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I’m halfway through buttoning my shirt when she murmurs, “Where are you going?”
I don’t answer her and throw my jacket over my shoulder on the way out. If I speak right now, it’ll be ugly. If I let the words come out of my mouth, she’ll be crying and I’ll be fucking her face-first into her bed.
I’m in the middle of the living room when a soft, but quick padding of feet follows me before two slender arms wrap around me from behind.
My feet come to a halt of their own volition.
“D-don’t go.” Her voice is muffled as her face nuzzles against my back.
“Why?”
“Just… don’t. I don’t want to be alone right now.”
“And why is that my fucking problem?” I snap harder than I intend to.
She flinches but doesn’t let me go. “Jasper, don’t do this.”
“Don’t do what? Leave you be as you always asked?”
“But you never gave it to me, why now?”
“The fun is over, Pet. I lost interest in you.”
Her hands fall from around me as if she’s been electrocuted. There’s a fucking tingling in my chest pushing me to say I didn’t mean that, that I’m only pushing her away because of what she said, but I kill that part.
That part will be the cause of my fucking death.
I don’t look back as I step out of the apartment. A soft whimper follows after me, but I don’t turn around no matter how much I’m tempted to. If I do, I’ll go back in there and hold her, kiss her, make her feel better. I’ll tell her stupid fucking things like she won’t be alone anymore and that I’ll be there with her.
But that would be a lie, wouldn’t it?
My little Petal and I have unfinished business.
Her life or mine.
It’s time to make that decision.28GeorginaEverything that's happened so far has made me anxious as fuck.
As I make my way to the hospital, I keep glancing over my shoulder. I don't see Jas, but I know he's somewhere nearby. He wouldn't just let me wander around by myself. He's protective of me now, determined to make sure I don't get hurt.
I arrive at the hospital and work my shift in silence, only answering when I'm spoken to. By the time lunch hour rolls around, I'm tired and worried about Katya and Dinah's questions. I wonder whether I should skip the lunch date altogether, but I know it would only make my friends suspicious, so I grab a cafeteria sandwich and meet the girls at our usual table.
"There she is!" Dinah waves me over and I smile tersely as I sit down, digging into my barely edible sandwich. "We've barely heard from you lately, Georgie. Where have you been hiding?"
I look into her eyes, briefly wondering whether I should tell her what's been going on for weeks now. Dinah's one of my closest friends, yet something tells me she wouldn't understand.
"Just been busy," I finally say, teeth digging into my sandwich.
Dinah gives me a doubtful look, but then Katya launches into a story about one of the guys she's been seeing, momentarily distracting us all. She even manages to get me to laugh along with her story, though my mind is focusing on anything other than my friend's dating adventures.
"Guys, I have a favor to ask you," I find myself saying.
"Oh?" Katya raises an eyebrow. "This doesn't have to do with that Jasper guy, does it?"
I don't answer, giving them a grave look before going on. "I was hoping you two could check in with me more often. Call me, maybe drop by the apartment if you don't hear from me. Would that be okay?"
"Why?" Dinah demands. "Are you going somewhere?"
Weakly, I shake my head. What the hell was I thinking? I can't tell them the truth, they'll think me crazy. But my friends surprise me by taking one of my hands each, and I raise my head to look at them.
"We're here for you," Katya assures me. "We want to make sure you're okay. We'll do whatever you need us to do."
"Thank you," I breathe. The relief is so intense my eyes water. "I'm worried about the cats. If you could just check on them once every few days, I'd be really grateful."
My friends exchange worried glances but end up nodding without asking me any questions.
"You'd tell us if you were in trouble, right?" Katya blurts a moment later.
"Katya!" Dinah shoots her a warning look before patting my hand. "Babe, you don't need to tell us what's happening, just make sure you stay safe and out of trouble. And if you need anything, you can always call either of us for help."
"Thanks." I smile and set the rest of my sandwich aside. "It means a lot, seriously."
They exchange another worried look, but neither of them says anything. I guess they don't want to overstep – I've been known to pull back before when I thought they were being too demanding. There had been countless times when my friends had attempted to set me up before. It was only this year that I'd agreed to it – and after the disaster with the doctor, and now with Jas, I’m beginning to think I would've been better off without ever dating the guys they picked for me.
