Chapter 21
I woke up to a foggy morning. White fog hung desolately in a thick blanket outside my window. I shivered when I saw that I had slept in my clothes over the bedcovers, and I dragged myself out of bed to the bathroom.
Memories of last night came rushing back to me when I saw my puffy red eyes and ruined eyeliner.
"I don't think I can fall in love with someone else after you…that's what's making it so painful…"
He was in love with me.
"It's not like you could stop this and we'd runaway or something."
"Couldn't we do that?"
He had sounded so hopeful. Yes, he was being ridiculously immature, but he wanted to runaway with me.
"I guess you are too young then."
And he just walked away.
All of a sudden, I felt angry. Why didn't he tell me this earlier? How could he tell me that he was in love with me and then just run off? He's twenty years old for crying out loud! I thought older people were more logical?
Splashing water on my face, I freshened up and went downstairs for breakfast. Mum had left cereal on the table for me as she fixed Sasha up for school. Her school still had to close for the winter holidays.
"Hey, mum, when're the Adams leaving?" I tried to ask nonchalantly as I ate my cereal.
Mum brushed Sasha's hair as she answered, "Hmm…I think day after tomorrow."
"What the -" I stopped, as my mum gave me a chilling look. Sasha giggled.
"Sissy was about to curse," sang my lovely sister.
"Shuddup," I mumbled sourly, waging war on my cereal.
Mum fixed up Sasha's uniform and tie and patted her rear end. "Run along now. Daddy's waiting on the driveway."
Sasha hugged mum and gave me a thump on the head before she skipped out of the house. Mum took a seat across from me.
"Is something wrong, Rebecca?" she asked.
I shook my head furiously. "Nope."
"Have you been crying?"
"Er…no…I just didn't get enough sleep."
Yeah, lying was bad, but I couldn't tell her that I was crying for this twenty year old who broke my heart.
"Hmm…that's strange, because I popped into your room last night and you were sleeping like a baby…in your clothes," said mum.
Damn it.
"Well duh, mum, I sleep in clothes. If you pop in like that, you wouldn't want to see me without them, yeah?"
She rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean, Rebecca. Now tell me…is anything wrong? Did something happen?"
Except for my heart getting stolen? Nope.
"Is something supposed to happen?" I asked my mum back.
She sighed. "Alright alright. I won't ask anymore…just know that I'm here if you want to talk."
I shrugged. "Yeah, sure." After 2 years. When I'm an adult and there won't be any awkward questions, I added in my head.
"Do we have to lock you two in a closet again?"
"Please, not again. You aren't easy to kidnap ya know."
I glared at Michelle. "You're not the one who dragged me. Hayden did."
She shrugged. "It was hard to find you and keep your arms from flailing around and scratching us."
"Whatever," I mumbled. "By the way, I thought you guys were supposed to be on my side?"
Penelope dragged her feet across the ground to stop the swing. "Yeah, but none of us like seeing the two of you sulk all day and ache to be with each other."
"It's just not meant to be," I said, looking away towards a few kids chasing each other around the park.
"Okay, he was being illogical and a bit of a jerk, but can you blame him? He's in love," Penelope said defensively.
"Dude, you two are meant to be with each other," said Michelle, picking on the grass around her.
"And he's leaving in two days. Do you really want last night to be the last time you see him?" added in Penelope.
I stayed quiet, wrapping my sweater closer to my body. No, of course I didn't want that. But maybe it was better this way. Maybe it's better to be angry at him and never see him again instead of crying over him and what could've happened if he stayed.
"A little warning would've been nice," I grumbled.
"I'm sure he had his reasons," said Penelope.
"Does he really have to take over his dad's business?" questioned Michelle. "Is it his decision or is his dad forcing him to?"
I nodded. "Actually, he told me once that he wanted to work with his dad someday."
"What does his dad do anyway?" asked Penelope.
"Um…I think Jake said once that his dad's company made software or something," I answered, shrugging.
"Funny, I never pegged Jake to be a computer geek though," Michelle said, scratching her chin thoughtfully. "I thought he'd be in the music biz."
"The guys would've made a great band," sighed Penelope.
I shook my head. "Only Leon and Hayden are serious about music. They'll be joining a music academy."
"And Kurt?" asked Penelope.
"Kurt…hmm, I dunno -"
"He wants to be a chef," said Michelle.
Penelope and I burst into laughter, but stopped when I saw the serious look on Michelle's face.
"A chef?" I asked incredulously. "Since when did he cook?"
Michelle blushed. "Well – uh – he does make the best brownies," she said, running a hand through her red hair nervously.
I nudged her in the ribs, grinning wickedly. "When was the date?"
Michelle gasped. "It wasn't a date!"
Penelope and I raised our eyebrows at her, staring her down. Michelle squirmed under our gazes before giving in.
"Alright, alright. It was a few days ago. He invited me over to his house and we baked together."
"Aww," Penelope and I cooed simultaneously.
"Yeah. We would've told you guys yesterday, but then…you know…"
"Wow, it's weird how everyone's being separated," Penelope suddenly added in, probably to stop me from thinking about Jake.
Michelle nodded, resting her chin on her bent knees. "Do you think we'll be separated too?"
Penelope jumped up from the swing and joined Michelle and I on the ground. "Well, I'm set for med school. You're looking at a future cardiologist," she said, grinning.
"And wherever my twin goes, I go," I said, high-fiving her. "I think I'll study psychiatry."
We looked towards Michelle who had a pained look on her face. She sighed, bumping her head on her knees.
"Ugh, I don't know what to do," she groaned. "I don't have any talents like you guys."
Penelope and I simultaneously thumped her on the head.
"Dude, you cook great…maybe you should join Kurt," I suggested, wiggling my eyebrows.
"Oh, shut up."
"But whatever happens," started Penelope, "we should promise to never lose contact with each other."
"Deal," Michelle and I said.
"Group hug!" squealed Penelope, opening her arms wide.
Michelle and I tackled Penelope to the ground, giggling madly. It was then that I knew that yes, whatever happened in the future, I'd have my two best friends, and the three of us would always be together.
After a mildly exhausting day with my besties (we went to the mall later, and when Penelope's in the mall…jeez…), I dragged my feet back home, flopping down on my bed as soon as I entered my room. However, as soon as I closed my eyes, my cell phone vibrated in my pocket.
Look outside your window.
I jumped out of bed and threw aside the curtains, looking down on the backyard.
Even though I knew it'd be him as soon as I saw the text message, I still gasped and almost got a heart attack when I saw a dark-haired man with a goatee standing over my mum's precious flower beds.
Mum's going to be so mad.
And not because Jake ruined her flowers.
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A/N: Time for 'The Talk'...dundundun! lol. Thank you so much for reading and supporting this story! Really means a lot guys. Just 10 more chapters to go before the end!