chapter four
"girls are like country roads, the best ones have curves."
***
Sarah pitched up at school, after phoning me over twelve times. She urgently had to tell me something.
On Monday she dropped by for dinner, no sign of Ben whom she was sharing a hotel room with. She could've slept at home, honestly I don't think my parents would mind her staying in her own room. "Nora, Sarah has an announcement to make, and it might be a great opportunity for you." My mom started the conversation, placing the baked macaroni and cheese on a heat resistant board before us.
"Thanks mom, dinner looks great," Sarah smiled at our mom before giving me a sweet smile, which made me mentally frown. She looked like a scrooge trying to be festive. "So, after much thought, I've decided that I'd like to ask you to be my maid of honor."
My mom clapped her hands happily.
My dad watched the women in his life in utter awe.
Sarah smiled as if she were truly happy.
I gawked.
"Well?" Sarah shrugged, waiting for my reply.
"What?" I mumbled unintelligently.
"Maid of honor, Nora, I would love to have my baby sister as my maid honor. So, how about it?"
"I'm sorry, I don't understand..."
Sarah frowned, "What's not to understand?"
"You and I don't get along, Sarah. That's what. Do you remember our childhood before you up and left for college?" Sarah winced at my words, and my mom scowled at me.
"Nora... Look, I haven't been the world's greatest big sister, trust me I know, but, I've grown as a person, Ben helped me realize that family is more important than anything else in this world. I need to make up for the time lost being a good sister. So, be my maid of honor? No one really knows me like you do, no matter how much you want to deny it." She said softly. I could see on her facial expressions that she really was sorry.
So I agreed.
And that is how I ended up in a bridal store called "Happily Ever After" at eleven o' clock in the morning on a school day. My mom had agreed to let me get picked up earlier from school so that we could go dress shopping, choose a color scheme and what not. The wedding was in a month and a half, when I had asked Sarah what the rush was she said, "When you find the one, you just want to start your life together, I really want to start my forever with Ben."
I envied the love she had found. Not the ugly kind of envy just the kind of envy where you go, "Damn, I want that one day too."
I was not really into dress shopping though, maybe my mood had still been too bitter about this whole situation. Around one o'clock, Jess had pleasantly surprised us. Ben might've only been her half-cousin, but he had emphasized to Sarah how important he felt family was, so she'd invited Jess to come along, and also gave her the official bridesmaid title. Along with Jess and I, Hayley, Sarah's best friend since childhood was a bridesmaid along with Jasmine, our cousin.
"I think we should have blue dresses." Sarah suggested as we sat on plush couches, speaking to the manager of the wedding shop.
"We have powder blues, royal blues, navy's, we have indigo-"
While Sarah listened intently, my eyes wandered over to the wedding dresses on display. She was really trying to be a better sibling, I could see the effort. It was no lie that Sarah and I had a lot of conflict as kids. We would fight about just anything, from toys to clothing choices, to choosing the bigger bedroom and I honestly knew it drove my parents insane.
"Okay, that's a lot of blue." Sarah said slightly perplexed. "Could we just rather look around the shop, see if something catches our eyes?"
The lady had been more than happy to let us scan around.
Sarah pulled me along with her, "Do you like the blue idea?"
"Sure, blue is a pretty color."
"Yeah, but it can't just be pretty, it has to be wow." She said with a small frown, studying an emerald color dress displayed on a mannequin.
"Well, short or long?" I asked.
"I'm not sure, I was thinking long, the wedding date is set in summer though, maybe short would be a better option."
Sarah dropped Jess at home and then our very silent journey towards our home started. "So... do you have an idea for the venue?" I asked her, trying to make this less awkward.
"Not really."
"And the theme?"
"Hasn't crossed my mind." She shrugged it off, staring at the road ahead of her.
"Look, I'm sorry for being an idiot, I will try to be more supportive from now on, just please don't shut me out." I begged, but I still got no reaction, I sighed and decided to just shut my stupid mouth. The silence returned and I think Sarah preferred it that way.
"I'm sorry." Sarah whispered so softly that I nearly missed it.
"What?" I asked.
"I know you hate me. I know I've made your life hard, but I didn't mean to, I swear. I wasn't doing it intentional. I know mom and dad put a lot of pressure on you to be like me but you are you perfect, and you shouldn't change for anyone, not even your family. So I'm sorry, for everything. The reason I asked you to help me with the wedding was so that I could get to know the real Nora, not the one behind the mask." I could see tears building up in her eyes , and for the first time in years I felt my sister's love. "I do love you Nora, despite everything's that happened in the past, so please, give me a chance." She was the one begging this time, she briefly glanced at me then turned her attention back to the road.
Sarah's words kept replaying in my head, over and over and over again.
Give me a chance.
What about that time she humiliated me in front of the whole school?
Give me a chance.
What if she was just trying to play a trick on me, after all, she did win best actress of the year in high school.
Give me a chance.
No. I owed her this, she was trying, and if she was trying, the least I could do was give her a chance.
"Okay." I told her, breaking the clear tension in the car, she sighed in relief and shot me a grateful smile. "You won't regret it, I promise." I nodded. We stopped and climbed out of the car with small smiles on our faces. Sarah unlocked the front door and held it open for me to walk in first.
I went to my room, deciding to get a head start on my homework, seeing that I had missed most of my school day anyway. I gathered my books and made my way to my bed when there was a knock at my door. Internally I wanted to groan, because I like being alone, but the amazing person I am, I kept it in.
"What?" I asked uninterested.
"Don't talk to me like that," my mom walked through the doorway, last time I checked, I didn't invite her in? "I came to tell you that you will be staying the night at Jess's house, her parents are more than happy to have you, so pack your things, they will come for you at five."
"What? Why? I'm not sleeping in that house." I blushed, thinking about Jase sleeping less than five feet away on the couch. No. No way that I was allowing a situation like that again.
"You're father has an important business meeting that recently popped up, it runs late into the evening and we're staying over at a hotel, I am not leaving you alone here."
"Uh, that is why I have an older sibling?" Duh. How obvious could a person be?
"Uh, that older sibling has a fiancé to tend to." She mocked my voice, which made me want to laugh, but I had to be serious in this serious time that stumbled in on my doorstep of doom. "I've made my decision, that's final. Pack your things. Dad and I are leaving in ten minutes but I expect you to be ready when they come for you. At five. Do. Not. Forget, Nora." She gave me the I'm-serious-do-not-test-me look to top it off.
I submitted and mumbled a 'not fair' under my breath, it's like my mother was giving me away, just like that, kind of like an arranged marriage; only a little less romantic. Besides the only upside to this arrangement is that I was going to be alone for a few hours. I waited for my parents to leave, and then I started my alone time ritual.
I grabbed my earphones and phone and hopped giddily down the staircase, all I still needed was a hairbrush and kitchen tiles. See, when you spend a lot of time alone, you learn things about yourself, for instance, I like performing in the house with my imaginary crowd of people that pay thousands to see me live in concert.
Well good news for my made up people, Nora is Live for one night only!
I danced along the tiles, sliding gracefully wherever I felt necessary and singing into my hairbrush. One song ended, and another began, my party didn't stop. But then I became physically tired.
Jumping around the house like a crazy lunatic will do that to you, so I ran one last time, full speed down the hallway towards the living room and glided over the smooth floor.
And there he was.
I screamed and lost my stable grip, going down in an impeccable speed. If I wasn't so clumsy, I'd think I would have super speed, I could be like those real life super abilities people. But this is reality, and in reality I plunged to the floor with a loud thud. My heart was beating at an erratic rate, making it hard to hear any other sounds in the room. My phone was positioned on the other side of the room, with my earphones still trailing behind.
I gathered my wits, very quickly.
"How the hell did you get in my house you... Freak?!"
Jase probably couldn't even hear me talking by the way he was laughing at me. He clutched his stomach several times, wheezing incoherent words. I stood up silently, waiting for him to finish snorting.
"Oh sweetheart, you never cease to amaze me." He wiped the tears from his face with his index fingers, then placed a palm over his heart. "You're going to be the death of me."
"I asked you, how did you get in my house?" I spoke through gritted teeth.
"Easy. I turned the knob, and walked in. Don't you know how to use a door? You're not a ghost, Nora, you can't walk through walls." He chuckled at his own joke, I rolled my eyes before speaking again, "Ever heard of knocking?"
"Don't you think I tried that? I'm sure the neighbours were getting ready to call the cops. I've been standing outside your front door for ten minutes."
I frowned, turning to retrieve my phone, surely I hadn't been stuck in my own world for so long that I had lost track of time. I felt the blush tinge my cheeks in embarrassment for getting caught, again. What is it with him walking in on all the wrong moments?
"You have a great voice." He said softly, his voice was hesitant, cautious. I slowly turned back, facing him again with my phone still lying on the floor.
"I didn't hear you knock, I'm sorry"
"Why are you apologizing? I got to witness you doing whatever that was, didn't I?"
If I wasn't red enough already, my cheeks warmed up even more. "Please don't tell anyone, like Kara or her friends or anyone."
"Why would I do that?"
I shrugged, "Because you hang out with them in school."
"Doesn't mean I will tell them." He smirked, then pushed past me and made his way up the staircase. I followed him hastily, hoping that he didn't find my room. "Jase!" I called for him, trying to make my voice sound dominating, but failing miserably it came out like a squeak.
"I'm guessing this is your room, I doubt your parents would have so much pink in theirs." He announced smugly, probably feeling very pleased with himself.
"That could be Sarah's room for all you know."
"Yeah? So that door on the end that says 'Sarah' is your bedroom then?" I wanted to slap that smirk off of his face, but instead I rolled my eyes and stalked into my bedroom with him hot on my heels.
"Besides, I like your room, it's very... cute."
I scoffed, "Cute? My room is not cute!" I grabbed a bag out of my closet, stuffing in clothes for the evening, avoiding his gaze.
"No you're right, but you know what is cute?" He remained still for about five seconds, five seconds of heavenly silence. "You, when you get worked up. Now that is what I call cute, and refreshing actually."
I felt my blood start to boil, "Why are you even here?" I nearly snapped but somehow kept my voice calm.
"You're staying at my house tonight, my mom made me fetch you, so hurry up and get your things. I don't have all day." I remembered why I was packing, and blushed. How could I be so forgettable? Jase noticed my blush and chuckled, but he didn't say anything.
I grabbed a few more items of clothing, then turned to the underwear draw, but I froze before I opened it. I looked at Jase, waiting for him to make eye-contact. "What?" he asked as his brown eyes made contact with mine.
"Nothing." I said back, but what I really wanted to tell him was to shut his eyes so that I could retrieve a few pairs of underwear and a bra or two.
"Why are you blushing? Are you hiding something in that draw?" He gestured to my hand wound around the draw knob. I frowned, slowly letting go of it.
"Uh, I need a minute." I told him without looking into his eyes. I could feel his intense gaze on my face but he turned and shut the door behind him. I took the opportunity and grabbed the last things that I needed. Once I was positive that I had everything I strolled back down the stairs where he was waiting for me.
"Can we finally go now?"
"Yes." I nodded with a small smile and followed him out of the house, I locked up and slipped the keys into my jeans pocket. When I looked up, Jase was perched against his car door, "Ready?" he asked again, but this time he had amusement written all over his beautiful face.
"I fear for my life when I drive in that car with you." I told him anxiously, "You drive like a maniac."
"Sweetheart," He patted his heart, "You wound me, I drive perfectly fine."
"I don't know about that..."
Jase scoffed loudly, "Please, I'm still here aren't I, and I haven't even gotten many speeding tickets yet." He said it in a 'no biggie' tone. He stalked forward to where I was standing on the stairs before my house.
"You've been driving for less than a year, you shouldn't have any speeding tickets at this point." He gazed at me, and in an acute second I realized how close we actually were, my bag still slung over his back.
My eyes dropped to his lips which were slightly parted.
His breath fanned over my senses, making me dizzy. What are you doing?! My subconscious screamed at me, reality settling in and I took a big step back.
"Uh, we should..." I took another step back motioning towards the car.
"Yeah, we should. My mom is expecting me to bring you back to my house in one piece." I nodded, staring at him... waiting for him to walk away first, but he didn't.
"Jase," I said softly "You need to move." And just like that he hopped down the stairs, as if snapping out of a deep trance, leaving me abandoned on the porch. He pulled the passenger door open. "Don't be difficult, get your ass in my car, now." He told me.
"My mom doesn't love me, she's sending me off to some strangers house, letting me drive in this death-trap waiting to happen and-"
Jase groaned very loudly cutting off my rant, rubbing a hand over his face before giving me a disbelieving look. He grabbed my hand, coaxing me to the passenger side, before nudging me into the car.
"Let's go, Nora." Jase said impatiently. I hovered before shutting the car door, "If I die, I will come back from the dead just so that I can drag you down with me."
I heard him snicker, "Don't you trust me, doll?" he started the engine and before I knew it we were speeding down my street into the night.
I took a deep breath and calmed myself down, praying that today wouldn't be my last.