Jesse, who was born mute, has moved from city to city many times before. As she does so again, she considers it pure luck that she gets in the same school as Cheeto and Lewis, two best friends who immediately take her under their wing and don't trea...
it's october 20th , and if you paid very close attention to chapter 13 (probably didn't, that's okay though <3) you probably recognize this date as jesse's birthday. so here you go, a short chapter that's completely outside of the storyline and takes place a few years before the story even starts.
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I'm too introverted for this.
Jesse is sitting at a table full of family members, people she loves, but doesn't really want to be around right now. Everyone – Really, everyone – is talking, and she's feeling her sanity slowly dying because of all the noise, the speaking, the forks scratching over plates and glasses being set back on the table with such force she's wondering how they're still together, and it's all just... too much.
Well, at least I don't have a mom, that would probably be another family with about the same amount of people.
Did I really just think that?
Jesse almost starts laughing, finding comfort in the strange joke she just made.
"You've really grown since I last saw you, you know?" Her aunt's boyfriend says. "Aren't you a bit tall for a girl your age?"
She smiles because that's probably the appropriate reaction, shrugs, then nods. She is taller than many fifteen-year-old girls, but it doesn't really matter to her. He doesn't really seem to know what to say anymore either, and Jesse just sits there in silence now, her plate long empty, glad he doesn't try doing more small talk. She tries to make eye contact with her father, communicate with him and let him know she's uncomfortable to get the "okay" to just get up and leave, but he's distracted, talking to his mother. She doesn't blame him, but she wishes he noticed and she wishes she could just get up and find an empty room to hide in and be by herself and do something or nothing until she feels human again and not like she's just a strange spirit navigating a teen girl's body. Finally, after what feels like hours, her father's gaze catches hers, and she looks to the door and back at him, and he nods, mouthing "Of course".
Jesse could've done this without her father's approval, but she would've felt so rude, because wasn't it considered rude to just get up and leave without asking? She can't remember clearly, but it sounds like one of these weird, useless social rules. Barely anybody even looks her way as she pushes the chair back and walks out of the room, but she still feels like all eyes are on her, like they'll start talking about how this girl clearly hasn't been taught any manners as soon as the door shuts behind her. It's paranoia, her family isn't even like that, but the thought has made itself a little nest in her head and it doesn't seem to leave anytime soon.
Jesse ends up in the room that used to be her father's when he still lived with his parents, sitting on the floor and leaning against the bed. She plugs in her headphones and scrolls on social media for a few minutes before just opening Spotify and listening to loud music, shutting her eyes and thinking, daydreaming, being.
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yeah, that's it, i guess. happy birthday to jesse & i hope you enjoyed this pointless short story <3
