Chapter Five: I'm All I Have Left

I was shaken awake at six Am the next morning by Aiden. Apparently he wasn't mad anymore.
"Artemis is going to give us a ride this morning 'cause my car is in the shop." he said.
"You aren't mad?" I asked wiping the sleep from my eyes.
"I'm still mad. I came in here to get you up." he said.
I sighed and went to take a shower. This time, I made sure the bathroom door was locked. When I was finished, I climbed out and wrapped my towel around me. I darted to my room and got dressed in a jean skirt, Old Navy t-shirt, and hot pink flip flops.
Soon, there was a knock on the front door just as I was stuffing my homework in my book bag.
Aiden sat in the front seat while I sat in the back behind Artemis. Artemis looked up into the rear view mirror and winked at me. I looked away without even a smile.

***


I waited for Aiden in the back seat of Artemis' car. Artemis tapped his fingers on the steering wheel awkwardly. My mood was still shot.
"So...how was school?" he asked.
"Shitty." I mumbled.
"I'm sorry. Is Aiden still pissed off about yesterday?"
I gave him a death glare and looked away.
"He really shouldn't be mad. It was all so stupid." Artemis stated.
"Well you should know. It was your fault to begin with." I snapped.
"I know and I'm sorry."
I leaned my head back against the head rest.
A half hour went by and Aiden still had not shown up.
"I'm about to leave without him." Artemis said, starting the car.
I was beginning to get worried.
"Let me try calling him." I said.
I turned on my cell phone and dialed Aiden's cell phone number. It went straight to voicemail.
"Damn it." I muttered.
I then tried to call home thinking he decided to leave without us. It rang five times before going to the answering machine. Artemis looked up in the rear view mirror at my panicked face.
"C'mon. Move up front. I'll take you home." he offered quietly.
I climbed into the front seat and buckled my seat belt. Artemis drove away. I kept glancing at my phone to see if I had just not heard it ringing. Artemis noticed and reached over to touch my knee.
"I'm sure he's fine." Artemis tried to assure me.
I nodded and looked out the window to see a black Toyota Camry flipped over in a ditch on the side of the road. It was on fire and firemen, policemen, and the paramedics where there.
My heart stopped; it was the same car Aiden drove. Artemis immediately pulled over at the nearest gas station. He got out and walked over to my side of the car. He sat down on the floor of the car and hugged me to him as tears overflowed from my eyes. He hugged me tighter when he heard my sobs.

***

Artemis walked me inside. He offered to stay with me but I told him I just wanted to be alone. I walked further in , fighting back a waterfall of tears. I suddenly heard a girl's squeal and laughter. Confused, I followed the sounds. They were coming from Aiden's room. I stopped at the door and listened. I heard the squeal again and swung open the door.
The sight I saw was an unforgettable one. Aiden and a girl where rolling around in his bed, kissing her. Their clothes were half off. I was in utter shock when I saw who the girl was. I was furious. I grabbed a shoe off the floor and chucked it as hard as I could at Aiden's head. It hit him right on target. When I aimed, I never miss. He immediately sat up and stared at me. I held his stare for a moment then ran. I didn't know where I'd go but I knew I had to get out of there.
"Starr! Wait!" Aiden shouted after me.
I picked up my pace and didn't look back.
"Starr! Stop!" Aiden shouted.
I was now coming up on Artemis' house. I didn't want to go there. Aiden would find me too easily. So I had no choice but to just run away from this town and from this life. A little irrational? Maybe but I hated Aiden now.
"Starr! Damn it, Starr! Stop!" Aiden screamed after me.
As I passed Artemis' house, I saw that he was on the porch observing the scene with a concerned look on his face. He began running after me, coming to whatever the hell his conclusion was. He ran in front of me, cutting me off to where I ran straight into him. He held onto me, not letting me run off. Aiden finally caught up to me.
"Starr, listen, it wasn't what it looked liked--" he began. I cut him off with a lunge but Artemis held me back.
"You asshole! You complete and total asshole!" I shouted to high heavens.
"Starr, please, calm down!" he said.
"Why should I? You get pissed off at me for joking around and then today, you don't call me to tell me where you are. I saw a car that looked exactly like yours flipped over and on fire! I wanted to die, Aiden! I thought I'd never see you again! Then I came home on the edge of breaking down completely to find you in the bed with my best friend! I was always scared of losing you, Aiden, like we lost Mom and Dad! We were all we had left but now I realize that I'm all I have left! There's no one on this damned planet that I can actually trust fully like I trusted you! I hate you Aiden! Go to hell!" I screamed.
All was quiet now. Aiden's eyes exhibited sorrow but I didn't care.
"Starr, I am so sorry." He whispered.
I spat on the ground at his shoes. He stared at the bubbling puddle. My heart was tearing to pieces but I refused to let it show.
"Starr, I'm going home" Aiden said quietly and walked away sadly.
Artemis finally freed me from his grip and I just fell to my knees in tears. I hated showing so much weakness in front of him but at that moment, I didn't care about how much weakness he saw. I was weak. I didn't care. I didn't care about anything anymore.

***

I woke up to the welcoming scent of bacon and eggs. My stomach growled and I almost got up to see what else was cooking but I stopped when I realized where I was and why I was here.
I was in the guest bedroom of Artemis' house. I was here because I hated Aiden. I buried my face into my pillow wanting to suffocate myself.
"Knock, knock." came a familiar voice.
I looked up from the pillow to see Artemis standing in the doorway.
"Get up sunshine!" he said with a smile.
I put my head back into my pillow and groaned. The last thing I wanted to was go to school. I'd have to see Aiden and Noel...two people I did not want to ever see again.
The covers were suddenly ripped off of me.
"Artemis, five more minutes." I groaned, searching for a source of warmth with my hand.
He dived onto the bed beside me. When I opened my eyes to see his face only centimeters from my face, I rolled off the bed, startled, and hit the floor with a thump.
"Artemis..." I whined.
"Starr..." he mocked.
"Jackass."
"Love you too!"
I stood up and walked to take a shower. Artemis followed me. I spun around to glare at him. He grinned that mischievous grin.
"Artemis, what are you thinking?" I asked cautiously.
He picked me up and tossed me over his shoulder. He ran out the back door and I realized where we going.
"Put me down, NOW!" I shouted.
"Nope." he responded.
He picked up speed and I felt him jump. I saw the pool rushing towards me and I held my breath.
I sunk beneath the surface after hitting the pool with a SMACK! I surface, angry as hell.
"Artemis, I'm going to kill you!" I shouted.
"You have to catch me first!" he teased.
I swam after him. He let me catch up and I jumped onto his back, pulling him backwards. He pulled me forward, slamming me into the water.
When I came up again, I was seeing red. I saw that Artemis had already gotten out of the water. He had his shirt off, ringing it out on the sidewalk. I couldn't help but forget momentarily where I was or why. His body was breathtaking. I started over his toned arms, chest, and torso.
Artemis suddenly laughed.
"Drain the pool! Drool overload!" He shouted.
I snapped myself out of my trance to see Artemis coming towards me. Why was I so nervous? He squatted down and looked into my eyes. My palms would have began to sweat had they not been already wet with pool water. He smirked.
"This can be yours for the low, low price of you." he said.
I splashed him with water.
"No way!"
He laughed. "I tried, at least. Guess we're going to have to go back to being enemies." he said.
"Yeah, yeah. Hey Enemy, help me out of here would you?"
He held his hand down to me and helped me climb up. I ran into the house and showered.
I started to wish I had taken the offer on having him.
What the hell was I thinking? Artemis was Aiden's best friend and a royal jackass. That's all there was to it.