Chapter 16// You Were Eavesdropping
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This chapter idea is also from BellaBlue856 well, most of it. Thanks for the positive input Bella!
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I told you I wasn't going to leave you with a 600 word chapter for long! So this chapter will be really and I mean really long!
TRIGGER WARNING. Attempted Suicide.
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He looks over at without any emotion and quickly goes to take his seat. I curious my eyebrows as a million questions make its way to me. The class continues on without me noticing I spent the whole entire time staring at Jace.
When the bell rings I rush to him, "where were you?"
"None of your business Ashley," he says through his teeth growling. I jump back not expecting the sudden burst of anger and quickly nod. If he's back can Kimber possibly be back?
By the time I got to lunch I got:
3 "It's none of your business Ashley."
9 "Stop bothering me."
We were walking out of our third-period classroom to make our to the cafeteria when I see Jace in the hallway and decide to ask him again. "Hey, Jace." He looks at me through the corner if his eye and continues walking with his headphones in his ears listening to something.
I rush up to him again feeling a bit stalkerish, "Why aren't you answering me?"
He yanks off his headphones, "Has it occurred to you that maybe I don't want to talk to you so you shut fucking shut your mouth?"
Okay, I wasn't expecting that. "No, I'm sorry," I squeak and quickly round the corner to other cafeteria and sit at my usual spot now in between Bryce and Lindsey and in front of Trace. I see Jace come into the cafeteria and all eyes turn to him. He makes eye contact with me which clearly says don't bother me.
He sits down next to Bryce while everyone at our table quickly looks at him. Keith and Hannah switch places so that the girls are on one side and the guys are in the other. Jace starts talking to the guys quietly.
Every once in a while they turn to look at me then start talking again. Hannah and Lindsey are engrossed in some conversation. So that's how my days have been going for the past two days. I've been giving the guys a lot of space and doing what I would have done if they weren't there.
I was currently trying to stay still while Lindsey and Hannah were crowding around me wiping egg goo off my face. I was attacked by Sam and his friends with eggs while I was walking through an outside hallway to my French class.
Once we get most of it off me, Lindsey walks to French as Hannah splits up with us and goes to her sixth-period class. When we walk we sit at our seats next to each other at the very back of the class. I see that the smart board is paused at the beginning of some French movie.
I also have this class with Trace and Jace. They sit two rows of seats in front of us. Throughout the movie, I see Jace get out of the classroom and once because of a phone call. Which our French teacher never lets us do.
What's bothering him?
I know I realize like some clingy friend who needs to know everything but it's really getting on my nerves how the guys keep learning things about me but never tell me anything about them.
"Psst," Lindsey pokes my arm.
I slap her hand away, she slaps my hand. "Psst!"
I sigh, "what?"
"Did you ask him what was wrong? He just walked out again."
I roll my eyes, "I've asked about a billion times."
We go back to watching the movie when Lindsey taps me on the shoulder. "What!"
We hear the screen pause and the teacher looks at us, "What is it that is so important that I had to stop the learning precession for the rest of my students?"
"Oh, we're sorry, we'll be quiet."
The movie turns on again and Lindsey taps me so I desire to ignore it.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
I turn my head around slowly, "what."
"Jace looked at you."
I start shaking, "so what Linds?"
The bell had rung signaling the end of the day. So I went to my locker as usual and put my binders and folders up.
"Ashley."
I see Jace in my locker mirror. He told you to leave him alone Ashley just give him some space maybe this is just some test just continue putting your binders away. Oh! And bring your math notebook home you need that for your homework.
I decide to listen to my conscious when someone taps me on the shoulder again.
"Ashley."
A few seconds later, "I'm sorry."
I turn around but Jace wasn't there anymore. Instead, I heard his footsteps as he turned and walked outside of the building.
It's been a day since Jace apologized and it's been eating me up inside. Kimber's not at school today and Jace keeps stepping out of the classroom. I've decided to ask him one last time and if he didn't answer I'm going to let it go.
It's last period. Jace just walked out of science which is perfect for me. I raise my hand and ask to go to the restroom and the teacher lets me. I walk out and head in the direction of Jace's voice. He's there leaning against his locker with is right outside the classroom.
I quickly hide behind the wall that sticks out of the hallway walls.
"Okay, thanks. Tell dad to ask Tasha if Kimber's release papers are ready I'll come over when school's over."
Release Papers?
Tasha? Kimber's mom?
Kimber?
"Okay. Bye."
When he hands up I step our from behinds the wall Jace freezes and his phone falls to the ground.
"Did you just-"
I nod.
"And Kimber-"
I nod again.
"Do you know what I was-"
I shake my head.
He grabs my hand and pulls me into the janitors closet across the hallway. He shuts the door and turns the lights on, "You were eavesdropping!"
I nod again becoming slightly nervous.
"So, what's wrong?"
He looks at me with guilt in his eyes, "you wanna know what happened Ashley? I'll tell you what happened! Kimber almost died two weeks ago! That's right. She almost committed suicide. S-she," his shoulders start shaking and I'm pretty sure he's crying but no tears come to his face. "When she told me that I had to come home, she told me to come with her. So I followed her to the tree house she said you guys made. I saw a gun on the desk. I don't know h-how she got it, but before I could do anything she looked at me and told me that if I moved she would pull the trigger and die. She told me that there was a note taped to the head of a stuffed teddy bear in the tree house. She was crying as she put the gun out in front of her pointing it at herself. She aimed it right at her heart but she wasn't good at aiming which made it come to her stomach."
"She almost died I front of me, Ashley. I called an ambulance and they took her to surgery right away. She's going to go to a residential mental facility." He freezes, "if she makes it out."
I tear falls down my face, "I'm-"
He shakes his head and continues talking. "I found the note the next day and it said..." He pulls out a wrinkled piece of paper. It was the homework that I did for her about bullying. On the back, there was a note and two pictures on it. One picture showed Kimber and a girl older than she was behind them was Jace with his arms around both of their shoulders. Kimber and Jace looked about five years old. Both girls resembled other. Both had the same blond hair high cheekbones blue eyes. The other one was a picture of me and her sitting in our treehouse with a bunch of marshmallows in our mouths, we looked two years old.
I read the note slowly.
Jace,
I'm sorry. I realized that I made a mistake about Ashley when Sam broke up with me. I was just jealous of her being more like Meagan. I now realize that me bullying Ashley, Trying to get her to act like someone else isn't going to help me forget about her. So why should I forget about her when I can go see her for myself.
Kimber
My breath hitches in my throat when I look back up at Jace who now has actual tears running down his face and I do too. "She could have died right there in fornt of me Ashley and I couldn't stop her. I couldn't save my own sister."