~12~ Like I Did

“You sure you don’t wanna come?” Brian asked.

“Positive,” I assured. He shrugged and then he, Joey, and Meghan left the hotel room to go sightseeing.

“So, what have you gotten from this tracking?” Lulu asked. She was the only one to stay back with me. I sat up on my bed.

“Um. Travel experience, frustration, and a necklace,” I smiled sarcastically. And heartbreak twisting and turning like a snake plunging into my heart at the tiniest opening of Zac’s envelope.

“Oh…” she said. “So where the necklace?”

I pulled the necklace out of my pocket and held it up to her. Her eyes widened.

“Where’d you get this?” she asked.

“Zac’s mom,” I answered. She still looked lovingly at the necklace. “If you want, you can have it.”

He started to laugh and then placed the charm in my hand.

“One thing I’ve learned about the Tyler family is that once they give something to you, you jeep it for all it’s worth,” she notified.

“But—”

“And one thing about Mrs. Tyler is that her words have double meanings. Her actions do too,” she added.

“If it’s an emergency, fate will link you”

“I, I, I wanna go, go, go all the way, way, way—” Of course she’d have Britney Spears as her ringtone.

“Hey, Mia,” Lulu greeted. “Pssh; of course I remembered—uh…yeah” Her expression changed into a devious look. “Yeah. I’ll find my way…Yeah-yeah, really…Well; I’ll see you in Rhode Island—bye!”

“Rhode Island?” I asked.

“Rhode Island,” she squealed.

“Where in Rhode Island?” I asked.

“Providence,” she squealed.

“That’s where I am!”

“I know, isn’t it awesome?” she asked. “My friend’s having some family thing there. It’s later this week.”

“Cool,” I commented.

“So…”

“So…?” I mimicked.

“Do you think I could maybe stay with you?” she asked.

“Oh sure—oh wait. No room,” I said.

“Wasn’t it you during senior year saying that you’re sharing this nice, roomy town house right across the street from RIU?” she recalled.

“Yeah, that’s before all the rooms were rented out,” I muttered. “I have a roommate—two actually. I mean, if you wanna be in a three bedroom house with four people, then so be it—”

“Alright,” she smiled. Right then, even my phone started ringing.

“Hi, Devin,” I greeted and put in on speaker.

“Did you find him?”

he asked.

“No. The only one I found is Lulu,” I replied. He sighed through the phone.

“I sent you out to find people that were important for me to live, not to find your stupid best friend—”

“Hey!” Lulu interrupted. “Nothing gives you a right to talk to her like that. I want to help you, it’s not like she blew off Zac to find me, so calm down.”

“It’s his powers talking,” I told Lulu. “He doesn’t mean it.”

“I’m sorry,” Devin apologized in a sigh. “When are you coming back here? I’m tired of this already—”

“

So are all of us that you’re taking it out on!” I exclaimed. Control, Angel, control… “I don’t know when we’re coming back. I have to be back in Providence by, like, Friday for Nelly.”

“That’s, like, four days,”

he commented. And you don’t think I know that?

“If we don’t find him by then, then I don’t know, okay?” I said. “His Mom gave me crap information and so did the guy at the Post Office so we’re basically roaming the streets of Orange County like idiots.”

“Whatever,” Devin replied. That’s when I hung up on him. I wasn’t in the mood to deal with him.

“Have you called Zac’s old phone?” Lulu suddenly asked. I shook my head and sighed. I stopped calling a year ago.

“Look. There’s something I have to tell you…” I said. “The letter that we were using to trace him…it was a letter he sent a year ago—”

“That’s okay; I mean he still goes there—”

“That’s not it,” I interrupted. “I found the letter when I went back home two days ago.”

“And?” she asked with excitement. Then her face dropped when she really looked at me. “Oh God. “What’d it say?”

“He’s done with me,” I informed.

“HE’S WHAT!?”

***

You know, at first I thought Lulu would be happy—seeing as Zac was her beloved ex boyfriend, but when I told her, it’s like she was pissed off and more determined to find him…only to beat his a$$.

“Lulu, what are you doing?” I asked her as she typed viciously on my laptop the following day.

“If anyone knows where Zac Tyler is, please tell me and Angel. Please and Thank You’s” she posted.

“You honestly think someone’s gonna know where he is when neither of us know?” I asked.

“Calm down,” she said, rolling her eyes. And just like that, people’s comments popped up.

“Zac <3”

“Oh, gaawd. Lulu you’re not seriously looking for HIM again are you?”

“Long gone.”

“Lulu—” I started to say, just so she’d realize this was hopeless.

“I saw him at the gas station,” she read someone’s comments. From who? Lacy, his very much obsessed ex-girlfriend.

***

(Lacy’s POV)

“Where exactly did you see him?” Lulu asked me over the phone. Funny how the first time we talk after graduation it’s about Zac Tyler. Everything seems to revolve around him.

“At a gas station outside of New York,” I answered, looking at my nails.

“Did you talk to him? Was he with anyone? Do you know where he was going?” Angel Hallow’s voice asked. I’m surprised she didn’t know all of this. Wasn’t he her supposed “love”?

“Yeah.”

“Yeah to what? Talking to him or knowing where he’s going?” she asked.

“I meant he was with people,” I countered.

“Who?” one of them asked.

“These two guys and a girl,” I answered. She grunted. Agitated much?

“Is that all you know?”

Angel asked. Another grunt.

“Yeah, pretty much,” I said. “What’s the rush? You’re starting to sound like me with wanting to know all this sh!t.”

“We just need to find him and that’s kind of hard, ‘kay

?” Lulu answered. I rolled my eyes. Whatever.

“Thanks,” Angel said.

“Mm-hmm. You’re welcome,” I replied, after all, they were my close friends in senior year. But not close enough for me to tell them all that I knew at the gas station.

“Zac Tyler,” I commented, walking out of the gas station with a Sundrop soda and a pack of donuts. The familiar teenage boy who I hadn’t seen in a year turned to face me and his smile sort of loosened.

“Lacy,” he stated. His friends piled back into the classic Mustang he drove, but the dark haired girl—reminding me much of Angel—stayed at his side.

“You know her?” she asked. I sized her up and knew that I wouldn’t be able to take her in a fight of wits or fists.

“Yeah,” Zac said and then he walked over to me. I expected a hug, but he gave me nothing of the sort. “What are you doing here?”

“Well if you hadn’t left school early, you’d know that I dedicated my life to traveling the first year out of school,” I smiled.

“It’s not considered ‘dedicating your life’ if it’s only a year,” he said to me with dull eyes.

“Don’t look at me like I’m stupid,” I commanded.

“I didn’t say anything,” he said seriously.

“You didn’t deny it—” he interrupted me with a heavy sigh. After that, he gave me eyes that were completely different than when I met him. Now, they were dark brown—almost black—with caramel chips spinning in the iris, but yet in their twirls, there seemed to be control. Just like with him. He seemed refined and not as crazy. His looks hadn’t changed except for his shorter cut hair—opposed to his usual mop of curls—and his muscles nearly busted out of the shirt he wore. But hey, I’m not complaining. I looked past him at his car packed with people and stuff.

“So, where are you headed?” I asked him.

“None of your business,” he answered. Who was this? It surely wasn’t the Zac Tyler I used to know because back then, he’d at least keep up with my stupidity and not be rude about it. But then again, everyone acted like that around me. The only difference was that Zac Tyler hadn’t been around me for over a year.

“So hows…” College? Life? Family? Yourself? “…it going? Still saving people?”

He actually almost smirked.

“Trying my best,” he answered.

“That must not be alright with your girlfriend for more girls to swoon over you,” I laughed as if Angel would actually care. Of all the times he saved someone—which was only twice—back home, he’s gotten at least

something out of it. The second time it was even me. Why would he stop now? I laughed lightly, but then his face had dropped.

“She’s…she’s alright with it,” he told. So he had a girlfriend? Well duh. He and Angel. But his face that showed pure love for her at the mention of her a year back was gone. It was as if he was staring into the past or future with a dropped expression.

“So how are you and her? I mean, she rarely talked about you in senior year—so you both could stay private considering—”

“Senior year?” he asked with a frown.

“Yeah…just cuz you graduated early didn’t mean I, Lulu, and Angel did—”

“

Angel?” he questioned. I nodded slowly. Isn’t that who he was talking about this whole time? Now he was frowning at her name as a puzzled look took over his face.

“Yeah…Angel…as in Angelique Hallow…” I renamed. He looked up at me and that’s when a new idea occurred in my mind.

“Look. I, uh, gotta go okay? Nice seeing you,” he rushed in conclusion as he backed up with a small wave and strode over to his car.

My idea from earlier? Oh right. He and Angel weren’t together anymore, he had forgotten all about her, and gotten a new girl. Why didn’t I tell her this? Oh, I don’t know. Maybe it was inside of me as revenge. After all, even though I’m over him to my full realization, she was the reason he broke up with me—no matter if he was drunk in the process and we fought about something not even pertaining her. Maybe if she and Lulu caught up with Zac, she’d witness the heartbreak of someone she loved, loving someone else just like I thought I had.