Town Hall. One Hour. I Miss you. -WW

I read the text and my heart starts to race. WW? Could it really be Will? I don't know any other WWs. Is he finally going to give me an explanation on what happened? Has he missed me as much as I've missed him? I walk towards the town hall with plenty of time to spare, but impatience consumes me. I'm eager to hear what he has to say. If it's even him, that is. But it has to be, right?

It's a dark night and not many people are around. All I hear is the sound of crickets chirping and the occasional car passing by. I arrive fifteen minutes early and take a seat outside, contemplating why he wants to see me tonight, of all nights. Why not all those times he saw me around? Was it because of Holden? Is he going to tell me that it was him that night? I can't give in too easily. No matter what he says. He hurt me. It's been fifteen minutes and I sit here waiting but there's no sign of anyone. There's no sign of him. And then a motorcycle pulls up.

It's not him.

I know the sound of his motorcycle and this definitely isn't it. I start to worry. Who the hell could this be? A man gets off the motorcycle and takes off his helmet, his lanky frame swaying slightly as he plants his feet on the ground. His purple hair is greasy and matted, and his eyes are bloodshot and unfocused, as if he has been up for ages. It takes me a minute to realise who he is, but when I do, my eyes nearly bulge out of their sockets.

"Alien?!" I screech as the biggest mistake of my life walks up to me. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"My love, it has been a long time," My ex-boyfriend from when I was sixteen smiles.

He attempts to hug me but I push him away, screaming, "What the hell do you think you're going? Get away from me!"

"I guess you're not happy to see me then," he chuckles.

I demand to know why he's here and he says that he was "in the area" and knew I lived here. Apparently he missed me. How sweet. Not.

A million thoughts race through my mind. Confusion. Anger. Sadness. What is a guy that I dated two years ago doing here in this small town? But mostly, I just think about how it's not Will. Of course it isn't him. But wait a minute...

"Why did you sign your text with WW?" I demand.

"Because it's my name?" He looks confused. "Wade Wendell. Do you really not remember my name?"

"I have never ever heard anyone call you Wade. Your name is Alien!" I yell.

"You thought my real name is...Alien? Seriously? We went out for months!" He looks offended but I couldn't care less.

"I don't care what your name is or what you're doing here! Go away! I made it very clear that I never wanted to see you again. Goodbye, Alien! Or Wendell or Wade or whatever your name is!" I turn around and start to walk back home.

"Davis, wait!" I hear him call out but I ignore him. All I can think about is that it wasn't Will. I got my hopes up so high and it wasn't him. "Let me explain? Please? Give me 30 minutes? I drove all the way from Los Huesos just to see you!"

"I wouldn't care if you drove all the way from New York to see me. Fuck off, Alien," I stop and turn around to face him, but all I really think about is how I spent so long with Holden trying to make Will jealous. I thought it would make me happy but it didn't. The satisfaction just didn't last.

"Please, Davis. Join me for one drink and you'll never see me again if that's what you want. I promise," he pleads.

"Fine," I agree just to get him to leave. "But I'm not getting on your ugly motorcycle." Deep down, I'm eager to welcome any distraction. I have to stop thinking about Will. It's not good for me.

"You used to love my motorcycle," he remarks.

"I was a sixteen year old idiot who didn't make good decisions," I say and point at him. "Clearly."

"I guess we'll walk to the nearest bar. What is it, five miles away?" He asks.

"Fine, I'll get on your ugly motorcycle," I roll my eyes, not wanting to walk that far with him. I start to question why I'm even agreeing to go with him. What is wrong with me?

I get on the back of his motorcycle, and a wave of familiarity washes over me. It feels like I'm sixteen again, rebelling against my parents for reasons I can't even recall. They would kill me if they knew what I was doing right now. I can't help but wonder what Will would think if he saw me on the back of someone else's motorbike.

We head towards the east of town, into an area I've never been before. It's rougher looking, with graffiti adorning the walls and smaller houses. As we arrive, we step into a dimly lit dive bar. The faces around me are unfamiliar, which strikes me as odd for a small town like Riverbrook. Panic starts to creep in as I realise that coming here was a very, very stupid decision. This could be dangerous.

Alien notices my unease and snakes his arm around my waist, trying to reassure me. "Don't worry, Davis. I got you."

"Get away from me, freak!" I slide away from him and realise that I just sounded exactly like Ashleigh.

The bartender, an older man with a beard and tattoos, notices the commotion. "Is everything okay here?" he asks, concern etched on his face.

"Yes, we're fine," I assure him, forcing a smile, and order a drink.

"Here you go," he hands me the drink and squints down at my fake id. "Emily Goulding."

"Aw, you still use the fake id that I got you," Alien smiles as we take a seat. "It's so good to see you, Davis. Really."

"I wish I could say the same, Alien," I stare at him. He looks exactly the same and I question how I was ever so enamoured by him.

"Well, you're here, aren't you? You have to be a little glad to see me, at least," he takes a sip of his drink. "And it's just Wade now. Not Alien. That was just to stay anonymous. You know, so the cops wouldn't bust me."

"I guess it worked. They didn't bust you. They just busted me instead," I reply, a bitter laugh escaping my lips.

"Now, Davis. Your name was cleared. I made sure of that," he tries to hold my hand but I pull away.

"That doesn't matter, Alien. I still got suspended from school. My family still didn't forgive me for months. What you did was messed up. You completely screwed me over! And now you just show up like this?"

And that's when I notice a familiar face at the bar.

"KD? What the hell are you doing here?" Alex looks shocked as I walk up to him.

"What are you doing here?" I demand.

"Um, business. Don't judge. I need the cash, okay?" Alex says sheepishly.

"Hey, it's none of my business," I shrug. "But have you tried waiting tables or something instead?"

"Nah. What are you doing here, Kat? This place can be a bit rough," Alex sounds concerned.

An eccentric looking middle aged woman runs up to us, yelling, "Alexander! Is that you?" She's dressed in paint splattered overalls and her hair is all over the place. She looks familiar but I struggle to place her.

"Hey Zara! Nice to see you," says Alex, hugging her.

"Oh, Alexander, you are way too young to be here. But don't worry, I won't tell. And who is this young lady?" She turns to face me.

Before I can respond, she says to the bartender, "Three tequila shots, Randy!"

She downs a shot and passes the other two to me and Alex, whispering, "Randy was my high school sweetheart. So don't worry, the shots are free."

"Um, thank you," I say, hesitantly accepting the shot.

"You were at my ex-husband's wedding to that child, weren't you?" She asks and my eyes widen. "I'm Zara Walker."

"Oh my god, you're Will's mom?" I gasp, a mixture of horror and realisation hitting me. Is this why Will was acting so strange?

"Zara, I actually have something I want to talk to you about. Please excuse us, Kathryn," Alex quickly interrupts and pulls her away.

That was extremely odd. Alex never calls me Kathryn. Something shady is going on, and I'm determined to figure it out. But not tonight. Tonight, I don't want to think about anything related to Will. I just want to forget for one night.

"Who are they?" Alien looks curious as I go back to him.

"Doesn't matter. So, what's this explanation that you're so desperate to give me?" I demand.

"Um..." He looks dumbfounded.

"Oh my god. There is no explanation, is there? Did you think I'd fall head over heels for you again after one drink?" I ask, my disgust evident.

"Davis, it's not like that. I just...I just really missed you. And I wanted to say how sorry I am. I swear I've changed," he pleads, sincerity in his eyes, though I find it hard to believe.

"Okay," I pretend to think for a few seconds. "Apology denied. Are we done here?"

"Um, actually, could I crash on your couch tonight?" Alien asks, and I nearly spit my drink out.

"You mean Wyatt's couch? Yeah, I'm sure he'd love that!" I say sarcastically.

"Okay, on your floor then? I'll make sure I'm gone before he's even up." He suggests.

"Absolutely not, Alien. That's just not happening." I roll my eyes.

The next thing I know, Alien, I mean Wade, and I are sneaking into my room. "You have to be gone before Wyatt is up, okay? If he finds you here, he'll kill me. And then you. And then me again."

I ended up having a surprisingly good, albeit drunk, night with my degenerate ex lover and decided to take pity on him. I mean, I couldn't just let him freeze on a park bench.

"I promise I'll be gone," Alien yawns and sits on my bed.

"Um, what do you think you're doing? On the floor, Alien. I agreed to let you sleep on the floor."

He sighs and gets on the floor, using my sparkly Nicolas Cage cushion that Alex had gifted me as a joke, "You're not even gonna give me a blanket?"

"I don't have a spare blanket. But you can use that," I smile sweetly and point at the rug. "Goodnight, Alien. Have fun cuddling Nicolas."

***

The next morning, I wake up to the sound of an ear-piercing scream. Macey stands at my door, jaw dropped, while Wyatt rushes up behind her.

"You have got to be kidding me."

...

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