Teardrops of Roses [Completed]

Chapter 28: You, drive?

I can't even–
I collapse onto the bed, struggling to see the problem.

I take a breath in to calm myself, and after a moment I finally spoke up. "Mands, I'm gonna kill you. Did you seriously call me just to say that? Oh my god, you almost gave me a heart attack, I thought something bad happened!" I picked up a pillow against my face and scream slightly. Well, at least I knew they were both safe.

"I'm sorry but I don't know what to do. I just can't stand to look at them, giggling and telling jokes like it's the funniest thing on Earth! Who the hell invited them anyway?" She griped angrily, assumingly at the pair as she spoke.

"Okay, so how do you want me to help with that?"

"Can you come this once? I know you said you prefer to study at home but please, please, please." I hear her beg. "Rosie, Rosie with a cherry on top. Please come and distract me... and save me or I'll never be able to concentrate and I'll fail exams! I can't fail exams, I'll become a loser for life. I mean why are they even here in the first place?"

I run my hands through my hair again and rubbed my temples hard. Sometimes Mandy felt like my mother and other times she also felt like my kid. Regardless, I loved her no matter what.

"OKAY!" I let relented after a while longer of her whining. Even though Mandy had the tendency to exaggerated when she speaks, it was hard to miss whenever she was really serious. And on this occasion, I think I could understand what she was going through. The jealousy and heartache that poured through like splinters in her voice was reminiscent of what had been cursing through my own veins not long ago, and I knew what was going on.

"I'll come on one condition."

"Yes, yes! Anything you want."

"Okay, then you finally have to admit that you like Luke."

There was a long pause on her end before I heard a deafening "WHAT!!!"

"Seriously Mandy, the more you try to hide it, the more obvious it becomes. Just admit it and I'll come."

"Who, what, when?! NO! You're crazy!"

"I'm not coming."

It was a long time before she finally sighs and answers. In the tiniest voice and most heartbreaking voice I'd ever heard her speak in, she say the phrase:

"I like Luke."

~❤︎~

When I arrived at the library about twenty minutes later, I quickly found Mandy. She sitting along on the side, away from the main group, which was strange for such a sociable and outgoing person like her. This was not like her at all. The whole situation with Luke and Jane must've really gotten under her skin.

Seeing her look so miserable made me start to feel guilty as I was naive to have believed her words. Sure Mandy may have said that she wanted someone other than Luke to ask her to the ball, but that was only because she was in a serious case of denial, but now seeing him and Jane together only made her more painfully aware of this fact.
I should've stuck to my gut feeling from the beginning. She liked him this entire time.

And now I was left wondering what would have happened if Luke had just gone and asked her directly? Somehow I doubted things would have ended up like this.

And I understand now, that was the how humans worked – Jasper and I even; secretly waiting for a sign from the other person while we lacked the courage inside to admit even to ourselves.

All along, I had been waiting for him to say something when really, I should've been looking at the things he didn't say, they were there.

All these years I had grown accustomed to people talking over me that I sort of assumed that everybody other than myself was loud and proactive in their thoughts and actions. But I've come to find that Jasper has been leaving subtle open advances all along, waiting for me to return the same. We weren't big talkers.