Chapter 26- Taunting Calls

[] A M E L I A []

After Leo 'shot' me, the intercom lady came on again, announcing that the game was already over and the Blue team won. Then Leo and I made our way out of the arena, with me now annoyed and Leo snickering behind me. When we came outside, everyone was still busy changing. We headed there as well and were bombarded with questions, mostly to do with who won. I replied saying our team won, but Leo shot me anyway. This caused him to laugh again, and I haughtily walked away to get changed.

We finally finished cleaning up and made it out to the lobby. After paying for our time, Joe, Eric, and Stephanie headed their own way, while the five of us decided to head to Leo's for the night. It was still early, only 7 in the evening, so we decided to get pizza and watch a movie at his place.

We assembled into the car and started our journey. On the way there, Andre put on music and him and Gemma jammed all the way back home, while the rest of us were happy in watching them. When we made it to Leo's apartment, we all piled in and immediately made ourselves comfortable.

I found myself sitting on the same couch as I had when I told Leo about my past, and immediately I was lost in thought. Everyone else had stopped in the kicthen where the pizza coupons were, and I could vaguely hear them arguing from here.

As I sat here, I simply thought of Leo. Once again, I wondered why he so easily accepted what I told him. There was simply no way he could be so calm about it. I bet he had many questions too, but never did he approach me to ask those questions.

He was patient with me.

But why?

He didn't quite like me we when we first met, and nor were we super close after that. Then what made him so understanding? More importantly, what made me tell him all about my past in the first place?

It had been four years since the incident, and ever since then, I've kept to myself. Then what made me spill out my deepest darkest secret to a boy I barely knew?

Was it an 'in the spur of the moment' kind of a thing? Or did I actually want to tell him? Despite all the questions running through my mind, something told me that the reason I trusted him, was that I could see a hint of sadness in him as well. Something similar to what I felt.

It was known territory with Leo.

And because it was known, it felt safe.

He had already confirmed that he felt the same. So was that it? He had a past like mine?

Before my thought process could continue, I felt the couch beside me dip. I turned to my side and found Leo occupying the spot beside me. He was already staring down at me, his gaze as intense as always. He was leaning back into the couch casually, his hands thrown in his pockets, and for some reason, I found comfort in his posture. He was relaxed around me.

After a moment of silence, I spoke.

"Why aren't you even phased by what I told you Leo?" I suddenly blurted out.

For the first time, I didn't break from his gaze. I wasn't surprised that he didn't falter at my question, since it further confirmed my suspicion that he carried deep wounds like I did. That's why he wasn't surprised when I told him about me.

He stayed silent at my words and continued to stare at me for the longest time before he spoke.

"I told you Amelia. The only scare you give me is the good kind," he said.

I stayed where I was, staring at him and trying to read him. His eyes held an empathetic glint to them and I found myself getting lost in the depths of them.

I wanted to tell him then. I wanted to tell him that he can trust me like I trusted him. That he can tell me anything he wanted to, because I wouldn't judge him for it.

My mouth parted to tell him what I felt, but before I could, we heard noises coming our way. I finally broke my gaze from him, letting out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. I turned to see what he commotion was about, just in time to see Andre, Gemma, and Jamal piling into the living room. They heavily plopped themselves onto the couches, each gracing a satisfied grin on their face. Jamal took up the whole loveseat, while Gemma claimed the spot beside me on the opposite side of Leo, and Andre took the small seat.

"That was much harder than it needed to be. Are you guys really grown adults?" Leo said to them.

In response, Andre gave him the finger.

Finally, we all decided to watch a movie and settled on 'She's the Man', this time it being Gemma's pick. We watched the movie in comfortable silence, making comments when we needed to. Suddenly, the scene when Viola put a tampon up her nose came up.

Right away, I burst out laughing. That scene got me every time I watched the darn movie, and it wasn't any different this time. I laughed the same way I did with Leo today, and just like before, it felt good now too.

As the scene came to an end, my laugh died down, and it was then that I noticed that I was the only one laughing. I took a look around the room and noticed that all eyes were on me. I awkwardly shrunk back in my seat and subconsciously pulled at my sleeves.

"What?" I murmured into the silence.

"There it is," Gemma suddenly said.

I turned to her, curious for what she was about to say, as did everyone else.

"That's the sound you heard every morning walking into school," she said, grinning from ear to ear.

I leaned back further into the couch, my mind drifting off to the times when it was easy to laugh like that.

It was true, I was the kid that was always laughing. No matter what the situation was, I always found a way to laugh, even in the toughest of moments. If someone was sad, I'd make the situation lighter; if someone was happy, I'd partake in their happiness; I was always positive.

But I guess I took life too lightly.

That was why when Brittany died at the hands of Levi, I was broken. All of a sudden, I could imagine life, as a hypothetical figure, pointing a finger at me and saying, "Haha, joke's on you! Who's laughing now, sucker!"

Finally snapping out of my thoughts, my eyes landed on Andre, who still had his mouth agape. I awkwardly looked away from his gaze, not liking the attention. Just then, I felt a body dip closer to mine. I instantly froze, recognizing Leo's cologne right away. He was closer to me now, and somehow, I instantly relaxed. However, as he spoke, I realized he only leaned closer to me to get close to Andre.

"Andre, you can snap out of it now," Leo said snappily.

Andre finally blinked and shook his head, as if he was shaking off water.

"What the heck Amelia? You've been hiding that all this time?!" he asked incredulously.

I licked my dry lips and looked down in my lap, not quite sure how to respond to that.

"Alright boys, get over it," Gemma suddenly announced.

Everyone finally turned their attention back to the movie and I let out a small breath. Suddenly, I felt a presence close to my ear and I stiffened, knowing Leo was leaning in.

"I can't wait to keep hearing it," he simply whispered.

His breath tickled my ear, but more than that, his words warmed my heart. I slowly looked up to him, my brows furrowed in confusion. My heart was a mess, and my brain was completely haywire.

All because Leo Kennedy keeps seeing through me.

* * *

We were almost done with the movie and our pizza had arrived an hour ago, so we had stuffed ourselves to the max. We had lots of fun tonight, even though we weren't doing anything special.

However, I didn't think that my night could end on such a bitter note. Never in a million years, did I think that it would take a turn like this.

It was nearing 10 at night and all of us were going to head out soon. For now, we were sitting in the living room, simply finishing the last ten minutes of the movie. It was then that my phone rang in my pocket. Surprised, I pulled it out, only to see 'Mom' flashing on the screen. I frowned in confusion, wondering why she was calling so late. She has always been an early sleeper, the complete opposite of me and my dad.

As I was staring at the screen, I felt a nudge to my side. I looked up to see Leo staring down at me with questioning gaze. I shook my head at him and excused myself to go receive the call.

Ignoring everyone's gazes, I walked into the kitchen to talk to my mom. I finally pressed the 'talk' button and brought the phone up to my ear. My heart was racing a mile a minute and my palms were getting sweaty.

I didn't know what it is was, but I had a feeling that something wasn't right.

"Hey mom," I greeted, rubbing my palms on my jeans.

She stayed silent for a moment on the other end, worrying me further.

"Everything okay?" I tried again.

I heard her let out a short breath on the other side.

"Hey honey," she greeted back at last. "How are you?" she then asked.

"I'm good. What about you? You don't sound too good."

"I'm... I'm fine honey. There's just something you need to know," she said.

"Go on mom," I said, putting up a strong front.

And it was when she said the next words that my world came shattering around me once again.

It seemed as if everything I had worked on building up so far was useless. This night, letting go of my hoodie, and telling someone about my past, was all worthless.

It was then I realized I could never be fixed. That I could never truly move on.

Because my past will keep pulling me back.

* * *

[] L E O []

I watched the space after Amelia as she left, wondering what was going on. She had looked a little lost when she saw who had called her, which confused me as well. I was contemplating whether I should follow her or not, but then thought better of it.

Suddenly I was thwacked upside the head. I let out a small 'oomph' and turned around to see who had hit me. When I turned, I saw three pairs of eyes fixated on my own.

"What?" I said gruffly.

"Do you need a ventilator?" Jamal suddenly asked.

I gave him a confused look.

"Why?" I asked.

"Because you forgot how to breathe."

At this, Andre and Gemma burst out laughing, while I let out a small sigh and looked up to the ceiling, wondering why I was here in the first place. As they continued laughing, I stood up from my spot and decided to check up on Amelia. She had been gone for a while now, and I was starting to get uneasy.

I slowly sauntered toward the kitchen and paused in the doorway. From here, I could see Amelia's back and her phone glued to her ear. I heard her talking to whoever was on the other side, so I decided to head back so it doesn't look like I was eavesdropping.

However, the moment I started making my way back, I heard a loud thump. Startled, I turned back around and looked around for the source of the noise. My gaze landed on Amelia's phone, which was now on the ground. Without thinking twice, I took off towards her. I reached her in a few quick strides and took a step around her to stop in front of her.

To my surprise, her mouth was agape and she was staring ahead with a shock-ridden expression. Even though I was right in front of her, she didn't acknowledge my presence. I frowned and reached out to touch her shoulder. But before my hand could come in contact with her, she suddenly turned to me. Her eyes were wide, and it was similar to the look she gave me in Andre's room as she was shaking in fear.

I despised it.

And if it couldn't get any worse, a lone tear came running down her cheek. My eyes widened in surprise, and this time, I took a step closer to her.

"What's wrong Amelia?"

She looked up at me, her eyes filled with horror. A sudden ache formed in my chest and I wished to know what was wrong. I needed to know what was wrong.

"Amel-"

Before I could say anything, Amelia was falling. Her knees buckled under her, unable to hold in whatever was wrong anymore. I was near her in an instant. My arms encircled around her, and I crushed her to my chest, all the while calling her name feverently.

However, Amelia didn't respond, since her mind was completely occupied with whatever she heard on the phone.

She was crushed in my arms now, her hands grabbing onto my arms for support. Her breathing was heavy, tears running down her cheeks in a rush.

"Moonie?" I tried again.

Still no luck.

I couldn't take it anymore. Without thinking twice, I leaned down, wrapped my arms under her knees, and pulled her up into my arms bridal style. It was when she was completely off the ground that a small gasp escaped her lips. She wrapped her arms around my neck out of instinct and looked up at me with wide eyes.

"What are you doing Leo? Put me down," she murmured.

I looked down at her, and without responding, I carried her out of the kitchen and towards my bedroom.

As we left the kitchen, I noticed that Gemma, Andre, and Jamal, had formed a little crowd by the kitchen arch. I quickly shared a look with Gemma and nodded over to the phone that was still on the ground. Her eyes widened in surprise and she quickly walked past me to get to the phone. I ignored Jamal and Andre's confused gazes and continued leading Amelia away from this mess.

When I came into my room, I carefully placed Amelia on the edge of the bed in a sitting position and kneeled down in front of her on the ground. I didn't say anything. I simply waited for her to speak.

She was back into her old form now. Her brows were furrowed, her eyes were completely wild with terror, and her hands wouldn't stop shaking.

Hesitantly, I reached out a hand towards her shaking ones. Ever so slowly, I reached forward and placed my hand on hers. When my hand came in contact with hers, a tremor raked through Amelia. Out of instinct, I rubbed her hand for some sort of comfort, but she didn't notice it. Since I was losing balance, I brought my other hand up up on the bed, right beside her waist.

She was lost in her world once again.

But this time, I wasn't going to let her face it alone.

"What happened Moonie?" I asked.

It was then that she blew. She finally started spewing out many things at once, most of which my mind couldn't keep up with. Finally, she let out a small breath, and slowed down, letting me finally hear some of what she had to say.

"I can't do it. I can't do it Leo. Tell her I can't do it. I won't do it-"

"Whoa, whoa. Easy there Moonie," I said, gripping her hand tighter. "What can't you do?"

She finally looked to me then, her wild eyes coming in contact with my own. The storm in them didn't die down yet, and there was no way I was leaving until it did.

"I can't go see him Leo. I can't. I won't. He has no right to ask me to go see him. Not after what he did."

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Who are you talking about Amelia?" I asked.

Her lip trmebled as she said the next words, making my heart ache more than it already was.

"Levi, Leo. Levi wants to see me."