She had had enough. She was sick of the yelling. Sick of the fighting. Sick of it all. She wanted more in life than to live at home with her parents who didn't love each other, haven't for years for the matter and her lazy older brother who just sat there in his boxers all day playing super Mario brothers on his gameboy. Jacqueline wanted more in life than that. She wanted to live. She wanted to experience. The decision for her to move out was set in stone when she was 16. Her and her two best friends, Jo and Bridgette, were going to move in together. The only thing stopping her was her parents. Her parents told her to finish up schooling first. College included. Whereas, the moment they graduated Jo and Bridgette had found an apartment and moved in together. Jackie was stuck living at home with her fighting parents and lazy brother. But now, now was her day. She was finally moving out and into an apartment with her two best friend. The day was finally here and it couldn't get any better.
It was as if it was prom day. But it was a whole lot better in Jackie's mind. Moving out of that house was like winning the lottery in her 22 year old mind. Sure, she'd miss her father's cooking and her mother's crazy shopping sprees that Jackie had always loved. But now, she wasn't living with all the fighting. The little jabs her mother pointed towards her dad. Or even her brother's dumbass mistakes that she got punished for. It was just like the weight of the world just got lifted off her shoulders. When she told this to her group of friends they all laughed at her. Sure, they could laugh because they have been on their own for years. She hadn't. She just wanted out.
Jackie let out a hefty groan as she placed her last pair of jeans into the last empty box in her room. Stephen, who was standing against the molding of her door gave a crooked smile.
"How many times have I told you this? You should throw out jeans. You don't need 45 pairs of jeans, Jack." Jackie jumped and tossed her hair over her shoulder to look at him.
"Don't scare me like that! What if it was some rapist or something?" She said, as she taped up the box. He let out a small laugh.
"If someone was in your house to rape you, they would have done it. Just thrown you on the bed, or on the floor if they wanted to that bad. You're not a very strong girl. It would be easily done."
Jackie rolled her eyes.
"You've thought about this haven't you?"
Stephen nodded as he made his way over to his friend.
"I thought about it all the time during fourth hour physics senior year. And almost every tour I think about it. Because I'm just that desperate."
Jackie smiled and nodded.
"You are pretty desperate." The two friends shared a laugh as Jackie stood up and wiped her hands on the back of her jeans.
"Where's your posse at?" Jackie asked as she walked over to her door and shut it to drown out her parents fighting.
Stephen made a face at her. "My posse?"
"Yeah, your posse. You know, those idiots that follow you around." She tried to clarify.
"Oh!" He exclaimed as it clicked in his head.
"Well, John is with Jo. Justin and Bridgette went to the mall for pretzels. I know. That's what I thought. And Brian and Chelsea went to see a movie or something." He explained.
"And Josh and Jess?" Stephen shrugged.
"Who knows." He added as he took a drink of his tea.
"I asked Josh if he wanted to come and he said us lovebirds needed alone time." Jackie rolled her eyes. "I'm going to rip off his balls." She said as she tucked her hair behind her ears. Stephen laughed at her comment. "you know, he'd enjoy that more than you can even imagine." The two let out a laugh at the thought of it. Stephen was right. Josh would enjoy that very much and the group knew it.
Stephen took an awkward drink of his tea as Jackie cleared her throat.
"Why does everyone think we're together? I've never understood that."
She began as she fiddled with her bracelet she had bought at Forever 21 the previous day. He shrugged as he put his arm around her thin shoulders.
"I haven't a clue at all about that one, Jackie O." She smiled and shook her head.
"My mom always thought we were dating. Then she said that she felt bad for me because she saw you with Jess at the Pretzel Maker. And with that being sad, that's how I got a new car." Stephen looked at her. "What.."
"Yeah, you know Gwen was falling apart and my dad told me to save up. Well, you know me. I can't save money to save my life but my mom told me that story and I used it. I started crying and wearing sweats all the time. I even ate two pints of ice cream and didn't even throw it up. My mom knew it was serious so I came home from school one day and there it was. Ravenclaw was sitting in the driveway and my mom said it was for all I've been through in the past six months. I think she was feeling bad from everything her and my dad have put me through. I know it's wrong but she just did it. I didn't ask." Stephen looked at her with incredulous eyes. He couldn't believe that someone as sweet as Jackie could manipulate her mother to get something as much as a car.
"Wow." Was all he had managed to choke out. "Where were you when I needed a new car?" He joked. Jackie rolled her ice blue eyes.
"What are you talking about? Your car is fine."
"Well, I know that but it's such an inconvience when my cd player doesn't want to work." Jackie rolled her eyes.
"You're so stupid." He smirked and took another drink of his tea. "I'm offended you didn't bring me some."
"John's bringing it."
"I thought you said John was with Jo."
"It's not nice to lie to your girlfriend." Said a voice from the hall. Stephen rolled his eyes as John, Josh and Jo walked in.
"She's not my girlfriend," Stephen defended as they piled in her room.
"If she wasn't your girlfriend you wouldn't have your arm around her while sitting on a bed." Josh reasoned.
"That makes no sense at all." Jackie exclaimed. "Friends can sit on a bed together." Josh scoffed as he pushed a box out of his way to sit on the floor in front of the boxes.
"So when are you moving?" John asked causally as he sat on a box full of books. Jackie shrugged. "Within the next day."
"When are the movers coming?" Jo asked as she looked around the near empty room. Jackie laughed.
"Why would there be movers?" Jo looked at her.
"You don't think people can do this do you?"
"Movers are people, Jo." Stephen said in an acidic voice. They all loved Jo, well most of them, but she was the most stuck up and spoiled girl any of them had ever met. The way she was drove Stephen absolutely insane.
"I thought you said your dad got you movers." John asked.
Jackie nodded. "He did. I just think it'd be funnier to see Justin struggle with a few boxes then I figure I'd let him in on the movers thing."
"That's so mean." Stephen managed to get out between laughs.
"I think it's fair for what he did to me at graduation." While the group laughed John sat there puzzled. "So, screaming your name and claiming you were pregnant isn't socially acceptable?"
Jackie shook her head. "No, not at all. My parents were pretty pissed about that one."
"I don't see why," Stephen retorted sarcastically and gave her one of his signature smirks. The smirk that made all those fan girls and Jackie alike melt. The same smirk that made her fall way too hard and too fast for this simple boy from Arizona.
Stephen noticed her eyes on him and gave another one of his smirks towards her. "What?" He asked.
"Do I have something in my teeth?"
"You weren't smiling or showing your teeth, doof." Jackie said as her golden tan cheeks began turning red. "And you aren't dating. Hahhaha. You make me laugh." Josh said oh so crudely. Stephen rolled his eyes and hit Josh with a pillow laying on Jackie's bed. "I think it's obvious. You're sexually frustrated as is she and you're so defensive about it. It's just a laughable situation."
Jo broke the awkward moment with what she was best at. Talking about herself and her new jewelry that was, in her words, 'to die for'. The group had lost interest fast and just nodded occasionally and told her that it sounded cute when she paused from talking. They had all trained for her stupid ramblings over the summer when she invited herself to join their tour. Which just thrilled Stephen to the point where he wanted to hang himself. It may seem like he dislikes Jo but that's not the truth. He just finds her highly annoying. He has since high school when Justin and Bridgette started dating and he would eat lunch with them. Jo just has a personality that annoys people. Simply said. Everyone knew this but no one told her, except Stephen. He always told Jackie to tell her after listening to her rants about Jo but Jackie was too sweet. She hated to see people in pain or mad at her. That was her biggest downfall that everyone commented on. Except the people who doesn't notice anyone but herself. Jo.
Jo let out an annoying whine as she looked at her driod with a pink cover over it. "When are they getting here. I've been waiting for HOURS." Stephen and Josh both rolled their eyes.
"You've been here for an hour, Jo." Jackie tried to reason with her, not in the mood for another one of her meltdowns. Jo rolled her golden yellow eyes and swiped her black side bangs out of her eyes. "It seems like longer. They know how I hate to wait."
"Oh Lord, God forbid Jo wait on anyone or show emotion towards anyone. That's just insane isn't it?" Stephen remarked before he took his last and final drink of his tea. The group heard singing in the hall and they all knew they were finally here. That's the only way Bridgette would enter a room. By singing. "Ello loves!" Exclaimed Bridgette as she and Justin walked into Jackie's box filled room. "Finally!" Jo screamed as she stood up. "Let's go, I'm sick of this room." With that, she rushed out of the room, pushing past Justin and Bridgette. "Are you sure you want to move in with her?" Stephen asked Jackie as he too stood up.
"Just lock the door and ignore her like I do." Bridgette said as she leaned against the door. Jackie let out a small smile. "I might have to do that or I'll kill her."
"Death is always the best option, dear Jacqueline." Justin commented as the group made their way out of Jackie's room and into their separate cars.