Dragging her granite-like feet, Ember slowly made her way to her locker, uncaring that her English lesson started in less than ten minutes. People around her breezed past her, barely sparing a glance in her direction.
She rubbed at her chest with a scowl. It felt like someone shocked her with a thousand watts of electricity and her heart was going numb before completely shutting down. Even her legs were moving in the smallest of inches. She's never had these kinds of feelings before, not over a guy.
The sight of Jaden's arm linked with another girl's affected her more than she'd let on. Even if her mind refused to acknowledge the fact that Jaden meant more to her than a liability to her peaceful life, her heart knew better. So much better.
Jaden was a taboo. He was rich, handsome, kind-hearted, good-looking and all those attributes girls dreamt of when thinking of their Prince Charming except Ember never wanted Prince Charming in her life. She wanted someone she didn't have to dream and hope for. Someone she could find in life and not only in mushy romance novels.
Jaden had his imperfections but she believed it's what made him so much more special. Because he was real. She didn't need to dream him up and pray that she wouldn't get tired of him later on. He could be all she ever wanted and was searching for.
But it was so much more difficult than impossible. With so many secrets and scars she's been keeping from him, she doubted she could ever make it with him. Or anyone else for that matter. The only reason she's ever tried out relationships in the past was because she knew they were meaningless and would never have last.
Ember was nothing special besides her looks and she was never the superficial type. She wasn't vain and fumbled at compliments of her looks most of the times. Don't get it wrong, she was proud of who she was but looks weren't all that. She'd rather have buck-teeth than be a narcissist who puts her appearance above her values.
Truth of the matter, she had nothing to offer Jaden when he's already had everything.
While trying to grasp at that fact, Ember finally arrived at her destination. With Jesse leaning against the locker next to hers, sipping on a cup of coffee while holding onto another.
She could have wept tears of joy. "Thank you, I needed this." She reached out to take the cup when Jesse quickly pulled it back to his chest, cradling it protectively like it was his baby.
An eyebrow arched, he said, "Who said this was for you?"
"You are standing at my locker when you could be at class. And you're already drinking from that one," she pointed at the other cup near his mouth.
"So you assume it's for you?" He tsked. "That's not a good attitude, Ember. It's arrogant to think that something was reserved especially for you." The infamous smirk made its reappearance.
"Oh, wipe that smirk off already," she muttered while putting in the combination in her locker. "So who's it for anyway? And what are you doing here if it isn't for me?"
Her locker door clicked open and before she could trade her books, she was stopped by a packet of Skittles Sours she was positive hadn't been in there the day before.
"A little detour," he shrugged. "I was on my way to History and thought I'd drop by."
She put two and two together. Taking out the neon green packet, she showed it to Jesse. "To give me this instead?"
Another shrug. "Thought you could use them. Might help you wake up a bit. Those dark circles are not very flattering on your snow-white skin," he gestured with the coffee cup he wasn't drinking from and she itched to snatch it from his hand.
No longer amused now, she asked, "And exactly how did you get my combination?"
The buffoon had the gall to grin. "There are lots of things you don't know about me." Another sip of the heavenly brown liquid she was craving so badly. "And among them is that I know how to get my way into anything be it past a club bouncer or a mere lock."
Ember had no reply to that completely egoistical comment. She could only sigh.
"Right then. But these aren't going to wake me up." She shook the packet, making the mini candies rattle. "You know what would work better? A good dose of caffeine ought to fix me up real good," she hinted.
He pulled the cup back while taking a sip from the other one, an eye trained on her the whole time. "I'm not giving this up, Miss Ashe, so forget it."
She groaned and slammed her locker door shut after getting her books. "Then hide it away or I'll attempt to tackle you to the floor and risk my perfect record to get it from you," she growled. "I didn't think you were actually nice enough to actually get that for someone else."
"I'm hurt that you think so little of me," he assumed an injured tone. "For your information, this is for somebody important whose name goes along the lines of Me, Myself and I."
"Figures," she scoffed. "Well, you can bring your not-so-lovely self and your coffees for one somewhere else then. And do not mess with my locker again or I'll mess with your face." Smug, she turned to leave but her body froze mid-turn when she saw something that made her heart sink down all the way to the tips of her toes.
A girl with a long blonde ponytail had her back to Ember while she was wrapped in the arms of a tall, lean red-head. Time seemed to move in slow-motion as Jaden released her after hugging her for a long while, only to lean down and peck her on the cheek.
Ember knew she should've just turned and walked away but her feet were practically super-glued to the floor. Apparently she hadn't gotten enough of the torture of Jaden with another girl since her eyes stayed fixed on the scene that was fracturing her heart into a million tiny pieces.
"Ember." She vaguely heard her name being called but she couldn't focus on anything except the way Jaden was now embracing his lab partner. "Ember. Emmy. Hey, you alright?" Jesse shook her shoulder but she couldn't for the life of her tear her eyes away from them.
At an agonizingly slow pace, Jaden lifted his head from the blonde's shoulder. He paused when his gaze clashed with hers then zeroed in on Jesse's hand on her shoulder. Those hauntingly beautiful dark eyes flashed with so many emotions. Hurt. Regret. Possessiveness. Anger. They all left as soon as they came, all but one. That one soulful look managed to wrap yards of barbed wire around her heart and make her feel just how ravaged it was.
With that one look, it lashed open so many scars within her.
"Betrayal!" his eyes accused, loud and clear.
That was the last straw. She spun around and sprinted down the hallway, running like her life depended on it. She ran and didn't stop until she was out of breath, panting with loud huffs and her legs weak from exertion. She found herself at a deserted stairwell that was isolated enough that no one would stumble upon her.
Her knees buckled and she caught herself on the railing before collapsing in a heap onto the steps. She sucked air into her lungs with fast, laboured breaths, hoping it might ease the constriction around her chest. Black spots marked her vision and the world started tilting upside-down as a wave of dizziness hit her. She squeezed her eyelids shut so she wouldn't succumb to the lure of oblivion that lurked in the darkness.
The guilt she kept buried under layers of ignorance reared its ugly head. The heart-wrenching sobs that threatened to break out racked throughout her entire body, making her shake and shudder. She pressed a fist to her mouth in meager attempt to silence them but even so, her eyes watered and streams of anguished tears were already flowing down her cheeks.
Long moments later, a warm, comforting arm wrapped around her shaking shoulders and pulled her to an even warmer body. Ember resisted but after a while, it got too tiring and she sunk onto Jesse's shoulder, grateful that she could hide her tears. The evidence of her weak and cowardly self.
He was patient with her, something she would have never expected from him before this. Rocking her and murmuring comforting words against the crown of her head where he pressed his cheek against. She had no idea what they meant since the words sounded like Spanish but they sure did do their job. Her tears flowed to a stop and she managed to take a deep breath instead of hiccups of it.
She lifted her head and quickly wiped any trace of tears. "Oh my. Sorry, I--I got your jacket dirty with err, snot and all." She smiled sheepishly at him though he was not smiling one bit. In fact, he looked a little intimidating though she would never admit it even if there was knife held to her throat.
"What?" she asked and she couldn't believe she sounded like a scared, little mouse. In front of Jesse of all people. She'd never live this down.
The walls around her heart were slowly rebuilding after that ambush it had endured and she would've been lying through her teeth if she said she wasn't in a vulnerable state then.
"Ember," he said in a soft voice which shocked her, frankly. "What's going on? And no more fibbing like you did after the ball. I want the truth and this time, I'm not going to compromise." Though his tone brooked no argument, the words he said portrayed feelings of a concerned and caring friend. A genuine friend she could really use at the moment. But then again, when had Jesse ever cared about anybody but himself?
Releasing a heartfelt sigh, she turned to the backpack she had dumped on the floor earlier and took out the handkerchief she kept with her always especially since it was a gift from her mother. "There's nothing to tell. When have you ever cared anyway?" She wiped his jacket with the handkerchief.
He caught her moving hand. "Ember," he sighed. "I'm not as heartless as you think I am."
She shot a him an incredulous look. "And I truly, sincerely from the bottom of my shallow heart want to be your friend," he said drolly.
She tugged her hand away. "And why should I believe you? I only shrugged it off before because I had no patience to deal with your disability to be serious for all of five minutes. So give me a plausible reason to why I should actually trust you when I don't even trust your intentions?" She tried to act indifferent but it pricked at her heart a little when she discovered her words were actually true.
She never wanted Jesse in her life but now she couldn't see a day passing by without his irritating, ego-centric self butting into her peaceful days, making her go on a roller coaster of emotions all day. Unconsciously, she had already counted him in as her friend when he only thought of her as mere entertainment in his drab school life.
All amusement melted away from his expression. "Because you're not fake," he told her with an actual seriousness in his tone this time. He let out a breath while dragging a hand through his hair, making strands of it stick out of place. "Be grateful that you don't live in the world of the extremely wealthy. You'd think that a middle-class family that made it big would be grateful and humble because of the good blessings. But in my family, being humble was a thing of the past. Now, you only give to charity if you want the paparazzi to cover up your scandals. The concept of humble was lost to my family long, long ago.
"When I enrolled here, I was caught up in all the pride these people here hold above their values. Dave's father and mine were partners since before the big break so our families were close. Dave was probably the only one who kept me sane through everything and everyone here. He even beat me up a couple of times when the fame and power got to my head. Quite often, in fact." He rubbed at his head with a slight grimace and she tried --but failed-- to keep her chuckles to herself.
He continued on after a glare in her direction, "Dave, the other guys and myself act arrogant and all those other things you hate because it's an act we have to keep up for our families and for the people around here. If we weren't like that, we would be trampled on and that isn't a good image for our families.
"I wanted to be your friend because you were real. You've been in this school for a year now and you haven't morphed into all the plastic Barbie's who will do anything to be at the top of the food chain, or at least the popularity one. Pardon my language, but you can take bullshit from others, wrap it up with a ribbon and air-mail it to them on their heads then walk away like you were justified."
Looking at the horror on her face, he shook his head fervently. "Okay, I know that came out wrong but the idea is that you put others' happiness before your own and you swallow your pride so the situation would get better without battered egos in the picture. I'm not saying that you're a pushover either, I'm saying that you're secure enough in your confidence that you won't accept biased judgements and all that crap from everyone else. You know how to stand your ground and fight for it."
"You make sound me like some sort of warrioress of something," she mumbled, her cheeks heating up considerably. They were compliments and compliments were something she wasn't comfortable with especially when they were about her personality. They meant so much more than ones about her looks.
"You'd look hot as Princess Xena." He yelped then laughed after she socked him in the arm.
"But all jokes aside, you need to know that you can trust me. I've been hiding behind a façade practically all my life and it takes a lot to know who I can trust to reveal my true self to. My intentions are only to find people in my life whom I can trust myself wholly to and I want you to be one of them. I hope you know how much that means to me." His stormy grey eyes were staring intently into her cobalt blue ones. She could feel the sincerity in those eyes and words.
But even wolves could hide in sheep's clothing.
She hesitated between telling him she'd think about it or rejecting his trust completely just so she didn't have to deal with this whole other drama that entailed with being his confidant.
Jesse saved her the breath by telling her, "Right now, all I ask is that you let me be your friend. You don't need to start spilling all your deep, dark secrets right away though I wouldn't object to that at all. I'd at least get some payback for your stepping on my ego constantly," he said playfully while dodging another punch from Ember.
"I'll prove to you I can be a good friend so learn to trust me slowly, okay?" He extended a hand for her to shake on it. She was more than unsure as she placed her hand in his and shook it once. She hoped she wasn't investing her time and emotions in something that would make her spiral deeper, mentally and emotionally.
"Great," he grinned. "But even if you don't think I am a good friend, I'll rub off on you because c'mon, who can resist this?" He pretended to be a macho bodybuilder by flexing his biceps. Ember laughed and her doubt of his earnestness blinked away for the moment.
"You're really something, you know that?" she told him. "And exactly how do you know I'm 'real'--," she made air quotes with her fingers, "when you've only known me for less than a month? It could be a sham for all you know."
He cocked an eyebrow. "The fact that you just said that proves that it isn't. And also, I've done plenty of research. So don't worry 'bout me."
Which probably means you should worry about yourself instead, Emmy.
"You ran a freakin' background check on me?" Yeah, she couldn't exactly keep the hostility out of her tone.
He merely shrugged. "I just checked your school files. There wasn't much in there so I relied on Devon. But even he was a useless prick. And no, I still won't tell you about him."
She grumbled under her breath about uncooperative, selfish jerks. She had yet to find out what was going on between Devon and Jesse. "It's an invasion of privacy," she gritted out.
"My lips are sealed," he mimed zipping up his lips, locking them and throwing away the key. "And besides, I couldn't find out what I needed to know anyway. So I talked to Dave and he mentioned that he had met you before, back when the Woody phase was still in effect. He told me he wasn't sure if you were still the same person now as you were back then and that he'd find some way to find out. See, I'm a good friend, I'm telling you secret guy stuff here."
Her eyes widened as she realised why Woody had talked to her today since he would never have gone out of the way to speak to her. "You're not off to a good start here, Jesse."
"What? What did I do?" he asked like the oblivious idiot he was.
She shook her head at him. "Never mind, you'll find out soon enough."
He lifted his shoulders in acquiescence. "You still owe me an explanation of a certain red-head you ran away from like a scared, little mouse."
Her heart panged and she winced at the image of him and his lab partner wrapped in each other's arms. Emotions void from her tone, she said, "There is nothing to discuss. And it's non-negotiable."
She stood without waiting for his reply and snatched up her backpack from the ground. "I'm heading to class." Though, she flinched inwardly at the consequence of her skipping class now. This would be the second time she had to enter class with at least thirty pairs of eyes on her. In a day.
Jesse straightened to his feet and brushed some non-existent dirt off his pants. "I'm going to get the answer out of you one day. Mark my words, even if I have to skip class again to do it."
Rolling her eyes, she was reminded of the fact he had looked for her and skipped class to make sure she was alright. "I'm sorry you had to skip class for me. I didn't mean to hold you up and you didn't have to come after me either."
He waved off the apology like it was completely unnecessary. "If you weren't my friend, I'd tell you that owed me for it. But since I'm feeling particularly generous today, I'll let you off. This time," he just had to tack on that last part.
He was still holding onto a cup of coffee as they made their way to her classroom first since his was further down the hall. "Generous, huh? So, I bet you're generous enough to donate that cup of coffee to a person in need?"
"Don't push it, Ember. You'll lose your arm and possibly part of an ear if my coffee is not in my hand."
"But it's already cold," she whined pathetically. The things she'd do for coffee.
"Get your own." And to prove a point, he took a big gulp from the cup.
They walked down the hallway to her class while Ember suffered her caffeine withdrawal in silence. Once they reached her class, Ember watched confusedly as Jesse knocked on the door and stepped back. Her English teacher stepped out and Jesse asked him to shut the door, making sure to stay out of view from the other students inside.
"Miss Ashe is late because of a medical emergency. Excuse her, please." She knew he worked his influence in there and though she knew it was wrong, she really didn't want a mark in her record. She did really have a medical emergency-- well, if a broken heart was counted as one.
"Yes. Of course. I hope you're feeling well enough, Miss Ashe. I'd be more than willing to excuse you from class to rest in the infirmary," her teacher mentioned without spite, surprisingly. She would have expected teachers to hate Jesse and his influence or at least be reluctant to give in to it.
"No, no, I'm feeling much better now."
Her English teacher inclined his slightly balding head. "Very well then. Thank you Jesse, for escorting her here. You are a wonderful example of a model student." His smile actually seemed real.
"No problem at all, sir," Jesse nudged her to enter the class while he turned around to leave.
Shaking off her surprise, Ember entered the class and once again, she was faced with a room full of eyes. Silently, she made her way to her seat next to Tricia while her teacher resumed the lessons. Only when everyone was paying attention to the lesson did she allow herself to relax in her seat.
She was both physically and emotionally drained.
Only a few more hours, Em. You can do this.
She felt a tap on her arm and Ember glanced to her left to see Tricia with an eyebrow raised high on her forehead. "What happened?" she mouthed.
"Nothing," Ember whispered when the teacher had his back to the class. "I wasn't feeling well. I came back here with Jesse's help."
"You're fibbing. Jesse is a phone addict and would've texted Cory and others if he was skipping class to which Cory would've texted me and told me. Jesse's back in class now and Cory said he wouldn't tell them why he skipped class. So I know for sure you're fibbing. And I can't believe the teach' actually bought that lame excuse."
Ember shrugged innocently since she couldn't believe it herself but she wasn't planning on admitting that she did skip class.
Tricia settled back in her seat but not before grumbling, "I'll get it out of you. And I have to get him to teach me how to do that."
Ember shook her head fondly at Tricia then proceeded to mull over the profound enigma that Jesse had turned out to be.
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Hellow yellow bananas! :) Sorry, I had to cut this short. The next chapter will reveal why Ember reacted so strongly to the word, 'betrayal'. Heh. And turns out Jesse is not the heartless player you all think he was, muahahaha! And give some love to Jaden too, he's not really that mean. :) Comment & vote. <3 cherylxo