we were eating lunch, then I sighed.

"It's fine. But, if my mum was that desperate to leave, we may as well manage without her. It's the best way to redeem ourselves," I said, then she nodded her head and smiled.

"That is very true. I'm glad that you're all working as a team to heal," she added, then I gave her another smile in reply. I took a bite out of my sandwich, looking over at her again when she called my attention.

"Do you want to come home to my house after school?" Rocky asked me as she continued to eat her sandwich, then I shrugged my shoulders.

"I don't know if my dad will allow me. It's been really hard for us lately, not going to lie. We need as much people as we can," I said, then Rocky widened her eyes.

"Is that so? Maybe I can help. We can have a sleepover at your house!" Rocky suggested, then I raised an eyebrow at her suggestion.

"Do you think my dad will allow that? We still have school tomorrow," I asked, then Rocky smiled.

"Of course he will! He loves me, Brad. I'm sure it will just be fine with him," she said confidently, then I returned her a fake smile since I didn't share the same confidence.

Then again, she's Rocky Tamara. She's always right about people.

When nighttime came, we tried to build a fort out of the blankets and pillows I found lying in my wardrobe. The plan was to suspend a blanket over my bed, where we plan to sleep while having some pillows between us. We were able to secure the blanket behind my tall headboard, then I suspended the other side with my dad's old T-square that was lying around.

"Done!" I exclaimed, then Rocky stepped back and admired our work, which she decorated with her glow-in-the-dark stars. We gave each other a small high five, then we went inside our tiny fort and tested its strength. Unfortunately, it came crashing down because we were moving around too much, then we laughed in unison.

"I guess the fort isn't really a good idea," I said, then Rocky laughed her heart out. I laughed back to hide the fact that I thought that her laugh was the most beautiful sound I've heard my entire life, and that I can't stop thinking of it.

We both got out of my bed to fix the mess we made, and while we were stacking the pillows up, she noticed the turntable that I used to play music before I sleep and went towards it.

"Wow! I didn't know that you have one of these," she said in awe, then I walked towards her with a smile.

"How do you even use this?" She asked, then I grabbed one of the records that I owned and put it on the thing, positioning the pin properly afterwards.

Tiny Dancer by Elton John started to play from the speakers. While the song played, Rocky and I stared at the record as it spun around.

Except, I was looking to see her slightly distorted reflection. She was enjoying the song, letting it wander through her soul as every note sparked emotions I never knew I could feel around her. She wasn't conscious that she was doing it in a very attractive way, however, but who could blame her? She was flawlessly attractive.

"The chorus is about to start. Do you want to dance with me?" I asked Rocky, who looked at me with a confused face. When she saw how flushed I was, she smiled and took my hand, then we went to the middle of my room.

She chuckled as she positioned my hands on her waist, then she wrapped her hands around my neck. Slowly, we stepped side to side to the music, and once we got the tempo, we looked into each other's eyes, and I was able to have a glimpse on how good the moonlight, that shone through my window, looked in her orbs.

We were then looking at each other seriously, like we were more than friends at that moment. We enveloped ourselves in a hug after moving closer towards each other. I closed my eyes to really feel the moment, letting my emotions pour from my head and hopefully to her.

"This is nice," I whispered as the song continued to play, then Rocky hummed in reply. We continued to move side to side, moving around in our own circle with our heartbeats in sync with the song.

I didn't want to let go. Besides, she is Rocky Tamara.

Although there's a chance that she will never like me back, I'm thankful that I was able to have a moment like this with her.