Note from the Author: Things are heating up, many people are getting involved or... not yet. I would like to thank a fellow reader of this series for really giving a lot to them and helping me with most of these chapters. Thank you Paul for your edits on this one before I released it as well as the edits on the ones before. I hope you guys enjoy.
-Milo The Great
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Chapter 6 - The Painting Job
"Sam. Sam, sweetheart wake up." A voice whispered.
Sam started to get out of his slumber. He opened his eyes and was immediately blinded by the light. Before he shut his eyes from blindness, he saw a familiar face.
'Leah?' He thought.
He rubbed his eyes to get them used to the light and opened them once more. To the side of his bed, Sam's mother was standing waiting for him to awake. He sat up and looked around for his phone.
"What time is it?" He asked.
"5 pm." His mother answered. "Have you been asleep all day?"
"Yeah, I guess so. I got back really late last night."
"I know, I heard you come in."
"Oh shit, did I wake you? I'm sorry."
"No, no. I went back to sleep quick. You need to get out of bed dear. Dinner is going to be here soon. I ordered pizza."
"OK. I'll be down in a bit."
His mother left the room and headed downstairs. Sam turned his body so he was sitting on the edge of the bed with his feet on the floor. He put his face in his palms for a few seconds and then wiped his eyes to fully wake himself up. He looked around once more and finally found his phone on the ground next to his feet. He picked it up and clicked it on. Three texts popped up: one from Jack, one from Kelly, and one from a random number. He swiped across Kelly's text to read the full message:
'Hey, thanks for this weekend. It was really fun even though some things got kind of crazy. I love you so much. I miss you already and want to see your face next to me in bed. I am painting my room this Wednesday. If you want to help me, I am sure my mom wouldn't mind rewarding you with food!'
Sam replied back with the typical boyfriend answer accompanied by a "sure thing!" to answer her question about the painting. He pressed the send button and went back to look at Jack's message. He was inviting him over to his house for a bonfire and some drinks with their old high school friends. He replied back to him, informing him that he would be there. He clicked the send button and then moved on to the unknown numbers text.
'Thank's for last night, hope we can do that again soon.'
It was finished with a kissing emoticon. Sam sat there with his eyes wide and just stared at his phone. He sat in that same position thinking about the previous night and reread that whole text message again. His fingers hesitated to text back. He typed in a few words but immediately went back on it and deleted it. He closed his phone and put it on the night stand. He sat on the side of his bed pondering what he had done but also what he was going to do. He couldn't let it keep happening. It was against what Kelly told him but it felt so good to him even though the whole time he knew it was wrong. Leah just had a different spark than her sister.
He picked up his phone once more and clicked it on. He unlocked it and went back to the text. He trembled for a second but decided the same as the first time. He clicked it back off and then got up from his bed. He made his way downstairs in perfect timing because the pizza man had arrived. He grabbed the pies from his mom while she paid the man at the door. He put the boxes in the kitchen and took two slices for himself. He got a drink out of the fridge and took his food to the living room. He clicked on the TV and a couple making out was on the screen. He flipped through the channels and every other one had some romance involved with it. Sam became nervous for a second thinking that this was a sign for something but ignored it and flipped to CNN, a channel he could trust to not have any romance.
He ate his pizza and relaxed on the couch with his mom and dad who ate with him. They conversed about how school was going for Sam and how his internships were coming along. He informed them that he had an interview in a week and a half that he had high hopes for. The conversation eventually reached to his weekend and how the wedding was. He cringed in his seat for a second but told them only about the actual wedding. The rest of the time, his parents conversed to each other while Sam devoured more of the pizza. As he finished he excused himself and went to go get dressed for Jack's bonfire.
He threw on a sweatshirt to keep him warm and a comfortable pair of jeans. He put on his shoes and headed downstairs. Quickly he told his parents that he would be at Jack's and left the house. The parents just nodded and went back to their pizza and conversation. Sam got in his car and drove the short distance to Jack's house which he saw smoke coming from the back. He got out of his car and walked through the gate that lead to the backyard. A fire was going, accompanied by several people around it. As Sam got closer to the burning fire he made out who was there. A couple of his old buddies from the football team were there plus some of the girls that hung out with them as well. A surprise to him was that his first girlfriend, Taylor, was also there, sitting next to Jack. What made it even more awkward was that the only seat free was the one next to her.
He reached the group and his old friends, as well as Jack, got up and all greeted him after a long time of not seeing each other. When Sam and Jack exchanged their handshake, he gave him the stink eye which Jack knew exactly why he got it. Jack motioned for Sam's ex-girlfriend to move over, which she did, but also gave Sam a quick smile. He returned it while taking Jack's seat which placed him next to Jack and not next to her.
The conversation of the group was about the upcoming summer and what everybody had planned. Everybody contributed with comments like taking a trip or an internship, which Sam also had planned. Along this group conversation, Sam and Jack started to converse amongst themselves as well.
"How was the wedding? Did Kelly catch the bouquet and now you guys are getting married too?" Jack jokingly asked.
Sam thought back to the wedding which made his heart jump. He calmed himself down and answered.
"Nope, not this time. It slipped right out of her fingers and into the girl behind her. I might have had some role to play in that with a gentle little nudge," He joked. "But the wedding was nice. The hotel was even better."
"Oh, did you and Kelly have your own room?"
"No, Leah also stayed in there."
"Aw that's no fun. Or was it?" Jack winked and nudged his elbow into Sam's arm a couple times.
Sam didn't know how to deal with that question. He knew he was joking but he was actually right. He decided to go with keeping it hidden. He didn't want to have him think ill of the situation even though he probably would have high-fived him right there.
"No, we just drank in the room with these two other siblings, who actually stole a whole bottle of vodka from the bar."
"Ay.At least you got your buzz on."
"Yeah. It was a better time than I expected it to be. What did you do over the weekend?"
"Um, well I went to a party and..." He paused but Sam knew where it was going.
