Ah…More Than Anything was playing and I was standing face to face with Gabby. The song reflected so much on how I felt for her. Her curly hair was crowned with a glowing wreath of flowers and her eyes held such a sadness that I couldn't describe.
Moments before I put my arms around Gabby, her green eyes filled with tears. She tried to wipe them away, but I saw them. Then she started to run. "Gabby, wait!" Ellie cried anxiously, running after her.
I dropped my head and started walking away. "Ike, wait," Zac said, pulling me back.
"Did you see how much I've hurt her?" I asked. "I never meant to!"
"Ike, you can fix it!"
"Forget it, Zac. I've lost her forever. We're leaving in two months anyways. What good would it do?"
I walked away from the party to my room, where I grabbed my guitar. I sat down and started to play the new song I'd written, "I Never Meant To".
"How could you have done that to me?" I screamed blindly at Ellie.
"I'm sorry…I thought it would turn out differently…"
"Why do you even bother?"
"Because I love you and so does he!"
I dropped into the grass. "Oh, Ellie, I never meant to be so pigheaded. All I've ever wanted was him."
"I know, Gab, but you can still have him."
I wiped my tears away. "No, I can't. I lost him, Ellie. It's too late."
Ellie put her arms around me and let me cry.
The party pretty much broke up after that. It was after midnight anyways. Zac and I thanked everyone for coming and went to find Ike to see if he was okay.
We found him on his balcony, guitar in hand, singing. I pulled Zac away. "What song is he singing?" I whispered.
"This new song of his called I Never Meant To. I found the lyric sheet the other day," Zac whispered back.
"Oh, man…"
Ellie walked me back to the house, saying excitedly she and Zac were going to exchange presents at the pond.
"You'll be okay until I get back?" Ellie murmured.
"Yeah." I went inside and up to my room. On my bed was a piece of paper. I went over and picked it up. It was typed and unsigned, just the lyrics to a song called I Never Meant To.
It reminded me so much of my feelings towards Isaac. It seemed like everyone but him understood how I felt! I loved the song so much that I spotted a picture frame on my bedstand and slipped the song inside. Maybe that small gesture would make everything all right again.
Zac and I walked along under the moonlight to the pond that night. "You go first," Zac urged me, holding my hand while we sat on the edge of the pond.
"Happy Birthday!" I said, handing him the box.
"Oh, Ellie, it's great!" Zac exclaimed. It was a shirt with Animal on the front, banging on a set of drums. The caption read, "I'm an animal on the drums!" He kissed my cheek. "Thank you! Now here."
I accepted the small box from him. I opened it and gasped. "Zac! You didn't have to!"
Zac leaned over and kissed me. "Happy Birthday, Ellie," he whispered.
All I could do was stare. Inside the box, on pieces of cotton, lay a diamond-studded bracelet. It glittered in the moonlight. It must have been so expensive! Zac helped me slide it on my wrist, and then he wrapped his arms around me, holding me in the romantic moonlight. Everything was perfect, yet something teared at my heart.
"You feel it too?" Zac whispered, stroking my hair.
"What do I feel?"
"How absolutely perfect this is. It was meant to be, Ellie. I love you so much."
I turned to face him. "I love you too, Zac." I leaned over and kissed him. We both held on tight, for this was the most perfect moment in the world…yet I wished Gabby and Ike could be feeling it too.
"She framed it, Ike!" I exclaimed. It was a few days after the party, but the mood in the house was one of depression…especially between Gabby and Ike. Ellie and I frequently went to our pond to escape it all. Once Taylor caught us there, and all three of us had talked. We had decided no matter how hard Gabby and Ike were pretending to hate each other, they really did care. That's why we were throwing them a party. By Thanksgiving, all of us would have something to be happy about.
"Yeah, right," Ike scoffed.
"She did! It's on her bedstand! I saw it, Ike. Come on…this is stupid!"
"What did I do now?"
"We know you love Gabby. It's so obvious! Why are you being so hard-headed and stubborn?! I don't understand. If a girl loved me as much…"
"A girl does love you, Zac," Ike broke in.
"Don't change the subject. You know what? I always thought you were so smart, Ike. You're my big brother, man! But you're so blind and your ego is so big that this thing with Gabby is so out of proportion. Make up your mind, Ike. If you want her, do something about it."
I stormed out of the room, too angry to speak.
"Whoa, Zaccy, what's the fire?" Two arms pulled me into a room. I whirled angrily to face Ellie.
"Oh, Ellie…" I sighed. I fell into her arms, grateful she was there. "If only Ike felt this way…"
"Shh, Zac." Ellie stroked my hair and kissed my head comfortingly. "I know you're upset, and so am I, but honey…we'll get them together."
