Max woke up, Roxanne sleeping next to him on her small bed. He yawned. It was still dark out.
He looked over at the clock. 4am.
Wow, did that really happen last night? He asked himself, not believing it.
He couldn't stay. If anyone saw him they'd ask questions.
He got up slowly, not wanting to wake her up. She looked so peaceful. His heart ached for her as he placed the blanket neatly on top of her.
I can't believe I told her I loved her. Shit what was I thinking?
He walked over to her window and noticed that his light was on in his room.
Maybe PJ got up to look for me what am I going to tell him?
He looked back at Roxanne. This had been the best night he's had at school. The best night he's had since Roxanne walked out of his life.
He knew he couldn't do this to her. He knew she wanted to move on from him and valued his friendship more than anything. He didn't want to ruin that. She had told him she was confused. He wouldn't push her.
Roxanne why do you do this to me? He thought, smiling. He didn't want to mess up the friendship they had started.
He walked over to the desk and took out a notepad from under her drawer.
Call me when you wake up. I didn't want to leave, but I thought it would be best.
He looked down at his note. Perfect. He'd apologize for his behavior tomorrow.
The picture from freshman year looked up at him. She was so beautiful, her smile shy and red, while his face lit up behind her in the stadium. This was bittersweet. She had been there. That was all that mattered.
He reached for the picture.
PS, I love this picture so I'm taking it for myself.
Max
He knew he couldn't leave this here. This picture meant more to him then she could know.
He grabbed his sweater from the floor and quietly placed his shoes on. Hopefully no one was awake this early.
Jasmine woke up, her lipstick smeared. Why hadn't anyone woke her up?
Her back ached as she sat up, feeling tight. She was still at the library.
At least I slept, she thought. It had been a while since she had any decent sleep. No nightmares this time.
She packed up her items, feeling off. How was she going to get home now? She had walked here, but right now she didn't feel like walking back to her apartment.
She sighed. Might as well start the long walk home. Maybe she could call a cab?
As she walked down the steps to the first floor, she noticed a young man sitting at the desk where Mrs. Fenton would normally sit.
His black hair was pulled back into a ponytail, one earring on each ear. He looked up as soon as she stepped onto the floor.
"Studying late?" he asked her. She noticed he had a long dark scar running on the right side of his chiseled face. He was very handsome.
"More like I fell asleep," she said. "Mind if I could use your phone? I gotta call a cab."
He smiled. "Of course. My shift is almost done, if you'd like a ride."
"Haha, funny, but I don't take rides from strangers." she said as he handed her the black phone.
"You're about to call a stranger right now to pick you up," he said, showing off his white perfect teeth.
"It's their job." she said. "They get paid to do it. I'm not giving you anything, so why would you do me a favor like that?"
"I'm Lake, Lake Aaron." he said, extending his hand. Jasmine raised her perfectly waxed eyebrow.
"I've never seen you, Lake." she said and began to dial the taxi's number.
"I'm pretty sure you have," he said, his dark blue eyes examining her. She turned her back to him.
"Hi, yes, I do need a taxi, the College Library please. Yes, my name is Jasmine. I'll be waiting outside." she said and hung up.
"Jasmine, huh?" Lake said. "Pretty."
"Where is Mrs. Fenton?" she asked, ignoring him completely. If this boy thought she would fall for his words, he was mistaken. All he had was looks.
"I don't know who that is. I just know I got this job." he said, leaning back against his chair.
"Well, nice to meet you, Lake. I guess I'll see you around." she said, proceeding to walk away. She felt uneasy for some reason. It couldn't be because of Lake. She was used to guys hitting on her. Something else was off about all this.
It was still pitch dark outside. She was glad she had her scarf in her bag. She took it out and wrapped it around herself, the weird uneasy feeling still in her stomach.
You're just exhausted, she thought as she looked out into the park. She saw a figure sitting on the bench, asleep. She squinted. Bradley?
Why would he be at the park this late?
She ran down the steps of the library, her heels echoing in the empty silence around her. She crossed the street, her heart beating fast. Something was wrong.
As she approached Bradley, she saw that his eyes were swollen shut, bruised and purple. His breathing was labored, and his bag was on the floor, papers scattered everywhere.
"Bradley!" she yelled as she dropped her own bag. She ran up to him, cradling his face in her hands. Who could have done this?
His face was so cold. She looked down at his hands, his left hand bruised and swollen. Two of his fingers looked out of place. Oh my gosh, Bradley.
"Jasmine! Jasmine! Everything okay?" she heard Lake's voice. "What's wrong?"
"Call 911, please! Something happened to Bradley." Jasmine said, trying to remain calm. She couldn't lose her cool now. Lake nodded and ran back to the library.
She took off her leather jacket and wrapped it around Bradley's shoulders. Who could have done this?
She carefully wrapped her arms around his head, cradling it on her chest. He was going to be okay. He had to be.
She turned around to the sound of the taxi approaching. She saw Lake walk out of the library and run over the driver side. He said something and the taxi drove away.
"They're on their way." Lake yelled, his ponytail trailing behind him. He ran up to her.
"Thank you," she said, her mind going blank. Who could have done this to him? Who??
She heard the sound of the police and ambulance coming near. She was trembling now, both from the cold and from her fear.
Jasmine sat next to him, holding his hand. They said he was stable now, and thankfully he didn't have any brain damage. He had some internal bleeding, and three broken fingers in his left hand. His eyes were still closed, but they had stabilized him and put him on some oxygen to ease his body from too much strain.
This whole time she had some suspicions. It couldn't be him. But she would find out.
She looked at Bradley's swollen face. Oh, honey, I know it hurts.
The lights to his room had been dimmed, so that the light wouldn't give him a headache when he woke up. Jasmine had never felt so tired.
"Jasmine?"
She turned to the door. Roxanne was standing there with Stacey, who was holding a bouquet of flowers.
"How is he doing?" Roxanne asked, coming up to hug her. Jasmine could only nod. She didn't want to show how much this was affecting her.
"What happened?" Stacey asked, setting the vase down. "Has he woken up?"
Jasmine took a deep breath. She wanted to remain calm, but it was getting harder and harder to. Her voice shook. "I- I don't know. I saw him there, and-and- and I feared the worst."
Roxanne kept her arms around her and she felt her shoulders loosen up. She hadn't noticed how tensed she had them. The tears began to fall, and she felt Roxanne's reassuring hand over her back.
"I don't know what I would have done, if I'd lost him. If I wasn't there, he'd- he'd be dead." Jasmine said.
"Shhh, it's okay. He's safe now, thanks to you." Roxanne said quietly. "Let it all out."
"Is this how you felt when you found Max?" Jasmine asked her, the pain in her chest ripping her apart.
Roxanne looked down at her, lips turned downward. She nodded.
"It's harder when you're in love with the person." Stacey said softly. Jasmine looked up at her.
"I- I don't- I can't-" she said, not knowing what to say. She couldn't admit it. Not now. Not when Bradley had Cora. Cora was deserving of Bradley. She wasn't.
"I brought you a change of clothes and some toiletries, I know you want to stay here with him." Roxanne said. Jasmine smiled.
"Thanks, Roxanne. And you too, Stacey." she said, meaning it. She had never felt such a connection to other people before.
"Thank you for calling us. We didn't tell anyone else, just incase that was something you didn't want." Stacey said, taking a seat on one of the chairs by the wall.
"Yeah, not now. He needs to rest. We do need to tell Cora though, and the Gammas." Roxanne said,. "But not now. Not until you want."
Jasmine took a deep breath. She didn't want anyone else here, especially not Cora. But Roxanne was right. Bradley needed his friends, and his girl.
"It's lunchtime Ms. F"
He heard a weird voice, but he couldn't open his eyes.
"Thank you, but I'm not hungry. I'll take some juice, though." he heard Jasmine say.
He couldn't move either. He was so exhausted. What had happen?
"Sure thing, I'll bring some for you. Did you still want us to call your body guards?"
"Yes, please ask Daddy to send me Erick, Victor and Sean, if he can. I have use for them."
He couldn't process what was happening. He felt his mind wandering off, the pain behind his eyes coming back. Who was Jasmine talking about?
He dozed off again.