Video Hope

"Chelsea, I love you. I have never stopped loving you. I made a huge mistake and know why you left me. Every day I strive to be a better person, to be a better man," The video played on my computer, my cheeks blazed hot with embarrassment. "What I did to you in High School is unforgivable but please consider taking me back."

When the video had been made, I thought there was a chance for us. Everything I said was true but there was no way that Chelsea would ever take me back. Especially now that she was a very popular singer, who made a lot of money off of being the girl that got dumped. Every guy after she left the small town of Hope, Nebraska, had either dumped or been caught cheating on her. It was as if I had set a precedent that would follow her for the rest of her life.
My intention for the video was to send it to her email, and hopefully gain her forgiveness. Somehow it got posted to Youtube and now I was a viral sensation, with Facebook memes being made out of my heartfelt plea. This time the punishment fit the crime, and though no one believed me I was accepting it for what it was. After what I had done to Chelsea, I deserved to be the butt of the joke.

Somewhere buried under a pile of clothes, my phone vibrated but I paid it no mind. Under the video, people were leaving comments about how desperate I was for attention and that Chelsea would never go for a guy like me. It took all of my will power not to tell them that once upon a time she had gone for me, she was ready to be my wife. As ready as a 15 year old can be, but then I went and messed it all up.

Finally I dragged my eyes away from the screen and decided to go get something to eat. My parents were out celebrating their anniversary, and my younger brother was staying at his friend's house. If it was possible, I felt my self-esteem drop even further. How had I become a 21 year old man, with no friends and no life? A peanut butter and banana sandwich would cheer me up I decided.

Through the windows in the living room, I saw flashes of light but before I could get curious about it, my stomach growled so I made my way to the kitchen. Just as I was cutting up the banana for my sandwich, when there was a pounding on the front door. I wanted to ignore it but whoever was there was persistent.

Muttering obscenities under my breath, I left my food on the counter and made my way to the door. I opened the door, getting ready to yell at whoever was there but was stupefied when I found that it was Chelsea waiting there to greet me. She looked like an angel, especially with the backdrop of flashing cameras creating a halo effect. Finally I stumbled a greeting, "Er, Hi."
"Hey there, Christian." She smiled that toothy smile that had made me fall in love with her in the 8th grade. I took in her appearance, she was thinner than I remembered. The red lipstick that she wore made her pouty lips even more kissable. "May I come in? I would like to have a conversation with you, without all of the extra ears."
Even without her beckoning towards the paparazzi, I knew what she meant. I stepped to the side and waved her in. When her eyes took me in, I became very aware of how classy she looked in her little black dress, and how much like a bum I looked like in my sweat pants sans a shirt. "How have you been?"

"I've been better. But I didn't come here for the small talk, I came here to talk about that video that you made." As she sat down, she smoothed her dress. The realization that she was here, still had me stunned. Patting the seat next to her, she whispered,
"Sit. I want to talk to you. I've been thinking about giving it another try with you."

"What about your current boyfriend, that douche in the boy band?"

"He's gay. Pretty soon the tabloids will be reporting that he's cheating on me. It solidifies my position as a put upon girl, and makes him look like a womanizer. If only the world knew that I was more masculine than he is. Anyways I want you to take me out on a date."

"OK. Where to?"

A smile crept across her face. "The Grammy's this Sunday."

After she left that night I was stunned. Not only was I getting another chance with my dream girl, but it was going to be in a very high profile way. Renting a tux was easy, there was a shop in the heart of downtown but I was worried about scraping up enough money to get a flight out to LA, when Chelsea sent me plane tickets.

True to her word, the gossip blogs blew up with the story that once again, Chelsea had been cheated on. This time though there was a new angle to the story, one that suggested that Chelsea wasn't exactly innocent. Somehow I became part of the story with the video. Part of me worried that this was a career move on her part but I went with it. If it was and she hurt me, I deserved it after I cheated on her.

"You look gorgeous." Chelsea cooed in my ear as we walked down the red carpet. Questions were shouted at us but neither of us answered them. "And you have a great butt."

"You too." As soon as the words left my mouth I realized my blunder. "You look so beautiful."

I blushed when she kissed me.