1 002:Back & Forth

|Elena's Point of View|

Using the back of my hand to shield my brown eyes from the orange noon sun, I smiled brightly as I connected eyes with a long term friend, whose face I haven't seen in years but somehow still could picture it perfectly in every way.

Down to the small scar under the hair on his eyebrow, he'd gotten it as a kid after falling through a glass table. Even from a young age, he was clumsy.

He stood with a few other people two of which held cameras. I automatically guessed that these men were part of the small crew for there show: Ghost Adventures.

I didn't recognise any of them but they all turned when Aaron yelled out my name. One thing I could say for sure is that they all looked amazing in their western attire.

It matched my saloon get up perfectly.

It took us both a long moment to recognise one another, his once fat round face and body now more slender but not unhealthy and my once skinny body now curvy but our smiles still remained exactly the same.

"Aaron??"

I giggled a little as I headed over, dropping the accent completely revealing my British one as I lifted the bottom of my dress so it didn't touch the sand and get caught underneath my feet.

His cowboy boots met my heels halfway and immediately I was pulled into his large frame, my head now buried inside his chest as we swayed, both smiling brightly as we laughed "It's been so long!"

I felt his chin rest on the top of my curled heat damaged hair "Three years!" He remembered! Wrapping his arms around me more to hold me close just as I did him "Three years. Four months and six days."

"You counted?"

"Was I not suppose too!"

My oldest and longest friend.

What felt like an eternity passed but in life was probably only a few minutes and we pulled back to look at each other properly, he looked so handsome as always, not so different to the young guy I once knew. His hair was still none existent and his bread bushy and black.

His hazel eyes ran over me and he shook his head with a smile "You look-"

"Old?" I teased, causing us both to laugh.

"I'm older than you, since when has twenty-six been old!" He chuckled "You look-"

"Like crap?"

"No!" He said loudly into the air "You look amazing." He now grinned looking back down at me.

God, I'm so short! I need to invest in some heels!

"And I could say exactly the same thing about you" He looked great for his age of thirty-seven. Must be in his DNA.

I stepped back as I held his arms to get a proper look at the man I'd missed so much "You're really taking all this dieting stuff seriously."

"Doctors orders" He held his hands up in defence.

Just before we'd lost contact he told me all about his appointment, his dad had passed away from heart issues due to his weight and the doctors informed him that if he didn't have a chance. He'd be next.

That same day I drove him to the grocery store and he bought $300 worth of healthy foods and diet pills.

"What are you doing here? I thought you were back in England?"

We haven't seen each other for three years and we haven't spoken on the phone for two. It's a very long and somewhat depressing story but due to working two jobs Andy and I never really got to meet up much when I lived in Portland. Every time we'd plan a movie night or meet up, something would get in the way or he'd be out of town.

Then my mom got ill and I had to return back to the UK. Through the two years I was there, Aaron and I lost contact, I had lost my phone when moving overseas and I'd never been a big fan of social media so I had no real way of contacting him again. Plus with his schedule, I doubt even if I did message him, he'd be too busy to respond.

Until now.

We can finally reconnect!

"I was until like five weeks ago, my mom decided that she wanted to live the high life after her scare so we moved back over. I wanted to return to Oregon but mom loved the look of this place" I shrugged slightly "So here we are... and here you are!"

"Here we are" He corrected.

Smiling I let my eyes peek over his shoulder watching as the group he stood with began to approach us. Taking his arm inside of mine and turned him around "Now now Aaron don't be rude, introduce me to your friends!"

I'd never watched the show but I knew all about the show and the people in it because I was the one he spoke with when he needed it but I'd never met them in person, I never asked too. What Aaron did with his work friends wasn't my business!

I knew names! Just not faces...

"Guys!" Aaron grinned, as the three cowboys stopped in front of us, the cameras discarded under a tent to presumably stop them overheating.

I know a thing or two! I'm not all stupid!

"This is Elena! we go way back well not like super way back but way back" I allowed my eyes to roam over each one of the men as Andy introduced them "Elena this is the crew" This is Billy-"

I held my hand out towards the man my friend had nodded too.

Billy Tolley: The oldest of the bunch who was also the shortest, who's smile matched mine as we shook hands and said hello. He seemed nice.

"Then there's Jay." Andy tilted his hat toward the second man.

Jay Wasley: The youngest and the tallest. The man's voice wasn't what I was expecting but he said hello and shook my hand with a tight grip before letting go so I could move on.

"And this is-"

I cut him off placing my hand on his "Let me guess?"

Andy shrugged a little "Sure go ahead."

I looked over the man with green eyes, black hair, a trimmed goatee and the smell of sandalwood lingered over him. This must be "Nick?" I raised my eyebrow as the group giggled between them apart from the man in front of me who definitely wasn't smiling.

I knew there was a Nick in the group! Aaron had spoken about him multiple times over the years...Guess this wasn't him.

Then where was he?

"What's so funny?" I asked clearly not in on the joke "I don't get the joke."

"It's nothing just an inside thing..He's not arriving till tomorrow, flights are delayed" Between laugher and brief explanation Aaron kindly corrected me "You were close but this is Zak."

Now this name I recognised from mine and Aaron's 3am conversations, which were never cheerful ones.

Like the other two, I held my hand out to greet the man made of muscle who's eyes practically burnt into my body well, one partially part of my body that was currently being held up by a corset.

...He's this kinda man... Great. But any friend of Aaron is a friend of mine!

Ignoring his rudeness I looked at my hand, then to him "It's a pleasure to meet y-"

"Yeah." He cut me off rather quickly his voice seemed rather irritated.

I recoiled my hand with a blank expression on my face, however just as I was about to call the man out, he spoke up again, his eyes moving to the man beside me, they hadn't looked at mine once. Not once. I don't even think he'd let them land on my face which caused me to run a hand over my cheek.

Was there something on it?

What did I do wrong?

"Wrap this up man this isn't a family reunion, we've got a promo to film."

Who did this guy think he was? We haven't taken away more than five maybe ten minutes of the time, a few more moments wouldn't be a problem, surely.

Aaron went to speak but this time I was the one who spoke over him. I noted it mentally so I could apologise later on for it but for now.

It's my turn to speak.

"I just need a few more minutes."

"Well, we don't have a few more minutes sweetheart." The man didn't look at me but his jaw tightened.

Aaron must have noticed because he now spoke up, his hand landing on mine, entwining our fingers to calm me. I noticed eyes burning into his action but I didn't mind much.

It's not like we've never held hands before.

With a sigh, Aaron pulled his phone out from his pocket "Least I can do is get your number."

I smiled up to him as I took the IPhone in my hand and began to direct my way through his apps to enter my details "You'll have to swing by the bar a little later or whenever Nick arrives, it'd be nice to meet you all properly."

Well, all apart from one.

"Bro." The man warned causing me to look up at him "We need to go."

"He'll be with you in a second." Rolling my eyes in his direction I handed the phone back.

His chiselled jaw sat looking tighter than before. He was pissed off.

Good. He's an asshole

"Hurry up."

I sent a smile there way mainly to annoy the man before turning my head to my left. Standing on my tiptoes I held my hands beside my back as I moved to place a kiss on my friend's kiss and say my goodbyes.

I stepped forward causing Zak and Billy to separate allowing me to walk in between them. I sent Billy a nod to say thank you but as I turned to Zak I stayed straight-faced needing to have the last word between us.

"I told you I'd only be a second." I looked over his outfit and his perfect tanned face, he was incredibly handsome, but he was an asshole, big turn off for me "Words you've no doubabtly said to many women in your life. Have a nice night sweetheart."

I heard a few scoffs of laughter as I left the group to head towards the open bar saloon were my shift began in five minutes.

Elena1. Zak 0.