Cheating Death

CHAPTER TWENTY- SIX

CHAPTER TWENTY- SIX

It was the morning where I had decided to wake up early—something I hadn’t been doing since Jayden had left, not even for school. I had been going to school, I wasn’t stupid, but I usually turned up late. The school blamed it on my mother leaving and were awfully sympathetic about it, saying I must be so sad. They also did this to Hollie, asking her if she was alright, making her go to the school councillor at lunch times. It took all of the restraint in me not to shout at them how much I hated my mother, how much I was glad that she was gone.

            It was the morning Jayden came back. I was sitting in the front room, staring out of the window, trying to appreciate the nature outside. Though England was a beautiful country, the bit I was seeing wasn’t so much. The skies were grey, looming over, making me feel trapped. That was when I saw him, the dark figure walking towards the house.

            At first, my heart began to rapidly beat in my chest and sweat began to form in minute drops on my forehead but I wasn’t excited, not at all. Death. He had come to get me in real life, finally, he was going to show himself. Unlike I had imagined it in my dreams, however, I was not ready for this to happen. I was not ready to face Death.

            While I cowered under the window for the hope that he would not see me, there was a knock on the door. That was when my heart stopped thudding at the speed of light. Death would not knock on the door. As no-one else was up, I went to answer the door.

            It was Death. It was Jayden. My mouth fell open as did his. We were like mirror images of each other, our facial expressions the same.

            “Jayden?” I asked, though I knew it was him because I could never mistake those eyes. “What are you doing here?”

            “I came back, I know you’ll be safer if I stay away but I couldn’t... I couldn’t stay away. I think Death may have left me too, but I am not sure. I will have to check with my mum,” he answered.

            We stood there, staring at each other. I was lost for words; I had no idea what I was supposed to say to him. Of course I was glad that he was back... I’d never been more glad in my life, in fact. However, the only reason he had left was me in the first place so I wasn’t able to think of any words I should be saying.

            “Can I come in?” he finally said, even though it was his own house.

            I then realised that I was standing right in front of the door, looking like I was deliberately blocking it. “Of course you can, Jay, it’s your house after all.”

            Jayden looked straight into my eyes and when our eyes finally connected, he smiled, breathing out heavily like he’d been holding all of the oxygen in his lungs for a while.

            “I thought you were going to be angry at me,” said Jayden as he walked past me to get into the warmth of the house.

            “Why would I be?” I said. “It was my fault this all happened anyway.” I began to take of his coat. “You’re so cold.”

            Jayden shrugged, helping me along with taking off the coat and also as a nonchalant gesture. “I got used to it.”

            My eyes flickered back down to the floor as guilt rushed back through my mind. I had kicked him out of his house, technically. I was staying in his warm home with his mother cooing over me, welcoming me in, and I had hardly even thought about Jayden’s own comforts.