grand theft auto → hemmings

nine

Kelly tried. She really did. Her relationship with Luke was one of the most important to her, but he was making things so difficult.

It seemed as if the couple actually needed the game to be content with what they had. It was as if they lived their lives together in the game world. But now that Kelly couldn't be a part of Luke's game world, it seemed that she couldn't be a piece of his real world. Now the thought seemed foreign to both of them.

Skype calls lasted about ten minutes max. And they were just filled with awkward pauses and forced laughs. That wasn't Kelly and Luke. Their relationship was changing right in front of their eyes and they couldn't even see it. It eventually came to the point that when Luke would ask to chat, Kelly would lie and say she was busy.

Which she wasn't.

Soon enough they just stopped skyping all together. Luke hated it, but he couldn't stop it. Kelly was acting differently around him and he didn't like it. But what could he do? Nothing. All he could do was sit and watch their relationship crumble apart.

They texted.

But even that seemed to be forced. Luke would sometimes read a message, but not respond. Kelly would do the same. It went from texting all day everyday, to maybe one text a day, to one text a week. Soon enough they both changed each other's contact names in their phones.

Kelly was no longer Jelly Kelly. But instead just plain old Kelly.

Luke was no longer Luke the getaway :-). But he was just Luke.

When Kelly got accepted into the school she had applied to in Cali, she was thrilled. She told everyone in her family, even her mom was proud of her. Kelly grabbed her phone ready to send an excited text to her friend, but stopped.

She stared at Luke's name completely frozen. After staring at the screen for what seemed hours, she put her phone to the side and went back to celebrating with her family. Luke didn't even get the news.

Luke finally talked to his father. They worked things out and he was actually happy for once in a very long time. He even told his mum about his plans for college in America. She was fine with it, as long as her baby boy was happy. Luke was ready to call his friend across the waters, but stopped himself. He had almost forgotten about how they drifted. So he didn't send her anything. Kelly didn't even get the news.

Like every relationship, it must come to an end. So Kelly and Luke fell slowly and painfully out of touch completely.

Everything they have built up over the months seemed to have just vanished into a clear nothing. It hurt both teens knowing they lost their best friend. Well at least who they thought was their best friend.

Luke still had his other friends and without Kelly he started playing with them online. He had just as much fun playing with Michael. But still something felt like it was missing.

Kelly spent a lot of time reading and writing. She discovered her secret talent of writing without having to play her games all the time. According to her mother, she was fairly good. She even met some friends at the clubs she signed up for around the neighborhood. Kelly was happy. But she still felt like something was missing.

At night both teens would stare at their cell phones, debating whether or not to call the other. Kelly's heart pained her every time she saw something that reminded her of Luke. Whenever she saw a guy with blue eyes she automatically pictured Luke. It hurt.

Luke saw Kelly in every girl he came across. He felt as if he was going insane. Michael and Calum would try to get him a simple one night thing, but Luke couldn't do it. He only wanted one girl. And it pained him that the one girl didn't want him back. At least that's what he thought.

Kelly sat on her front porch, watching cars speed by. She tapped her shoes against the concrete underneath her feet. The sun was shining and it was a beautiful day. But those were one of the days that Kelly started to rethink her choices. Had she done the right thing? Sure she had new friends and she felt happy, but did she have everything she wanted?

She had started talking to this guy at her writing club. He was nice and sweet and there. He was actually physically there with Kelly. She wasn't used to that.

Luke tried talking to this girl he knew from school, but it didn't end well. He didn't think he could have the same thing with her that he had with Kelly. Kelly was the first girl Luke had felt strongly about. You couldn't just replace that.

One night Luke couldn't take it anymore. He missed his grand theft auto companion. It's been over two months. He was so close to calling her, but something stopped him again. What if she was happy without him? He always had that thought. If he just called her out of the blue then it could ruin whatever she had. He just wanted her to be happy. Luke even came to the conclusion of talking to his mother about his feelings.

They sat in the kitchen, his mum watching him pitifully as he told her everything. Luke said that he just wanted Kelly to be happy and live her life, but he wanted to be happy too. And for that to happen he needed her again. She brought out a better side of Luke. He liked to think that Kelly was the reason he talked to his father again.

His mother had told him something that shocked him to the very core.

"Honey," she said grabbing his hand, "That's called love."

Love? Luke couldn't possibly have loved Kelly. However it sure did feel like it now that he thought about it. He's never loved something or someone like that. How could his mum be so sure? She explained that love meant you put someone else's happiness and values above your own. Which Luke was in fact doing.

He loved Kelly.

Kelly sat around a fire pit with a group of her friends. Even the guy she had been talking to, Aaron, was there with her. Kelly felt free and happy. She liked this. It was much better than being trapped inside her dark room. But yet again, she sometimes let her mind slip away to the blonde fool who swept her off her feet for those five short months.

She wondered how he was holding up and if he was okay. The phone in her pocket seemed to double in weight making her stare down at it. She could just call him. What harm would that do? But she's gotten this far without falling back into that state of mind. Kelly was strong now. She was going to be okay. And she was positive that Luke would be okay too.

With the discovery of his new love, Luke didn't know what to do. He couldn't call her. He couldn't text her. So what was there? Nothing. All he could do was sit back and wait. Which was exactly what he did.

Maybe Kelly's mother was right the whole time. They had only met each other online. It wasn't like they would live happily ever after and stay together forever. Their story only explained that if you love something... set it free. Which Luke had finally discovered.

He let go.

Kelly did as well.

They both let go.

-

the end

jk jk there's one more chapter

honestly I hate myself so much right now and I give you permission to hate me