Too Good To Be True?

Chapter 16 Ⅱ

I've honestly never felt better. My channel was going great, everyone was so glad that I was back and I loved the freedom of being Elsie. She came so naturally that I felt like a real person again whenever I started recording, rather than an empty shell with no past. Personifying her was like a drug and I couldn't get enough. I asked Amy if she wanted to record together, seeing as we were quite good friends now, but for some reason she kept dodging my offers. In fact, most of my so-called "English friends" kept denying my collab offers. So much for them. It didn't bother me, though. I was getting plenty of attention from other YouTubers who I'd never made videos with before and it was fun. Really, really fun...

In the non-existent time I had between making videos, I hung out with Cam and Meg. I told them about what I'd done with Zach, how I'd finally managed to shut David up, but I couldn't tell if they were impressed or appalled. Either way, they finally stopped pestering me about him and I couldn't be more relieved. Of course, every time the three of us were together I was more-or-less invisible, but I wasn't even jealous of the relationship they had. What did I have to be jealous about? I was an independent, successful 17 year old with millions of fans who loved me. I was doing just fine for myself. What more could I possibly want?

I was over at Cam's place one day in August and while I was extremely glad to have him all to myself for once (Meg was in the cities with her parents for the day), he was acting even more peculiar than usual.

"Cam!" I complained as our army was slaughtered for the third time. "Would you get off your damn phone and play the game?!"

"Sorry..." he muttered, setting the phone aside and half-heartedly picking up his controller.

I rolled my eyes at him. "Bro, I think Meg can survive one hour without you checking up on her."

He narrowed his eyes at me, the first time he'd fully acknowledged me in an hour and a half. "Ha, ha. I know Meg is fine, I just have to keep an eye on the time."

"There's a clock right next to the TV!" I yelled, slapping his arm with a pillow. "Besides, what could be so important that you have to be exactly on time for?"

He waved it off and started the countdown for another round. "It's just important, okay? August 7th is very important." He glanced at me as he said that, apparently expecting a reaction. I reacted the same as I had the other seventeen times he'd reminded me of the date. I shook my head, ignored the slight throbbing in the back of my skull, and continued playing without a word. I had no idea why he was so intent on making sure I knew it was the 7th but he didn't let me forget it for more than ten minutes.

We made some good progress into our game but just as we were about to defeat the boss, I was annihilated and I screamed, throwing my controller at Cam when I saw he was on his phone again.

"Cameron, I swear to god! That's it, I quit! Rage quit! Have a nice life!" I pushed myself off the couch, stomping to the door and pulling on my shoes.

"WAIT!" he yelled, scrambling after me. "You can't leave! Not yet!"

"Oh yeah? Watch me," I said, flipping him off. He obviously knew I wasn't actually mad, but I was sick of playing through the same mission over and over again. Besides, I had work to get done.

He flung himself in front of the door, arms spread out like a wingspan. He had a determined yet slightly terrified look on his face. "No, Angel, please, you can't go yet."

I huffed and stood up, crossing my arms. "And why not? You obviously have somewhere to be soon anyway," I countered, gesturing to the phone still glued to his hand.

He shook his head vigorously, stretching his body out to cover even more of the door. He was pretty lean, but he was tall and much stronger than me. Attempting to move him out of the way would be as futile as a hummingbird trying to push an elephant. "Please, just stay a little longer," he pleaded. "I'll give you my full attention, I promise."

I eyed his phone, smirking as I gestured for him to hand it over. He held it to his chest protectively, but I was persistent. "Either you give me the phone or I leave right now."

He tapped his fingers nervously, pondering my offer. Finally, he sighed and held it out for me. "Fine. But you are not allowed to turn it on or look at any notifications, alright?"

I quirked a brow at that. Him and I didn't have any secrets, and I mean any. I knew gross, disturbing things about him that I never needed to know. What could he be hiding from me?

I hesitantly accepted the device, sticking it in the front pocket of my hoodie. "Alright..." I said, curious but not wanting to push him. "But I am not playing that game anymore."

His shoulders relaxed with a sigh of relief and he chuckled apologetically. "That's fair." He flung an arm around my shoulders, smirking down at me and asking, "You wanna bust out some Monopoly?"

I playfully punched his side, smiling as the Cam I loved started to come back from wherever his mind had been for the past few hours. "Bring it on."

***

Cam finally allowed me to leave after we went through his whole array of board games, claiming that he had to beat me at least once before I left. He gave up on that after I started whining about all the editing I still had to do on tomorrow's video and how he would be the one to let all my fans down if he continued to hold me hostage. He walked me to the door and I begrudgingly handed back his phone, proud of myself for not peeking once while I had it. I trusted him and respected his privacy. If there was something he didn't want me to know about yet, I could live with that. He was my best friend, I wasn't going to do anything to jeopardize that.

Much to my surprise, he gave me a big hug as I left, whispering, "I love you, Angel," as he held me.

I smiled at the warm sensation which coursed through me at hearing those words. While it had been difficult to get over the crush I had on him, I was perfectly happy with having him as a best friend. He was like a brother to me and I realized how stupid I had been for thinking of him any other way. "I love you too, Cam," I murmured, giving him one final squeeze before pulling away and starting down the path to my house.

"Call me if you need anything!" he yelled after me and I shot him a thumbs up, already enthralled in scrolling through my socials. I hadn't checked them all day and I needed to know how yesterday's video was being received. I was glad to see so many positive comments, but there were still so many people asking where "Squid" was. Usually those questions made me angry and I ignored them all together, but for some reason, today they were making me feel... guilty?

I shook off the thought, knowing I was being ridiculous. I had no reason to feel guilty for ignoring him. He made my brain want to explode, why should I feel bad about wanting to get rid of that?

As I walked up the driveway, I could feel something was off. I pried my eyes away from my screen and froze, seeing an unfamiliar white car sitting in front of our garage. I hesitantly walked around it, seeing Richard's Rental painted on the side.

A rental car? What on earth...?

I checked the time and saw that my dad should be home from work by now. Did something happen to his car? I decided that was the most logical explanation and went up to the front door, patting Maya on the head as I came inside.

"I'm home!" I called through the house, kicking off my shoes. There was no reply so I stuck my head into the garage. "Hello?" Still nothing. I pulled off my hoodie as I walked upstairs, calling, "What happened to your car? Did someone total i-" I froze as I saw light coming from underneath my bedroom door. I never left my light on when I went out. "Dad...?" I asked, my heart stuttering in my chest. "Dad, is that you?" I tiptoed down the hall, not sure why I was being quiet now when I had already alerted the whole house of my presence. I carefully pushed open the door, bracing myself for whatever impact may be awaiting me on the other side. I could never have been prepared for what I saw.

"Oh, hell no."