" two teenagers who were scared to love one another "TW mention of drugsREWRITTENEstella's POV :After that ridiculous show, I wasn't going to wait around like a fool for Den to give me a ride. I grabbed my phone out of my pocket to call an Uber as I bounded out of the hall and headed for the venue exit. I detest it when people lie to me, especially when they are attempting to enter my life and begin with dishonesty.This might not be as bad as it looks, or perhaps I'm exaggerating it! It's bad enough that my friends didn't even bother to tell me which damn show we were going to, but Billie is spouting crap about being sick, yet there she is, right in the spotlight, singing her heart out.What did it mean, anyway, that "we wanted to tell you but Billie didn't"? It felt like a reminder of how one person's choice could change everything,What does she think? I would have noticed eventually, anyway. Did she really believe she could keep her fame a secret from me? That's just naive. Would it have been so terrible if she had told me right away? Is she worried I'd mock her or treat her differently? Either way, that would be really foolish.As I awaited my Uber, I leaned against the exit door and scrolled through my phone in search of my best friend Miles' contact. I had no reason to go home yet, so I chose to visit the one friend who never lies to me and clear my mind. I selected his contact and sent him a message saying I was heading to his house.time skip ...I had just stepped out of the car when the door to Miles' house swung open. "Hey there, what's up? It's been a while! What brings you here?" he exclaimed. After shutting the door behind me, the Uber driver drove away. I dashed over to Miles, jumping into his arms with a wide smile. "Oh, stop it. I simply wanted to see you and have a good time," I replied, looking up at him with pleading eyes.He released his hold on me, sat me back down, then put an arm around my shoulder and guided me into his house. "Alright, what kind of fun are you considering?" he said with a smirk and a wink. I slipped away from his grip and nudged his shoulder, saying, "Eww, not that! You know, the other stuff. Some cool things like good music and a bit of alcohol— that's the kind of fun I'm talking about." I hurried past him to the kitchen and checked the fridge for some items—the kind of stuff that helps you forget everything.""I got some great new things today, come on," he said, making me jump as I felt his breath on my ear. He laughed, ruffled my hair, and headed toward his living room. I grabbed the vodka bottle from the fridge and hurried after him. "No need to give me a heart attack! How can I try this if you scare me to death first?" I exclaimed. He just shook his head and gestured to the spot next to him on the couch. I took a seat and watched as he pulled the items out from beneath the table."So, are you prepared for the party with just the two of us? "He smiled at me, placed everything on the table, and turned on some music. "Don't ask me twice," I said eagerly, took a sip from the vodka bottle, handed it to him, and grabbed one of the many bags from the table.Even after drinking half of the bottle, taking three pills, and smoking two joints, my mind refused to quiet down. Miles was already passed out on his couch, but it still wasn't enough for me.I decided to go over to her place, to finally confront her and get the answers I deserve. I need to understand why she thought it was okay to lie to me and, even worse, tell everyone else before even considering talking to me directly. This feels like a complete betrayal, and I'm not leaving until I get an explanation.I gave Miles a gentle shake to let him know I was leaving. "Hey, I have to go. See you later?" He mumbled something indistinct in response, so I got up, made my way to the hallway to get my jacket, put on my shoes, and headed out.As I stepped outside, the chilly air hit my face. I thought about calling an Uber instead of walking the entire way, but I didn't want to spend a lot of money on a distance I could cover on foot. As I headed to Billie's house, I couldn't bear it any longer and made my way to a gas station.My mind was starting to clear, which I didn't want, so I bought another bottle and drank half of it as I spotted Billie's house around the corner.After stumbling up the last few steps to her door, I knocked and sat down on the stairs when no one answered. While I waited for her to get home, I pulled out my headphones, plugged them into my phone, and started playing a random playlist. I was so engrossed in my music for about thirty minutes that I didn't realize someone was standing in front of me until my headphones were taken out of my ears.."What the fuck, man?" I snapped, then quickly recognized who it was.Billie's POV :After spending what seemed like hours searching for Estella, I finally returned to my driveway without finding her anywhere. I noticed a person sitting in front of my house and quickly recognized them as I got a better look.What on earth is she doing here? I am glad she's safe and all, but couldn't she have waited until my show ended and not run away, only to end up sitting alone outside my door? I turned off my engine, buckled up, got out, closed the door, and walked over to Estella, who was deep in whatever she was looking at on her phone. I called her three times and got no answer, so I took off her headphones."what the fuck man?" she yelled, glancing up at me, but fell silent when she realized I was standing there. "What are you doing here?" I asked her, gesturing to the liquor bottle beside her. "And what is that?" I added, crossing my arms and looking down at her small, slumped figure sitting on the stairs. She attempted to stand but lost her balance and sat down again."Can you ease up on your attitude? I'm here to talk because you lied to me, remember?" she snapped, attempting to stand up but failing again. I reached out to help her by grabbing her waist, but she slapped my arm away. "Don't touch me! You lied, and now you're questioning why I'm here? No apology or anything? You're just as fake as everyone else!" I remained silent, simply observing her instability."Surprise, now she's silent. She's got nothing to say," she huffed. "It was such a mistake to come here," she muttered, shaking her head. She bent down to pick up the liquor bottle and tried to walk past me, but I held her by the wrist."Stella, can you pl..." she yanked her wrist free from my grasp once more, "I said don't fuc..."This time, I held her tighter to keep her from running away."Damn, Stella! Can you be quiet for one second and stop running away? You don't even give me a chance to speak!"She murmured softly and lowered her gaze, cleared her throat. "Fine, go on," she said. I snatched the bottle from her grip, holding it up in front of her. "How many , and what else did you take ?" I placed the bottle back on the ground, meeting her eyes again."Really, Billie?" she averted her gaze, attempting to distance herself. "Is this the only thing you want to know? Why does it matter to you? Why are you concerned about what I'm doing with my life?"" just tell me—how much?" I questioned her, maintaining direct eye contact."I don't know, let me go. All you care about is that stuff, and still no apology or anything," she mumbled, trying to break free from my grip. I took my keys out of my pocket, walked with her to my front door, and opened it. "You're not going anywhere. We'll discuss it in my room. I'm not comfortable having this conversation outside in the cold. I guided her inside and closed the door behind us."Hold onto my shoulder, I'll help you take off your shoes quickly." She held onto both sides of my shoulders, lifting her left foot for me. "You know, I can actually do it myself—I'm not a child," she said. I laughed, gazing up at her with a raised eyebrow. "You can hardly stand on your own, and now you claim you can take them off by yourself? Sure, babe." She looked down at me, blushing, and mumbled, "I'm not your babe.""Yeah, whatever," I said with a wink as I removed her other shoe. "Here we go," I added, standing up from the floor and tossing my keys onto the counter. I took her hand and guided her to the kitchen. "sit over there." I gestured to the chair by the counter, went to the fridge to get a water bottle, and poured some into a glass for her.I approached her and offered the water "Drink this to help you sober up a little." but she pushed the glass away. "I don't want to get sober."I sighed and held her face in my hands. "Can you stop complaining for just a moment? Please drink the water; you can bring it with you to my room, and then I'll explain everything, alright?" She looked away, took the glass from the counter, and said, "Fine, but after that, I'm going home." I nodded, took her hand, and led her upstairs to my room. I sat her on my bed, turned around, and changed the lighting from normal to red.I pulled the chair from my desk and sat down facing her. "Well, I don't even know where to begin," I said. She shrugged, placed the glass on my nightstand, and replied, "Perhaps the day you chose to lie to me but informed all my friends that you're really famous." I ran my hand through my hair and rolled my eyes."Stella, your friends knew who I was from the very first day they saw me. I realized you weren't familiar with me or my music. Unlike others who immediately like me because I'm THE Billie Eilish, you didn't. You didn't give me much of a chance to get to know you, but I liked that. It might sound silly, but I appreciated being treated like a normal person, just Billie, not Billie Eilish the singer. I wanted to keep that feeling, so I did my best to keep my identity from you, even asking your best friend to ensure no one told you. But like an idiot, I forgot that when I gave tickets to your friends, they would take you along. So here we are, having this conversation. I understand you think I'm a liar, and I'm truly sorry. I didn't mean to deceive you; I just really enjoyed feeling normal around someone. I took a deep breath as I finished speaking, looking at her and waiting for a response, but she just sat there, staring at me.I cleared my throat, stood up, and knelt in front of her. "Do you want to say something?" I asked, taking her hand in mine. She glanced at our hands, then looked up to meet my eyes. "I'm sorry, Billie. I know I was rude to you, but I'm not good at meeting new people or trusting them. I get what you're saying, but if you had told me this earlier, I wouldn't have treated you any differently. Why should I? You're a person just like me and everyone else around you. It doesn't matter if you're a singer, actor, or whatever; to me, you're Billie, not Billie Eilish, okay?" I smiled widely at her response and got up to sit next to her on the bed."So, do you forgive my foolish self?" she laughed and embraced me. "Yes, you fool, I'll give you another chance, but don't lie to me again, alright?" I nodded against her shoulder, unable to stop smiling until she released me and stood up from my bed. "But I should go, it's really late. See you, Bil." As she was about to leave, I quickly took her hand and looked up at her with a pleading expression, "You can stay, if you'd like, please?""Hmm, sure, but on one condition,"I got up from the bed and walked to my closet to find something for her to sleep in. "What's that?" I asked, tossing her a large black shirt and a pair of loose white shorts."You need to cuddle me; I've had really bad nightmares lately," she said, about to remove her shirt before realizing I was still standing there. "Uh, could you turn around?" Snapped out of my trance, I turned to face the closet. "Sure, I like cuddles." After a moment, I felt a tap on my shoulder and shivered as she whispered in my ear, "You can turn back around." I turned to face her, thankful the room's red lighting hid my blushing face. I wasn't even sure why I was blushing; we're just friends, or are we?Her throat clearing snapped me out of my thoughts. Already lying in my bed, she laughed and asked, "Are you coming, or planning to stay there all night?" I walked over and slid under the blanket next to her, murmuring, "Oh, you think you're funny now?" as I wrapped an arm around her waist to draw her closer. "Hey, Stella?""Yes, Bil?" she said, turning to look at me. "Are we friends now?" I asked, meeting her eyes. "Sure," she smiled and nestled her head into the crook of my neck. "I'd like to be your friend." I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and replied, "Yeah."I can't figure out why I'm not pleased when she says we're friends; perhaps I was wishing for something different. I'm unsure of what's going on in my mind—what I really want is to hold her and keep her safe.