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He sighs. "Listen, just think about it. I'll leave my key with the front desk so you can get in without him needing to open the door."
"Carter, I don't think—"
"I know," he cuts me off. "But please. I'm not kidding when I say he needs you. He really does. He just doesn't know it right now. And I'd feel a lot better knowing someone was checking on him."
Without giving me the chance to respond, he hangs up. I toss the phone back into my lap and go back to folding laundry, while my mom just stares at me.
"What?"
"Well?" She looks way too intrigued. "Are you going to go?"
"No," I answer, as if it's obvious. "It's not a good idea. Carter might think it is, but it's not."
I go to grab another towel to fold when a throw pillow hits me over the head. I look up in disbelief.
"What was that for?" I gasp.
She crosses her arms over her chest. "Go help Jace."
There is a part of me that wants to, there really is. But I can't. He obviously doesn't want me anywhere near him, and while Carter thinks he knows best, he might not with this. Jace has never been the kind of person who shies away from saying what's on his mind. If he wanted to be around me, he would be. Hell, it's not like I've been trying to avoid him.
"I can't, Mom," I tell her. "There's a lot that happened between us. A lot you don't know."
She stares at me like I'm an idiot. "You mean how you two were hooking up for half your senior year and the whole summer after?"
My eyes widen, and my jaw drops just slightly, but I can't find the words to answer her.
"You're not as sly as you think you are." She goes back to folding like she didn't just admit to knowing her precious daughter was having sex with one of her best friends for months. "So you two had a bad breakup. It happens. You just need to get past it."
"It's just not that simple. That's all."
I try to let the topic die, but as I go to grab another thing out of the basket, she slaps the top of my hand. I yank it away and rub off the sting of her touch.
"Go help Jace."
Okay, so much for being an adult and making my own choices.
SURE ENOUGH, CARTER LEFT his key with the front desk, like he was positive I'd end up here no matter what I said. They hand it over, and I make my way up the stairs until I finally reach the top floor. A part of me thought their dorms would be a lot fancier. After all, they lived in a penthouse together while they were in Florida. Seeing them living like regular college students feels weird, and so unlike them.
I stick the key in the lock and open the door quietly, but there's no need. Jace is sitting on the couch with his back facing the door, but he doesn't even need to turn around to know who it is.
"You just don't quit, do you?" he asks.
Swallowing down my nerves, I tell myself that this is the time I hold my ground. "Nope."
"Get out, Paige."
I slam the door behind me, but I'm not going anywhere. He turns around to see if I've left, only to find me standing there looking back at him.
He rolls his eyes and gets up. "Fine, then; I'll leave."
Before he can walk out the door, I press myself against it. He looks me up and down, but it's not at all the way he used to. This version of him is angry. I don't think there is a single ounce of the guy I remember.
"Move," he demands.
I hold my head high to meet his gaze. "No."
In an instant, he slams his hand against the wood and gets in my face. I flinch for a second at the sudden movement, but I'm not going to let him win. Not this time. Besides, it's not like Carter will leave me alone until I actually get him to talk to me.
