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#¤#¤#¤#Seven Days a Week#¤#¤#¤#
...:.:.:.:.:.:.By: Cimmy.:.:.:.:.:.:...
It was time to go home. The tents were dissembled and the food was eaten – Kate had made a bed for Mr. Gonzo in the cooler out of a blanket and a broken pillow. They had all managed to pack their sleeping bags together, more or less successfully. Their instruments and equipment were already on the way back to New York in a large storage box. There was nothing left for them to do at the festival.
Everyone seemed to be on top of the world, except for Lex. They had put on an amazing show during their second act yesterday, and they had been called back three times before they finally left the stage for good. They had all been so excited and revved up that they hadn’t gone to bed until early in the morning hours. Kate’s energy level had peaked at around two in the morning when she had to be carried back to camp by Matt while she was sound asleep.
Lex wasn’t sure what had happened. Kate had announced all their little secrets and it had resulted in no more fighting between them. However, Lex still had no answer for Fred. Everyone's situation but theirs was resolved, and there was an awkward silence between them now that she wasn’t sure they could overcome. Fred had tried to talk to her all night, but she had made all kinds of excuses to put it up for later.
Matt and Sammie had finally called a real truce. They had spent the remaining evening talking and laughing, eventually heading in different directions as Matt followed Kate home, and Sammie stayed behind with Luke. Lex sort of wished it could be that easy for everyone to mend fences. But she and Fred hadn’t known each other since they were kids, and their friendship wasn’t as fundamental as Sammie and Matt’s were.
They were having their last breakfast around the camp fire; the only one missing was Daniel. Their bus would be leaving for the airport in less than an hour and they had almost completed their packing. Kate was sitting next to Matt, hugging his arm and Mr. Gonzo at the same time. Their missing tent had also reappeared, along with most of Kate’s bags. “Don’t you think it was cool that someone saved Mr. Gonzo?” Kate chirped happily.
“Don’t you mean stole?” Fred asked with a smile, taking another spoonful of yoghurt. “Someone stole Mr. Gonzo, Katie. He just happened to be passed along through the crowd while you were throwing the psychotic fit of the year.”
Kate giggled. “He missed me.”
“Who wouldn’t?” Jeff snorted sarcastically, pouring some more sugar on his cereals. “After all, you’re such a mellow, easygoing person.”
Kate nodded excitedly. “I’m gonna go say goodbye to all my friends by the reception,” she announced, getting up from the bench. “Watch my stuff while I’m gone.”
Jeff felt an urge to put Mr. Gonzo in the middle of the camp fire, but eventually resisted this. Fred also got up. “I’ll go with you so you won’t get lost again.”
“I never get lost,” Kate cheered, putting her pink southwester on her head. “You should see me out in the forest!”
“We have, and it wasn't pretty,” Chris laughed. “Be back here in fifteen minutes so we won’t be late for the bus.”
“Yes, sir!” Kate hollered, saluting him. Fred followed her as she made her way through the campsite. “So, where’s Danny? I haven’t seen him since last night. He’s coming with us, isn’t he?”
Fred nodded, watching in awe as everyone was waving and saying hello to Kate as she walked by. “You’re amazing,” he said, shaking his head. “Daniel and Anna had some sort of fight yesterday. Apparently he didn’t enjoy having his feelings declared to the public.”
“What a lame-o,” Kate said.
“Yeah, but he and Anna disappeared for a while and when she came back, Danny was gone,” Fred told her, lowering his voice to a whisper. “He hooked up with some other girl; I guess he’s still with her.” Kate gasped dramatically. “Don’t tell Anna, Katie.”
“I won’t,” Kate promised. “Girl scout’s honor!”
“You’ve never been a scout,” Fred pointed out. “Daniel was upset; you know how he gets when he’s upset. He tries to solve his problems by sleeping around, but it never works and now he’ll be a pest until we get back home.”
Kate nodded. “What about you and Lex?”
“I don’t know,” Fred said earnestly. “I really don’t know. Yesterday she wanted to talk to me, like, really badly, but last night she was avoiding me and refused to answer when I asked her if it was true that she had known all along that I liked her. I mean, I’ve been making an ass out of myself all year long, the least she owes me is an explanation.”
“Yeah,” Kate agreed. “But maybe she just didn’t think it was the right time. Everyone was running around having fun, maybe she wanted to wait until you were alone.”
“She could have asked me to go on a walk or something,” Fred said. “But I think it’s going to be fine, I have a good feeling about this.”
“You see? Always stay positive!” Kate cheered, waving to more people who called out her name randomly. “I’m famous.”
“Yeah, I can see that,” Fred grinned, shaking his head. “You’re unbelievable.”
Anna was busy packing the last of her belongings. One of the apples she had saved to have as a snack on the plane rolled out from the bag. She was about to turn around and pick it up when someone handed it to her from behind her back. “You want some help?”
“No, thank you,” she said dismissively, not wanting to look at Daniel right now. “Fred packed your bags while you were gone.”
Daniel crouched down next to her. “Look, it’s not what you think. I just got back from the festival-”
“Spare me,” she said calmly, not wanting to show him any genuine emotions. “Stop lying to me. I know exactly where you’ve been.”
Daniel turned his head down, ashamed that she knew. “So, you’re going back to New York now?”
“That’s kind of where I live,” Anna muttered, feeling tears well up in her eyes, desperately trying to fight them back. “Have fun in Lakewood.”
Watching as she continued to pack, Daniel stayed quiet. And then he decided to say something, anything, to end the horrible silence between them. “The reason we live in Lakewood is because my step-dad grew up there and his family lives there. My mom didn’t care about where we lived, so she moved here with me. He’s just a schoolteacher of some sort, and he’s not my real dad.”
Anna closed her eyes. “Why should I care?”
“I don’t know. I just thought you might wanna know,” Daniel mumbled, feeling stupid. “I’ll leave you alone now.”
“Thanks.” As soon as he got up and left, she started crying silently.
Jeff and Lex were trying to clean up the worst mess around their camp lot, empty beer cans and random garbage thrown everywhere. It was an impossible job, but they did find one of Anthony’s shoes stuck in a mud pile right where their tent had been. “Guess he’s gonna need this,” Lex laughed. “I’ve had fun, but I’m so fucking sick of all this damn mud.”
“Me too,” Jeff said, kicking another can over to the camp lot next to them. “I haven’t realized until now what a dump we’ve been living in. Look at how gross it is! And we’ve been sitting right in the middle of it!”
“It’ll be nice with a real vacation after this,” Lex nodded. “I’m so glad your family isn’t going camping this year.”
“Well, we usually stay in a cabin away from the mud,” Jeff pointed out. “But I’m kinda glad too; I’m fed up with nature already.”
Kate came bouncing towards them, once again splashing mud all around. “Well, everyone was sad to see me leaving!” she announced loudly. “Where are you going?” she added suspiciously.
“I’m going with Jeff’s family to Toronto,” Lex told her. “We’ll be leaving as soon as we get back to New York.”
“Exciting!” Kate exclaimed, hugging both of them. “Can I come too?”
Jeff laughed. “No, you get to stay home this time.”
“The nerve! When will you be back? Will I see you again?”
“No, we’re moving there permanently,” Jeff said, rolling his eyes. “We’ll see each other in New York, Kate, or back at school if you’re already home when we get back.”
“Alrighty then,” Kate giggled, skipping off.
“Why is she so damn annoying?” Jeff complained, staring after her. The thought of having to spend his entire summer in close distance with Kate McKinley made him shudder.
Lex smiled amusedly at him. “Oh, you know you adore her, Jeff. Just admit it to yourself and get it over with.”
“Yeah, sure,” he snorted loudly. “She’s with Matt now, though.”
“You know that won’t last,” Lex shrugged. “I love you, Jeff, but you hafta admit to your feelings sometimes.”
“Yeah, that’s fresh coming from you,” Jeff said dryly. “Ignoring Fred’s feelings for you don’t seem like such an awesome idea anymore, does it?”
“Shut up,” Lex mumbled.
Anthony stepped up to them, carrying one of the tents in his arms. “Everyone’s ready and accounted for,” he grinned. “Let’s go while we’re still gathered as a group.”
“Found Daniel, did you?”
“Unfortunately, yes,” Anthony muttered, thinking of Anna and how sad she had looked since Daniel's return. “Come on now.”
Fred was helping Kate put on her backpack while Kate was babbling about something she had been dreaming about during the night. It almost looked like Fred was getting her ready for school as he patted her on the head and sent her on her way. Daniel wasn’t in the mood to listen to Kate’s never-ending tales so he grabbed her shoulder, turned her around and sent her towards Matt instead. For once, Matt didn’t seem to care.
Sammie wasn’t affected by having to say goodbye to Luke. She had known all along that it was just going to be a temporary summer romance and being invited to join him and his band on their tour hadn’t really seemed like a good idea. Besides, even if she had tried, her parents would have tracked her down and brought her home after two days, tops. This made it slightly more difficult to see Matt with Kate, even though she had been fine with it yesterday. Even if they were also having a short summer romance, summer didn’t seem to be over for them just yet. Sammie just had to wait and see what the summer brought along for her.
They walked through the campsite one last time, greeted from left and right by people who recognized them from yesterday. Kate got the most attention as she was making a huge fuss about carrying Mr. Gonzo over her head, screaming to everyone who cared that he was back.
“I wonder how Kate on crack would be,” Anthony thought out loud, watching Kate howl.
“Let’s not find out,” Chris suggested with a grin. “Could someone just put her on the damn bus?”
Fred and Daniel had to convince Kate to hurry up before they missed their bus, finally resulting in them both carrying her by the arms out past the road blocks and to the parking lot. “Kate, would you get a grip?” Fred begged as Kate was half-crying, half-laughing, sounding hysterical in the process.
“But I’m just gonna miss everyone so much!” she sniffled, wiping her tears. Chris put his hand in her lower back to make her get onto the bus faster. “Don’t push a lady!”
They all scrambled on to the bus, taking their seats at the back so they could sit together. “I can’t believe we endured a whole week in this mud hole,” Anna said with amazement. “I thought we’d never make it through when we first got here.”
“I thought Kate would go home our first day,” Chris laughed. “You were miserable.”
“I was muddy and wet,” Kate exclaimed wrongfully. “Anyway, I had fun, except for when I got stuck on that fence.”
The bus brought them back on the same bumpy road they had arrived on. It was hard not to get a little car-sick as the bus steered around the curves in high-speed, so they were all pretty relieved when they finally came out on the main road. They had time to eat the sandwiches they had made before they left, and Kate convinced the driver to make an unannounced stop so she could run out and buy some juice.
A few hours later, they started to see road signs announcing the exit to the airport. “Finally! Civilization!” Sammie cheered, climbing over Jeff so she could look out the window. “It looks just like when we left it!”
“Could you get off me?” Jeff muttered, trying to move her out of the way as she was leaning on his head with her arm. “I’m not an armrest.”
“Sure you are,” Sammie said dismissively. “Lex, wake up!”
Lex, who was sleeping in the seat behind them, stirred a little, mumbling in her sleep. Matt had to poke her several times until she woke up and slapped him on the arm. “Can’t a person sleep in peace?” she asked, rubbing her eyes. “Are we there yet?”
Once the bus stopped outside the airport, Fred got out and helped them gather all their luggage from the trunk. Daniel stood next to him without attempting to give him a hand. “Could you hear me out for a second?”
“No,” Fred said stubbornly.
“Stop acting like a fucking child, Fred. I told you the truth-”
“You’re lying!”
Daniel put his hand on top of the bag Fred was about to drag out. “So why haven’t you asked her about it?”
“Because I don’t wanna humiliate her,” Fred muttered. “I can’t accuse her of doing something if I don’t believe you in the first place. I thought you were on my side.”
“I am! I’m warning you, aren’t I? Lex is the kind of girl you should stay away from, Fred. She’s not the innocent virgin you want as a girlfriend. She’s the kind of girl you hook up with for a night, and then never call again. And you’re not the kind to do that.”
“Don’t talk about her like that. She’s not the kind.“
“How would you know?” Daniel questioned him. “You’ve had two girlfriends over the past three years, neither relationship lasting very long. You have a long history of being attracted to nutcases. Please don’t make the same mistake again.”
“Why do you care so much? Isn’t it enough that I really like Lex?” Fred asked dejectedly. “Why should anything else matter?”
Daniel had no good answer to this, so he made something up. “I’m just watching your back. I don’t usually lie to you and I’m not about to start now.”
“You don’t lie, no,” Fred admitted, turning to face him. “You manipulate and trick people. I know what you’re doing, but I don’t understand why you’re doing it to me. I’m your friend. You don’t do this to your friends.”
“You know that I’m right!” Daniel exclaimed angrily. “Have I ever been wrong?”
“You’re so full of shit,” Fred said simply. “I don’t believe a word of it, and right now I don’t wanna be anywhere near you.”
“For fuck’s sake, just ask her!” Daniel yelled as Fred shoved him aside. Daniel didn’t know why he couldn’t just take it back and admit that he might have been wrong. He was too proud and too stubborn, even if he was putting his friendship with Fred, and ultimately even Kate, on the line. It wasn’t right, he knew that. But he still did nothing to retract his claims.
While Matt and Anthony pushed Sammie and Kate and their bags around on a big trolley, Anna and Lex tried to find a place where they could get something to eat. Anna had updated her on Daniel’s latest attempt at whatever it is he was doing. Anna had no idea why Daniel was acting like a first class moron, as he was turning her down and kissing up to her at all hours of the day. She was beginning to think that he was a bit schizophrenic. “He’s telling me things in confidence, like, stuff he’s never told anyone. It’s so confusing,” she said. “Does he actually think I’m gonna date him after all this? I mean, I found him interesting before we got here, but since then I’ve gotten a glimpse of his messed up approach to life, and I don’t think I’ll be able to believe one word coming out of his mouth from now on.”
“You don’t have to trust him,” Lex said. “Do what feels right for you, and disregard what he thinks on the subject. He’ll find someone new to let down.”
“I know,” Anna mumbled. “The thing is, I don’t know what feels right for me. I know that I can’t be involved with him, but I also find him intriguing. It’s so messed up.”
Lex shrugged. “So spend the summer cooling off. He’ll be in Lakewood and when you see each other in school, maybe your feelings have changed and you’ll be able to stay away from him.”
“Yeah, I guess,” she said thoughtfully. They got up to the guys and the luggage trolley, which had gotten stuck in the escalator in an unsuccessful attempt to get to the second floor. Kate was still sitting on the trolley, yelling at them to pull her loose, as if she was in some kind of mortal danger.
They found a steakhouse to eat at, so as soon as Jeff, Daniel, Chris and Fred caught up with the rest of the group, they all sat down to have lunch. They all ordered hamburgers, except for Kate who had to be special and order spareribs with barbecue sauce.
Lex was standing in line for the bathroom, wanting to wash her hands before she ate, when Fred showed up from nowhere. “Come, I gotta talk to you,” he murmured in her ear. She was so caught off guard that she couldn’t think of a good reason not to go with him. Fred pulled her into an empty corridor away from the restaurant area. “What did you mean when you said that you’ve known all along that I’ve been interested in you?” There was no time to be unclear.
“Fred…”
“Please tell me that it’s not true.”
“Fred, I can’t talk to you about this right now,” Lex frowned sadly. “There’s no time.”
“There’s all the time in the world.”
Lex swallowed hard. “Can we do this later, please?”
“Why?” Fred asked with frustration, getting more and more upset. “Is it true that you hooked up with Daniel last year?”
“Fred, that’s not what happened,” Lex explained calmly, hoping to make Fred relax a bit.
“You didn’t hook up? Because when I first introduced you, you said that you’ve never met him before. I even joked, asking if you had ever dated him!”
Lex was doing everything she could to avoid looking him in the eyes. She was quietly hoping someone would come and interrupt them, but her wish didn’t seem to come true. “I don’t know-”
“You don’t know,” Fred said quietly, starting to feel like it was all a lost cause.
“Would you let me explain?” she asked, annoyed and stressed out.
“Fine,” he replied grumpily.
“I went to this party, and I hadn’t really gotten to know people in your group of friends just yet. I didn’t know about Daniel’s reputation or anything. I don’t even remember if I saw him there-”
“He said-” Fred started forcefully.
Lex cut him off before he could make any assumptions. “I know what he said, but it’s not true.”
“You don’t remember.”
“I was drunk, okay? I was probably messing around with someone, but I’m positive it wasn’t with him.”
“You don’t remember,” Fred repeated stubbornly.
“You said that already, Fred. Daniel’s lying. He saw me hook up with someone at the party, and now he’s claiming I was with him to make me seem like a drunken, lying slut.”
“I don’t think you’re a slut,” Fred protested. “But…”
“Why would I lie?” Lex asked frantically.
“I don’t know.”
“Why would Daniel lie?”
Fred knew she had a point there. “Right. It doesn’t explain why you ignored me all year, though. Were you afraid I wouldn’t understand?”
“No! I didn’t even remember that party until Daniel dragged it up a few days ago,” Lex told him. “The reason I never said anything was… I really like being friends with you, Fred, and I never wanted to ruin that-”
“You won’t ruin anything,” Fred promised expectantly. “Lex, just tell me-”
“Are you two coming, or what?” Jeff called to them from behind. Fred could have cursed him all the way back to the Stone Age. “Your food is getting cold.”
Lex took the opportunity to hurry back. “Thanks a lot, man,” Fred hissed when he passed him by.
“What?” Jeff asked, having no clue what he had just interrupted. “Were you two…?”
Fred just glared at him.
When they got back, Chris and Anna were in the middle of a french-fry war, which had started out of boredom. Lex sat down in the chair next to Matt, flushed and nervous. She had managed to escape this conversation so many times now that she knew she wouldn’t be so lucky next time. It was time to come clean.
Their lunch was consumed in a relatively calm fashion. Daniel, Fred and Lex didn’t say much at all, and Kate was busy eating her hamburger. Once they were done, Fred automatically picked up the check. They were going to different destinations, so they had to spend some time figuring out which gate to go to. Sammie, Anna, Matt, Chris, Jeff and Lex where on the flight to New York, while Fred and Daniel were going back to Lakewood, and Kate was hopping on the next plan to Los Angeles as she had promised her parents.
Fred was out of himself, wanting desperately to speak with Lex one more time before they left, but Lex was acting like she was in a hurry and didn't have any time at all to spare before their flight was boarding. “Why doesn’t she wanna talk to me?” he asked confusedly, looking at Kate.
“I don’t know,” Kate said, frowning. She was beginning to understand that Lex was doing this intentionally. What was she hiding? “Go ask her.”
“I’ve tried,” Fred mumbled. “I’ve done everything.”
“You can’t lose hope now!” Kate begged worriedly, grabbing his arm. “Fred, you can’t go home not knowing. It’ll be worth it, I promise.”
Fred put down his bag on a chair, looking for a sign to tell him where his gate was. “It’s bad enough that I have to sit next to Danny for the next couple of hours without speaking to him-”
“You could always be friends again?” Kate suggested hopefully. She had gotten a trolley of her own to push around her bags on. Mr. Gonzo was securely packed, his head sticking out of the bag at the very top.
“Fat chance,” Fred grunted grumpily.
“Ask her!” Kate shouted at the top of her lungs, sick of Fred’s inability to get things done properly. Lex, who was walking behind them towards another gate with the others, finally looked in their direction.
“What’s the matter?” she asked, knowing full well what the matter was.
Fred wasn’t feeling very optimistic any longer. “Tell me what it was you were going to say.”
Lex started walking again to catch up with her friends who were waiting over by the gate. Fred walked next to her, not wanting to let her out of his sight. “Fred…” she said, not sure how she was supposed to begin. “Fred, can’t we-”
”I can’t wait anymore. Just tell me,“ he said quietly. “Just tell me.”
Lex put her bag down on the floor, taking a deep breath. “I knew you had a crush on me,” she finally admitted. “You weren’t exactly subtle.”
“Why didn’t you just tell me?” he asked, feeling hurt. “You could’ve just told me, so I wouldn’t have gone out of my way to… I really like you. I like you so much.”
Tears welled up in Lex’s eyes but she made no attempt to wipe them away. “I didn’t mean to… I never wanted to lead you on. You’ve become one of my best friends, and you’re so damn nice that I didn’t want to… I just didn’t wanna hurt you.”
“Hurt me?” he asked slowly, his throat drying up and his heart pounding faster.
“I didn’t wanna lose you,” she whispered. “I wanted to stay the way we were. I guess I was being selfish, but after everything I’ve been through, it felt nice just to have you pay attention to me without asking for anything in return. I’m sorry.”
Fred swallowed, not being able to get out another word, afraid that he would make a complete ass out of himself – again – and start crying in front of all of Lex’s friends. “Sorry for what?” he managed to choke out, looking down at his shoes.
Lex stared at him with tear-filled eyes, wondering how the hell she had managed to get into such a mess to begin with. Everything had gone completely wrong. “I thought your feelings for me would pass and that you’d just wanna be friends with me.”
“I do.”
“But you want more than that and I…” Lex sniffled. “I-I… I just don’t feel the same way about you.”
Fred couldn’t even think of a way to respond to that. She could have just punched him in the stomach and it would have made him feel the same way. Lex O’Leary, the girl he had adored for so long, the girl he had fallen in love with, the girl he had fought for all year long. That girl wanted nothing to do with him the way he wanted her.
Lex opened her mouth to say something, but he didn’t want to hear another word. He couldn’t even look at her, as he turned and went back across the hall. There was a weird buzzing in his ears, and he couldn’t focus his eyes on anything. It sort of felt like he was drunk.
Lex watched him turn his back on her. She wanted to tell him to stay; she wanted to keep talking to him and explain everything. But it was too late, she realized that. The look in his eyes, she knew it too well. She had broken his heart, and now it would never be the same between them again. Fred was gone.
Somebody put a hand on her shoulder; Jeff was standing behind her. The last call for their flight was announced in the speaker, and she knew she had to go. Jeff took her by the hand and led her over to the check-in. Lex was shaking as she took out her identification card and boarding pass. Wasn’t it supposed to feel better now when she had finally been truthful with Fred? Why did it feel so much worse?
She threw one last look over her shoulder. Fred, Kate and Daniel were gone, and the spot where they had been standing was empty aside from a bag with a giraffe sticking out of it. “Are you okay?” Anna asked her worriedly.
“No,” she whispered, having to take a moment to gather herself together before they boarded the plane. Tears were falling down her face, dripping on to her shirt. Anna and Sammie both wrapped their arms around her to comfort her, while the guys just stood there awkwardly, waiting for Lex to explain to them what had happened.
Lex’s heart was pounding so fast that she thought she was going to have a heart attack. She had lost something that would be impossible for her to replace and she had no idea how to fix it. How did you mend a broken heart? It was over. This time, it was over for real.
Fred didn’t have to say anything for Kate to know that it had all gone terribly wrong. “What did she say?” she said, hurrying up to him as he approached them. It took him a moment or two before he realized that he couldn’t explain, but Kate understood. She pulled him into a hug. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered in his ear. Fred held on to her, trying to hold back his tears but was unable to.
Daniel, who had been keeping an eye on their luggage, dragged the trolley over to them. He didn’t know what to say, or if Fred even wanted to listen to anything he had to tell him. He was feeling all kinds of new feelings, though. A large part of it was regret; the most important one was compassion. He hadn’t wanted this. He hadn’t wanted to make Fred this devastated. He wanted to apologize, but didn’t know how.
Their flight was boarding. Fred pulled himself away from Kate, wiping his eyes. She followed them over to their gate, holding Fred’s hand tightly. None of them said anything until they had to leave Kate to get on the plane. “I had fun,” Kate said, just to have something to say, even if it would be the wrong thing to say.
Fred smiled involuntarily through his tears. “Yeah. Me too.”
“I’ll see you in a few weeks,” she mumbled, squeezing his hand. After she let go, she gave Daniel a quick hug and walked back towards the trolley with her bags. “I love you guys.”
Daniel simply nodded at her; Fred smiled. “See ya, Katie.”
Kate waved at them as they walked through the security check. Then she grabbed her bags and returned to the main hall to find her own gate, wanting desperately to do something but had no idea what. She wanted to laugh and cry, both at the same time, at the absurdity in the situation. Matt, Fred, Lex, Daniel, Anna – everything was so absurd and messed up at this point. She was starting to miss her parents and her room, knowing in a few hours she would be there.
It was time to go home.