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Chapter 5 - Jade: Nostalgia
When I heard the front door shut, I immediately ran out of the room. I needed to breathe. Being in that room was giving me anxiety. I needed out.
I shut the door behind me and slid down against the wall. I didn’t know why being in my old room affected me so much, but it was like stepping back into the past. A past I had so desperately tried to run from.
“Jade?” I looked to my left and saw Ethan coming out of his room.
I ambled to get up trying to wipe away the tears, but I knew he had already seen them.
“Hey.” I feigned a smile. “You heading out to work?”
“Yeah. Marcus is going to pick me up.” He looked at me, concerned. “Are you okay?”
I waved him off, trying to play off my obvious distress. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just a little tired.”
He didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t press me on it which I was grateful for. I didn’t want to have any deep conversations at all on this trip. I wanted to just get in and out with no past childhood wounds bleeding out again.
“Okay, well if you need anything, there is food in the fridge. I got to go now. Marcus is waiting for me downstairs.”
“Why are you getting a ride from your friend when your car is in the driveway? Is it broken?”
“Oh umm…” He looked nervous. “I actually sold it to Gray a few months back.”
“Why? You loved that car. It took you a full year of saving to finally afford it.”
He shrugged. “I needed the money for something.”
“You could have just asked me. I would have helped you come up with the money.”
“You are living in one of the most expensive cities in the world, plus you already have student debt to pay off. I couldn’t have asked you for the kind of money I needed.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “How much money did you need, E?”
He let out a nervous laugh. His blue-grey eyes looked down at his phone that was in his hand.
“Look at the time.” He held his phone up for me to see. “I got to go. I will see you around, sis. I will probably be back by seven.”
He walked over to me, placed a kiss on my cheek and bolted for the stairs before I had a chance to say anything. That was strange. I thought nothing of it and decided to go and make myself something to eat.
I had been so focused on my impending arrival to Riverroad that I had not eaten a single thing. I rummaged through Ethan’s kitchen and the ‘food’ he had been talking about were hot dogs and carrots.
“Ethan,” I grumbled. This was not food. I needed something filling to put into my stomach and what was in Ethan’s fridge wasn’t going to cut it.
But I didn’t even have a car. How was I going to get into the town center? I didn’t want to call the cab driver, and I certainly didn’t want to have to call in a favor from Grayson. He had already made it very clear that we were not to converse unless it was dire.
I was all out of options, and I was getting hungrier as time ticked by. I could have walked but that was a good twenty-minute walk, and I didn’t know if I wanted to brave the gloomy weather outside.
Riverroad weather was known for being wet. There were some sunny days here but less than half the year. The other half was split between rain and snow. Which was great if you loved overcast and wet weather all year round. It was to be expected because we were only a few towns over from Forks, one of the wettest places in the country.
My stomach grumbled loudly in the silent room.
“I could use the exercise.” I made up my mind and started for the front door. I grabbed my purse which was on top of my suitcase and made my way out the door.
It had started drizzling and the wind had picked up a bit. I knew that it wasn’t going to rain heavily because the clouds looked light and weren’t carrying much water.
I felt someone staring at me to my right. I snapped my neck in that direction and saw an elderly-looking lady sitting on her porch rocking in a wooden rocking chair. She didn’t even have the audacity to look away when I caught her gazing at me.
“This is why I hate small towns.” I pulled my jacket closed and started down the stairs of the porch. I was wearing booties and the heel was thick enough that I didn’t need to worry about tripping. I felt the old lady's gaze on me as I carried on down the driveway and up the road towards the town center.
