Page 6 of Unfold
A broad smile formed on Jake’s face as he gestured for me to sit in the chair next to Aaron. “Look who came back to school,” he said as if it was the best news he had heard in his entire life.
“Yeah and I’m asking why?” I didn’t care that I was being a bitch to Noelle. There was no love lost between us. She and her twin brother had been the reason that the murderous serial killer had come to town in the first place.
Jake sighed while Aaron continued peering into the large chemistry textbook before him as he ate. “Don’t be like that Katrina.”
“Why not? If it weren’t for her and her brother, my mom wouldn’t have been in danger and Mason wouldn’t have been shot. Now she strolls in here like it all doesn’t matter. At least your brother had the decency to leave Redwood for good. I guess you just can’t resist taking what isn’t yours,” I said, referring to her obvious crush on Jake. She hadn’t even bothered to visit Mason once.
He sucked in a sharp breath “You can’t blame her for what happened Katrina. She was a victim just like your mom and Mason.”
I still wasn’t backing down “She should act apologetic then. She didn’t visit Mason and I’m pretty sure she didn’t even ask about him because everything always has to be about Noelle, doesn’t it?”
She must have had enough because Noelle rose and fled the cafeteria. Jake looked torn between chasing after her and staying with me. I knew why I was lashing out; it was partly because of Mason and partly because I was jealous of how close she and Jake had gotten. If it hadn’t been for me, Jake wouldn’t have been so open and friendly with her.
“That wasn’t fair, Katrina.”
“Well, what happened to my mom and Mason wasn’t fair either. I can’t believe you are taking her side.” I glowered at him.
He looked beyond angry when he spoke again “This isn’t about taking sides, Kat. It’s about Noelle and how she must be feeling. You think this was easy for her?”
He never called me Kat. Something in the way his eyes sparkled as he defended her made me gasp. “You have feelings for her,” I said, feeling my heart break into pieces. He didn’t deny it, or maybe he hadn’t recognized it himself yet, because he simply stared at me. “I can’t believe you like her Jake, what about…?” I couldn’t finish my sentence.
Jake scoffed “Us? We both know there hasn’t been an ‘us’ for a while now. When was the last time we even hung out together? Just the two of us? Noelle and I are just close, that’s all.”
“That’s so unfair Jake. I’ve been taking care of Mason. I know I said I would give everyone a fair chance, but I haven’t had the time…”
He stood up, towering over us as Aaron finally raised his head. “I’m done with this Katrina. I’m done waiting for you to make up your mind. When you do, you know where to find me,” he said, picking up his bag to leave.
Tears were running down my face now. With my feelings hurt I screamed after him, “Well let me make it easy for you! It’s over! You and I are over! You can go back to your precious Noelle for all I care.”
Jake didn’t look back as he strode out of the room, leaving me crying pitifully into Aaron’s shirt with the whole school staring at us.
*****
Aaron dropped me off after school and I ran into my room, ignoring my mom’s concerned questions. I buried myself under the covers, snuggling against the pillow as I began to cry again.
I heard the knock on my door, but I made no move to open it. My mom came in anyway. Her soft, delicate hands caressed my hair as she laid down beside me.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” I said, sniffling back my tears. I wasn’t in the mood to hear my mom tell me how wrong I had been, stringing all three boys along. I already knew that. I just wanted to wallow in my despair.
“It’s okay honey, we won’t talk about it,” she said. She held me as I continued to cry even louder. Suddenly, my mom’s beautiful voice burst into a sweet, melodious song that I recognized from a few years back; she was singing my lullaby.
I mustered a small smile as I relaxed into her arms while she rocked me to bed. It was exactly what I had needed.
Sleep soon found me, but when I woke up the next morning, I felt sad and hurt all over again. Jake hadn’t come through my window the previous night.
Maybe this was it, maybe things were really over between me and him.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Anticipation radiated through me - even though my stomach was tangled in a ball of nerves - as I got out of my mom’s car. I stood staring at the modest house quite similar to the one I lived in with my mom.
“Have fun bebé,” my mom said with a huge smile before driving off. I had eventually told her what happened between Jake and me. Somehow, I had been convinced to go on a date with Aaron, the only one I’d hardly spent time with lately.
Luckily, Aaron’s parents were out of town, and he was home alone with his little sister, so he had suggested we watch a movie in his house.
Stepping forward, I mustered enough courage to knock on the door. It was almost immediately opened by a cute little girl, clutching a Barbie doll to her chest. She jumped into my arms. “Hey, Renee, you’ve gotten so big,” I said because what kid didn’t like to hear that they were getting more mature.
She beamed at me “That’s what everyone says! Look, I’ve grown taller too,” she waved her doll toward the wall that showed markings of both her and Aaron’s height measurements. Her British accent made her even cuter.
