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Lay Me Down Sam Smith

Nico ↑

I raced down the carpeted stairs, hopping past the last two to answer the door. He was here; this was happening!

The little hallway light was on, as well as the one in the living room. My dad was sitting down on the couch, reading with his glasses on. He looked up at me as I approached, his eyebrows lifting up knowingly. "And would that be your future boyfriend at the door?"

I blushed heavily, but I didn't even bother hiding it. "You could've answered it, you know."

"I could've, but as soon as the doorbell rang, I heard the loud crash and the thumps of your footsteps so I stayed put." He flipped the page of his book, the smile never leaving his face.

"I'm so nervous. How do I look?" I ran my fingers through my wild hair a couple of times, smoothed my shirt then fixed my posture. Dad gave me a thumbs up then gestured toward the door.

"Better get that before he leaves."

"Right." My heart pumped faster as I moved to the door, unlocking it and swinging it open. Kris stood on the other side, looking as handsome and boyish as usual. He was dressed casually, and his perfect green eyes were glittering in the sky's evening light.

He cocked his head to one side and smiled. "Hey, you."

"Kris! You look great. Um--oh, come in." I widened the door, feeling the awkwardness settle in. I didn't know what to do, to be honest. I mean... was this sort of a date or was it just two friends hanging out? God, I should've asked. A faint part of my heart wished that Mae would've coached me on how to behave. She was good at this stuff.

I couldn't believe that now, of all times, I was missing her. No. Absolutely not. Kristopher Hamilton was in my very own house, and I would not let anybody ruin this moment for me.

I locked the door after he stepped in, and my father stood up to greet him.

"Hello, I'm Jaden's dad."

"Good evening, Mr. Briggs." Kris shook his hand politely.

"Make yourself at home. Jaden made a meal for the both of you. I would've done it myself but I'm not a very good cook." They chuckled, and I heard quick footsteps coming closer.

"Ooh! Is that him?!" My sister squealed, running up to us.

"Emery." I secretly glared at her in warning, but she just ignored me to behold the magnificent sight that was my crush.

"Wow, it's really true! Jaden said you're so handsome and dreamy!" She clasped her hands underneath her chin.

"Emery!" I turned to Kris. "I have no idea what she's talking about," I denied as he laughed to himself.

"Alright, come on, young lady. Have you finished your homework?" Dad bent to wrap his arms around her legs and picked her right up and she screeched.

"Put me down!" She giggled as he carried her off up the stairs. I grimaced, staring after them as they disappeared.

"Please pretend none of this ever happened," I said.

"Your family is awesome."

I looked at him, catching him staring right at my face with a happy smile. "No seriously," he persisted. "Your dad seems lenient and playful, which is more than good thing. Mine is uptight and stern."

"Really?" I led him down the hall, toward the kitchen so I could dish out our food. "I've only seen him once or twice around school. But he owns the Hamilton Hotel; so I get why he'd be so uptight. He's a businessman."

"Well, I might own a business one day, but I won't be all grumpy and mean."

I chuckled.

"That smells good; what is it?"

"Oh this?" I shrugged. "It's beef stew, but I made it exactly the way my mom cooks it. She's Italian so she knows all the good spices." I wiggled my eyebrows at him. "You'll like it, I promise."

He grinned. "I'm sure I will, thanks."

We sat down next to each other in the dining room to eat and talk. I had to admit, I knew exactly what he would ask me before he uttered the question.

"So, you think I'm handsome and dreamy?"

"Ugh." I rolled my eyes. There it was. "Ignore my sister, okay? She lives to embarrass me."

"I think you're handsome too," he complimented. I was silent, letting myself feel the melting in my heart as the flattery washed over me in waves. He took a spoonful of the beef stew and his eyebrows flew up in surprise and nodded. "Wow."

"You like it?"

"Mhm." He chewed and swallowed. "I'm very impressed. This is good; man I love the beef. What other skills do you have that I don't know about?"

I lifted a finger, suddenly intrigued. "You know something? I can unwrap a Starburst in my mouth in 15 seconds."

"No kidding? I don't believe you!"

I laughed. "I'm serious."

"And what in the world made you discover that talent?"

"My friend, Kari." I shrugged. "We like to do super weird things together. It's not hard, to be honest, if you try long enough. What about you?"

"Oh please. I don't think anything I say can top unwrapping a starburst in your mouth, but I can hum and whistle at the same time."

I gaped at him. "Now, that's just insane. You take home the weird award." I gently pushed his arm. "Do it! I wanna hear!"

"No, no," he laughed. "Don't wanna freak you out just yet."

"True. If you ever do it, at least let me make sure I have an escape route first," I joked. "So, wait, I wanna know something. I remember you mentioning you play the guitar. How'd you get into that?"

"It's not much of a special story, really. My grandparents wanted my sister and I to have some musical talents because apparently, it's great for the brain. They want us to always something to fall back on. My sister plays the piano, and she's damn good at it."

"That's nice. I want my child to have some musical talent as well, so I agree with them there." I squinted. "I never knew you had a sister."

"Yeah, she's like ten. Her name's Penelope; my mom thought it was a sophisticated name but I just call her Penny."

"Penelope Hamilton. Damn, that rolls off the tongue perfectly. Just as great as your name."

He smiled at me. "How'd you get into the violin?"

"Oh, man. I saw that one coming." I nervously clasped my hands and squeezed them between my thighs, ignoring my food for a moment. Politely, he dropped his spoon to give me his attention. "I started playing when I was nine. My mom was the reason why. She was one of the best violinists at her university and she'd always play it for me." I shrugged. "So I picked up on it and it reminds me of her any time I play it. Her dad gave me a violin before he passed away, so I think of him too."

"I'm sorry to hear he's gone." Kris reached over to hold one of my hands. "And your mom? Is she okay? You look sad when you speak about her."

"Hm? Yeah, she's... she's alive, if that's what you're asking. Thank god for that; I can't bear losing her."

"I understand."

I painted a smile on my face and continued eating. He followed my lead until we both finished our meals. I placed our dishes in the sink and washed them, and he kindly helped me dry them. "Wanna go up to my room?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, come on." I turned off all the lights downstairs and took him up to my room.

"Ooh, smells good," he remarked in amusement. I took his soft hand and sat down on my bed with him.

"Why'd you really come over?" I inquired, curious if he'd tell me.

"So you could play me a song, of course."

I sent him a flat look and crossed my legs, letting go of his hand. "Why?"

He sighed. "For the same reason I asked you to homecoming, which you still are yet to answer." A smirk settled on his beautiful face and I raised my eyebrows. "Are you alright, by the way? You kind of... ran off crying..."

"You're changing the subject."

"We'll get back to it. What made you cry; was it something about your mom?"

I furrowed my eyebrows. "What makes you say that?"

"You've been holding back tears all night. I just... I assumed. Jaden, you don't have to keep it together for my sake. I'm here for you. If there's anything you need to let out, I'll still be here for you afterward."

"That's kind of you." I nodded, looking down before whispering, "I'm sorry, I don't think I can play tonight."

"It's okay. Hey." He reached over to tenderly lift my chin, staring directly into my eyes. "The reason why is that I like you. Very much."

My heart clenched so tightly, I thought I might faint. There it was; the words I'd dreamed of hearing for so long. They were right in front of me, and I wasn't dead. A warm rush courses through me.

"I like you, too, Kris."

I mean, that much was obvious by now.

He grinned, green eyes sparkling. "You know, since I've known you, I keep asking myself how and why we didn't meet sooner. Am I really so blind that I never came across you until now?" He dropped his hand from my chin.

"Well, you had eyes for Corbyn back then even though nobody really knew why." I shrugged.

"No." Kris shook his head. "You and me, we like each other, and it was the most nerve-wracking thing to confess, so I refuse to waste another moment talking about someone who's old news."

I cracked a small smile. "Amen." I felt his thumb lightly sweep my bottom lip, and I closed my eyes to invite him in. Soon enough, his forehead touched mine. I knew he was most likely debating this, if it was the right moment or if he was unsure how I'd react. But the battle in his mind was short-lived, and the very next second, our lips meshed perfectly together.

This was the kiss I'd been longing for. It sent a daze through my mind, even as his fingers against my waist encouraged me closer. I let myself melt into his hold, lifting my hand to get the slightest touch of his cheek then his silky hair. He was so perfect to me.

Wanting to keep it sweet and simple, he pulled away slowly but kept his forehead to mine. "Please, please go to homecoming with me," he whispered.

I shut my eyes, trying to engrave the memory of our kiss, of this moment, into my head. I didn't know if I had the strength to, but I didn't have the heart to turn him down. Not after... this.

"Don't let me pressure you," he said, giving me a little space due to my silence. "I'd happily spend that evening with you right here in your house if stupid school dances aren't your thing." He chuckled to lighten the mood and I smiled at him appreciatively.

"You shouldn't miss it on my account."

"Are you kidding? The only person I'd be going for is you. So if you're staying in, so am I." His hand covered mine. "Promise me you'll be alright. I know we haven't known each other forever but... just know you don't have to bottle it in."

I nodded, gazing down at my lap. "Yeah. I um..." I sniffed, standing up from the bed and trudging over to my violin. I carefully took it out of its case and returned to my position beside Kris.

"That's the one your granddad gave you?"

"It is. You're right; I can't bottle it in." I shrugged. "I feel so lost right now. Literally, the only thing I'm completely sure of is you."

He intertwined our fingers and lifted our hands so he could lay a kiss on the back of mine in support. "My mom left," I quietly confided with a heavy sigh. "And I can't stop thinking about it. She... she does drugs. The only people outside this family who know are my two best friends, although one hasn't spoken to me in a few days. Now you know too."

"I'm so sorry, Jaden." He gently pulled me into a much-needed hug. "It's gonna be okay, you'll see."

"I feel like I just ruined the mood," I tried to laugh the awkwardness away, but he wouldn't have any of it.

"No, of course not." He moved back to cup my cheeks. "I'm so happy you trust me with something so personal. I mean it, I'm here for you. This isn't something you have to go through alone."

"Thank you. And you know what? Go to homecoming. I'm gonna get off my ass, put on a silly Halloween themed costume that I've yet to find, and meet you there so we can both have a wonderful time together. I refuse to waste away in my room."

"It would make me very happy to take your mind off of all your worries next Saturday."

My eyebrows rose. "Someone's up for quite the challenge."

"I am," he reassured, pecking my lips. Inevitably, my cheeks heated up. "I'm incredibly sorry about your mother. Like I said, I'm sure everything will work itself out, and you can talk to me anytime."

"Yeah. Okay. I owe you a song still, but it's getting late."

"Right. Don't want my parents worried sick. I hate to leave you so sad."

"I'm not sad. Trust me, tonight was... a dream come true. I'll see you Monday?"

"First thing in the morning."

That little promise was the one thing I held onto for the rest of my weekend. I was filled with nothing but excitement to see Kris and hold him again, to kiss him without caring who was watching.

But Monday came, and I went straight from innocent anticipation to utter humiliation.

I was a part of the scattered crowd of students making my way into the school entrance, a smile on my face that I couldn't suppress as I thought of seeing my crush. But the first person I saw was Mae Struss, running toward me in her cheerleading uniform and matching athletic sneakers. Her blonde hair swung in a curled ponytail while her blue eyes were sad and concerned.

"Oh, Jaden..." she clasped her hands and shook her head as I came to a stop, surprise written all over my face.

"You're back in cheer?" It was the first interaction we'd had in days, but it felt like nothing had even changed. "That's awesome--and I could kill you for not telling me, but that's awesome, Mae." I frowned when her somber expression didn't change.

"I swear I had no idea," she promised, tears flooding her eyes. "I didn't get Kari's message about... your mom, a-and I know I should've talked to you sooner despite it, but I didn't do this."

"Do what? Mae, it's alright. It was bound to happen anyway; I'm not... look, I'm okay. In fact, I have so much to tell you!" I continued walking, thinking she would follow me but she stood in my way.

"You can't go in there. Please. It's online; people are sharing it all over social media."

"Sharing what? I turned my notifications off since my phone kept blowing up." I pulled my phone out of my pocket and went to Instagram, where I was being tagged and mentioned by maybe hundreds of people. "Wait this is about me?" I tapped on the photo shared by an anonymous username and felt my body go numb. "This--this is me and my mom. I went to visit her at the trailer. I don't understand..." My eyes flitted to the caption, and I wished I hadn't.

@jadenbriggs with his drug-addicted mother after she left their family a second time. It's no use, Jaden. Doesn't seem like she'll be coming back anytime soon.

"Who would do this?" I asked no one in particular, my breath coming up short. I just stared and stared at my phone, shaking my head in disbelief. It couldn't be real. Maybe I was still asleep and was yet to wake up.

I felt Mae reaching to comfort me, but I shrugged her arm off.

"Don't. Just go."

"Let me walk you inside-"

"Mae, please just go. Please."

She sighed. "Okay. I can take you home. I'm gonna go get Kari, and we'll get you away from this."

As soon as she was gone, I rushed up the steps to the school, daring to step through the threshold.

This wasn't real. Nobody in this school could possibly know about my one heartbreaking secret, after hiding it for so long.

I underestimated reality.

"Yo, Jaden!" A football jock called out to me, slapping my back as his friends circled around me. I looked at him through my teary eyes but he just grinned. "I need a dealer, so I was wondering if I gave you my number, could you give it to your Mom so she can hook me up? Or maybe she and I could just hook up because you know..." He bit his bottom lip.

They all laughed and I turned away to ignore them, but they just blocked me. "Hey, where you going? We were just getting to know each other."

"Get out of my way," I pleaded.

"Wait, wait, I got one," another one began. "I swear, dude... I bought some shoes from your mom. I don't know what she laced 'em with but I've been trippin' all day!" He pretended to trip as his friend caught him.

The boys hollered in laughter at that point, and I pushed past them and walked much faster, heading straight for the orchestra room where I could be safe. It was a battle, like doing a walk of shame as almost every single student I passed by snickered and poked fun at me.

I managed to tune them all out, but I felt everything as soon as I hit the quiet hall of orchestra. I couldn't make it to the room; instead I hit the wall and crumbled to the floor in a jerking round of sobs, dropping my phone in the process. I was so consumed in my anguish that I almost didn't notice someone rush out of the room and toward me.

"Jaden!"

It was Kris. He must've been waiting for me. In an instant, he covered me in a warm embrace, stroking my hair and sinking to the dirty floor with me. "I'll get to the bottom of this, I promise you that." He kissed the top of my head as I cried, and though I was in no way ready to point fingers, I couldn't help but wonder how.

This has Corbyn written all over it, but someone must've given me away.

Who told? Who stabbed me in the back?

How come the entire school knew my secret after I shared it with Kris? Was the night we spent together a facade? Why didn't Mae talk to me for all those days; yet she appeared in her perfect cheer uniform, determined to be there for me?  Kari couldn't have. She'd stuck by my side the whole time... but where was she now?

What the hell was going on?

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