Some time had passed since Jake had returned to his original point in time. He hadn't heard from the voice, but... everything went back to normal. It was just... A little odd for Jake to adjust. Occasionally he'd run into the club and... He'd shudder for a moment before snapping out of it. It felt like he had unfinished business that could never be resolved now. at home, Jake would just... sit alone in bed. He'd ignore his phone for about an hour before finally answer and it was... Really bothering Hailey.
"...Does... He not love me anymore Zander...? Whenever we're together... It takes him an hour just to grow comfortable around me... It's like hes... not the same person anymore... I understand he'd... basically experienced a whole different reality but... It's been almost a month... We've been nothing but supportive... He's even distant from Daisy..."
Hailey rants, Zander putting a hand on his sisters shoulder, Trying to comfort her.
"Well... I don't know what that dumbass is thinking, but... It is everyone he usually talks to... He just... freezes up, as if he expects us to lash out or something."
Hailey held back tears, her mind skipping into the worst thought to ever cross her mind.
"...What if he replaced me... us..."
Zander widened his eyes before looking away, considering it for a moment, then Hailey's phone buzzed. Jake finally replied.
'Hey, Sorry I took so long to reply, I was playing on the switch with Milo. Uh, Are you alright?'
Hailey stared at the message, wanting so badly to just... put it down and ignore him because she knew he was lying. even if he didn't replace her, she knew he purposely didn't reply for some reason.
'...I'm okay Jake, What about you? Also, I'm glad you and Milo are getting along. He really was worried about you when you got into that accident.'
Hailey responds, only to receive a message after a minute.
'...I know, He tells me that alot... Uhm... Hey, How about we... Actually, Nevermind... S-Sorry haha...'
Jake had sent back... Hailey's eyebrows furrowed.
'Uh...? what was that about? do you need another minute?'
Jake didn't reply for about 5 minutes, leaving Hailey to steady herself, keeping composure.
'Yeah, Sorry. Uhm... How about we play something online?'
He asked, and Hailey softly smiled, despite her feelings, it.. always seemed to make her smile when he'd offer to spend any form of time with her.
Meanwhile, with Jake. Jake would pace around his room, then heard a knock on the door. Jake's head whipped towards the door as he went over to it to open it, and there was Elliot, having a worried look on his face.
"Hey Jake, are you okay? I heard the commotion from your room for the past hour, what's going on?"
Elliot questioned, putting a hand on Jake's shoulder. Jake looking at Elliot's hand with a bit of a tense expression. Jake sighed and gently pushed off his hand.
"I'm okay, El, I'm uh...just about to play some games with Hailey."
Elliot noticed his tense expression, simply understanding. Jake had opened up to him about his experience after everything that happened, despite doing his best to support Jake, he couldn't help but occasionally lecture him about how he is treating his friends, despite everything, right now he's growing distance from them, and eventually he'll lose them. Elliot told Jake this every now and then when he'd notice how bad it was.
"That's good... Don't push them away Jake, They care about you."
He says, and Jake nodded.
"I'm trying bro... I am..."
The two share a quick hug before Elliot went back to Milo, hangin out with him. Jake smiled at them before going back into his room and closing the door. Jake began to wonder why he was left to remember it. Why did it happen in the first place? What can he do now to move on? The thoughts swirl in Jakes mind, 30 minutes going by before his phone snapped him out of his spiral. He grabbed it, seeing 6 texts from Hailey, and Hailey currently calling him. Jake flinched, realizing he spaced out and answering it.
"H-Hey Hails! Sorry, I uh... Got side tracked! What game-"
"Jake... Enough."
Hailey cut him off, causing Jake's spine to feel colder.
"Hailey I-"
"Don't... Don't lie to me right now Jake, I know you're not being honest with me anymore, and it's really starting to get under my skin..."
Hailey says, her voice slightly breaking.
"You never come over anymore, you refuse to even step foot into the club... not even to see me... Whenever you run into us, you shudder, try to act okay but I can see it in your eyes... I can't keep seeing you like this Jake... Why can't you just talk to me... Why won't you let us help you?.."
Hailey asked, Jake shuddering. His eyes close as he began to scratch his arm slightly.
"...I don't know."
Jake responded, He didn't know why he kept shoving them away... He didn't know why he couldn't stop feeling... fear around them. He knew where he was, he knows he's accepted and yet... Hailey was heard softly taking a breath, almost sniffling.
"...Do you just... want to break it off..."
Hailey blurted out, causing Jake's eyes to go wide. Panic slowly began to seep into his mind, trying to think of how to respond, obviously he didn't want to break up with her, but he knew why she would feel like this, all the talks he had with Elliot, even his own thoughts.. it all sprang into his mind, and one thing in specific spoke louder than everything else. "Don't push them away, Jake. They care about you." He took in a deep breath, He finally came to terms with one truth..
He is not giving up on her.
He is not giving up on Them.
"...I really don't..."
Jake responded. He fought the urge the slap himself, then shook his head, opening his eyes as he grabbed his jacket and Hailey could hear a bunch of shifting.
"Jake?.."
Hailey called out as Jake had dressed up properly, going to the bathroom to fix his hair as well. He took a deep breath.
"Have you eaten anything yet?"
Jake asked randomly, causing Hailey to flinch.
"Jake...? Uhm... No, Not yet. Why?"
Hailey replied, confused on the sudden shift of Jake's tone. She then heard more shifting, then a door, and finally the wind.
"Jake..?? Where are you-"
Hailey was cut off by her phone suddenly hanging up. She was- now even more confused. Was he coming over? Hailey uncomfortably waited a while before whipping her phone out to try and text him, but then a knock was heard at the front door. Hailey hoped it was him, she hoped maybe he'd finally come to his senses... She approached the door, Zander had gone to bother Bethany or well, more so the other way around as their parents were also busy with something else. As she opened the door... She was tugged outside and pulled into a warmth she had almost forgotten. She felt the jacket wrap around her, the caring arms wrapping around her waist which caused her to instinctively wrap her own arms around his neck. She looked up into his eyes, his beautiful hazelnut brown eyes.
"...Welcome back Jake..."
She said softly, causing him to softly chuckle. She could tell he was still a little nervous, he wasn't fully back to normal but... He needed to try. For now, that was enough for Hailey. She buried her face into his chest and held onto him which caused Jake to smile.
"...Let's go hit up Stacys Mamamia, I brought my wallet this time so.. my treat."
Jake says, and Hailey looked up at him, slightly surprised.
"Woah, The Jake Sterling actually remembers to be a gentleman? Who are you?"
She joked, causing Jake to playfully act offended.
"Why, I'd never been so offended."
They both exchange a look before breaking into a fit of laughter. Jake slowly reaches down and clasped his hand over hers, Hailey squeezing his hand as he did so.
"...I love you Jake..."
She softly mumbled, almost wondering if this was actually happening, but she knew it was.
"I love you too Hailey, I'm so sorry for being so distant... I'm going to try harder. I promise."
Jake says, leaning in and kissing her on the forehead.
"That's all I could ever ask of you..."
Hailey said with a bright smile, holding his hand. The two share a loving gaze before walking off into the moonlight.