Page 57 of Giving In

That is not what I expected Jake White’s bedroom to look like. The walls are all completely white and the furniture light gray or white. Straight ahead, against the wall opposite to the door, there is a gray desk, big enough to have space for his homework spread out on one side and two computer screens on the other.

There’s a wall perpendicular to the right side of the doorway so I turn to the left. His bed is against the left wall. It’s an old black metal bed with bars at the bottom and at the head. It looks like it barely holds together but, mixed with the modern furniture, the contrast gives an edgy look to the room. He’s got a door that, I’m assuming, leads to a closet on the left side of his bed and a white nightstand on the other side with an antique brass lamp on it.

All the walls have black and white pictures on them. Some of him and his friends, some of him playing lacrosse, in action. Some of them are beautiful pictures of nature and landscapes.

“You want to observe all day or are you gonna get in?”

Without even thinking I keep stepping inside until I’m in the middle of the room.

“Did you take these pictures? They’re beautiful.”

“Luke did,” he replies as he looks at his phone. He’s typing something and focusing on the screen.

I don’t know what to say. I don’t know what to do.What we shared earlier is gone. Uncomfortable tension has replaced sexual tension and I’m dying for him to touch me the way he did at my house. Not that I would admit it to him.

Jake walks around me, his gaze still on his phone, and goes to the closet. He opens the door, grabs a towel, a T-shirt, and turns around.

“Shower,” he orders calmly, throwing the towel and shirt at me.

I catch them in a reflex, but my thoughts don’t follow my body.

“W– what?” I stutter, completely lost. My brain can’t help going to dark places, wondering why he wants my body clean.

“You’ve spent the whole day at school. You should shower before the party,” he replies, obviously.

“What party?” As soon as I’ve asked, it comes back to me. Chris’ birthday. How can I keep forgetting he’s turning eighteen today? “I’m not going to that. I haven’t been to Chris’ birthday parties in years. In fact, since you started attending.”

He throws his phone on the bed and finally looks at me with a saccharine smile.

“I find it funny you stopped being friends with Chris since I moved to Stoneview. Are you that scared of me?”

I haven’t particularly stopped seeing Chris because the twins showed up, we slowly drifted apart when his group of friends became more and more elitist. But I can’t ignore that I always thought something was off with them, especially Jake. Clearly, I was right.

“Aren’t you the one who said you didn’t want to see me at a party again? I’m just following your advice,” I ignore his question.

He lets out a low chuckle. It comes out from deep in his chest and forces goosebumps to break all over my skin.

“Look. I’m going to give you one last chance to do things willingly before I make you do them.”

I can feel his anger rising and I take a step back when he takes one toward me.

“You don’t scare me,” I reply. I wish my body would follow my mind and didn’t force me to take another step back. I wish my voice backed up my words instead of shaking from fear.

Jake shrugs in a ‘as you wish’ way and I can see the smile tugging at his lips. He takes another step toward me and grabs both my shoulders, forcing me to back up until I hit the chair at his desk.

“You’re gonna want to sit down for this,” he says. I frown but resist when he pushes my shoulders down. “Fine. Suit yourself.”

He turns around, walks a few steps as if thinking if what he’s about to do is worth it. When he turns back around, his right elbow is in his left palm by his chest and he’s holding his chin in his right hand. I watch him, the back of my knees against the chair.

“Quick question.” He pauses to make sure he has my attention. Once he is sure he has it all, he starts again. “The coffee shop you and your mom work at, do you know who owns it?”

I am completely lost.

When he sees my hesitation, he insists. “Do you?”

“Uh, yeah, the Bakers. Why?”

He smiles. “Yup. That’s Luke’s family, you know that, right?”

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