It's Not So Easy

Chapter 16: Does He Know?

I unlocked my phone and played it.

"The baby arrived just fine, well, you knew that thanks to all of your Aunt's facebook posts about her baby girl. We're staying for a few extra nights. I haven't seen my sister in so long and I just can't pull myself away from this baby. She's so precious! You'll have to meet her." My mom squealed. "Anyway...I hope everything is going alright at home. Call me if anything comes up. Addie says she misses you, and we both will see you soon. Love you!"

I smiled. It was lonely at the house, but a few more nights wouldn't hurt. Jack gets home tomorrow and with my mom gone that allows for him to stay over again, and maybe we could finally...

I stopped myself from going that far. I don't know how Jack will react when he gets home. I have no clue how I'm supposed to tell him about Talon. Jack will feel threatened. That's just who he is. Then he'll doubt my loyalty, especially since I waited to tell him.

I quickly went to my messages to text him that we needed to talk. I was about to hit send when I froze. I can't do it over text. Maybe I can't do it or maybe I just won't do it.

I tossed my phone aside. It should be so easy to tell him, but it isn't. If it was Rafe it'd be simple, but this is Talon. Jack's bestfriend. The one person he could trust to watch me and not try anything. While Talon did watch over me, I don't think him admitting he has feelings for me was what Jack had in mind.

"Ugh!" I exclaimed. I needed to stop thinking and the best way to do that was to go to the rink. But that was the last place I wanted to be. Talon or even Rafe could be there.

Standing from the couch I went up to my room and changed into a tank and some shorts. I threw my hair into a ponytail and slipped on my tennis shoes. It wasn't long until I was out the door and on the street. My headphones plugged into my ear as music sang into my ears. I took a look at my house, all clean from the toilet paper but somehow different, and then I ran.

*****

"Ro, you cannot eat that whole chocolate cake by yourself." Paisley laughed as she brought in the milk and bread.

After I had gotten back from my run it was well past noon and so I decided to get some groceries. With Georgia still out of it, I hit up Paisley.

She was eager to leave her house because her parents were having a cookout with all the old people on her block.

"If I hear one more old person tell me to keep my baby face for as long as I can, I'm gunna scream." She exclaimed when I had picked her up from her house. After a rant about old people she suggested we drive into Portland to go to their Target.

And 3 hours later we made it back to my house with some bread, milk, pop tarts, new bikinis for the summer, and chocolate cake.

I set the cake on the counter and laid the swimsuits on the dining room table. "Watch me." I said opening the cake and dragging a finger into the icing and then licked it off.

"You're ruining it!"

"Maybe, but I'm just insuring that the whole cake will belong to me." I teased.

Paisley reached her hands up to her hair and pulled it up into a bun. She glared. "If you think your dirty hands and saliva are gunna stop me from eating some of that cake, you are mistaken."

I put my arms around the cake protecting and hissed. "Never, it's all mine." We glared at each other for a few seconds before we broke out into laughter. I pulled my arms away from the cake but not before taking another swipe it. It was too good. "Grab me some plates and forks."

Still grinning Paisley turned to the cabinets to fish out two plates. While she was getting them my phone buzzed. It was Georgia, finally awake.

"My rents made it a whole 12 hours before they started yelling at eachother again. Can I come back over?"

I responded telling her to head over and that Paisley was here and that we had cake.

Suddenly, two plates were set down in front of me along with two forks. "Cake me."

*****

"Am I crazy for feeling so guilty about Talon and Becka?" I ask as I took the last bite of my third piece of cake. Georgia had made it and now all three of us were sitting on my bedroom floor pigging out on cake while a record played on in the background.

Georgia was laying on the ground tossing a tennis ball into the air while Paisley was sitting cross legged, almost like she was meditating.

"I wouldn't. It wasn't you're fault. Talon needs to get his shit together." Georgia says catching the tennis ball before throwing back up again.

"Becka will get over it and Jess will too. They both know its Talon to blame here not you, it's just... hard for them to see that right now. But don't feel bad hun, besides you got us." Paisley calming says opening her eyes to wink before closing them again.

I giggled pushing my plate to the side to spread out my legs. A new song played on the record and Georgia sprang up, the tennis ball forgotten. "Turn it up."

I reached up to the knob, turning it. 'Girls just wanna have fun' played and I gasped. I forgot this record had this on there. It was a gift from my mom with 80's hits on it.

Paisley's eyes opened wide. "Is this-?"

I nodded and grabbed her hand pulling her up. Georgia grabbed onto her other side. "Yep, and we're dancing!"