Page 153 of Withered

I let them in. When Mom sees Jake, she smiles and gives Tyler a confused look. I introduce them, and she turns to look at Kristy. She must have remembered me telling her Kristy was dating him.

Mom grabs some food for them to eat. Jake notices my good mood, and I want to tell him about my Harvard letter. We haven’t talked about college. I have no idea what he wants to do. The topic never came up.

Tyler soon leaves with Kristy, and I take Jake outdoors. “Something is up with you, isn’t it?”

I nod and show him the letter I’m holding. With confusion, he opens the letter, and a smile tugs at his lips. “Woah. Are you fucking with me? Harvard, that’s amazing.” He kisses my cheek.

“I know we never talked about this, but what are your plans?” I ask him.

He runs his fingers through his hair. “Honest to fuck, I don’t know. I haven’t planned anything.”

His face and tone give me the impression that he doesn’t want to talk about it. So I drop it. He’ll inform me when he’s ready.

“Let’s go somewhere. A small celebration,” he says suddenly.

“What? Now?” It’s getting dark, but it doesn’t matter because I’m with Jake.

“Yeah.” He shrugs.

“I’ll meet you outside your house in five minutes,” I say.

I’m glad I didn’t change, so I quickly inform Mom and grab my wallet and phone.

As promised, I meet him outside his house, and we begin walking along the sidewalk. “Where are we going?”

“Starbucks. Is that okay?” He turns to face me, and I nod. With the autumn air greeting us, a Starbucks coffee would be amazing.

We walk in, and my nostrils smell the familiar aroma of freshly brewed coffee. The bell above us jingles, drawing some attention. As he enters, unaffected by the attention, girls swoon over him. On the other side, I get some strange looks. Girls are envious, while boys are watching. Sometimes I wish I had half his confidence.

Jake throws a deathly glare at the nearest guy and laces his fingers through mine. I smile at his jealousy. He won’t agree, but I know he’s jealous.

We approach the counter, and he asks me, “What would you like?”

“Americano,” I reply quickly. It’s been days since I’ve had it.

I open my wallet, but Jake beats me to it. “It’s on me.”

We enjoy our drinks while walking around the neighborhood. Everything feels like a dream. If someone had told me I’d be dating Jake or any other guy in general, I’d have laughed right away. This is surreal. It feels like, with Jake by my side, nothing can go wrong.

It’sfundraiserday.Ishould be happy, probably dancing around in my bedroom, but I’m frustrated and upset; mostly, I’m hurt.

I should be getting ready by now, but instead, I’m frowning and pacing in my room. I toss my phone on the bed and sit on the edge, massaging my temples.

I grab my phone again and call the only person I know who can help me right now. He picks up after several rings. “Hey, Rose.”

“Tyler, give the phone to Jake. I know he’s there,” I ask him about my energy-draining

“Jake isn’t here,” Tyler says.

When I returned to my room after breakfast, Jake texted me that he wouldn’t be able to make it today. He’s ditching me tonight. I went to his house, and Esme said he might have gone to Tyler’s. I thought Jake was joking, but his phone is now turned off.

“I’m begging you, Tyler. Please tell me, where is he?” I plead.

“No. I have no idea.” Tyler says, and I abruptly end the call. I don’t want to hear it anymore.

Next, I dial Kristy, squinting through my tears. “What’s up, Rosie?” Kristy’s cheerful voice greets me.

“Can you please come over?” I respond, my voice faltering at the end and tears streaming down my cheeks.

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