Chapter 34: Ahliyah

I put my hands on my hips looking at the shop wondering what I was going to do with it. I told myself I would call Mercedes and see if she wanted this shop to make herself a studio out of it. All I wanted was the bike and nothing else.

I touched the side of the bike smiling remembering when this was gifted to me. I was turning eighteen and I begged my dad for this. Before I left for school I found the bike covered up in the garage with a big black bow tied around it. I smiled as the memory resurfaced and I rode the bike everywhere before I got home for curfew.

The memories replayed themselves as if they happened yesterday. I got on my bike breathing deeply starting it up, hearing the purr of the engine mad excitement run through my body. I didn't think about where I was going or when I was going to arrive at my destination I just allowed the wind to blow through my hair.

Freedom.

Riding and allowing the wind to blow through my hair made me feel free. I didn't have a curfew and I could go anywhere I please if I wanted. I rode all over the city and when I finally made it home I was tired from all the fun I had.

Carter was making lunch and setting the living room up for us to eat. We sat on the floor and ate with each other. I talked about riding my bike and how free I felt while I was riding. We mostly talked about random things while we ate.

We laid on the couch looking at the ceiling thinking of whatever was on our minds. I got up quickly pulling Carter with me. " I want to show you something."

" Slow down, I'm coming." He said.

We drove back to the shop and walked inside. I stood in the middle of the shop wrapping my arms around my self. " When we had our first kiss I thought it was going to be in this shop. I thought that we would be that cliche couple in the movies where they had their first kiss in odd places. This would've been our odd place."

" You want to redo it? Our first kiss?" He asked.

" No, our first kiss was special but now that Elias has moved on. I thought maybe this could be ours. Our way of making something new for us." I leaned back on my heels of my shoes and I shook the idea out of my head. I grabbed his arms trying to pull him out of the shop, but he stood there looking around.

" The idea was stupid, let's go home." I said.

Carter grabbed my hand pulling me to him, he lifted my chin and he smiled. " I want this to be our odd place. We're not a cliche couple and I think that what's makes us differently than everyone else." He held my face leaning in slowly. He kissed my gently and when pulled apart I couldn't help smile.

" Let's go home." Carter said wrapping his arm around me.

When we got home, Mercedes was standing in front of our front door. " Girl, where have you been? I was looking for you."

Carter walked inside the apartment and I stood with Mercedes. " Is something wrong? Is Lorenzo okay?" I asked frantically.

" Everything is fine. Lorenzo wants to talk to carter but everything is fine. I came over her to ask if you wanted to come to the fair with me tomorrow." She said.

Excitement consumed me as I thought about going to the fair, the food and the rides filled me up with excitement. I didn't hesitate to tell her I wanted to go and I jumped up in excitement as I thought about the fun things I would do.

" Mercedes, I wanted to give you this shop that was given to me. I thought you would need the space for your paintings." I smiled.

She beamed and gave me a hug. " I knew I liked you when we met. Thank you so much. "

When I walked inside the apartment, Carter was floor trying to pick out a movie for us to watch. " I want to watch something scary."

His eyes lit up and I seen the hesitation behind his eyes. " Are you sure? " He asked.

" Yeah, I'm sure." I didn't have any plans watching the scary movie or her scared to death about what was going to jump out of the corners that couldn't be seen.

He played the movie and I laid there watching the movie. I wanted to ask him when he was going to make things right with Lorenzo. When he was going to speak up for himself and tell Lorenzo that he didn't want to talk about his trauma, even though he's learned to forgive and let it go.

I never got the chance to ask because I fell asleep before the scary part in the movie.

Carter left for his morning walk and I tore through my closer trying to figure out what I was going to wear. There was a rapid knock on the door and I quickly put the clothes I was going to wear on the bed.

I answered the door and Lorenzo was standing there with his hands in his pockets. " Is Carter here?" He asked.

" No, but he'll be back. What's wrong?"

" Carter and I got into an argument about him and you. He didn't know what you were thinking and I thought playing a game would help him speak up and he was really upset. He's been ignoring me and I wanted to give him this apology face to face," he sighed.

" He'll forgive you. You and him always come back to each other."

He shook his head and I thought I saw his lips trembled. " I think I screwed up this time. I was trying to look out for him and that was all. When he comes back, tell him I am sorry."

Lorenzo walked away before I could help him. It was the first time I truly seen sadness in his eyes. He was hurting not having Carter by his side talking to him and chatting about whatever they talked about when they were together.

Friendship was a fragile thing, it's easy to become friends but when you mess up and your friend isn't speaking to you it was the hardest thing in the universe to get that friendship back.

I walked back inside and grabbed the shorts and tank top and placed them on the bed. I looked in the mirror looking at my clothes and smiled to myself. I sat on the couch tapping my foot waiting for Carter to walk through the front door.

Carter and Lorenzo didn't realize how much they need each other. I couldn't save my friendship with Elias because it wasn't a friendship anymore, it was a relationship and dating Elias wouldn't have been good for either of us.

They would figure a way out and be back to being friends again, I hope. I wish I had the friendship the have because I wouldn't want to lose what we had. I hoped they could fix it in time.