⊹₊ ˚‧︵‿₊୨ January 5th First Day Back ୧₊‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹
Lizzy nodded along as Rudy questioned whether these weddings were some kind of punishment. ”Hey, now you’re getting it,” She told him encouragingly. No, he may not have meant it in the way Lizzy viewed it, nor had he intended to actually be serious. But there was certainly something painfully punishing about the wedding attendee, Jane, always showing up for everyone and playing the supporting role in their love stories, while her own was left unwritten. ”Many layers to this,” She agreed, tilting her head, wondering if he was starting to pick up on the fact that these movies were more than just fluffy romance. To her, at least. ”Not just lessons of running through an airport in heels or stupidly slow dancing in the middle of the street,” Lizzy told him through a laugh, with self-awareness of how ridiculous they can be sometimes. ”Though I’m sure they are equally useful. But, yeah, I think it’s time you started giving romance movies credit where it’s due.”
”Well that works,” Lizzy started after Rudy explained and demonstrated his draw to movies with cars and destruction. ”I’m pretty sure the crossover of romance and car crashes is…” She attempted, but her tone became more unconvincing as she went on, ”… Okay, not that much. But there definitely should be more, big gap in the cinema for that kind of movie,” Lizzy suggested, trying to picture the combination of the two. As she had expected - and kind of hoped - Rudy then told her he was just kidding, that he just likes movies. ”Yeah, you don’t seem the type to have a specific genre,” She thought out loud. Then she winced as she recalled the first half an hour of the movie she had just recommended - ”The type to stay open-minded at the concept of long lost identical twins finding each other at a summer camp,” Lizzy told him, before holding her hands up in mock surrender, ”You just have to suspend disbelief for a second, okay?”
After agreeing to her first rule, Rudy then suggested a second - that she had to watch one of his movies. Okay, was Lizzy being completely crazy here or was he totally getting her to commit to more time spent together? Fine, it was probably definitely for fairness purposes, but can you blame her for looking into it slightly? ”I guess that would make us equal,” Lizzy agreed, nodding - though her agreeing face gradually falling as Rudy described a scene of brutal explosions, a fearful expression replacing it despite knowing he was joking. ”Okay well if you’re gonna go down that route can you at least start small? Maybe just one falling helicopter?” Lizzy asked through a wince.
Lizzy’s class was in sight, she could even start to see some people making their way in. She felt guilty at the sight of that, knowing that Rudy was supposed to be on the opposite side of the building right now. She took a step forward, aiming for an abrupt departure to let him get to his class somewhat on time. But Rudy stopped her, having a revelation that stopped Lizzy in her tracks. That they could exchange numbers. Her heart rate accelerated. ”Y-yeah sure,” She told him, her fingers tightly wrapped around the straps of her bag. Then Lizzy patiently watched as Rudy chaotically sifted through his things, looking for his phone, then instead for somewhere she can write down her number. She watched in awe as she caught a glimpse of the contents of his backpack - disorganised and cluttered - nothing like hers. And she loved it.
Eventually, Rudy found a piece of paper, just as the hallways began to empty from surrounding students piling into classes. They were both going to be late now. ”Perfect,” Lizzy exclaimed, her pen in hand as it had been through all the waiting. Writing down her number, Rudy told her how he would watch The Parent Trap tonight and call her about it. Lizzy’s eyebrows almost shot up in surprise at the thought of them actually calling. “Cool, that’s, uh, so cool,” Lizzy stuttered through as she walked backwards, stopping at the doorway of her class. ”I’ll see you soon then. Talk soon. Later. Okay, bye.” She finally stopped herself, before Rudy turned and started walking the opposite direction, just as she expected. Practically falling into her classroom, she met eyes with a few people sat at the front, who had unfortunately witnessed that shambles of a goodbye. Lizzy gave them a look of self-aware defeat, before taking her seat.
⊹₊ ˚‧︵‿₊୨ January 9th Rudy’s Call ୧₊‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹
Despite what he told her, Rudy never called her that evening. Lizzy waited up, prepared herself for what she was going to say, checked her phone and Facebook every half an hour - but no sign of Rudy. She had taken the hint during the next day, avoiding his gaze and picking conversation with anyone but him. Then the following days, that she still didn’t hear from him. Maybe he had just lost her number amongst all the other stuff that had been in his bag. Maybe he had never been that interested, and Lizzy had just read too far into everything that had happened. It had been too good to be true, she had told herself. Nothing that good would ever actually happen and last for someone like her.
Lizzy had been staying at her dad’s house over that week. An apartment of reduced decoration, plain white walls, and only basic furniture. Minimal, practical, and restricted - very representative of the owner. Lizzy’s room stuck out like a sore thumb, as did she in the apartment, with her walls filled with posters, fluffy carpets, and colourful bedsheets. Her room was positioned on the opposite end from both her dad’s bedroom and office. Conveniently placed out of the way for her dad, leaving him always safe from any disruption she may cause him.
This night in particular, Lizzy was in this isolated room, having hardly exchanged a word with her father. She’d convinced herself that whatever her budding relationship with Rudy had been was over, and tried her best not to think about it. It was good, really. Rudy truly seemed like the type of person that Lizzy could get really invested in. And so, it was a blessing in disguise that she was being made to cut it off from it early on - instead of sticking around and eventually getting more hurt further down the line.
Lizzy was just about to go to sleep when the sound of the phone ringing had made her jump. Groaning, she turned back on her light, forcing herself to get up and locate her phone.
”… Hello?”
”Hi Lizzy-Lou, it’s me,” It was her mom.
Lizzy let out a sigh, looking up to the ceiling. She was due back at hers in a matter of days, and didn’t usually hear from her when staying with her dad. It was generally never a good sign when she called mid-week. It was already hard enough not to worry about her when she stayed here, and what she might be getting up to when alone and surrounded by substances and people she probably should be, and so calling her in this time made it extremely difficult to disconnect from that. ”Hi, Mom. Are you okay?” She eventually asked, secretly dreading the answer.
”I was just wondering if you could bring a little something when you come to mine on Saturday,” The voice on the phone told her. ”I don’t even care what. Vodka, whiskey, gin… you choose.” Lizzy took a few steps across the room, which turned into a pacing.
After a moment to compose herself and control her reaction, Lizzy responded. ”But mom,” Lizzy said as she put on a smile, for no one in particular. Maybe herself. ”You were doing so well,” Lizzy told her patiently, encouragingly, with that same stupid hopeless optimism. She thought she had made progress with her mom, making a sobriety plan together and suggesting alternate outlets for her to use. For weeks, Lizzy hadn’t heard from her, and she thought this had been a good thing, that she was coping on her own. She should have known better.
”It’s not, it’s- I am, I just need… like a tiny bit,” Her mother slurred, forming a pit in Lizzy’s stomach at the familiarity of this situation, this conversation.
Lizzy looked out the window, as if some form of solution will be outside waiting for her. ”I’m not old enough to get anything” She said in a small voice - thankful of that being the case.
”Take something from your dads place. He won’t notice.”
”Mom.”
”It’s just one time, it will be fine.”
”Mom.”
”Come on, Elizabeth. You love your mom, right?” Her voice was an attempt at assertion, but outweighed by the shakiness. But it was still enough to hit Lizzy. ”Of course I do, I just -“ At the detection of her own voice faltering, Lizzy took a breath and looked around for an escape route. ”Uh, Dad’s calling me. I have to go,” She told her hurriedly before flipping her phone shut.
Lizzy let out the breath she had been holding in. Then many more short and fast breaths. None of which seeming capable of providing her sufficient air. She continued her steps around the room, passing her phone from one hand to the other, as she tried not to picture the sight on the other side of that call. Lizzy rubbed her forehead with the palm of her hand, contemplating going over there and checking if she was okay. With not much of a backup plan in the likely case that she was not. She felt stuck, and at a loss as to how she can help. And she hated that feeling.
Lizzy jumped at the sound of her phone ringing again. She gave herself no time to think about it, no time to contemplate avoiding the call. After the first ring, Lizzy picked up, mid pacing. Her panicked frustration was rising, and was obvious in the words she blurted out; ”Mom, please stop asking me to do thi——“
The voice on the other end stopped her in her tracks, her eyebrows shot up, and she almost dropped her phone in surprise. Because the voice was not the same as the frail, desperate woman it had been. Quite the opposite, and at the realisation, Lizzy wished she had dropped her phone. Wished it would smash into pieces and it would somehow take back that moment of frustration that Rudy had just witnessed. She closed her eyes in defeat and embarrassment. How is it that after days of waiting for his call that it would happen now, like this? ”Sorry, I- uh, thought you were someone else. Obviously,” Lizzy explained, her breath steadied as she sat at the edge of her bed.
Thankfully, Rudy did not go much into what it had been, as he seemed to be calling about something else. “What?” She said dazedly, as she tried to piece together what he was talking about. Horror movie. Mastermind kids. Parents. “Oh,” The Parent Trap. ”Oooh,” He was watching it as per her recommendation. Lizzy shot up, clinging on to this distraction, glad to have a conversation she was more than happy to engage in. ”Oh yeah, what part are you up to?” Lizzy asked, reaching for the movie from her DVD collection, sliding the disc into her player. ”And you totally should have seen it coming. Double Lindsay Lohan? Those kids were inevitably going to be geniuses.”
⊹₊ ˚‧︵‿₊୨୧₊‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹