Be My Juliet [on hold]

Chapter 38

"JESS!" I yell, springing up from the couch and sprinting towards the door and almost tripping over my feet as I do.  I turn around the bend, feeling the cool outdoor air rush into the flat as I stop and look at the door.  I see Jess in what I can only imagine is a date outfit seeing as she usually doesn't show so much leg for no reason.  The corners of my mouth almost instinctively turn up, until I notice another form stepping in the doorway from the shadows of outside.  As he comes into the light, I see his face in better detail.  James.  What the FUCK he he doing here?  Why is Jess bringing him here?  Thoughts start racing through my head, and before I can say another word, I hear Dan call asking if it's her.

"Yeah..." I say slowly, still trying to comprehend what was going on.  I watch as James' arm snakes away from Jess cowardly, her face falling into a disappointed look only making me want to scream at him.  Dan gets up from the couch and I listen as the floor boards creak lightly beneath him. 

"Hey Je-" I hear Dan start his sentence, his voice almost dripping in awkwardness.  Dan was pretty mad at her, so I'm guessing he said something to her when I wasn't around to make this meeting a little embarrassing for him.  He stops in his tracks, glaring at James and Jess in the doorway.  "What the fuck are you doing here?" He snarls, his words hissing out of him and creeping around the room, the anger, confusion, and irritation very apparent.

"I'm leaving..." James says, spinning on his heels and trying to escape, knowing everything will turn out bad for him.

"You're kidding, right?" I say, chuckling a little at his spinelessness.  "Please."  He stops in his tracks and finally meets my glare.

"You're looking great, Pen-" he tries, earning another chuckle but from Dan this time.  Dan's arm wraps around me, almost as if to hold himself back and to remind him I'm his.  

"Don't even try, Buckner..." Jess snaps, rolling her eyes as she finally walking into the house and taking her coat off behind her.  James follows like a puppy, closing the door but still acting as if he's about to leave.  "What are you doing here?" she smiles almost sadly, outstretching her arms and walking towards me for a hug.

"I was worried..." I let out, leaving Dan's side to meet her hug.  I squeeze her tight, letting her sweet smell wrap around me and soothe me, reminding me of happier times when we weren't fighting.  

"I'm sorry," she whispers in my ear, and I can almost hear her about to cry.  I hold her closer, letting her be the one to let go first.

"I'm sorry to break up such a lovely reunion," James states, "but I really do have to get going."

"Then why is it that when you didn't know they were here you were totally prepared to stay a while?" Jess retorts, clearly as sick of him as I am.  "Asshole," she adds under her breath, making me giggle.  

"Let's all just sit down and explain, because I'm sure as fuck lost." Dan tells us, walking back into the lounge, probably to prep Phil on what just happened.  The rest of us follow in silence, confused as how to even start.

"How about you begin with the text?" I muse to Jess, seeing as that's what made me so nervous in the first place.  

She looks up at me, as if she's scared to speak.  I urge her on, nodding my head slightly.  "Well... I felt bad about what was happening with you in the media... with James and everything.  And it's my fault, it's all my fault..." she starts rambling now, just letting her thoughts spill out of her uninhibited.  I'm hurt by what she's saying, explaining that she tried to make me unhappy, but am soothed by the fact that she's actually broken up about it.  I stare at James whenever Jess mentions his name, watching him as he tries to act like he isn't phased at all.  

"Care to add anything, James?" I growl, daring him to say something ridiculous.

"I was a mere pawn in this scheme of hers.  Don't blame me for what she did."

"Oh fuck you," Jess yells, "why lie at this point? She knows.  They know.  Stop being such a dick.  Be a normal person.  Be regretful, be angry, be something other than lustful! Have an emotion!" she starts tearing up.  She wipes her eyes quickly, not letting the tears role as she continues.  "How about this James... there was a camera at dinner.  And you know why? I told them we'd be there.  I told the magazines that we were going to dinner.  I wanted them to find us and I wanted everyone to think that you were cheating on Pen with another girl.  I wanted to end the bullshit we've been putting Pen through."

"You're a bitch..." he starts, seething at this point.  "And to think I almost actually had feelings for you."  He gets up and leaves the couch.  Dan and Phil quickly follow after him, probably to tell him off or get into another fight or something ridiculous.  Jess finally lets herself cry, and I move over to comfort her.

"James really is a dick, don't worry about it..." I say, grabbing her and holding her head against my chest and letting her cry into it.  I stroke her hair as she tries to tell me something else.  "Shhh..." I say, humming lightly like I know her mom used to do whenever she got overwhelmed.

"Pen, I thought I loved him.  Oh who am I kidding, I did love him! I loved that scumbag..." She erupts again, shaking uncontrollably.

"I can see his charm.  I get it.  He acts like he cares and he's believable.  I know he is.  I promise it's okay... it's okay...." I tell her, rubbing little circles into her back, just trying to make her understand how awful he really is.

"You're done with him.  He isn't worth these tears." I tell her, removing her from me and looking into her eyes and the makeup running down her face.  "I promise.  He's a heartless dick."

"Thanks Pen," she smiles, hugging me again.  "I really missed having you as a best friend."

"I missed you too..." I tell her, and I mean it.

A/N: Hey guys! I'm so sorry it took so long to update, but here it is finally! Another chapter! Did you like it? Please leave me a comment and let me know, and tell me either a) what you think Dan and Phil and James are getting up to, b) if Pen will move back in or c) if you're still mad at Jess (because I know most of you were!).  ALSO ANOTHER COMMENTS THING: If you have Spotify, please listen to the playlist "The Most Beautiful Songs in the World" and tell me your favorite... i'm obsessed!  ALSO AN UNRELATED NOTE:  I will (hopefully) be starting a new book soon called "snowflakes".  when I add the first chapter of it, PLEASE go and comment/vote! you can go to my page and find it (once i add the first chapter which will hopefully happen soon) i would really love to know if you enjoy it, because i'm super excited to write it but i'm only gonna keep going with it if you guys like it too! it'd mean a lot to me if you guys give it a chance, it's not gonna be a danfic but it's about something really important to me / about me.  OKAY BACK TO THIS DANFIC: i'm thinking of starting this new thing that when this last chapter gets to a certain number of votes, i'll update.  i was thinking 400? 450? 500? that's usually around how many i get before i update anyways, and it'll give you guys a general idea of when i'm going to update next! and if you want the chapter sooner, tell your friends to vote for this chapter to get it! i'm still toying with this idea, so this may be the only chapter i do it for or it may be a new thing from now on... i'll let you know!  okay sorry for another rant, and as always stay amazing guys xx