Allison and her friends happen to unknowingly bump into TFIL on one of their many explorations. After spending the night together at an abandoned town, friendships begin to grow between Ali and the boys.
Somewhere in between Los Angeles and the N...
Its been a couple weeks since my dad passed away. Today I'm leaving with Colby to go to Connecticut for the funeral which is in a couple of days.
The last time I was in Connecticut was when I was fourteen years old, I think. It was too long ago for me to remember much.
Part of me is excited. I'll get to see my childhood friends, I'll get to see the house I grew up in, I'll get to see my grandparents and cousins and aunts and uncles. But then part of me is broken, because the whole reason I'm going back to my home state is for my fathers funeral.
I've taken a break from YouTube for a while, pretty much since this all happened. The last video I uploaded was a short vlog from the party the night Jake moved in. I've actually taken a break from social media as a whole. It's just kind of overwhelming. Taking a break from social media while living in California is pretty hard, considering pretty much every one here is always on their phones. I mean, hell, I live with six people that make and post videos for a living.
"You ready to go babe?" I asked, poking my head into Colby's room. He stood there with his XPLR backpack and a small suitcase since he's only gonna be in Connecticut for a couple days. I'm gonna be staying with my cousin for a little more than a week.
"Come on baby," he wrapped his arm around my waist and helped me carry my slightly larger suitcase and PINK dufflebag down to the ground level of the house.
"I'm gonna miss you Ali," Devyn ran up and hugged me.
"We're all gonna miss you," Sam said, hugging me after Devyn. One by one, everyone hugged me and said their goodbyes.
"I'll be back soon guys, it's not like I'm moving forever," I said, giving a small, weak chuckle.
Since the day my dad passed away, I've been thinking a lot. I haven't told any of the guys yet, not even Colby. Something deep down inside of me wants to go to Europe, just for a little while. I wanna go to Germany, to visit my family's house. I wanna go to the Netherlands, to visit Delft and my old route. I can't leave the guys though, I love them too much.
They've been so much help for me over the past couple of days; I honestly don't know what I would do without them.
By now, Colby's fans have found out about us dating. At the party, he drunkenly posted a picture on his Snapchat story of him kissing my cheek with the heart filter on. 80% his fans are happy and love us together, but then there's that other 20% that absolutely hate us and quote on quote "want me to die". I try not to focus on the bad comments that much though.
Colby helped me load our luggage into the trunk of his car and then we were off to LAX. I took a deep breath, trying to process what's gonna happen in Connecticut.
My family doesn't even know about Colby, they don't know that I'm dating one of my roommates. They don't even know his name. So am I going to play the whole "oh we're just really good friends" card or should I just tell everyone the truth?
"Whatcha thinking about babygirl?" Colby asked me, keeping his eyes on the road.
"Just everything that's been going on the past couple of weeks is overwhelming. And my family doesn't even know who you are, I'm just afraid of what their reactions are gonna be." I said, fidgeting with my fingers.
"Everything will be okay baby, I promise you. And if it isn't, I'll be here for you no matter what." He said, quickly looking at me and giving me a smile.
This boy is what keeps my hopes up, keeps me thinking that everything is going to be okay. He's the only reason that I'm able to sleep at night the past couple of weeks. He's what keeps me moving forward.
Before I knew it, we were pulling up to the airport. We got out and grabbed out bags before a chauffeur took the car to the place they're gonna keep it til Colby comes back in a couple days.
The next couple of hours were spent checking in for our flight, going through hours of security, and finding our terminal.
"I'm gonna go grab Starbucks, I need some sort of caffeine in my system." I said, placing my PINK dufflebag next to Colby so he could watch it while I run to get a coffee.
As I'm waiting in the long line at Starbucks, I feel someone tap my shoulder. I'm greeted with a teenage girl, probably around sixteen years old, who had the biggest smile across her face.
"Hi! Oh my god! You're Ali! I love your videos! Can I get a picture with you?" The girl asked. This brought a smile onto my face. This is my first fan encounter ever, and it's pretty amazing.
"Yea, what's you're name?" I asked.
"Esme, you and Colby are dating, right?" She asked after we posed to take our picture.
"Yea, we are." I said.
"You guys are so cute, I've gotta go before I miss my flight, I love you! You're my role model!" She yelled as she ran away to her terminal. I laughed and turned back around in line. Realizing that I was next, I stepped up to the cashier and ordered my drink.
"Hey, you'll never believe what just happened." I smiled as I reached my terminal.
"This is the first time I've seen you smile in a while so it must be really good." Colby smiled, clearing off the seat next to him.
"I just had my first fan encounter, she was really nice." I smiled, taking a sip of my iced coconutmilk caramel latte.
"Flight 203 to JFK airport, New York City is ready for boarding." the flight attendant said over the speakers. I looked at Colby and he gave me a reassuring nod. The two of us stood up, grabbed our bags, and walked onto our plane.
Well, here goes the worst trip of my life. Oh, and did I mention I hate planes.
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