55. The plan

^^Jake

Chapter 55: The Plan

Kelsey's POV

*****

The flight back home was a fifteen hour long one, but it was certainly all worth it. My heart felt as if it were going to burst with joy as we landed, the excitement of seeing everybody again washing over me. Nobody knew that I was going back, not even Meg, and I was nervous to see how they were going to react to my return. I couldn't help but get emotional as soon as we walked back in to my childhood home, a place where I thought I would never be able to step foot in again.

I was glad to be back home in time for the first day of school, the place where I was going to be able to surprise everybody. I couldn't wait to run into Meg and Ethan's arms after having thought that I would never be able to get the chance to do so ever again.

I was ecstatic as soon as my alarm rang the next morning, signalling that it was time for me to up up for my first day of school-the same day where I was to reunite with my best friends. I gently rubbed the sleep from my eyes as I groggily got out of bed, my lack of sleep visibly showing. We had arrived home rather late, which meant that I didn't get much time to sleep, nor did I have time to arrange my clothes, hence why they were still in my big maroon luggage which was tossed in the middle of my floor.

Grabbing my black overall jeans dress and a light grey t-shirt, I walked over to the bathroom and took a quick shower. My eyes widened as soon as I laid eyes on the huge, messy nest on top of my head, hurriedly grabbing my brush and rinsing it with some water to try and tame the beast slightly. There was no way I was going to see Ethan for the first time looking like that.

After putting on my clothes and the pair of sneakers which Leah and Meg had gotten me for my birthday, I skipped down the stairs, only to be greeted by the lovely aroma of bacon, eggs, sausages, and pancakes. It was a tradition between my father and I, where he always prepared me my favourite full breakfast on my first day of school, even if he knew that I would not be able to eat all of it, leaving the leftovers for him to devour.

I sat down on the table, filling my mouth with the goodness in front of me before thanking my dad, who simply seemed happy that I was willingly eating again. My mood had certainly been lifted, but I was still on edge for when I was to see everybody again. All I had been wanting to do ever since I moved to New York was to hug everyone and feel close to them all again, and as I thought about how that day had finally arrived, I couldn't help but feel nervous.

Another thing which was gnawing on my insides was the question of what Ethan and I were going to be since I moved back. I questioned whether we were going to be together again, and whether our relationship will ever manage to go back to the way it used to be before. Apart from all of that, I also felt sad. My sadness had nothing to do with the move, nor with the fact that I was going to be reunited with the people I loved. That day was my last first day of school, and the thought of having to go to college the next year scared me. I knew what I wanted to do with my life, but it was ambitious, and certainly hard to achieve.

Thinking about it made me realise that I didn't cancel me moving away from everybody, but merely postponed it. There was only one good university where I was from, which certainly did not offer any of the courses I wanted to take. I knew, deep down, that if I wanted to make something out of my life, I was going to have to move eventually, and this time, leaving my father behind as well.

"Kelsey, are you listening?" My dad asked, snapping his fingers in front of my face to try and get my attention.

"Sorry dad, I got lost in thoughts." I apologetically said as I shook all of thoughts about the future away. The now was all that mattered. I was going to have a lot of time to think about my future later.

"It's okay. I asked you if you're ready for your last first day of school," he asked.

"Yeah I guess. I can't wait to see the look on everyone's face when they see me," I said with a small smile, wanting him to remain oblivious to all the thoughts which were going through my head.

"Well you won't have to wait long," my dad grinned, making me smile.

I could see that he was genuinely happy for me, and that in itself made me feel as if I made the right decision for both of us. My father's emotional look didn't go unnoticed as soon as we stepped back into the house after coming back from New York. I knew that that house was as important to him as it was to me, and I was glad that even he was able to get a good thing out of my decision to go back home.

*****

"Thanks for the ride dad," I said as soon as my father's car stopped in front of the entrance of the school. "See you after school, I love you," I yelled as I rushed towards the entrance.

I wanted to be able to get to Meg's locker before she did. No matter how much I wanted to run into Ethan's arms, Meg was still my number one best friend, and I wanted her to be the first one to know that I was back. Apart from that, I knew that there could have been the possibility that Ethan and Jake would be with her, allowing me to kill two birds with one stone.

I smiled as I saw that there was no sight of her in front of her locker, allowing me to be able to surprise her the way I had wanted to. I also took that time to look around me in search of my new locker. My father called the school the previous day before leaving New York, telling them that I was not going to be switching schools after all. The only problem was that they had already given my locker to somebody else, but they offered me to get a new one-one which was only a few lockers down from Meg and Ethan's.

I turned my body around so that my back is facing the door as soon as I heard Meg's voice drawing nearer after spending five minutes patiently waiting for her. I frowned as I noticed that neither Jake nor Ethan was with her, but the excitement of talking to my best friend once more made that issue not seem important.

A laugh nearly escaped from my lips as I heard her tell the person she was talking to that somebody was blocking her locker, and had to bite my lower lip so as to not let out any sound as soon as she tapped me on my shoulder.

"Excuse me, you're blocking my locker."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I guess I'll move," I said before turning around to face her with a grin on my face.

As soon as I saw her reaction, I wished that I had a camera just so that I can snap a picture of it. She stared at me, her eyes widened and her mouth agape, the books she was holding in her hand all falling on the floor. She looked around her, as if expecting to find out that this was all a prank, and a huge grin formed on her face as soon as she grasped the fact that it was actually me.

"Kelsey!" She practically screamed, pulling me in to the biggest hug ever. "Oh my gosh, what are you doing here?! You're supposed to be in New York!" She screamed, leading to a couple of passers by to look at us as if she was crazy.

"I know, I came back yesterday! I'm here to stay baby," I said as I clutched her tighter, her hug making all of the sadness and the pain of the last week ebb away completely, making me feel as if I never even left.

I noticed the tears streaming down her face as we pulled away from the hug, my thumb instantly going up to wipe her tears away, not wanting to see her cry. "Aww Megs, don't cry," I said, trying to keep in my own tears.

"I thought I was never going to get to hug you again," she cried with a small laugh before hugging me again, her head resting on my shoulder.

"Shh, I'm here now," I said as I rubbed soothing circles around her back, swallowing down the lump in my throat.  "So aren't Ethan and Jake here?" I asked her as she finally calmed down.

"Oh, Ethan has his first basketball game tonight. He had to go to the gym, something about an early pep talk to the players and cheerleaders," she sniffled before wiping away her tears with the sleeve of her white hoodie.

I frowned at the thought of Ethan being surrounded by a bunch of cheerleaders, the thought not exciting me much. "And Jake?" I asked, trying to tone down my jealousy, knowing that it wouldn't be good for anybody.

"Jake is-"

"Kelsey?" Jake said as if on cue, cutting Meg off. "W-what are you doing here?" He asked in shock before engulfing me in a hug.

"I came back. I missed you guys too much," I said.

"No way, Ethan's going to freak," he said before a smirk made its way on his face, looking between Meg and I.  "Actually, I have an idea," he said as my eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"What?" I asked as I helped Meg pick up her books from the floor before she put them in her locker.

"You know how it's Ethan's first game tonight right?" He asked as they both followed me to my new locker, which I made the mental note to decorate and organise as soon as I had the time.

"Yeah" I replied.

"Well, he hasn't really been playing as good as last year, and I'm pretty sure that has something to do with you," he said as he leaned against the locker next to mine.

"Wow, nice way of making me feel welcome" I sarcastically said.

I felt horrible about what Jake was telling me. Ethan was one of the best basketball players on the team, and thinking of myself as the reason why he wasn't playing at his best hurt me. He loved the sport, and I saw the passion with which he played it, and him playing badly because of me could have cost him the spot on the team.

"No, what I mean is, how about you surprise him before the game?" He said as he wiggled his eyebrows.

I looked at him momentarily, truly thinking about his offer. It was tempting, and seemed like a really great idea, but there were a lot of things that could go wrong with that plan, starting off with the fact that Ethan and I attended the same school.

"That's ridiculous, how am I supposed to hide from him the whole school day? It's the first day of school, I can't just disappear" I said. "Besides, this is my new locker. He's bound to see me eventually,".

"Leave that part to me," he said before grabbing my timetable from my hand and quickly scanning it. "Seems like you don't have any classes together, and you and Meg can sit outside for lunch today. I'll keep Ethan inside." Him saying that Ethan and I didn't have any classes together upset me, and that piece of information was another part of the reason as to why I did was skeptical with accepting Jake's offer.

"Look Jake, your idea is good, and I would love to surprise him but I miss him too much, and I want to see him right away. Besides, I don't know how I'll go without seeing him all day," I said, trying to reason with him.

I spent a week separated from Ethan, neither one of us knowing when we were going to see each other again. If it were up to me, I would have gone up to him right there and then, and I knew that I was not going to be able to keep myself from doing so. I wanted him to know that I was back, and I wanted him to know that there was still a chance for our story. Every minute was crucial, and I did not want to waste any time.

"Kels, I think Jake's right. Ethan would play much better if the surprise is fresh," Meg said.

"Oh, so this is all about the game?" I asked raising an eyebrow as I closed the locker.

"No, it's about Ethan being happy. The game is just a bonus," Jake said.

I thought about it for a second, not quite understanding the need for me to hide myself from Ethan for so long. He would be happy either way, and I didn't know how much difference the time of the surprise would make. Nonetheless, the plan intrigued me, and I trusted Ethan enough to know that there would be a chance for our story no matter the time in which he found out I was back.

"What do I have to do?" I finally asked, giving in.

"Just, stay with Meg after each class, I'll stay in touch with her, telling her where we are," he said with a smile on his face, the idea of surprising Ethan clearly exciting him.

"You guys are crazy," I said with a laugh as I slightly shook my head at how insane that plan sounded.

"Kels, Ethan's my best friend. I want him to be happy," Jake said in all sincerity. I smiled as I saw the care he felt towards Ethan. I found myself being in love with their bromance, and I could feel myself slowly being more convinced with the idea.

"I think he'd be happy just by me going behind him and saying 'Hey E, I'm back'."

"Please," Jake begged with a pout, batting his eyelashes.

"Okay. I'm in," I sighed, wanting to make Jake happy.

The guy sure was crazy, but I couldn't deny how much he loved Ethan. I knew that I would probably have done the same thing for Meg given the situation, and even if I was dying to hold Ethan in my arms, I would also be very happy to be the reason why he plays well at the game.

*****