Chapter Fifty-Six…
“Don’t go doing anything too disgusting whilst I’m gone, will you?” Matt checked with a grimace as he hovered in the doorway.
I gave him a flat look, thankful that my cheeks weren’t burning a bright red. “You’re practically next door, Matt, I don’t know what exactly you think we’re-”
Matt snorted. “I don’t think I need to explain myself any further.”
This time my cheeks did heat up and I glared at him. “Just go and see Lydia.” I told him sternly, smothering a smirk as I felt Jord purposefully put an arm around my shoulders and probably give Matt a very amused look.
He sighed loudly, but still shut the door behind him and went to see the girlfriend he’d been neglecting recently. That left Jord and I alone, something it seemed like we hadn’t been in a lifetime.
“I wish it was this peaceful all the time.” I declared finally, after a minute or two of just enjoying the silence, only the TV playing quietly in the background.
Jord chuckled. “Me too.” He agreed quietly, smirking as he placed a gentle kiss on my lips. “It feels like forever since I’ve done that.”
I grinned, mouth just barely touching his. “I know.” I admitted. “I’ve missed it.”
Jord pressed his lips to mine again, but this time it was more forceful and I soon found myself on his lap. We’d never gone any further than kissing, and I doubted it would be any different today, but I wasn’t going to complain. This was much better than anything I would even consider doing at the moment.
His hands gripped my waist and I smiled against his lips as I tangled my hands in his hair.
Then, we both froze, pulling apart and twisting our heads simultaneously to stare at the TV screen in horror.
“Can I please welcome Leonie Hartman to the studio.” The news reporter announced as the camera panned out to show Leonie sat on the sofa opposite where the reporter woman was sat. “So, you’re one of Jessica McCarthy’s best friends, then?”
Leonie nodded with a serene smile on her face. “I’ve been friends with Jessica for years.” She told the reporter, who failed to detect the slight hostility in that sentence.
My attention snapped from the television to the doorway in an instant when Matt and Lydia burst through the door, immediately pointing at the TV, only to notice we were doing exactly the same thing they must have been. I didn’t fail to notice Matt’s warning look when he saw me on Jord’s lap, however, and I quickly moved, realising that Lydia was still ignorant when it came to our relationship.
Thankfully, she had been too preoccupied with Leonie on the screen and what she was saying to have taken in our position. I quickly followed suit and returned my attention to the news. “You must have been really upset when you found out what had happened to her.” The woman said sympathetically.
Leonie nodded, expertly concealing her smirk. “Devastated.” I didn’t fail to notice the sarcasm in that word, but the reporter certainly did.
“And what do you have to say about the way Arthur kidnapped his own daughter?” I didn’t see what Leonie could possibly say about that, but I didn’t really want to find out. I wasn’t going to sit about and wait until Leonie dropped the Jord bomb on everyone. The police might have decided that there was nothing in it, but if parents found out that a teacher at their school was even suspected of being in a relationship with a student then they wouldn’t be happy. It wouldn’t be long before Mrs. Hippo came up with an excuse to have Jord fired permanently. She couldn’t just ignore parents’ demands and complaints.
I snatched my phone from my back pocket and started dialling the number running across the bottom of the report. ‘For any inquires, please ring the following number’ is what it said, but since this was the only number I had, I was going to ring it anyway.
Jord gave me a sideways glance as I put it to my ear. “What are you doing?” He inquired warily.
“I’m ringing the newsroom.” I told him seriously, tapping my fingers against the phone in a nervous habit.
“Hello, this is Look North, how may I help you?” A polite woman said on the other end of the line.
I glanced at the TV screen nervously as Leonie prattled on about how disgraceful it was that Arthur had done such a thing. “I’m Jessica McCarthy and I need to be put through to the studio.” I said quietly.
There was a choked gasp from the woman and she started muttering something unintelligible. “Why do you need to contact the studio? We’re live on air there.”
“I know.” I stated, exasperated, still sending anxious looks at the television. “I need to get Leonie off air, she’s not my best friend, she hates me and she’s trying to sabotage me.” I declared blatantly, hoping that I didn’t sound too ridiculous.
“And how do I know you’re the real Jessica McCarthy?” She inquired then. “We’ve been called by nearly ten people today alone claiming to be her.”
I held back a snappy remark. “I don’t know how much you know about me, but I’m born on the 6th of April, Arthur Sledhill is my father and when he kidnapped me, my friend Mel got shot. She’s staying at the St. David’s ward at the Northern General and she’s being released tomorrow. Whilst I was being held at the warehouse, just off Junction 29-” I reeled out the information, but it wasn’t long before the woman on the other end of the line realised that I was exactly who I was claiming to be.
“Okay, okay.” She interrupted, “I’ll put you through to the studio immediately.”
I breathed a sigh of relief and returned my full attention to the TV screen, which my attention had been neglecting. I noticed that Leonie had stopped talking about Arthur and obviously nothing obscene had been mentioned because the woman didn’t have a horrified face, but it still held the pitying quality.
“So, what do you think of what Arthur has been saying to defend himself. You go to school with Jessica, do you know what he meant by her being in trouble there?” The woman inquired, not realising what she was letting herself in for.
The smile that graced Leonie’s face then was filled with pure maliciousness. “I’d love to talk about that.” She said, grinning in a way that wasn’t exactly appropriate for the situation. I could see the confused look that was threatening to overcome the studio woman’s face, but she managed to hold it in and retain the formal expression.
I nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard Matt’s phone ringing. He grimaced at it, until he saw the name, and then picked it up. “I know Grace,” he said immediately. “We’re watching it now. Jessica’s ringing the studio. She should be put through any second.”
Matt stayed connected to Grace, even though neither of them were saying anything. They just wanted to be in touch if something went wrong.
Thankfully, before Leonie could actually begin speaking about Arthur’s comments, the phone in the studio had rung. I could see the woman giving it a funny look, but she picked it up regardless and nodded quickly and silently, before turning back to the camera. “I’ve just been informed that we have Jessica herself on the line to speak with us.” She glanced at Leonie. “I’m sorry, but we’ll have to wait to here what you’ve got to say.”
I felt my nerves creep up on me when I heard my line connect to the one in the studio and the woman on the TV speak to me both through the phone and on the TV. It amused me that the television was slightly behind real life and so what she was saying came on the TV after I’d heard it.
“Jessica McCarthy, it’s great that you’ve decided to speak to us, I’m sure everyone is dying to know the real story behind what happened to you.” She told me through the phone, her voice still annoyingly formal.
“That’s not exactly the reason I’m calling.” I remarked coldly, refusing to let Leonie hear the nerves that were causing the hand that wasn’t holding my phone to shake uncontrollably. Jord subtly grabbed hold of it and rubbed soothing circles into the back of my hand.
“Then why are you calling?” She asked, puzzled.
“Because I want you to get Leonie off that set.” I declared blatantly. “She’s not my friend at all and she’s only there to spread malicious gossip about me. I don’t want her making things even worse for me.”
I watched on the screen as the woman gazed at Leonie suspiciously. My voice was being broadcast over a loudspeaker, so Leonie had heard all that I’d just said. Her face darkened and she glared at the phone, then at the camera, knowing I would be watching.
“I am Jessica’s friend.” She insisted. “I’ve been her friend for years.”
I snorted, talking directly to Leonie via the loudspeaker. “You were my friend for years.” I agreed. “Then you slept with my boyfriend and it kind of ruined that, didn’t it?”
The reported looked shocked and I didn’t miss the appalled look that she sent towards Leonie. “Is this true?” She asked Leonie, after having pulled the phone away from her ear.
Leonie hesitated, before nodding. “Yes,” she agreed, eventually. “But I only slept with her boyfriend because she was sleeping with-”
“Don’t you dare go spreading that crap on live TV!” I warned her, cutting her off. Then, I spoke back to the reporter. “I want her getting rid of, now, she’s dragging down your program and exploiting it to get back at me. Your letting her make it into a means of bullying.”
The reporter’s face contorted in shock at my perfectly right point and she glared at Leonie. “Jessica is right.” She said immediately to Leonie. “This isn’t the place for spreading rumours. This is where we report the news, not aid teenage girls bully someone who’s clearly had more than enough stress for a lifetime. I’m going to have to ask you to leave the set.”
Leonie shook her head stubbornly. “I won’t leave.” She insisted. “I haven’t done what I came here for yet.”
I snorted into the phone, a sound which didn’t sound too great over the TV. “You’ve done more than enough, Leonie.” I assured her. “Now, you just need to leave.”
She shook her head some more. “I won’t leave.” She repeated. “I won’t go until I tell everyone how you’re fuc-”
That was when the reporter really put her foot down and stopped Leonie finishing her sentence. “There is no swearing on the news.” She warned Leonie. “And if you don’t go quietly, then I will be forced to call security.”
Leonie still didn’t attempt to move. “You asked me a question and I plan to answer it.” She announced bitterly. “Jessica is in trouble at school because-”
“Security!” I exclaimed into the phone, really hoping it would work. Surprisingly, it did, but only because the reporter gave a nod towards the burly men who were waiting on the sidelines.
Leonie struggled as they pulled her to her feet and kept shouting out random things. Only as she was just leaving did I finally hear the words “Mr. Armstrong,” but it was too late by then and no one would have heard her.
When she was gone, the reporter’s face softened considerably. “I really am sorry for that, we had no idea she was using us for malicious intent.” She apologised to both me and the viewers. “But, now that you’re here, Jessica, would you mind if I asked you some questions?”
I laughed darkly. “You’re being serious?” I inquired sarcastically. “Why would I answer your questions? After you’ve let someone nearly ruin me on live TV.”
The woman at least had the sense to flush guiltily, but that didn’t encourage her to stop pushing. “Well why don’t you at least explain what Leonie was going to lie about? Why are you in trouble at school? What did Arthur mean by that?”
I shook my head in exasperation, even though she couldn’t see it. “I’m not in any trouble at school.” I assured her. “That’s just Arthur trying to stir nothing. I won’t talk to you, and so I’m going to hang up, now.”
I pulled the phone away from my ear and hovered my thumb over the ‘end call’ button, waiting only to see what she would say to keep me on. “Why?” She inquired. “Why won’t you speak to us?”
I sighed, finally letting my annoyance at the media get the better of me. “Because don’t you think I’ve got enough on my plate? I had people trailing me around school yesterday, trying to get me to talk to them. As if my education wasn’t hard enough at the moment. I don’t want to add stress by spending my time on the news. I have other things to occupy myself with. Why should you get the satisfaction of a good program by subjecting me to that stress. You’re all selfish in the media and you couldn’t care less about how I’m feeling. You just want your ratings to go up.”
With that, I pressed the ‘end call’ button with such force I thought I might have broken it. When I stared back up at the TV screen, the reporter was stood with her mouth open, gaping at the phone which she was still holding to her ear in shock.
“Well,” she said awkwardly, after a moment of absorbing what I’d said. “That was Jessica McCarthy and this is Look North. We’ll see you tomorrow at the same time.”
Then the program cut off and the BBC general news came back on, talking about the real issues in the world.
We all looked at each other and let out equal sighs of relief and amusement. “That was one hell of a speech.” Matt finally broke the silence.
I blushed in embarrassment. “I didn’t mean to say all that.” I admitted.
“It’s true, though.” Jord pointed out seriously. “Maybe they’ll at least leave you alone, now.”
I grinned at the thought. “Maybe.” I agreed. “It’s not likely, though, is it?”
Jord chuckled. “Probably not, but there’s a hope, at least.”
-------------------------------------------------
Finally a chapter! Sorry it's taken me so long, but hey, hectic week with the first full week back at school and all. I've been preparing for four different controlled assessments, applying for 6th form, playing netball, and going to the gym, so I've had barely any time to write. I've got this out as quick as possible, though!
Hope it was alright and thanks for all the votes and comments.
And, I don't particularly like TDCC, but this song really gets stuck in my head!