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My gut dropped. I remembered the cell phones. I remembered the whispers. I knew where this was going.
“Hi, I’m Beth.”
Jesse nodded, coming to sit on the edge of the bed. His basketball shorts were on, but no shirt. Her eyes lingered over his broad shoulders and I couldn’t blame her. “Beth.”
“Oh.” She took a deep breath. “It’s all over. You know that, right?”
My butt made contact with my chair. I wasn’t consciously aware of sitting, but I must’ve. I was now looking up at her. Faintly, I nodded. “People saw us come out of the bushes.”
“Yeah.” She frowned at me. “Those pics are on a website. I even got a few sent to me and you know how social I am with the gossip mongers at this college.”
I nodded, but I was reeling. What did this mean? I should’ve done something, damage control in some way, but what? I hadn’t been thinking straight. Jesse always muddled things for me. I never had a clear head when it came to him and now this…my heart was pounding so loudly, it wanted out of me.
She perched on my sofa’s arm. “What are you going to do?”
Jesse snorted, rolling his eyes. “Are you fucking kidding me? Who gives a shit if I’m banging you. It’s none of their business.”
“Jesse,” I started.
“I’m serious.” He stood, just gaining momentum. He grabbed a bag and started stuffing my clothes in it.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m packing you a bag. You don’t want to deal with this? Fine. Live with me. Problem solved, but damage is already done. You can’t go back on this. Hell, I won’t let you.”
Frowning as he grabbed my favorite things and put them inside the bag, I could only sit there. Had he not heard Tiffany’s threat? And she was only the first one. I knew it’d get bad after this. It never got better. There was always a valley of hellish moments I’d have to wade through. But then Beth came over and she started grabbing my books. “What are you doing?”
She took all of it. My textbooks, my notebooks, all of my laptop cords, even my highlighters and pens. “What do you think? It’s a good plan. Do you not know what girls live on this floor? I heard the stories. Kara took them to their party and they broke into his room.”
“They did?”
Jesse shrugged. “Worse shit has happened.”
Another soft knock came at the door, followed by Kara’s voice, “It’s me, guys. Can I come in?”
Jesse was closest. He opened the door and locked it as soon as she slipped under his arm. Glancing up at him, she was flushed in the cheeks. “Oh, hi, Jesse. I didn’t realize you’d be here.”
“Hey.” He started grabbing my shoes.
Giving me a warm smile, she came over and touched my arm. “You okay?”
I was still dazed. What was going on with my life?
Beth answered for me, “She’s behind. We’re packing so she can live with Jesse.”
“Oh! That’s a great idea.” She looked around. “What do you want me to do?”
Jesse gestured to my mini-fridge. “She’s got her favorite foods and sodas in there. You can put them all in a bag.”
“Stop! Stop, you guys.”
His bag was dropped by the door and he bent for another one. Underwear, socks, and bras went into that one. He drew out a piece of black lingerie and raised his eyebrow at me, then flashed me a smirk and tossed it with the rest.
“Jesse, stop.” I tried to take the bag from him, but he shook his head and nudged me out of the way with his hip. “Jesse.”
Kara had squatted down my fridge and she blinked up at me from the floor now. “I think it’s a good idea, Alex. Kate and Amanda are outside your door. I know they’re wondering if Jesse’s in here.”
“Who are Kate and Amanda?”
Beth snorted as she zipped up my bag. “They’re tarantulas. Icky and full of poison. I hate those girls. They’re friends with Hannah’s roommate.”
Ooh. Noted. Jesse nodded at the bed. “You want your pillow and blanket too?”
“I don’t like this.” I plopped back down. This was all too much. Was this really necessary?
Beth said to him, “Better take it, just in case.”
“Oh my gawd.”
“Okay.” Kara stood, a grocery bag bulging in her arms. “I’m done. Anything else?”
Jesse looked at Beth, who shrugged. “I think I got all her stuff.”
I was moving out. It was final. The revelations were already starting and I knew there was more to come. I couldn’t believe any of this. Then panic started in. I would be living in a house with four guys; one that I would be sleeping with every night. I’d had the house to myself over the last year. My parents moved out after her suicide attempt. Then that summer, there hadn’t even been friends involved. Me and Ethan.
My chest tightened. My vision grew blurry. My head started to pound.
I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t live with all those people.
“She’s freaking,” Beth spoke over my head. “Shouldn’t you say something to her?”
Jesse replied, “Nah. Let her stay in this state. She’s easier to move around. When she wakes up, she’ll start fighting. I won’t get anything done then.”
Someone patted me on the head.
Kara soothed, “It’ll be okay. Jesse’s like a celebrity here and now everyone knows you’re connected. Once they get over the shock, they’ll start not to care. You can come back then.”
“Why aren’t you mad?”
“Derek told me. He said Ethan was your brother.” She turned to Jesse. “That was your best friend, right?”
“He was my family,” he said softly.
My heart constricted. I was his family too. So was Zala. Wiping a tear away, I stood on trembling knees, but I ignored them and reached for a bag. “I can carry something.”
My purse was slapped into my chest. Beth grinned. “You can carry that. You have to lock the door, don’t forget.”
I flushed. I would’ve.
When we went into the hallway with our army of luggage, some girls squealed. I heard the sounds of cell phones taking pictures and one girl even asked for his autograph. Jesse plowed through them and led the way for Beth. Kara waited until I locked the door and went behind me. Once everything was in his car, Beth patted my shoulder, saying, “This is the best goodbye you’ll get from me. I don’t do personal contact.”
Kara threw her arm around her shoulder. She beamed at me. “I’ll bring her over to visit.”
Beth threw her arm off before darting back inside.
