Page 7 of Cooper & Jake
“Guesswho I ran into this morning,” Taylor sings as soon as I open my hotel door.
“I only care if it’s Jensen Ackles or Charlie Hunnam. Otherwise, don’t bother telling me,” I say, letting the door fall shut as I turn around and head back into my room.
“Really? Not even the bulky, sexy-as-hell man, with the jet-black hair, tattoos all over his arms, and his ears pierced. You don’t want to hear about him?”
“Ugh. You know I really hate you sometimes.”
“No, you just pretend that you do. But anyway, imagine my surprise when I’m riding down the elevator, pumping myself up to go on a run and the door swings open to the sexy man we kept running away from yesterday.”
“I did not run away,” I mumble. “So, uh, did he say anything or ask about me?” I inquire, chewing on my bottom lip.
“He asked if we were sharing a room.”
“He what?” I exclaim, staring at her.
“Well, okay, not exactly in that way. But he questioned our being in different rooms. He was fishing to see if you’re seeing anyone.”
“And what did you tell him?” I ask, my heart beating faster as I wait for her reply.
“That he needed to question you himself.”
“Taylor,” I huff, crossing my arms over my chest.
“Honestly, Coop, it’s embarrassing how badly you keep running away from the man. It doesn’t seem like he and his friend are together.”
“Avoiding him isn’t my intention. I’m just nervous, I guess.” I twist my hands in my lap, then look at her. “I know I’ve accomplished things in my life. But I suppose I still feel like shit for what I did.”
“Ghosting him?”
“Yeah, basically. I mean, we were kids, so who knows what would have happened, but I had so much going on back then I just blanked on everything and could only focus on Mom. How do I tell him that?”
“By telling him what occurred. Stop running away, Cooper. He obviously wants to talk to you, and you deserve the chance to speak with him. Tell him the whole story about twenty years ago. If not for him, then for yourself. You’ve been holding it in for years. Get it off your chest.”
I rest my head on her shoulder, sighing loudly. “Being an adult fucking sucks.”
“Don’t I know it, sweetie. Whoever said growing up would be fun lied and had no idea what they were talking about.”
“If I’m being completely honest, speaking to Jake was one of the main reasons I wanted to come back. I didn’t know if he was going to be here, but deep down I was really hoping he would,” I admit, even though I’m sure she already knows.
“Then talk to him. Tonight. It’s the first night of activities, right? What better time to talk to him than at the reunion? Then you can go home feeling lighter.” She tells me, squeezing my legtightly. An instant calmness rushes over me, and I’m determined to have a conversation with Jake.
“What would I do without you?”
“Good thing you’ll never have to find out. Now come on, let’s go shopping for a new outfit for you to wear tonight.”
Taylor and I are standing in line, waiting to register and check in for the Friday night activities. I walk through the front door, taking note of the schedule they have displayed on a huge bulletin board. Okay, cool. It seems like tonight is mostly for mingling and getting reacquainted with one another. I can do that. Totally. Hopefully. Maybe.
Taylor is standing beside me, talking my ear off about the school. It looks the same but different at the same time. You can tell it’s aged twenty years, that’s for sure. But she’s excited about finally seeing the place I grew up.
“Did I tell you about classroom 313?” I say, cutting her off as I look around the lobby of the gym.
“Uh no,” she says, scrunching her eyebrows together.
“So, when they first built the school, someone had misnumbered the classrooms and mistakenly left out the number 313. Which isn’t bad when you think about it. But what’s bad is that every year, the people who worked in the office would still assign a class there. Without fail, there would be a group of students who were looking for a classroom that didn’t even exist.”
“Oh my god, that’s hilarious,” Taylor giggles, stepping forward as we move up one spot in line.
“It’s actually how I first met Jake. I, of course, knew that no classroom existed, but Jake was new and didn’t know better. Iwas strolling down the hallway to the classrooms and saw Jake scratching his head as he kept walking between rooms 312 and 314. Here was this gorgeous guy, huge and muscular with jet-black hair and these striking ocean-blue eyes. I walked over to him, thinking he would quickly dismiss me ’cause I was scrawny with freckles all over my face and braces on my teeth. But he turned around, flashing me the biggest smile, and I was a goner.”
