Operation: Stay Alive

♦️ Chapter 43 || Promise ♦️

I nod and he walks in.

"I was just starting to put clothes in my suitcase."

He nods silently as he walks over to my drawers and begins pulling out some tee shirts.

We both sit silently on the bed while folding clothes and putting them into my suitcases.

We knew this day was coming... I just didn't expect it so suddenly. I thought I would at least have a few days warning.

Mental preparation would have been nice.

Jake grabs some more clothes and I continue to fold them, stashing them in my suitcase once they are folded.

"Ooo ho ho. What do we have here?" Jake coos as he seems to have found something in one of my drawers.

When Jake turns around all color immediately drains from my face.

He was holding the lingerie that Alice has bought me way back when we all went to Maine.

He holds the lingerie out in his hands making it dance in the air.

"Jake, put that away," I say sternly

He pouts as he throws it at me.

"Want to put it on?" He asks playfully.

"No thank you," I roll my eyes with a fake laugh as I roll it into a ball and shove It into the abyss that is my suitcase.

He shrugs we a laugh, "Worth a shot right."

I nod my head absentmindedly as I continued packing.

My heart was breaking more and more with each item I packed.

I don't know why I was so upset to go home... Maybe it was because this place felt more like a home to me than my actual home.

Weird, I know, but it's true. I don't know why, but I feel like I'm safer here... it's just that home feeling... ya know?

We packed for what seemed like hours. Nearly everything was in a suitcase, the only things that weren't packed were the things I was still using

"I don't want to leave," I say while looking at him, breaking the sad silence between us.

He looks back at me, "I don't want you to leave either."

I gently rest my head on his shoulder and he pats my head when out of the blue Jake's stomach makes a loud lion sized roar.

I pop my head up and make a funny expression on my face, "Hungry?"

"No sorry. I just have a hungry lion living inside of me. He's mad that he can't come out now, but I told him he can come out later when your mom comes back."

We laugh and I give him a soft nudge.

"She still is my mom," I sigh.

"I know. It's just - She should treat you better. "

I shrug, "She treats me well," I say not knowing if I was trying to convince Jake or myself.

Jake rubs his eyes with his hands, "Just promise me that when you go back home you won't let her or anyone walk over you. Okay?"

Why was he so worried about me?

I smile reassuringly, "I promise."

He wraps his arms around me and pulls me into a giant bear hug as his stomach roars again.

"Okay let's get you some food before that lion eats me," I laugh as I hop off the bed.

"Yeah that'd probably be a smart idea," He adds.