Have you ever wondered why people come into our lives at exactly the right time? That somehow someone knew you needed a hand to hold or a shoulder to cry on or maybe a friend to laugh with. I guess this vacation has allowed me to reflect upon my life and the people in it. I needed this time away from my life in Los Angeles just to recharge my batteries and remember who I am.
I’ve been hanging out with Alyssa pretty much every day since we bumped into each other. It’s been a blast getting to know her and I’m thankful I met her. Basically the entire hotel is filled with retired couples and families, so that doesn’t leave me with many people to hang out with. She’s really laid back and care-free and it’s nice to have her around. She’s definitely starting to rub off on me. She doesn’t care that I’m a celebrity and won’t restrain herself from putting me in my place and I love that.
We’ve talked a lot about her life in North Carolina from graduation, to her family and her job. She’s lived here her whole life and although California excites her, she wouldn’t trade this place for anything in the world. I can’t really blame her. Ever since I got here I’ve had nothing but a wonderful time. Which reminds me, I’ve got to go pick her up for lunch. She’s busy planning the party for the fourth of July and I told her I’d take her out for a bit. Alyssa insists that we go to a crab shack for lunch and I can’t say I’m thrilled about it. I don’t understand the point of spending twenty minutes ripping, tearing, and cracking open shells only to get a quarter size amount of meat. Seems kind of pointless to me but Alyssa swears she’s got a system to it. Not going to lie, the only reason I agreed to go here was to see her “system” in action.
After making the quick walk to the events building, I opened the door and am immediately hit with a rush of cool air. I made a swift right and started walking towards her office. I rapped my knuckles on the door and her head snapped up from her computer. “Hey are ya ready to go?”
“It’s time for lunch already? Let me just finish typing this email up and then we can go.” Alyssa says before turning her attention back to the computer. I sat down in one of the chairs and took a minute to really examine her office. The room is filled with pictures of her friends and family and one picture really stood out from the rest. She’s riding piggy back on some guy, she looks to be about twelve or thirteen and their smiles literally take over the entire portrait.
“Whose that?” I asked pointing at the frame in question.
She looked up quickly and her eyes lit up. “Oh that’s my good friend Ryan. We were neighbors growing up and we’ve been friends ever since. He lives about three hours from here but we talk pretty much every day.”
“That’s cool.” I responded trying my best to keep my voice steady. I don’t know why that little bit of information made me feel a little insecure. It’s not like I even like Alyssa, she’s just a really chill girl.
Suddenly, she stopped typing and started putting everything away. Quickly, she shuffled her feet around the office and grabbed her purse before making her way towards the door. Thank God because my eyes haven’t left that picture since I sat down and I need to get away from it. “Let’s go stud!” She quips breaking through my thoughts.
Following right behind her, we headed out of the building and she locked up before we started walking toward the car. “Aren’t you coming back?”
“Nope…I came into work early so that I could have the rest of the afternoon off.”
“Big plans?” I ask.
“Not unless you’ve planned something for me.” She retorts back while starting her car up and driving off towards the crab shack. “I was planning on maybe taking a hike through the woods; you’re welcome to join me. Although, Mrs. Smith seems to have quite the crush on you and I know she’d be thrilled to spend the afternoon with you.”
Suddenly, my mind wanders back to the image of Mrs. Smith and I feel a shudder overtake my body. Mrs. Smith is about eighty years old and she’s confined to a wheelchair. Now that’s not the thing that freaks me out, it’s the fact that every time I’m around her she smacks my ass. I’m not talking about a little love tap…no she must hoard all of her energy up so that when she sees me, she can whack me. It fucking hurts too and now I’m cringing. “I’ll pass on Mrs. Smith and go hiking with you.”
Alyssa smiles brightly as we pull up to the shack and step out of the car. The waiter immediately seats us at one of the tables outside and we have a clear view of the ocean. All right, so this place isn’t that bad…but then again we haven’t started cracking crab, so it’s still open for interpretation.
“How’s the party planning going?” I asked while taking a sip of water.
“It’s good. All I have left to do is call up the fireworks company and make sure that’s still ready to go. Otherwise, it’s done which is a huge relief for me. The fourth of July is a pretty big deal around here.”
I raised my eyebrows. “Why’s it such a big deal? What do you have planned?”
“The hotel puts on a huge barbecue outside on the beach, there’s music and dancing, and following everything at 10:00 we shoot off a huge fireworks display. The guests always have a good time and that’s what matters to me.”
“Well it’s a good thing I’ll be around to experience first hand your party planning skills.” I said while winking at her.
All of a sudden the waiter brought out an entire tin of crab and placed it in front of us. Now I’m not going to lie again, but I was sort of disgusted looking at all the crab. There were probably fifteen crabs just laying there and I was going to peel their shells off to eat them. I wouldn’t be so thrilled if someone boiled me and then peeled my skin off to eat me…ok now; I’m completely off topic and severely grossed out.
However, Alyssa showed no hesitation and in one swift motion cracked the damn thing so that all the meat was exposed. Tossing the shell to the side, she dug out the meat and started eating. I just stared at her flabbergasted. How did she do that?
“Why are you looking at me like that?” She asked as she continued eating.
“Where in the world did you learn to do that?”
“My dad taught me. Justin, I live in North Carolina it’s kind of tradition to go out to crab shacks. Come on, you’re being a big baby, pick one up and pull down here while using your fork to push the shell off.” Alyssa explained as she demonstrated her skills.
Now being a man, I wasn’t about to be showed up by a girl, so I grabbed one and did exactly what she showed me. I swear, I didn’t change anything…I pulled and pushed where she said. But guess what happened? I only broke off a penny sized piece of shell, no meat, no nothing! See…what the hell is the point of this food? Why not have someone do this for you and then you just eat the meat? Of course, Alyssa immediately bursts into laughter at my failed attempt and I can feel a blush creep into my cheeks. She schooled me hardcore at this.
Realizing that I just wasn’t meant to be a crab cracker, I gave in and let her break the rest of them. At least I could actually eat the meat and not get pieces of shell mixed in. Thankfully, the rest of lunch went smoothly and not long after we were heading back to the hotel to get changed and head out hiking. Alyssa had brought clothes with to work and I grabbed a pair of shorts and tennis shoes. I know, I should be wearing hiking boots…but who brings hiking boots when you’re on vacation at a beach? Exactly my point! Therefore, my tennis shoes will have to do for now. I made sure to grab extra water bottles and we started walking away from the hotel up towards the woods.
I can honestly say I haven’t been on a hike for years. I think the last time I was eight or nine and went with my dad for boy scouts. Yeah, I was one of them back in Tennessee…but that was before the Mickey Mouse Club and everything else that followed. Before my life spun out of control and way before I ever needed a vacation to find myself again.
Alyssa walked a couple steps ahead of me and I definitely had to book it to keep up. We followed a trail that brought us to a cliff over looking a pond. This was definitely something I didn’t expect to find.
“I found this place one day and I love to come here whenever I go into the woods. It’s so secluded and untouched.” She explained.
I could definitely relate to wanting to be secluded away from everything. Why can’t places like this in Los Angeles and if they do, why don’t I know about them? I can’t even leave my house without someone following me and having the paparazzi take pictures of me on a hike just doesn’t sound too appealing. “This place is awesome.”
Alyssa walked over to a pair of huge boulders and set her backpack down. She wiped the perspiration off her forehead and sat down on the ground. Following her lead, I sat across from her and started chugging some water.
“Can I ask you something?” She asks me after I finish drinking. I nod my head. “Why are you out here? You said you needed a break from Los Angeles…but why?”
I sighed as all the stress of that life comes flooding back to me. “My life for the past two years has been crazy. I never have a day off and I can never be alone. Everyone knows what I’m doing on every minute of every day. I’ve kind of lost touch with who I am…”
Alyssa took a deep breath and I could see her eyes cloud over with regret. “I’m sorry…I can’t imagine what that must be like. So doing something like this back in California is probably out of the question?”
“Completely…unless you want photographers with us, constantly snapping pictures and calling our names. I mean…I love being an entertainer and it’s given me so many opportunities to do things I’ve always wanted but there’s a complete other side to it that gets exhausting.”
“I bet…what about dating, that must be hard?” She asks and I can tell we’re treading into a very awkward conversation.
“It’s not easy to have relationships in Hollywood. They are constantly printing stories that are false and if there’s a lack of trust, you might as well forget it. They’ve torn so many of my relationships to shreds.” I said knowing a sad undertone was evident in my voice.
“That’s awful.” Alyssa says while pulling me into a quick hug. She rubs her hand up and down my back and then releases me from her arms. “I promise this vacation will be everything you need right now.”
A smile quickly tugs at my lips and I can feel it take over my face. “As long as we can hang out, I don’t think I’ll have a hard time enjoying myself.” Did I just flirt again with her? Shit, I did.
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Alyssa and I spent most of the afternoon up in the woods exploring and appreciating the beautiful scenery. North Carolina was quickly becoming my favorite place to be. This place allowed me to relax and be myself, which was exactly what I was looking for when I came here. I certainly didn’t expect to meet a girl and develop a friendship with her. I’ve never met anyone like Alyssa before. It’s the little things in life that she appreciates and that’s attractive. She doesn’t care about money and fame; in fact she’d rather not discuss that part of my life because she knows it hurts me sometimes. She just wants to show me around and make sure I fall in love with this place because it means so much to her.
Although, now I am lying down on my bed completely exhausted from our hike earlier. Alyssa dropped me back off at the hotel before she went home for the night. Part of me wished she was still around because talking to myself can get a little boring. Deciding I should probably connect with some people back home, I flipped my phone open and dialed Trace’s number.
“Hey man, how’s NC?” Trace chimes into the phone.
“It’s going well…how’s LA?” I ask while turning the volume down on the TV and shutting the lights off.
“Same old, same old. But guess who I ran into today?”
“Who?” My interest was definitely peaked a little.
“Cameron.” He states.
I could feel my heart sink and my mood turn solemn immediately. I haven’t seen or spoken to Cameron since we broke up and it’s probably a good thing. We are definitely not on the best of terms. I thought Britney messed me up, but Cameron she practically destroyed my heart. I thought she was it for me and I was ready to marry her at the drop of a hat. But all of a sudden, it was over and I still don’t understand why. “Why are you telling me this stuff man?”
“I thought you would want to know. Guess not. Listen J, we don’t have to talk about her. What have you been doing in North Carolina?”
“Just been surfing a lot and hanging by the beach. It’s relaxing here.” I can’t help but picture Alyssa in my mind. Her smile and her laugh it definitely helps ease the pain from thinking about Cameron.
“Met any chicks?”
That’s completely Trace, all he thinks about are girls. “Yeah…she works at the hotel doing event promotions. She’s a really cool girl to hang out with.”
“How long before you bang her?” See what I mean? That’s all he thinks about.
“Not happening…”
“What is she ugly or something?” Tactful, huh?
“No, she’s definitely pretty but it’s not like that with her. She’s just fun to hang out with.”
“That’s kind of lame man! But it’s good to hear from you, sorry I can’t talk longer but I have to be at a party for William Rast. Call me later bro!” Abruptly, I heard the phone go dead and he was gone.
Well that was definitely interesting. Trace isn’t always that cocky but he’s just doing it to get under my skin. Besides, I don’t even look at Alyssa that way. She’s just a friend and I wouldn’t do anything to ruin that, especially something like sleeping with her.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Hey Everyone! Thank you for the reviews...keep them coming, I love to hear from you. I can't wait to really get into this story, it should be a lot of fun to write! Well here's the next chapter I hope you like it! Let me know what ya think! Have a great night! :) -Whit
Story Tags: daddyj
