AN:
I just want to say it once again that I love you guys for reading, voting and commenting on this book as well as supporting me as a writer.
***
Today is my second day in Texas. It's early morning, and I'm setting up my new cellphone when Jake emerges in my doorway.
He's talking to someone on the phone before handing it to me, making me wonder who it is.
"It's your friend, Stacey," he says. "She got my number from Vaughn."
The mentioning of such name still makes my heart drop. I sigh and take the phone from Jake. "Hello?"
Stacey's cries fill my ear as soon as I speak, and she goes frantic. "Oh my God, Mel. Are you okay? How are you doing over there?"
A soft smile tugs at my lips. I miss her. It feels like ages since the last time I heard from her. This girl is worrying about me like I'm dying. "I'm okay. Don't worry."
"God, I never thought that--" she stops talking and starts sobbing. "If only I'd figured it out earlier." She's speaking about Derek. There's a guilt in her voice, and I want to tell her that none of this is her fault.
Before, neither of us realized that Derek was such a psychopath. We thought that he was a misunderstood nerd who just didn't like to socialize with people.
"It's over now. I'm far away from that bastard," I say. "I kinda miss you, though."
"Damn, girl, I miss you more!" she says it so loudly, almost like a scream, and I laugh.
"Well, then, why don't you come over?" I tease her. "I basically am free like a bird here, I wonder how I'm going to survive a day without anything to do. But you better be prepared for what we have in store here in Texas, and I can't guarantee that you can have the time to think about Professor Adams' assignments," I joke.
"I'm so fucking coming over there. Can't wait for another weekend," she says, making me laugh again. I've never heard her curse before.
"Anyway, can you do something for me?" I ask.
"Anything..." she says like she's desperate to do it, to help me, whatever it is that I'm going to ask for.
"Can you not tell Vaughn that I'm here?" I ask, my voice small. He might not even care anymore, but I can't help but say this for precaution, since he's been trying to contact Jake but fails.
"Of course," Stacey says, her voice soft. "Anything for you, if that can make you feel better." She sighs. "To be honest, I feel like he was expecting me to update him about you when he gave me Jake's number. He still couldn't reach Jake, so he thought that I would be able to do so."
My heart still clenches every time I hear about him. Now that he's realized that Jake didn't stab him behind his back and after the disaster happening to me, he's trying to check on me out of pity?
"Thanks, Stacey," I say. "I know I can count on you."
We talk about some other stuff later before the call ends, mostly about the new environment here and not about what's happening in college -- Stacey doesn't talk about anything regarding the nude pictures, and I'm glad that she doesn't.
The sound of a car stopping right in front of the house catches my attention. Jake stands up from the bed and walks toward the window, a smile touching his lips as he sees the newcomer. "She's here," he says, making my eyebrow rise in question.
He turns to me. "I asked Lais to come over. You know, my office mate. She's helping me in getting you clothes and other necessities." That surprises me, and he shrugs. "It's better to ask another girl about what things you might need here. I mean, I'm not that expert in girl stuff."
But that's not what I mean. That's not what I'm wondering about.
Jake Spencer asking a girl for help? That's new to me. I mean, he could just ask Mom if he's a bit clueless, or he could take me to go shopping with him. I would have expected him to do so.
Jake totters downstairs, and a few moments later, he comes back with a girl behind him. She has a long and wavy dark brown hair, her skin fair but not pale, her eyes blue but not as dark as Jake's. They're apparently close to sky blue, with a mixture of grey.
"Hi, Melanie." She smiles, and I find her even more breathtaking as she does. "I'm Lais." At first, I'm thinking that she's going to stretch her hand to shake mine, but then she apparently pulls me into a warm hug. "It's so good to see you."
From the way she wraps her arms around me and pats my back, I know that she's trying to comfort me. Is it possible that she knows what happened to me?
Now, that catches me off guard, because Jake wouldn't have told anybody else unless he'd thought that they were worth telling.
I glance at Jake, who's now looking away, scratching the tip of his nose, his cheeks turning slightly crimson.
Holy shit. My brother is blushing. I've never seen it before.
Then the penny drops. I remember that he once told me he was drawn to the new intern girl in his office.
So here she is. Lais.
"Here you go, ladies." Jake drops the bag which he just got from Lais before stepping out of the room. All my new clothes and necessities must be in it.
Lais sighs, pulling away from the hug. Her eyes soften, a smile tugging at her lips. "I hope that it's helpful, Mel. Just let me know if you need anything else."
I smile back at her, my heart feeling warm from her kindness.
Later in the afternoon, Jake goes out to grab some foods for us, and that leaves me and Lais in the house to settle my belongings.
She's arranging my bath essentials inside the bathroom when I notice that one of the drawers in my closet is locked. I remember Jake telling me earlier that he stored the remaining keys in the household somewhere in his room.
I head to his room and step into it. If I'm not mistaken, he told me that he kept the keys inside his desk drawer. I approach it and stop when something on his desk catches my attention.
There are two photo frames standing on his desk. One is our family photo when we spent our holiday in Switzerland. And the other one is him with his football teammates, all wearing their football uniforms and gears, except the helmets. It looks like they just won the game because Jake was holding the trophy. In that picture, I see Vaughn standing beside him with a smirk on his face, and my heart beats twice.
I run my fingers across his face. His smile. It feels like ages since I last saw him smile. And I realize that I miss it.
"Is everything good, Mel?" Lais' voice snaps me out of my daze as she appears in Jake's doorway, startling me that I drop the frame onto the floor. To my surprise, it breaks, the glass shattered on the ground.
Stupid me.
When I pick it up, a piece of the broken glass scratches my finger, drawing blood out of it. I wince from the pain.
"Hey, let me help you," Lais says softly, bending down to help me. But then, she stops, staring at me. I wonder why.
I realize it now that I've been staring blankly at the floor. The fresh wound on my finger stings, but it's not what pains me. Something else pains me. Something deep inside my heart.
"I'm sorry. I'm such a fool." I laugh softly, shaking my head lightly. When I look up to see Lais, I find her eyes glistening with tears. And that makes the words that have stuck in my throat finally come out. "It's just... It hurts to know that I can't see him anymore."
Lais stares at me before nodding in understanding. "I know, Mel. I know," she whispers, pulling me into a hug, and the emotions I've been holding up inside my chest slowly pour out as I hug her back.