Get Ready Chapter 1 (Elle's Story)
This is Elle's POV when she's 17. Please read and comment!
Elle's POV:
It was a normal afternoon in March, except that it was the last day before spring break. My boyfriend Derek was over at my house, and we were fooling around on my bed. His hands moved to the button of my jeans. My breath caught for a second, and although I wasn't ready for that, I didn't stop him. Both of us were practically completely naked when my aunt walked in.
"Oh my god." She gasped. She looked away. "Get dressed. Both of you."
Derek's face turned so red. My aunt was beautiful, and she was young. She was only 30. I handed Derek his clothes, and got dressed.
When we got downstairs, Derek hugged me goodbye. After he left, my aunt stared at me.
"Tell me, what are you thinking?" She asked, extremely mad.
"Aunt Hope, chill. It was nothing." I said, secretly glad that she had come in.
"Nothing?" She asked, sighing. "Elle, having sex is not nothing. I don't think you were even using protection."
"Aunt Hope, I'm not going to get pregnant. I don't even plan on having sex." I replied.
She raised an eyebrow. "It's obviously easier to get pregnant than you think. If it wasn't, no offense, but Elle, you wouldn't even be here."
"What is your problem?" I asked, getting annoyed.
"My problem is that you're so willing to just give yourself away. Your mother and I didn't have a choice when we were younger than you, but you have a choice, and you're just throwing it away." She sighed.
"Look, Elle, I'm sorry, but do you even love him? Does he love you?"
"I don't know, okay? It was just happening. But I think I do." I answered.
"Elle, I'm sorry. I don't want to see you get hurt."
"I know." I hugged her.
That night, Derek called me. I figured that he was going to ask me to do something with him over spring break.
"Hey babe." He said.
"Hey yourself. What's up?" I asked, flopping down on my bed.
"Um, I need to talk to you. This, us, isn't working. I want to break up." Derek answered.
"So what did earlier today mean to you?" I asked, getting pissed off.
He laughed. "Elle, we were just fooling around. Too bad we couldn't go all the way."
"Okay, whatever. Um, I'll see you around, then, I guess." I said, hanging up.
I ran downstairs to my aunt's office, crying. She came over and hugged me.
"Talk to me." She said. I looked at her. "As your aunt, not a therapist." She clarified. My aunt worked at a clinic with her best friend from college.
"Derek broke up with me. I was so stupid, I almost went all the way with a guy who didn't even think of me as anything more than someone to fool around with." I cried.
"Shh. It's going to be alright. Believe me, I've had a broken heart before, never going back there again. But, time and chocolate help you get over things."
I laughed at the chocolate part. My aunt, despite our fights, was my true best friend.
"What happened that broke your heart?" I asked, needing one of my aunt's amazing stories. When I had been younger, she had made up stories to explain things to me that were serious.
"The summer after your mom died, your grandmother asked us to spend the summer with her. I went, and I met this guy, Adam. He was everything, and he was real. I wanted something good, I was hurting, and he helped fill the holes. I fell in love, and I honestly thought he loved me too. Your grandmother died in a car crash that summer, and I was done with the loss. Adam proposed, and I was so happy. The ring was perfect, with a real diamond on a real silver band.
I visited him when he got to Boston since we were already up in Cambridge at the new house. When I got there, this girl who had worked at the house was all over him. I chucked the engagement ring at him and stormed out. I hope I gave him an exit to remember, at least." My aunt finished, wiping away a tear. "Ugh, every time I think of him, I just want to cry."
"So, I was thinking, since spring break's here, and we can stay up really late, do you want to do a movie and chocolate marathon?" I asked.
"Why not?" My aunt answered. She went to make her famous Chocolate - Everything while I picked out some of our favorite movies, on the laptop.
While I was drumming the keys, inspiration for what I wanted to do over spring break came to me.
"I know what I want to do this spring break." I said.
She set everything down on the coffee table. "Yeah?"
"Well, generally, people don't propose without a reason, especially with such a fancy ring. I want to track him down. You never even heard him out." I said.
"Elle..." She sighed. "I didn't want to. If it was bad, my heart was shattered as it was. I wouldn't have been able to handle it. And if it was different, I would've been too scared to really commit. I was so scared of losing people I loved after your grandmother died. But you're right, I never heard him out."
"See? We should go find him." I said.
"Elle, it's been what, 13 years? He probably moved on, and has a whole life with a family and everything. I can't just show up."
"Please, Aunt Hope, this is really what I want to do." I begged.
She gave in. "Fine, but Macy and her son are coming with us."
Macy was her best friend from college. They had met at some teen parenting thing.
"Road trip!" I said.
"Since it's your idea, you figure out how to find him. I'll go call Macy and see if she's free." My aunt said, pulling her phone.
"What's his last name?" I asked.
"Palmer." She answered, before returning to her conversation with Macy.
I googled Adam Palmer. 360 people hits. Damn. I narrowed out everybody who was too old or too young. That left me with around 200. My aunt said, "Narrow out everybody outside the United States."
I did what she said, and ended up with 100. She took the laptop, and scrolled through the results. She crossed out everyone who was foreign or not to her standards of possibilities just by appearance, and ended up with 75. She looked at the ones who lived close to Boston, or the place where she stayed the summer at all those years ago. 30 hits.
"There you go. By the way, Macy and her son can come. Write those names and addresses down. We're leaving tomorrow." My aunt said.
I did what she said. We talked about everything and anything, drank hot chocolate, and ate a lot of chocolate. I went to sleep, excited for the upcoming adventure.
It was a normal afternoon in March, except that it was the last day before spring break. My boyfriend Derek was over at my house, and we were fooling around on my bed. His hands moved to the button of my jeans. My breath caught for a second, and although I wasn't ready for that, I didn't stop him. Both of us were practically completely naked when my aunt walked in.
"Oh my god." She gasped. She looked away. "Get dressed. Both of you."
Derek's face turned so red. My aunt was beautiful, and she was young. She was only 30. I handed Derek his clothes, and got dressed.
When we got downstairs, Derek hugged me goodbye. After he left, my aunt stared at me.
"Tell me, what are you thinking?" She asked, extremely mad.
"Aunt Hope, chill. It was nothing." I said, secretly glad that she had come in.
"Nothing?" She asked, sighing. "Elle, having sex is not nothing. I don't think you were even using protection."
"Aunt Hope, I'm not going to get pregnant. I don't even plan on having sex." I replied.
She raised an eyebrow. "It's obviously easier to get pregnant than you think. If it wasn't, no offense, but Elle, you wouldn't even be here."
"What is your problem?" I asked, getting annoyed.
"My problem is that you're so willing to just give yourself away. Your mother and I didn't have a choice when we were younger than you, but you have a choice, and you're just throwing it away." She sighed.
"Look, Elle, I'm sorry, but do you even love him? Does he love you?"
"I don't know, okay? It was just happening. But I think I do." I answered.
"Elle, I'm sorry. I don't want to see you get hurt."
"I know." I hugged her.
That night, Derek called me. I figured that he was going to ask me to do something with him over spring break.
"Hey babe." He said.
"Hey yourself. What's up?" I asked, flopping down on my bed.
"Um, I need to talk to you. This, us, isn't working. I want to break up." Derek answered.
"So what did earlier today mean to you?" I asked, getting pissed off.
He laughed. "Elle, we were just fooling around. Too bad we couldn't go all the way."
"Okay, whatever. Um, I'll see you around, then, I guess." I said, hanging up.
I ran downstairs to my aunt's office, crying. She came over and hugged me.
"Talk to me." She said. I looked at her. "As your aunt, not a therapist." She clarified. My aunt worked at a clinic with her best friend from college.
"Derek broke up with me. I was so stupid, I almost went all the way with a guy who didn't even think of me as anything more than someone to fool around with." I cried.
"Shh. It's going to be alright. Believe me, I've had a broken heart before, never going back there again. But, time and chocolate help you get over things."
I laughed at the chocolate part. My aunt, despite our fights, was my true best friend.
"What happened that broke your heart?" I asked, needing one of my aunt's amazing stories. When I had been younger, she had made up stories to explain things to me that were serious.
"The summer after your mom died, your grandmother asked us to spend the summer with her. I went, and I met this guy, Adam. He was everything, and he was real. I wanted something good, I was hurting, and he helped fill the holes. I fell in love, and I honestly thought he loved me too. Your grandmother died in a car crash that summer, and I was done with the loss. Adam proposed, and I was so happy. The ring was perfect, with a real diamond on a real silver band.
I visited him when he got to Boston since we were already up in Cambridge at the new house. When I got there, this girl who had worked at the house was all over him. I chucked the engagement ring at him and stormed out. I hope I gave him an exit to remember, at least." My aunt finished, wiping away a tear. "Ugh, every time I think of him, I just want to cry."
"So, I was thinking, since spring break's here, and we can stay up really late, do you want to do a movie and chocolate marathon?" I asked.
"Why not?" My aunt answered. She went to make her famous Chocolate - Everything while I picked out some of our favorite movies, on the laptop.
While I was drumming the keys, inspiration for what I wanted to do over spring break came to me.
"I know what I want to do this spring break." I said.
She set everything down on the coffee table. "Yeah?"
"Well, generally, people don't propose without a reason, especially with such a fancy ring. I want to track him down. You never even heard him out." I said.
"Elle..." She sighed. "I didn't want to. If it was bad, my heart was shattered as it was. I wouldn't have been able to handle it. And if it was different, I would've been too scared to really commit. I was so scared of losing people I loved after your grandmother died. But you're right, I never heard him out."
"See? We should go find him." I said.
"Elle, it's been what, 13 years? He probably moved on, and has a whole life with a family and everything. I can't just show up."
"Please, Aunt Hope, this is really what I want to do." I begged.
She gave in. "Fine, but Macy and her son are coming with us."
Macy was her best friend from college. They had met at some teen parenting thing.
"Road trip!" I said.
"Since it's your idea, you figure out how to find him. I'll go call Macy and see if she's free." My aunt said, pulling her phone.
"What's his last name?" I asked.
"Palmer." She answered, before returning to her conversation with Macy.
I googled Adam Palmer. 360 people hits. Damn. I narrowed out everybody who was too old or too young. That left me with around 200. My aunt said, "Narrow out everybody outside the United States."
I did what she said, and ended up with 100. She took the laptop, and scrolled through the results. She crossed out everyone who was foreign or not to her standards of possibilities just by appearance, and ended up with 75. She looked at the ones who lived close to Boston, or the place where she stayed the summer at all those years ago. 30 hits.
"There you go. By the way, Macy and her son can come. Write those names and addresses down. We're leaving tomorrow." My aunt said.
I did what she said. We talked about everything and anything, drank hot chocolate, and ate a lot of chocolate. I went to sleep, excited for the upcoming adventure.
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