Hey guys, Violet here! I'm SORRY! It's been 3 months 1 week and 1 day since I last posted, and that is inexcuseable. Freshman year has been much more demanding than I thought it would be when I started writing this. That was before preparation for the finals at the end of the year. I could go on and on about what a horrible person I am for not posting...OR we could cut right to the chase. So we're cutting right to the chase here. I hope you like it!
Disclaimer: It pains me to tell you that I own nothing but my words.
The Burton Appeal; Chapter 2: Unimportant
"Jade…what are we?"
I look up from my locker to see Vega, eyes almost brimming with water standing about two feet in front of me.
"Look, Vega. Now's not a good time."
Suddenly her expression shifts from upset to angry. She grabs my wrist and drags me into the closet we usually go in when we need to talk about something (mostly when I want to guilt her into doing me a favor).
"I told you, I can't do this now-"
I start but she presses a finger to my lips before I can finish.
"Do I look like I care about doing things at your convenience?"
I don't even begin to answer before she's on top of me, her lips just barely resting on mine.
"I want an answer, West."
"I…"
Somehow, I can't even manage to finish the sentence. For the first time in my life, I was completely speechless.
"I need to know Jade."
I feel a lump start to swell in the back of my throat as she opens her mouth to speak again.
"I- BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!"
"What the fuck was that?"
Her expression gets angrier as she goes to talk again.
"I said, BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!"
Suddenly I open my eyes to a black ceiling staring back at me. I reach over and push the alarm clock off of its place on the nightstand as I sit up and glance around the room from my bed. Dark green wallpaper, Joan Jett album on the wall…the fat lump from that cab-driver's back. I was definitely in my room. I look beside me. No mess of brown hair. I dive under the covers to check, just in case. When she's not there, I almost sigh in relief. But I don't because of that awful dream.
What the fuck was that?
Before I can even think about trying to answer that, I feel my phone vibrate underneath the pillow. 3 missed calls.
I decide to listen to them, expecting it to be Cat complaining about her brother, or saying something that has nothing to do with anything. I freeze when I hear the voice.
"Jade, I got these tickets for you. Where the hell are you? If you didn't want to go, you could have just told me."
There's a brief pause in the message. I can almost hear him run his fingers through his hair, like he does when he's stressed. I used to think that was the sexiest thing in the world, how he ran his fingers through his hair. Now I almost find it irritating.
"If you don't call soon, I'll ask Andre if he wants to go."
I listen to the others. They're all from Beck. At firstI wonder what he's talking about, but then I realize it's Sunday. Beck and I do something together every Sunday. Sunday's our special day and it has been since even before we were dating. Today we were supposed to go to the Throwback Horror Fest. The thing I'd bugged him about for months. I was a total bitch about it for the longest time and I completely blew him off when he got me what I wanted. God, I'm horrible.
The fact that I didn't even think to call him yesterday…or the day it happened made me feel even guiltier about the whole thing. Woah. The ice queen has emotions. I know, I'm Jade West. I'm supposed to be a heartless, cold, evil bitch that cares for no one but herself. But I think this is the first thing I've ever really felt bad about doing. Well, not the first thing…but I can't remember the last time I felt guilty enough to have a nightmare about what I did.
Maybe it's because I can usually justify what I've done. This time I can't. Yeah, the first time Vega and I were extremely drunk. But what about the thing that happened the morning after we got drunk? I didn't feel hung over at all. And I certainly don't think Vega did either. How do I justify that? And to top it off, I completely ignore him when we're supposed to go do something that I wanted to do.
I glance down at my watch. There's still about half an hour before the festival thing. I could still call him if I wanted to. But that's the thing. I don't want to. I want to stay here and wallow in self-hatred over what a horrible girlfriend I've been to him, but I don't actually care enough to do anything change it. But my fingers still drag over the numbers I know by heart. The phone still makes that irritating buzzing sound it does when you're waiting for someone to answer the call.
About three rings later, the buzzing stops. I hear a voice at the end of the line.
"Hello?"
It's not Beck. It's too high for one thing. But it's not just another guy. It's definitely not Andre. It's a girl. A very feminine, prissy-sounding one.
"Where's Beck?"
I try to keep my voice steady when I speak but my voice is shaking almost as badly as my hands are. I try not to think about the implications of this girl answering the phone. I try not to listen to that voice nagging me in the back of my mind, asking why he lied about going with Andre. I could tell they were already at the Throwback. I could hear the sounds of vintage horror movies. I knew because those old actresses always spoke with the same rhythm or the same accent. Almost the one I use when I make fun of- no. Don't think of her. I can hear this girl and Beck talking. I guess this mystery girl thought she hung up the phone.
"Who was that?"
Beck.
"Oh, I don't think it was anyone important."
I could hear the girl's smirk in her voice and it got on my last nerve. I wanted to scream at them, "I'M STILL FUCKING HERE."
I heard this girl give him the phone.
"Eh. She doesn't seem to care, so I guess she isn't."
I swear my heart stopped beating. So I'm not important? I have been his girlfriend for two and a half fucking years and I'm not important? Who does he think he is, deciding who's important and who isn't?
And to think I felt guilty for cheating on him with Vega! Well…was it really cheating? I mean, I don't think she thought it meant anything to me…Did it mean anything to me? No…If it did, I can't allow it to…So we were both cheating on each other?... Does that thing with Vega count as cheating? Who cares! If Beck doesn't think I'm important, who knows how badly others really think of me. I know they don't like me, but for all I know, they're all planning to murder me and dump my dismembered body in the woods!
Well…maybe not, but who knows how long this has been going on?
I have no idea what the hell just happened.
I end the call. I can't take it anymore. Before I know what I'm doing, my fingers are dialing another number I know a little too well.
"Yello…?"
"Hey…I'm coming over…"
"Aren't you going to that horror thing with Beck today?"
"I'll be there in five."
"I'll take that as a no…?"
I hung up without saying anything.
I feel numb as I drag clothes over my body and eventually slide into the driver's seat. I don't actually start the car for a while. I want to be late. I want to make her sweat, to make her care. Just because I know I probably can. It's cruel and unusual, but it's how I operate.
By the time I start driving, it's about a quarter past noon.
Her house was only about a five minute drive from mine.
So, I was exactly on schedule when I finally got there.
Promptly fifteen minutes after I called her.
I take my time strolling up to the red door. Before I even have time to knock, it's opened and I've been dragged into her living room by the wrist.
She looks at me with those big brown eyes, and for once, I have no fucking idea what's going on in her head.
"Are you okay? You had me worried sick!"
I smirked a little internally. Just what I wanted.
"Oh, did I, Vega?"
I raised my eyebrows, the same cocky smirk I almost always had when I spoke to her splayed on my face. Knowing that she worried about me pleased me a lot more than it should have.
Before I even knew what hit me, there was a sharp pain on the left side of my face and my head swung over to the right.
"What the hell, Vega?"
Her arms were crossed, classic angry Vega pose.
"Don't give me that fucking arrogant bullshit! Tell me what the hell is going on here. What's wrong?"
She looked like she meant business.
I don't even know why I came to her of all people with this.
"How do you even know if there's anything wrong? Why should I tell you?"
"You're the one that came to my house. You tell me. And don't try to sell me that 'I'm-fine-I'm-Jade-the-ice-queen' crap. If you were fine, you wouldn't look like that."
I glanced down at my clothes. I was wearing an oversized black teenage mutant ninja turtles shirt, grey tights…and I apparently completely forgot pants.
"I don't want to talke about it."
She sighed with the same exhausted look she had earlier.
"I won't force you to talk if you don't want to."
I tried not to show my relief, but I probably didn't do a very good job of it considering the look Vega gave me after about a minute or so.
"So….If you're not going to talk about this, what are you doing here?"
She still looked angry, but now it was more of a confused expression.
"I needed a distraction."
Her face fell a little, as if she were hurt by what I said but it was only a mere second before she was back to the usual irritating perkiness.
"I heard that they're showing The Scissoring at the Drive-In on Sunset later. Whaddaya think? We could wait here until it's time to go…"
I can feel myself smirk before I consciously decide to.
"You know…some people may say that from some angles…you're not so irritating, Vega."
"So I'll take that as a yes. And thanks…I think."
She smiles and I feel my stomach turn inside out. I guess I'm spending the day Tor- I mean, Vega.
Soooo that was chapter 2 of The Burton Appeal, I hope you enjoyed it! I pinky promise that a new chapter will be up by Saturday. So within the next 3 days. Again, I apologize for my absentee story-parenting. Since the summer is coming, I will be able to devote more of my time to writing. Feel free to review or whatever!
~Violet
