Hi again. I don't own the characters, the lovely Cassandra Clare does. So please please pleeease review, it means the world to me to hear what you think. Special shout out to CapturetheFinnick(What a great name), Cupcakexo and frytjeeeh for your reviews.
Tessa didn't know what to think about what had happened the previous week. Her feelings for Will were growing but she wasn't sure whether or not she wanted them to. Surely what she really wanted was a boy she could have a proper conversation with, a boy who she could be around without snogging the arrogant smirk off his face. A boy that she could discuss books with, someone who would put up with her constant fangirling and, who would go to the cinema with her and not be embarrassed by her crying at the opening scenes. Someone who read as much as she did and didn't mind if she ranted about her books, whether she liked them or not. A boy who would chum her to marathons and signings and releases. Basically someone who cared about what she cared about. Was that too much to ask? The perfect boy. Why couldn't he exist? She sat herself down at her computer desk with a sigh. Gazing at the large pile of books she had balanced she logged into her blog and got to work. Spewing out review, after review, after review, ready to upload them at some point during the week. She uploaded her Divergent and Insurgent review, in trepidation of the release due the next month. She sat idly, playing about with her header and bio on twitter. Thank god she wasn't following people from school. Surely they would make fun of her for enjoying books so much. Sometimes Tessa wondered what she was doing, surely at her age she should be out getting drunk and partying , dressed up like a whore and having sex with anyone who asked. Just like the girls that Will likes. At this thought her face pulled into a frown. Where did that come from? I don't even like Will that much. Suddenly her phone went. She looked up from her laptop with such a look of surprise on her face you would have thought she had never heard a phone before. To be fair, this was an odd situation for Tessa. She wasn't popular, didn't have many friends. Who would text her at this time anyway. It was like half 12. She picked up her phone and unlocked it.
Hey, you wanna come over for a HP marathon?
Jem x
A grin lit up her face. Jem really was the bestest friend. He probably wanted to watch some other crap but he knew that Tessa wouldn't like that. She threw on her favourite pair of skinny joggers on over her dance shorts and tucked her giant T-shirt into them, throwing on a leather jacket before rushing out the house with her bag slung over her shoulder, yelling to the aunts where she was going whilst throwing her hair into a sort of bun/ponytail thing. It was Jem, he didn't care what she looked like anyway.
Jem's POV
Charlotte had Jem under house arrest for over a week now. She may take care of her foster kids like they were her very own but sometimes she was overbearing. As usual Henry was off working in the garage, on some sort of technological device. Charlotte might be 3 months pregnant but she never let that affect the way she took care of her family. Albeit a mildly disjointed family, but it was still hers. She did her best to provide for them all, and her best was more than enough. In fact Jem was sure that if he had to stay in the house alone for another week he may be smothered to death. Charlotte did her best to check on Jem and spend time with him but she had other things to do and Jem was often on his own for hours. When Jem had been ill before Will would come straight in and sit with Jem, though Will tried his best to be good for Jem, he was, at best, moody and brooding, and, at worst, irritating and snarky. Jem didn't know what was going on but Will had barely left his room since the day Jem was released. Jem needed the company of someone as nice as Tessa. He needed someone that didn't act differently just because he was ill. She was his saviour, and as if that wasn't enough, she seemed to have taken the role of best friend. Jem thought that Tessa was good for Will, she brought out the best in him. For once Jem thought that Will actually liked a girl, that he didn't just want a shag. There was a side to Will that none but Jem had seen and he was hoping Will might share it with Tessa. Something seemed to have changed though, Will wasn't quite his usual charismatic self. His behaviour had been kind of volatile since the day Jem got released. He wasn't sure what had happened between Will and Tessa and he hadn't seen her to ask. Will would be happy one minute and the next he would go and lock himself in his room for hours. He was sure that Will hadn't spoken to Tessa all week, he did text Tessa after all. But text wasn't really the right place to ask for these kind of details. That was why he had invited her round. He wanted to grill her about the whole Will situation. Ding Dong. Jem went bounding down the stairs, excited to finally see someone other than those who lived in this house.
"Who is it?" Will called from his bedroom.
"Tessa." Jem replied curtly. At this Will flew out from his man cave, a look of rage and excitement lighting up his face.
"Why?!" Will half shouted.
"Because I invited her." By now both boys had reached the hall. Jem turned around and promptly opened the door on a hesitant Tessa. Will turned around and stomped up the stairs, completely ignoring Tessa, who didn't actually seem all that perturbed. He shot Tessa a questioning look.
"Well… that was awkward." Tessa remarked.
"Yeah he hasn't left his room ,like, all week. Except for now."
"Well that's odd."
"Can I ask what you did to him?"
"Actually, I don't know, we had a nice time last week. He's been giving me the silent treatment ever since." Tessa said, the only sign of her worry was the way she bit her lip and the barely discernible wobble to her voice, which no one else would have noticed. Jem picked up on it though. He slung his arm around her shoulders.
"Don't worry about it. He's just Will." Jem said. Leaving her behind as he went plodding up the stairs. "Are you coming?"
Tessa's POV
Tessa shucked off her outside clothes and her shoes, welcoming this much more normal situation. She bounded up the stairs after a healthy Jem, a smile lighting up her eyes. She was glad that Jem was ok, he was the closest friends she had except for Sophie, who Tessa had barely had a chance to talk to, due to Gideon. She was glad for Sophie and Gideon, for them it wasn't difficult, they were in love, that's all there was to it. Tessa and Jem went upstairs to have a Harry Potter marathon, it was a Friday after all. After they finished the second film Jem went to acquire new sweets, popcorn and juice. Tessa was balanced precariously on the end of the foot on, upside down with her hair skimming the floor. She got such a fright when a random head appeared over her that she fell of her perch and landed in an ungraceful heap on the floor.
"Why are you here?" Will asked, stifling his laughter.
"Jem asked me." Tessa replied bitchily, wiping stray popcorn off her clothes. "What is your problem anyway?" she gave him a stony glare.
"Nothing." He replied sweetly. Tessa heard Jem popping the popcorn down stairs.
"Then leave." Tessa said, throwing herself back onto the couch. "If you don't want me here why should I bother talking to you?"
"You shouldn't" Will half whispered. Suddenly he was lying on top of her. Wrapping her body with his intense heat. "We don't have to talk." He whispered placing his lips on hers. As soon as he felt her respond he moved his head down, kissing the soft spot on her neck. Tessa moaned and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. He brought his head back up and placed his lips once more on her mouth. Kissing her soft lips, his hand on the small of her back. Suddenly Will pulled back, breathing heavy. He untangled himself from Tessa and sat himself at the other end of the couch. Tessa moaned and dragged her hand threw her already scruffy hair.
"Why do you do this to me?" she whispered.
"I don't know. I'm universally irresistible." He smirked at her.
"What does this mean? Do you even like me?"
"Well at the moment my rota is pretty full. I think I can fit you in Monday and Thursday. What do you think?"
"What?!" Tessa spluttered, her eyes filling with hot angry tears. "Do you think I'm some sort of hooker?"
"What you want another day?"
"Oh my god. I can't even deal with you right now!" Tessa yelled, standing up and shoving him out the room. They stumbled into the hall. Tessa yelling obscenities all the way.
"But Tessie baby. What we have is special!" Will said mockingly.
"Just leave me alone!" Tessa shouted. She wasn't sure how it happened but suddenly she was aware of a smarting sting in her hands and a surprised Will with a hand resting on his cheek. A bright red cheek. He turned around and walked to his room calmly, his hands shaking. Tessa watched him go. Watched him slam the door, not before she saw a glimpse inside though. A glimpse of a room, covered floor to ceiling in shelves. Shelves full of books. She turned around, a look of pure shock on her face.
"Best to leave him" Jem said, appearing up the stairs. "Prisoner of Askaban?"
All Tessa could do was nod and follow him to his room. Her mind was reeling at this new information. Was there more to Will than meets the eye? Tessa's mind wandered for the next few hours. She dozed off somewhere around the halfway through Order of the Phoenix, well it was her least favourite. She woke up when she felt another depression on the couch. She rubbed her eyes and blinked the sleep away only to see Will staring fixatedly at the tv. She was still furious about what he did earlier so she just snuggled back in. Making sure to give him a good hard kick in the side and take up most of the space while she was at it.
She woke up a few hours later to angry whispers. She was acutely aware of the way her legs were balanced on Will's lap. The lights were all out but the boys were whispering far too loud for Tessa to sleep. The TV was no longer on so either they had finished the films or they would wait till morning.
"Why can't you just admit that you like her?" she heard Jem whisper.
"Because I don't."
"You quite obviously do. I see the way you stare at her."
"Yeah well you stare at Sophie all the time."
"This isn't about me"
"Why not?" Will replied defensively
"It's about you. It's about how you can't mess with Tessa. Not like you did Tatiana."
"That wasn't my fault!"
"Reading out her diary to an audience? I can totally see how you did that by accident." Tessa could hear the sarcasm dripping from Jem's voice, even in whisper form.
"Shut it. I don't feel like that."
"Why? Do you like Tessa?" Will had clearly reached the end of his tether. You could tell by the set of his jaw.
"Of course I fucking like Tessa. Who in their right mind wouldn't!? I don't want to, I just do."
Tessa hid a small smile closing her eyes to go back to sleep. She was suddenly aware that the popcorn bowl was digging into her back. Oh my god. This is so uncomfortable. I need to move. Tessa was conflicted. What did she want to do more? Sleep or eavesdrop? She could hear the whispers in the background but in her exhausted mind, her comfort was top priority. She worked up enough nerve and rolled over, tucking her hand behind her to grab the bowl. She quickly threw the bowl at the boys.
"Shut up!" she said before rolling over and pulling her blanket closer to her neck.
"Okay. Sorry hun." Jem whispered. He got a swift kick in the leg for even talking.
"Mmmmhhff." She felt her legs being raised into the air, to which she responded to by kicking her legs about like a small child. She heard Will swear as her foot collided with his wrist, Jem hid his laughter and got up off the foot on.
"Let me sleep" she mumbled into her pillow. She vaguely heard the door close and the springs on Jem's mattress before she was out.
She woke up in the morning to the fresh smell of coffee. She stumbled out of Jem's room and down the stairs, plonking herself down at the breakfast bar. Jem turned around and raised his eyebrow at her appearance. He placed a cup of the good stuff in front of her and sat across the bar.
"So how much of that conversation did you hear?" He asked.
"Enough." When she realised what he said she turned back to him, a frown on her face. "How did you know I was awake?!" she asked incredulously. It took until after she heard the slam of the door for her to realise that Will had heard that whole conversation.
"You're an evil mastermind!" She told Jem, hiding her laughter.
"He needs to know that you know!" Jem said, reminding Tessa of that episode of friends.
"Alright let's go finish these films." They gathered up a rather large pile of sweets and food and off they went.
"So..?" Jem said, raising one eyebrow at Tessa.
"So what?" She said, lying face down on the foot on.
"Do you like Will?"
"I don't know" Tessa said weakly, groaning into the pillow. How was she supposed to like him if all he ever did was act like she was a whore?
"What do you mean you don't know?"
"He's so mean to me. He acts like he owns me and only wants me for sex. I don't want that kind of relationship. I'm not Tatiana."
"You know Tatiana used to be nice, she was here all the time when we were young."
"What happened? Is this the whole diary thing?" Jem nodded.
"Basically Tatiana was crushing on Will when we were 8 or 9 and she used to follow him everywhere. So one Christmas, once Will had had enough, he read out her diary to a doting audience. There was about twenty other kids there. His doting audience. She was bullied up until she got so hot."
"Why does she still like Will after all that?"
"I don't think she really likes Will. I think she likes having a claim to him."
"Oh, okay. These british girls are so mean."
"Not all of them, just these ones." At this Tessa gave Jem a small smile.
"Sorry, I shouldn't bash your country just cause I met some bitches."
"That's ok."
"So? Half-blood prince?" Jem threw himself next to Tessa, letting her lean against him. Soon enough there was no talking, at least not from Jem and Tessa.
So thanks for reading. Let me know what you think in the comments please!
See you next time xx
