Death writes with a Purple Ballpoint Pen

5: My Shoulders Alone

Dedicated to AshlynHeart for being so much sweeter than your already lovely comments.

Jackson and Shelby in the media bar along with Let Me Down by Lily Elise ft. Made in LA.

5: My Shoulders Alone

I unlocked the front door to the apartment and smiled apologetically at Grant. "Sorry about the mess."

My parents and I weren't the most organized people. Plus, the apartment was small and things were always being stacked on top of each other. On most days, the couch was unofficially transformed into a bookshelf while the coffee table was stacked with papers and files.

Grant looked around smiled. "Compared to my bedroom, your apartment belongs in an interior design magazine."

"Remind me never to come over," I joked. "Do you want a soda? Water? A fruit popsicle?"

He looked amused. "I'll go for the fruit popsicle"

I grabbed two popsicles from the fridge. "We have grape and lime." He took the grape and we walked to my room. "Make yourself comfortable wherever."

Grant positioned himself in the bean bag chair next to study area. "Is this yours?" He pointed at the humongous gaming laptop occupying most of the desk.

"My parents got it for me for my eighteenth birthday – college prep and stuff," I explained nonchalantly as it booted up. My parents had indeed given it to me on my eighteenth birthday; but it was more of a congratulatory gift for my acceptance letters to business schools than an actual birthday present.

"They must really want you to go to a good school."

Before I could do anything else, my computer started to beep – I had an incoming Skype call from Kevin. "This'll just take a second."

"Finally," Kevin groaned. He was staring at the TV behind his computer and probably didn't yet realize I wasn't alone. "Took you long enough to answer the damn call, Walker. How'd it go with the whole –"

"Kevin, this is Grant."

An evil little grin came over Kevin's face. "Oh, Marie's going to want to see this," he muttered, fingers flying over his keyboard.

"No! Don't wake her –"

But Marie was already joining the Skype call. "This better be good, Mehra," she grumbled sleepily. It was obvious she'd just woken up. "I don't want to hear anything about how you like going to the bathroom at the crack of dawn –"

"TMI, Marie." Kevin was full-on smirking. "We have a guest."

Grant positioned himself closer to the screen. "Friends of yours?"

We all answered at once. "Cousins."

"You don't look alike."

"I'm Anna's cousin." Marie corrected him with confidence. It could almost pass for the truth. Though she was a bit more petite, our features were similar. "Kevin is my boyfriend."

"And Kevin is rude," I added.

"Rude and inappropriate," Kevin added proudly. "But enough about us. Who might you be?"

"I'm Grant. Anna and I are on the school newspaper."

"You don't have an English accent," Marie mumbled sleepily.

Recognition flashed in Grant's eyes. "Are they talking about Ben?"

I glared at my two friends, muttered a quick goodbye and logged out of Skype. I pulled up the e-mail program on my computer and got to work but Grant was still smiling at me. "So, Ben."