November 6, 2009: Go back and read the previous chapter! I changed the end of it up!

Chapter 22

Lie

“Thanks again for coming,” I whispered to Carson for the fourth time as Matt and Christine walked a few paces ahead of us in Denny’s parking lot.

That adorable smile appeared on his face. “No problem,” he assured me. “I was awake and bored, anyway.”

I had told Carson that I wanted to see him to talk about the next church gig. It was just another lie to cover up one.

“People loved it. The next cover we do we do will be even more epic,” he pointed out. “Did you have any songs in mind?”

I pursed my lips in thought. “Uh, Drops of Jupiter by Train?” I suggested.

Carson nodded in approval. “Yeah, good song,” he commented. “Maybe we could even do a duet, you know?”

I smiled weakly and didn’t respond while Matt and Christine looked over their shoulder with huge, teasing grins on both their faces.

It was hard not to roll my eyes; the only reason why I made up this lie was because I didn’t want to hang out with Matt, yet he was right in front of me anyway.

Once we got inside I felt a little less pissed that Matt had invited himself and Christine. They were making it incredibly awkward for Carson and me. Poor Carson probably didn’t even know what was going on.

Denny’s was always bright and cozy. Because there was less people since it was late, we got to choose our table.

“You guys want your own table?” Matt asked with his eyes slightly teasing.

“No,” I responded in a hard tone.

He simply shrugged and sat down on the chair in front of me as Carson took the seat next to me.

“I was thinking about playing Everything You Want. You know, Vertical Horizon?” I said casually as we scanned the menus.

“Yeah, I like that song,” Carson replied. “Damn, breakfast for dinner sounds good,” he commented with a light laugh.

As Carson and I read the menus, I couldn’t help but secretly look up at my sister and Matt who had already decided what to order. They looked perfect together while they sat close and talked quietly amongst themselves.

After we had ordered, Christine flashed a lovely smile at all of us. “There’s a Paramore concert coming up. We could all go to it if you want,” she suggested.

My sister. She was always a good conversationalist. “Oh. With No Doubt, right?” Carson asked.

“Yeah. That one. There’s actually a lot of concerts going on soon around here,” she pointed out.

“Nothing beats Topher Helton, though!” I chirped up. Maybe iced tea made me happier, I don’t know.

Matt groaned. “Not him again!” he complained in a playful manner. “Shells completely jizzed over him!” he announced as we all laughed.

“What about the Jonas Brothers?” he asked as he teasingly looked over my direction.

I made a face. “It’s one song on my Ipod, you jerk!” I exclaimed. I knew Matt would never let me live that down.

They laughed and the room seemed to become brighter. “Man, you know who I want to see in concert? Lady Gaga!” Carson exclaimed.

“What? That chick with a dick?” Matt questioned.

Carson and I couldn’t help but laugh.

Christine lightly smacked his shoulder. “Hey, I love her!” Christine commented. “Her songs are so damn catchy,” she pointed out, looking over at Carson.

“You know who’s fuckin’ amazing live?” Matt leaned in closer. “Blink 182.”

“What? No way. You saw them live?” Carson asked in disbelief. I was just in awe as he was.

“In their goddamn prime, man! Warped Tour ’99.” He flashed a proud grin.

Carson and I flipped while Christine watched and listened, amused. “What? No freakin’ way!” I exclaimed with wide eyes.

“Yeah, I’m jealous,” Carson chuckled as they exchanged fist pounds. “Wish I could’ve saw them back in the day.”

“1999? Weren’t you just like, ten years or something?” Christine asked.

“Yeah, I went with my cousin. I remember every song they played that day. Good shit,” Matt muttered. The look on his face made me realize that he was replaying those moments over in his head.

Carson and I looked at each other and exchanged excited grins. “Prove it! Tell us the whole story,” I ordered.

Matt’s grin formed across his face and we all leaned forward to listen attentively. He shrugged. “Alright, kiddies…”

“The thing I really like about his music is that it’s completely honest and simple. He has such a nostalgic feel, you know?” I told Carson as we walked side by side towards my front porch.

Matt had pushed me to ride with Carson until I finally agreed. I think it was because he wanted to be alone with Christine so they can stop at a corner and makeout or something. They weren’t even here yet.

“I’ll give him a listen, then,” Carson promised.

“You better. He’s like…pumpkin spice candles and sepia toned photographs,” I said with a laugh.

That got a chuckle out of him. “I had a really good night with you guys. It was fun,” he remarked as we stopped at my front porch. Jake had left the light on.

His dark eyes went towards the driveway. “Do you want me to wait until your sister and Matt to come before I leave?”

I shook my head. “They’ll come soon,” I answered.

“Man, I’m still juiced over Matt’s story,” he said with a laugh, not quite ready to leave yet.

I shook my head and grinned. “Lucky bastard,” I muttered under my breath. “I’m not like, a diehard fan of Blink 182, but they are epic.”

He nodded in agreement. “Maybe we should cover one of their songs, huh?” he suggested jokingly with a light nudge.

A laugh escaped my lips and I shook my head. “Hmm, I’ll pass on that,” I giggled.

“I’m glad you texted me,” he said with a small smile on his face. “We should do it again another night.”

“Yeah, definitely.” After the awkwardness, it was a surprisingly good night.

We both looked over at Christine’s car pulling up the driveway. I turned away as the bright lights shined on my face.

“Finally,” I muttered quietly to myself.

When I looked back at Carson, his hand was on the back of his neck and rubbed up his shaved head. “So I’ll see you later, Shelly,” he taking a step back from my porch.

“Yeah,” I nodded as I reached for the doorknob.

He hesitantly stepped forward again and I noticed how handsome he looked under this light. It was the first time since we slow danced that I was a little nervous about how I acted in his presence.

“Goodnight,” he finally said.

The way he said it and the way he smiled made my heart flutter a little. “Night, Carson,” I said in a quiet voice with a nod.

I was too caught up in watching Carson leave to notice Matt and Christine staring at me amusingly.

“You’re still here?” I shot back at Matt as I blushed from getting caught staring.

He simply grinned. “Gotta say hi to Jake,” he explained as Christine unlocked the door.

“I had no idea you liked Carson. It’s cute,” Christine commented. Of course she would think that.

My cheeks got even redder. “What? I don’t like Carson!” I repeated for the hundredth time tonight as we walked into the living room. “I just wanted to talk to him about the next church gig.”

“Quit lying!” Matt accused in a playful tone. “Playing songs together? Slow dancing? Late dinner dates almost behind our back?”

I made a face. “I’m not lying! Carson’s awesome, but we’re just buds,” I pressed on.

Christine and Matt shot doubtful glances at each other. “Well, if you don’t like him, he sure seems to dig you,” he pointed out with a teasing nudge on my shoulder.

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, right. He’s in college.”

“So?”

“So I’m positive he wouldn’t like me,” I muttered under my breath.

“I’ll go get Jake,” Christine told Matt.

I cringed when Matt lightly kissed the top of her head and we both stood in silence. It was as if my bitterness towards them was rushing back.

“You know what I think?” Matt finally broke the awkward silence with his low voice. “I think you’re afraid that someone might actually like you,” he accused in a surprisingly light manner.

I looked at him with doubtful eyes. “Dude, why would that scare me?” I shot back as I crossed my arms.

He shrugged. “You tell me, kid.”

When I was lost in finding the answer, my gaze went back up towards his. “Quit making me think too hard,” I muttered grumpily.

A laugh escaped his lips and he shook his head.

I wanted so badly to tell him how I felt about him, but it would be pointless and embarrassing for me.

Sure, seeing Christine and Matt together disgusted me a little and it even hurt most of the time, but it made me want to fall in love.

The only problem was that I only wanted Matt.

Still.

Maybe always.

A/N: Short chapter, I know. I'm so sorry for not updating a lot, guys! School has been really stressful and I was kind of stuck on where to go next with this story which is why I changed up the last chapter. Please review!

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