The days had become colder.
Bradley woke up, sweating.
Another nightmare.
He was drenched in sweat, trying to control his breathing.
He was back in his room, his heart pounding. He looked down at his chest, his bandage clean. It had all been a dream.
Ever since leaving the hospital, he couldn't help but be afraid of every shadow, every unexpected tap on the shoulder.
He had fought with his parents to stay on campus. He was an adult after all, but they had made him promise to leave for winter break.
He had agreed.
They also stationed their own security on him, to report back to them and make sure Bradley was safe. Those were the conditions.
He got up, knowing it was pointless to stay in bed. He wouldn't be able to go back to sleep.
The paper he was working on was still on his desk from the night before. He figured it would be a good use of time to finish that. Maybe he would take a light jog in the morning, a really light jog, but he knew he was pushing it. He wouldn't be able to do more than walk.
He went to the bathroom and refused to look at his reflection. He hadn't seen evil Bradley in a while, and he intended to keep it that way.
He brushed his teeth and got changed, his back hurting when he rose his arms to put on his sweater. He hoped that in a month's time he would be better. He had to be.
It was too early to call Cora. She had been his companion since he left the hospital. He had kept his word. He wasn't going to push any charges on her brother.
But not because he didn't want to.
But because he knew Jasmine had done as she had said. She had taken care of it.
Jasmine was a Flores after all.
Her name wasn't Snow as she had originally told everyone.
"I wasn't aware of your friendship with the Flores daughter," His mother had told him one morning as his breakfast was being served. They had just changed his bandage, and he was a little on edge from the pain.
"Who?" he asked annoyed. No one he knew had that last name.
"Jasmine," his father responded from across the hospital room. "Surely you knew?"
"Knew what? Her last name is Snow." he said confused. Why were his parents bringing her up?
"We were able to speak to her for some time, after your accident," his mom said, taking a sip of her black coffee. "She was so concerned. You should be dating that girl. Her family is well known."
"What?" Bradley couldn't process anything they were saying.
"I swear, did you hurt your head too son?" his father teased. "Your friend is a Flores. As in the Flores Corporation."
Bradley laughed. They had it all wrong. Jasmine wasn't mafia. Or at least that's what's rumored about one of the most riches family in the world. How would the daughter of the Flores CEO hide away in their campus without being known or recognized?
"She's Jasmine Snow. Not Jasmine Flores," Bradley corrected. "I did date her, back in Sophomore year."
His mother shook her head. "That's not what she told us."
Bradley didn't know what to say.
He hadn't had a chance to ask Jasmine about it. She hadn't come back to the hospital since the day she left with the girls.
But he believed it now.
She had told him she had taken care of Mikolaj, and that she had. Apparently from what Cora said, they had been scared by a few men she had brought with her to the house. Cora's housekeeper had seen the whole thing and almost called the police.
But Jasmine had told her not to. She had told her housekeeper that Mikolaj would be very upset if she did that.
Jasmine was a Flores.
Bradley chuckled. Why had she kept that from him? She had never mentioned her family, or where she came from. All he knew was that she would go to New York from time to time...
"She tried to," Evil Brad said from behind him. Bradley refused to turn.
Bradley continued to do as he was, taking a seat on his desk. He wasn't going to give in this time. He wasn't going to respond to it.
"She asked you to meet her parents over the break, but you refused. No, no that's not what happened. You didn't bother showing up at all." Evil Brad said. Bradley could hear the small sound of his footsteps approaching him. "Remember that?"
Bradley reached for his pen. His paper was sitting in front of him, but he couldn't focus.
The phone was also by his desk.
He grabbed it and dialed her number.
It had been disconnected.
"She's not there anymore,"
Evil Brad had to be lying. Maybe she forgot to pay her phone bill. That had to be it.
"Believe whatever you want Bradley, I'm just here to tell you everything you don't want to hear."
The room got eerily quiet. He knew Evil Brad was gone.
Why was he going to call her? It was barely four in the morning. He stared back at his paper and began to make marks.
He had no idea why he was out. The sun was still away, the moon shining bright through the trees. The air was so cold. He shivered under his hoodie. Why hadn't he brought is jacket? At least he had his hat. He tightened it around his ears, making sure they were at least warm.
His hands ached, and the cold didn't help either.
He knew his parent's security was following him. But that was fine. As long as they didn't meddle in his affairs he didn't care.
He had called Roxanne right after he tried calling Jazmyne but she didn't pick up. He had to know.
He had to know where she was.
He didn't want to drive either. He wanted to walk, to clear his thoughts. He had so many things running back and forth in his head, like a trailer for a movie. And her face kept popping in and out of memories.
His chest ached, and he didn't know why. Was it his injuries? Or was it something else? He didn't understand why he felt so anxious. Why he had to know where she was.
Jasmine was tired. She yawned. How late was it?
Tony was sitting across from her, putting some finishing touches on the large poster they had been working on.
She made to take a sip of coffee, but figured it was best if she stopped. She wanted to be able to sleep, even if it would only be for a few hours.
"Let me take your cup. Stacey will kill us if I leave dirty mugs on her table." Jasmine said. Tony handed his em[ty mug. He smiled up at her. Jasmine turned, feeling dizzy.
She had been spending a lot of time with Tony. They were partners after all, and it was mostly school related, but sometimes she couldn't help but feel like his eyes lingered on her longer than normal.
She went to the kitchen, noting the calendar on the fridge.
December 9th.
She smiled to herself. It would be his birthday today. What a coincidence. She sighed.
"I could help with that, I don't mind." Tony said softly. They didn't want to wake up anyone in the house. Everyone knew they were working on their final project.
"Nonsense. I got it." she replied back, feeling a little ache in her stomach. This always happened when she thought of Brad.
She turned the faucet on and began to doze off as she washed the mugs.
She tiptoed to his room. He would love his gift. There was no way he wouldn't.
The gamma house was cold and quiet. She had snuck in before the sun rose. The snow had already began to fall, a perfect way to start the day. Jasmine loved the snow.
She took her boots off and made her way to the kitchen, placing the cake down on the table. She set the bag full of his gifts by the chair in the corner, making sure that the main present was still intact. It was so heavy. How had she manage to carry all this in?
She took her coat off and set it neatly over one of the chairs. Her heart was pounding fast for some reason. Was she nervous? Scared? Anxious?
It must be nerves, she said, though part of her didn't want to believe it was something else.
She walked up the long stairway that led to the third floor, which was where Brad's room was. His was the only room on that floor.
She smiled. She couldn't wait to wake him.
As she got closer to his room she heard his voice. Strange, why was he up?
"Yeah, I know. Sometimes I miss you too," she heard him say. Who was he talking to so early?
No response. He must be on the phone.
"Thanks for calling me so early, I know it must have been a hassle. Yeah, I am surprised."
She stopped. She didn't want him to know she was there. She wanted to hear the rest of the conversation. It must have been some relative of his, his mom or dad.
"Lily, I miss you too, but I have a girlfriend now." she heard him say. So it was a girl.
There was a long pause.
"Yeah, I wish she was you too." she heard Bradley say.
She gasped. She covered her mouth with the scarf she was still wearing, her knees getting weak. She could feel her heart hammering against her chest. Had she heard correctly?
She willed her legs to move but they wouldn't. She was frozen on the spot. She closed her eyes, wishing she could also close her ears. She didn't want to hear anymore.
"I'll try to call you later, and please stop crying. You know things can't work out between us like I'd like them to." Bradley said. He sounded sad.
Jasmine took a deep breath.
She turned around and saw Tank standing there. Hey eyes began to water. She shook her head.
"Jasmine?" he said softly.
She began to cry. She ran past him, barely missing his outstretched arms.
She ran down the steps as fast as she could, almost tripping on the last one. Her vision was getting blurry as she ran to the kitchen to grab her jacket. She saw the cake on the table, the beautiful cake she had decorated herself, and threw it against the wall.
She heard Bradley call her name from the top of the stairs and she ran towards the front of the house, wanting to get away from him as fast as she could.
She had almost made it to her car when she felt him pick her up from behind.
"Let go of me!" she yelled, trying to kick him off.
"What has gotten into you?" he asked, his face worried, turning her to face him. He was shirtless, and the snow was beginning to fall faster down on them.
She gasped, annoyed that she still found him beautiful despite what she had heard.
"Jasmine?" he asked. "Why are you crying?"
"I just heard you fucking conversation!" she cussed. She had never cussed at him.
His face changed. It had gone pale.
"How much- what did you hear exactly?" he asked her. He tried to grab her hand but she yanked it away from him.
"So Lily's her name huh?" she said. She felt hot. She felt betrayed. She had never wanted to hurt someone so much.
Bradley sighed. "It's not what you think,"
"What is it then?" she asked, turning her attention to Tank. He was standing by the door, his expression blank.
"Whose Lily Tank? Or are you going to lie to me too?" she asked the big dude. He shook his head and looked at Bradley.
"Are you going to tell her?" Tank asked.
"Tell her what?" Bradley yelled at him. "There's nothing to say about her."
Tank's gaze fell on Bradley like daggers.
"Lily was Bradley's ex-girlfriend. Before you came along." Tank said. Jasmine laughed.
"Does she go here or something?" she asked.
Bradley nodded. "Yes. But the conversation you heard was all wrong."
"Explain to me how telling someone that you wish they were ME sounds all wrong?" Jasmine yelled. "And why would you still be talking to her in the first place?! DAMN YOU BRADLEY."
"How long has this been going on?!"
"Can we talk inside?"
"I want to hear the fucking truth!" Jasmine huffed, the snow falling harder.
"That is the truth! I haven't been with her if that's what you're worried about." Bradley said, his face red.
Jasmine tried to keep firm but she couldn't help but shake. She was shaking from the cold and from the nerves. How could he have done this to her?
"When was the last time you were with her?" Jasmine asked, afraid.
She saw Tank walk back inside. That wasn't a good sign.
"Jasmine, please. You know that I'm with you now. I love you."
"Do you Brad? Because I swear to God, if you don't respond to my question now you can forget I ever existed." she said, clenching her fist.
Bradley looked down at her, his face worried. "I dated Lily for three years before I broke up with her over the summer. I broke up with her because I met you. I cheated on Lily with you."
Jasmine didn't know how to respond to that.
"And the last time I slept with her was the day before I asked you to be my girlfriend. I know it was wrong of me but-"
Jasmine punched him. She didn't know where her strength came from but she felt the impact almost immediately as she saw the blood.
"FUCK YOU," she said and turned away, leaving him with a bloody nose on his birthday.
"Hey, hey, are you okay?"
Jasmine shook her head, the memory quickly fading.
Tony was standing behind her, his hand on her shoulder. It felt comforting.
"Yeah, I'm just really tired." she said.
"Are your hands okay? They're red from the hot water." Tony pointed out.
"I didn't even notice." she said looking down at her hands.
"Well, let's pack this stuff up and I'll get going." Tony said walking away.
"Nonsense, Tony. You can crash on the sofa. It's too late now to try to make your way back home. I'll get you some blankets." she said.
Bradley noticed that the snow was beginning to fall as he made his way to Roxanne's front door. He looked toward's Max's old Frat house, dark and empty. It felt haunting.
"Could you guys just stay there?" Bradley called out to his security. "I'll be okay here,"
He noticed the lights were still on in the lower level. Was Roxanne or Stacey already up?
He looked down at his watch. It was almost 6am.
He went up and gently knocked, hoping that he wouldn't wake anyone else up.
"Bradley?"
Jasmine was at the door, wearing sweats and a tank top. Her hair was wet and dangling in front of her bright green eyes. Bradley couldn't help but feel his heart drop, admiring her.
"Who is it?" he heard a guy's voice from behind her.
"It's Bradley." Jasmine responded, her eyes never leaving his.
"Yo, Brad." Tony said, popping up from behind Jasmine. He wasn't wearing a shirt. Why wasn't he wearing a shirt?
"Everything okay?" Jasmine asked. "You shouldn't be out here. It's freezing out. Were you looking for Roxanne?"
Bradley didn't know what to say. This whole scene bothered him so much.
"Yeah, I know it's early, but I called and no one picked up." he said, his voice breaking. What was wrong with him?
"That was you that called around 4am?" Tony asked. "We thought it was a spam call so we didn't pick up. Sorry dude."
Why was Tony here? Was this how Max felt whenever Tony was around?
"Where's your car?" Jasmine asked him. "Come in, we were just going to go to bed. Roxanne's still asleep."
"You guys were going to go to bed?" Bradley asked, trying to keep his voice neutral.
"Yeah, but come in, it's okay." Jasmine said.
Bradley didn't know what to do. He didn't want to go in. But now he knew she was okay, so he could go back home and act as if nothing happened.
"It's okay, I think I'll talk to Roxanne at a later time." Bradley said. "Sorry for disturbing you. I'll see you around."
"Okay, take care." Jasmine said. Tony waved.
She closed the door behind him. He suddenly felt alone.
Jasmine ran to her room and put on her boots. She grabbed her nearest coat and hat. Bradley had walked there.
She wanted to know why.
"Where are you going?" Tony asked as she made he way to the door. "Are you going with Brad?"
"Yes, I'll be back soon. Don't lock the door. That way I don't wake you up when I come back."
"Got it. Be safe okay?" he said. She smiled.
It was snowing again. She could see some men walking down the sidewalk, a few feet away from Brad. They must be his security.
"Bradley!" she yelled, running up to him. He turned and smiled.
"Jasmine, what are you doing out here?" he asked her. He had his hands in his sweater.
"Why did you walk here? Why didn't you drive?" she asked.
"I just needed the walk." he responded. What excuse would he give? He didn't have any.
"Something on your mind? I'm not trying to be nosey, but I'm concerned. You don't even have a jacket on. And I haven't heard from you since I last saw you at the hospital. I've heard you've been back home."
"I'm sorry I didn't say anything, I just figured I would lay low for a bit." he said.
"So you're telling me you walked all the way here, on your birthday, to talk to Roxanne about something? Something that couldn't wait until later?"
"My birthday? You remember?"
She nodded. "I'm not stupid. I did only spend one birthday with you but man was that a birthday I'll never forget."
Bradley sighed. He had beat himself so much for that.
"Should I give you another nose bleed so you'll remember?" she teased. Her nose was turning red from the cold.
"I'd like that." he said. He could feel himself smiling. Why was it so easy to be with her again? "Could we talk?"
Jasmine blinked back at him in surprise. "About what?"
"About that day, since it's been brought up. I felt like I never really gave you any closure. You kind of just hit me and left. Then you forgave me and we never talked about it again. Do you remember?"
He noticed her hesitation. Did it still bother her?
"Maybe we shouldn't." she said. "I just wanted to know if you were okay,"
He made to grab her hand but stopped. This was hitting him like déjà vu.
Everything was the same and different at the same time. It was early morning, with snow falling on his birthday. He wasn't bare chested, but he was only wearing a sweater. He might as well be.
And she was in front of him. Wearing the same jacket from that morning. Did she remember? He did.
And the snow was falling around them. Her face looked so plump, her lips so red from the cold. This was killing him.
"You deserve the truth." he said softly.
"I rather not," she said.
"I never cheated on you with her. I fell in love with you so quick it scared me." he said the words spilling out.
"Brad," he heard her say, but he wouldn't stop. He couldn't stop.
"That night she had called me and was drunk. Mind you, she only called me when she was drunk, but I always felt responsible for that. I felt like I had done that to her. I would tell her whatever she wanted to hear while she was drunk so that she would stop calling. It only ever happened when she would get drunk." he said. "And I'm sorry you had to hear that. I should have stopped it as soon as she started calling me. But I couldn't. I felt like I had betrayed her. I really did care about her once. But after you came along, I just couldn't ignore what I felt for you. And yes, I did sleep with her the day before I asked you out, but it was a stupid mistake. I wanted to forget about you! I was still with Lily. I dumped her right after we slept together. It was wrong of me. I know this. God, Jasmine, all I could think when I was with her that night was YOU, and it tore me inside."
He could see Jasmine turning pale.
"And that's my truth. No reason for me to lie about it, now. I just wanted you to know. If for my sake more than anything." he said, feeling a little bit lighter.
Jasmine threw her hands around him, embracing him tight. He wrapped his arms around her, wanting her to stay in his arms forever. This was a great way to start his birthday.
With the girl he was still in love with.