Unedited
Dedicated to @unruled
#36 on Teen Fiction (O.O) (Enjoy this while it lasts)
CHAPTER 25: TWO WORLDS COLLIDE
Chase was now sleeping comfortably at the back seat of Brenton's car, head leaning against the window and hands lying limply at his sides. I glanced at him one more time before returning to our impromptu meeting near a dark alley.
After my weird dramatic moment with Chase in the men's bathroom he passed out so I had to ask Brenton to help me drag him out of the bar and into his car.
"So what do we do now?" Brenton asked as he rubbed his face in exhaustion.
"We bring him home," I said, completely out of other options.
"I don't think that's a good idea," Rielle uttered. "What do we tell his parents? Their son left the prom to get himself drunk in a bar and fight with random people because his girlfriend left him?"
I felt a sudden pinch inside of me. This was all my fault. Rielle saw my expression and she immediately shook her head.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean anything by that," she apologized. "I was just trying to say that we can't let his parents see him like this. He looked like he just lost a boxing match. The side of his eyes would turn purple in just a matter of time."
"I hate to admit this but she's right Sac," Brent agreed. "They will ask us tons of questions we can't answer."
I groaned in frustration. "So what do you suggest we do? If he wouldn't come home tonight, his parents would still ask questions."
"Not if they'd receive a text from Chase saying that he'd be staying at a friend's house tonight," Brent said, grinning suggestively.
My brows met at the center. "And how can we make that happen? If you've forgotten, he's collapsed minutes ag..." I trailed off, realizing something at the last moment. Rielle and Brent shared a wicked grin and it's actually creepy.
"We're gonna send the message ourselves?" I asked though I knew fully well it was their plan. They both nodded. First the fake ID, now this. I was starting to think that I wasn't the bad influence in our friendship.
"So?" Rielle asked, waiting for my response. "Are you in or out?"
I glanced at the backseat of the car and cringed at Chase's appearance. He did look like a ragged doll. "Fine. Let's do this."
Brent climbed inside the car and sat beside Chase, fumbling in his pockets. After a while he returned to us holding his phone. I leaned at the car while I waited for them to finish the task. I yawned, feeling really tired.
"Sac, we have a problem," Brent announced and my sleepy bubble burst.
"What is it?" I asked, trudging toward their spot.
He lifted the phone and showed me the screen. "It was locked. Do you know his password?"
I tilted my head, trying to remember if he revealed it to me before. "I don't think so. Let's just guess. Type in his birthday."
Brent gave me weird expression. "And how would I know that?"
Rielle chuckled in the background. "It's April 27, 1997."
I gave her a surprise look. "How did you know that?"
She crossed her arms. "We're in charge of the year book Sac, of course I know that."
"Really? What, you memorize all of the students' birthdays? I don't think that's necessary," I said as I raised a brow, eyeing her suspiciously.
"Ohhh I can smell jealousy and loyalty issues in the air!" Brent said, showing an amused face. "Are we finally kicking her out of our group Sac?"
Rielle raised her hands in the air, shaking her head at the same time. "I'm not crossing any lines. Your man, your rules. If you don't want me to know his birthday, then I'm officially deleting all of his personal information in my head!"
I narrowed my eyes at her. "I'm not accusing you of anything. I'm just shocked, that's all."
"Well if it makes you feel any better, I know Brent's birthday too," she added. "It's February 29."
All the tension left my body. Good. I didn't need another competition, especially when the girl in question was my friend. I didn't want to put her on the chopping block.
"So she's good?" Brent asked, pretending he's disappointed.
"Shut up," Rielle blurted out. "It's not funny."
"Yes it is, ha ha ha." Brent replied, faking a smile.
"Guys, focus!" I yelled. "So? Did it work?"
Brent went back to work. "I tried 1997 and 0427. Nope, it didn't."
Rielle snatched the phone from Brent's grasp. "Let me try."
She typed her guesses. Her determination quickly turned into irritation. Then it all went down to despair. "What is the maximum failed attempt? It won't let me try again."
"I think you should wait for a minute," I guessed. "We can't just type in a random number. We have to be sure next time."
"How about 0927?" Brent recommended.
"What does that number mean?" I asked, then I remembered it's my birthday. Well, Serene's birthday too. "Oh."
"Didn't work either," Rielle said from behind. "Hey, how about 4927?"
"Let me guess, that's a mixture of our birthdays?" she nodded in response and typed in the said number.
"Bingo!" she yelled excitedly and showed us the screen. "Lover boy is so predictable."
I sighed and smiled a little. It's kind of sweet actually. Rielle sent the text to his parents and I climbed in the car, seating beside Chase. I intertwined our fingers and rested my head against him, breathing his scent. Brent and Rielle quietly went inside too. The whole car ride was spent in total silence and I sank in my thoughts of what ifs and maybes.
When we arrived at Brent's apartment, he brought Chase to his couch and I immediately grabbed some clean clothes from his cabinet. He gave me a weird stare but I chose to pretend that I didn't see it. I left the sweater and pants over the table and grabbed my bags from the floor.
"Brent, you know what to do," I said.
His brows rose up. "You want me to change his clothes? Are you serious?"
"Well, it's either you or Rielle. Come on Brent, choose," I replied, raising my brow suggestively.
"Fine, I'll do it," he said, reluctantly snatching the clothes from the table. I chuckled in response, pulling Rielle with me.
We sauntered toward the small kitchen and waited for Brent to be finished. Rielle was smart enough not to ask me any questions. She didn't even bother to ask if I was okay. We both knew the answer to that. After a few minutes of non-talking, Brent appeared at the door.
"I'll drive Rielle home, you wanna come with?" he asked me.
"I'll stay. You two better go," I replied.
"Uh, you know what, maybe I'll stay at Rielle's tonight," he said.
"Excuse me?" Rielle asked, not quite happy about it.
"She needs the house," he said to her, giving her a look that only both of them could understand. They had a staring competition for a minute.
"Fine, I'll take the stray dog tonight. Brent would come back here first thing tomorrow morning," she said to me then turned to Brent. "You better not show yourself to my mother. You're going through the window."
Brent smiled at her wickedly. "I knew I'd end up in your room one way or another."
"Don't push it," she replied to him. "Or you'll be sleeping on the streets."
Before they could start another stupid argument, I pulled both of them into a group hug. "Thank you. For everything."
Rielle squeezed my arm and Brent pinched my nose. "Don't take advantage of the poor guy."
"Shut up," I said, smiling. "Take care."
They walked out the door, waving goodbye. I sat in the kitchen for hours, staring blankly at the sink, drinking a whole pitcher of orange juice. I didn't know why, but knowing that the man I loved was just in the next room made me wanna throw up. And I hadn't eaten anything since yesterday. It was around four o'clock in the morning when I went back to the small living room where Chase was. He was sleeping like a baby at the couch. He looked comfortable. I hoped he was finally okay. This was all my fault. My selfish acts were killing him. My selfish reasons were killing me. Everything was all messed up.
I took my shoes off and pulled my hair in a tight bun. I was too tired to change clothes so I didn't bother to try. I sat beside Chase, hugging him like a pillow. We're all alone and he was in a deep slumber. So if I cried, no one would know. If I succumbed to my emotions, the sound of my cries would just bounce off the four corners of this room.
So that's what I did.
I cried in his chest like there's no tomorrow. It wasn't very pretty and I felt sorry for Brent's sweater. He wouldn't want to wear this after.
I didn't know how long I had cried when I felt a hand patting my back. I froze. Then I felt someone brushed my hair with his fingers. I didn't need to be Einstein to know who was doing that. It was Chase and I momentarily forgot how to breathe.
Slowly, I lifted my head and saw him looking at me. He wasn't smiling and he didn't look mad either. He just looked... exhausted.
I sat up straight and moved away from him. His eyes were still locked to me. He didn't move. I wiped my face with the back of my hand. I looked everywhere but him.
"Do you feel okay now?" I asked him. He didn't answer. "Uh, do you want to eat something?"
"Why are you crying?" he asked, voice serious.
"I, uh, lost my earring," I said stupidly and I mentally hit my head.
"You don't wear earrings. Your ears are not even pierced," he said flatly.
I totally forgot about that. "Forget it."
"Why are you crying?" he asked again. "And this time, think of a better excuse."
I turned to him, looking in his eyes. "You. I'm crying because of you. Because I can't have you."
Where. Was. This. Courage. Coming. From?
I saw him swallow. "That's bullshit Sacred and you knew it."
I narrowed my eyes at him. "Language."
"I don't care. Tell me why you broke up with me," he said, sitting up.
"I already told you. I don't want you anymore," I said in a whisper.
He laughed bitterly. "Really, because you just told me you're crying because you couldn't have me. Tell me, which lie should I believe in?"
Even I was confused with my words.
"I-I'm in love with Dylan?" I told him.
"Is that a question or you're just not sure what lie to say next?" he said in a quiet angry voice.
"I don't know what you want me to say," I said in defeat.
He leaned and pulled me to him. My brain and heart both decided to have a mini panic attack without my permission.
"Fine, let's do this my way. I'm gonna kiss you now and if you want me to stop all you have to do is push me away," he said and before I could reply his lips were on mine.
I didn't know what surprised me more: the fact that he was kissing me or the fact that he didn't have morning breath. I think the rest of the world wasn't just lucky.
"You taste like orange," he said in between kisses and my head went into a short circuit so I pulled away before I could grab his hair and kiss him for dear life.
"Stop," I said despite my mind's protests. "Don't."
He crossed his arms and looked away, hurt evident in his eyes. "Is it really that hard? To tell me the truth?"
I stood up from the couch and rubbed my eyes. Crying on top of lack of sleep wasn't really a good idea. "You just want me to tell you what you want to hear."
There was a pause, then his glare pinned me to where I was. "Tell me Sacred. What do I want to hear?"
I inhaled a mouthful of air and closed my eyes, thinking. "You want me to say that I still love you."
"Do you?" he asked. "Still love me?"
"It doesn't matter," I replied and he cursed some more. "Again, language."
He got on his feet and the next thing I knew he was holding my shoulders, shaking me with every single word he said. "Don't be a bitch. Stop this, okay? Stop this!"
My knees felt weak. I didn't think I had enough strength to fight with him. "You'll hate me if I tell you what I did."
His expression softened. "You know I can't hate you. I just can't."
"You will! Trust me, you will. And you would never look at me the same way again. I'd rather you hate me for leaving you than hate me for..." I trailed off.
He wrapped his arms around me and took me in his arms. "I've done bad things too. I'm sure it's way worse. So don't think for a second I would judge you for whatever it is that you did. I'm not a saint Sacred. I have my fair share of secrets too. I'm the one who should be scared."
Now I was confused. "What are you talking about?"
He held my face with both hands, staring right through my eyes. "I'll tell you what I did if you tell me why you're doing this. I'll tell you everything if you say the real reason why you're torturing both of us."
"Is this a trick?" I asked suspiciously. "Because I'm not falling for it."
He shook his head, a look of what seemed to be disappointment written all over his face. "This is not a trick. I was hoping to tell you this once everything turned back to normal but it's taking longer than I expected and the lies just kept piling up. You're the only one keeping me from breaking down so I need you and I don't think I can make it if you leave me. Please, come back."
My brows furrowed and I was genuinely confused at the moment. "I'm not following. I don't understand what you're talking about."
"Trust me with this," he said, pleading.
I gnawed my lip before finally saying the words he was waiting for. "Okay, I'll tell you but you have to promise me you wouldn't hate me."
"I promise I wouldn't hate you if you promise you wouldn't hate me either. Promise me you'd try to understand."
I nodded then he kissed the top of my head. He led me to the couch and I tried not to throw up. "Chase I did, I mean we did, me and my sister, uh, it was a long time ago, Dylan... uh, he was being evil and... I can't, uh weird, sister, switched places, and uh I fell, but that was way before that, uh leadership... and then Catherine and I tried not to but..."
"Okay hold up," he said, squeezing my hand. "Please speak in coherent sentences."
"But this is so hard!" I complained. "I can't just drop a bomb and think everything will be okay."
He squeezed my hand again, giving me assurance. "Just say it. We can start over."
It's now or never. "Serene and I switched places."
"What?" he asked, leaning back at the arm of the couch.
"You said you wouldn't judge!"
"I'm not judging. I'm just asking," he clarified. "Now tell me what you mean."
I sighed and scratched my nape. "That's it. We switched places. No one knew. Well, after weeks I told it to my friends. But then I fell for you and Serene got scared and we stopped and..."
"Wait a second," he interrupted. "What do you mean you switched places?"
"Are you not listening? Or you're just too slow?" I asked. "It means we exchanged personalities because we wanted breaks from our lives and relationships. It was a stupid idea and so not realistic but no one noticed so we continued."
"Y-you acted as Serene?" he asked incredulously. "Since when? How? How long?"
"It all started on the day I fell down from the ceiling. In the student council's office. I was acting as Serene and things got out of hand and I fell and..."
"That was you?" he inquired, voice rising. "That explains a lot."
"Uh, it doesn't explain anything. It doesn't make any sense," I said.
"No it did. I was shocked that time because when I saw Serene bleeding on the table, which meant you, my heart just stopped. It was confusing because I don't care about her that much," he explained, shaking his head. "I don't even know Serene. That's why I'm surprised that I cared. Now I know why. I felt that way because it's you all along."
What. In. The. World. Is. Going. On?
"I think you just lost me," I said. "Serene is your girlfriend. How come you don't care about her? How come you don't know her? How's that even possible?"
He exhaled and pulled me closer. "All my life I've only been in love with one girl. And it's not with your sister."
Now it's my turn to pull back. "I'm think I'm gonna throw up now. And I'm not even halfway done with my story. I don't understand what you mean. She's your girlfriend and you're telling me you don't love her. My brain is gonna explode any minute now."
"You know what, it's hard to explain. It's better if I show it to you," he said.
"Okay?" I said. I wasn't even sure what I meant by that.
Five minutes later we were in a cab and Chase was holding my hand. I was so nervous. Where was he taking me? What was so important that he had to drag me all the way to a place to make me understand his side of the story?
Well, at least he wasn't mad because of what I did. That was a huge relief. But I had a feeling there was so much more in the picture that I couldn't see.
"We're here." He climbed out and opened the door for me.
My eyes widened. "What are we doing in a hospital?"
Instead of answering, he grabbed my hand and dragged me inside. We came into the lobby. The nurses that we passed by smiled and waved at Chase like they all knew him. How often did he come in this place?
We took the elevator and came out in the 4th floor. My heels made a weird sound when it came in contact with the marbled floor. Or maybe I was just so terrified to the point that I was starting to think that everything was completely out of the ordinary.
We stopped in front of the room at the corner. Chase looked at me before he opened the door. "Remember your promise. You said you wouldn't hate me."
"Look, I'm scared enough already. Can we just get this over with before I pee in my pants?" I said, trying to enlighten the mood but sadly failed.
"You're not wearing pants," he said.
"Same difference," I retorted.
We entered the room and I immediately heard a beeping sound. The room was spacious and neat and the single bed at the center of the room got my attention.
Though scared, I walked toward it. Who was this person and why did Chase brought me here? Did I know him? Was he relevant enough for me to meet him? I took a few more steps and an imaginary rock fell down over my head.
Okay, I take it back. I think I just peed in my imaginary pants. The person on the bed was...
"Sacred," Chase said. "Meet Chase."
My head swiveled to his direction faster than any normal person could do.
"Who are you?" I asked in terror, stepping back.
Don't ask. Even I was shocked.
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-Elle