Benji sat in his bunk, with his guitar, and his notebook, he was trying to get her off his mind, trying to get over the fact that she'd lied to him. He didn't know what to do. He loved her, God knew he loved her with everything he had, but now he wondered if he even knew her. She wasn't the person she said she was anymore. He didn't know who she was, but she wasn't Annie, she wasn't the Annabelle that he grew up across the street from, she was a different person, a person he felt he didn't even know. A complete stranger.
"Um... Benj?" Joel said as he approached Benji, he was worried about him, the 3 weeks was over tommorrow, he had to go get Annie, or see if she was better, if she was capable of leaving.
"Yeah, Joel, what? I'm not trying to be a prick, I just... I don't fell like talking right now...", Benji said, without meeting Joel's eyes.
"Maybe you should talk about it Benj... I've let this go before but we have to talk about this before we leave to get Annie... I know you loved her, and I know she lied, but... well I didn't tell you but she called me the other night... she's been doing really well, she said the first week was hard but she thinks she's finally over it, she thinks shes ready to come home, and she has something for you...", Joel said, as he turned around to leave. Benji didn't say anything, he had listened, but he didn't know what to do. He hadn't told Joel what had really been on his mind, but what Benji was starting to wonder was, why didn't Annie tell him? what had he done to her to make her feel like she couldn't tell him? He didn't blame her anymore... he blamed himself.
Joel knew that Annie was going to give Benji. She didn't tell him, but he knew she was going to give him the letter. He knew what it said, and he knew that Annie meant every word of it, but he wasn't sure if it was the right time... Benji still wasn't over what had happened 3 weeks ago.
*Annies POV*
Annie sat on her bed, well it wasn't her bed, but it was the one she'd called home for the past 3 weeks. She reached under her mattress and opened the envelope. She read The Letter to herself, making sure it sounded perfect. She'd spent the past 3 years of her life making this letter perfect. She finally thought that it explained everything, and she hoped that after he read it, he would understand.
Benji Boy,
Do you remember that night that I snuck in your room to see you for the first time? and I scared you so bad you ran to Joel's room because you didn't know it was me? And after I went around to Joel's room and you realized it was me, you took me to your room and we watched movies and laughed together and you shared a song with me that you had just written? I hope you do because if you don't.. this letter isn't going to make much sense.
Every word of that song reminded me of how I felt for you. Everytime I hear that song, I get chills, and I get this indescribable feeling inside of me because it reminds me of my love for you. Everytime I hear that song, I know that no matter what we keep from each other, and no matter what we confess to each other, there is something that is going to make things alright, somehow, someway.
So, with these 3 words, all of my heart goes out to you. Benjamin Levi Madden, I love you. And I am ready to prove this to you at a moments notice.
Annie
She looked down at the letter. Tonight Benji and Joel would be here. Tonight she would be able to leave. Tonight Benji would know how much he meant to her.
She packed all her things, and went to sleep, she wanted to be rested for when she saw him for the first time since he'd known the complete truth... that was, if he wanted to see her. She hadn't thought about that. What if he lost that spark in his eye now that he knew the truth? What if when she looked in his eyes... she no longer saw the other half of the one thing that made her want to live? What if he read the letter and he didn't feel the same way... that somehow she had been wrong, that that spark in his eye didn't mean the same thing to him as it did to her...
*Later that night*
Annie sat on her bed, worried about everything... if she didn't have Benji and Joel, she didn't have anyone. She was alone. Again. She couldn't stand to be alone, not after everything she'd been through in the past 3 weeks. There was no way, it wasn't possible...
*Benj & Joels POV*
"Where is Benji?", Joel yelled, it was time to leave, they had to there in 2 hours, and Benji was nowhere to be found.
"Uh.. he said something about going to figure out what was going on with someone... um... forgot the name sorry" Paul said, not looking away from the television. The Simpons were on.
"Maybe hes there already...", Joel said as he grabbed his jacket and ran outside to go see.
*Annies POV*
She sat on her bed, facing the window, thinking of everything that had happened. It was 7:00, she didn't think that they were going to come... they stopped letting people inside at 8, so she decided to give up. She hugged her pillow as a tear rolled down her cheek. Apparently she wasn't important to them anymore... or they wouldn't have forgotten about her. Or so she thought. Maybe she was never really important to them, maybe she should just go back to Lissa's house and stay in Waldorf. Maybe things weren't suppose to happen this way, maybe she needed to wake up....
Annie woke up to a knock at her door, she hadn't realized that she'd fallen asleep. It was only 7:23 so she'd only been asleep for a few minutes, she got up. She heard the knocking again. She wondered who would be knocking on her door after dinner, she hadn't befriended anyone else in the center, so she was getting worried. She got up to answer the door, and it was Benji.
"H-uh.. Hey..", Benji said looking at the ground. "So... are you ready to leave or do you want me to come back tomorrow?"