Chapter IV
"That's it!" Jake exclaimed as she tossed her bags on the floor and collapsed onto her bed.
"What's it?" Will asked.
"I'm never leaving this room again."
"Really?"
"Really."
"What happened?"
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
"Sure I would. Try me."
"Bella...your friend Bella, Charlie's daughter Bella..."
"Right...I know who Bella is Jake. What about Bella?"
"She came on to me. Out in the open, in front of Friendly's, she came on...to me."
"What?" Will's eyes opened wider than even he thought they could. He now wished he had been there to witness this monument us event instead of smoothing things over with Scout.
"You heard me. And, if that wasn't bad enough, Charlie actually caught us! I can't believe I let this happen!"
"Caught you? What were you doing...exactly?" Will scratched his head.
"Will...God, your such a guy! We weren't doing anything. Charlie got all freaked out and when Bella left, he told me I shouldn't be hanging around his daughter anymore."
"Huh, that's odd. So tell me again, what were you and Bella doing?"
Jake grabbed the pillow from under her head and tossed it hard at Will nailing him directly in the side of the head. "Oh, that's right...nothing."
"Damn it Will, this is getting too weird. This whole thing isn't gonna work. If I get caught they could arrest me for fraud or something." Jake said trying to catch her breath.
" Just Breathe Woman!" Will said.
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Jake walked through the center of town carrying a small banded bunch of daisies in her left hand. Will made her realize how ridiculous the thought of closing herself off from the world was and convinced her to go and talk to Bella. Bella was someone that she felt a "girl-type" connection with and she hated the idea of losing the possibility of her friendship. She just had to concentrate on "turning Bella off". Jake was reluctant to be seen riding her bike on the off chance that Charlie might recognize it. Bella had mentioned that they didn't get many motorcycles in New Rawley and assumed Charlie would easily spot hers. Jake walked up the two steps and pushed the screen door open allowing herself access to the office of Charlie's Gas 'n Tow. She hadn't really thought of how she would explain or even apologize to Bella. She'd never really been in the situation of fending off an amorous female before. She had no plan of what she was going to say. She hoped that it would just come to her.
"Mr. Pratt." The deeper voice called from behind him. "I thought I made myself clear to you yesterday."
"You did, sir. I was just hoping to see Bella and...um...explain stuff. That's all." Jake held up the flowers hoping that Charlie would see that Jake's intentions were admirable.
"Jake...sit down."
"I remember when your mother went to Rawley Girls, Jake."
"You knew my mom?"
"I remember her very well. We were close, your mother and me. Too close. I was married to Bella's mom, Donna then, and she had just found out that she was going to have a baby... Bella. We hadn't been married long and it was really hard. Donna and I were born here and it's hard growing up in this town. Rawley kids seem to have everything that you think you want. Sometimes the two sides do get together, but the results can be...upsetting." Charlie watched Jake and could tell that she was fighting the urge to understand what he was implying. "When your mother came to me and told me she was pregnant, well I didn't know what to do. I considered my options, I really did. I just felt like I didn't really have any. I had to stay with Donna. I had my family here to consider. So you see Jake, you and Bella can't be together."
Jake's mouth fell open. She stared back at the man who claimed to hold her paternal heritage and was dumbstruck. She felt the walls closing in on her and felt the flowers fall from her hand to the floor. Jake's breathing quickened and she thought her pounding heart would leap out of her chest. Air Jake thought...I need air. Jake leapt up from the cushioned seat and bolted through the screen door running straight into Bella.
"Hi Jake." Jake couldn't even think straight.
"I gotta go." Jake said barreling past her.
"But you just got here."
"I gotta go." Jake was gone leaving a bewildered Bella in her wake. Confused and disappointed Bella stepped in through the garage door and saw Charlie sitting on the bench wiping his bandana across his eyes.
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Jake's motorcycle raced down the dirt path and through the woods. She didn't know where she was headed but she knew she needed to ride. The wind pushed against her face and echoed in her ears keeping her from hearing her own thoughts. I should leave Rawley. I should go back to New York. I should never have come here. My father.
The front tire hit a rock in the road making Jake lose control. She brought the bike to a grinding halt and stood for a moment, catching her breath. She dropped the kickstand into place and dropped her body onto the grass. Her trip hadn't taken her as far as she would have liked. She sat and watched the sparkle on the lake's glassy top. She peered across, looking at the sandy bank that led to Rawley Academy. Will's view, she thought. Jake closed her eyes reliving the previous hour in her head.
"Can I assume things didn't go as you'd planned?" Will stood behind her walking his bicycle.
"You could say that." She answered choosing not to open her eyes. Will dropped his bike to the ground and settled himself next to her on the grass. He reached out and ran his hand over her cheek. Jake felt comforted by his touch, opening her eyes to gaze up at him. "You aren't going to believe what I'm going to tell you." She said and she took the time to fill Will in on what she had learned.
"You're kidding?"
"I kinda wish I was. Man, fate plays some pretty strange games with your life. Of all the schools in the country...I pick the one town where my father and sisters just happen to live." Jake shook her head and lowered her face to rest on her knee, still unable to accept it all.
"Did you talk to Bella?"
"No."
"Have you told your mother yet?" Will asked.
Jake raised her head and looked at Will, "What exactly am I gonna say? Hey Mom, I met this girl at school, her name is Bella. And guess what? Her father is my father too."
"It's so...Jerry Springer." Will grinned at first hoping to lighten Jake's mood. It appeared that it wasn't working. Will reached out and put his arm around her and pulled Jake sideways into him. "It'll be OK Jake, I promise." Will craned his neck and kissed her gently on the lips.
"Ah-hem." The sound of a girl clearing her throat startled them both.
"How long have you been standing there?" Will asked.
Long enough to know." Bella answered. Jake and Will exchanged worried glances. After a long pause, "Jake and I need to talk."
"Well, that's my cue." Will exhaled as he stood. He picked up his bicycle and headed down the dirt road leaving the two girls alone. Bella said nothing at first. She walked past Jake and went to the waters edge. She backed up and leaned against a wooden post and looked back toward Jake. Jake followed her lead and joined her leaning against a matching post. The girls inadvertently stared at each other, each of them looking for a sign, for a resemblance. Something...anything that would confirm or deny what they thought to be true.
"Well, I guess good looks run in the family." Bella said feeling brave enough to speak first.
"That's not funny."
"So, who's laughing?"
"What do we do now?" Bella asked.
"I don't know, it's so out of our hands."
"You're my brother Jake."
" Ah yeah... about that." Jake hesitated. "Bella, there's something else you should know."
"It's OK, I already know."
"You do?" Jake looked surprised.
"Yeah, I saw you and Will kissing. So, you're my brother and your gay and you're in love with my best friend, the one guy that I've loved for my whole life. It's a lot to process...but I'll manage."
Jake laughed. "No...Bella, I'm not gay. That I promise you."
"What, you just had a sketchy moment but now it's over?"
Jake inhaled. "Actually Bella. " Jake exhaled. "I'm a girl."
Bella looked at her now totally confused. "What? Come on Jake."
"Really, look I'll prove it to you." Jake looked around and seeing that she and Bella were completely alone and out of view, Jake reached under the black shirt she was wearing and removed her corset. Bella watched as Jake's obviously female figure filled out the front of her shirt. "And these, " she said pointing at her chest, "are not fake."
Bella took in a long breath and slowly exhaled. Her head was spinning. Jake watched her eyes hoping for some reaction. "I can't believe this is happening."
"I know. But Bella, you've gotta believe me...I never came here to do this, to hurt you or your family. I never knew. It was all just...coincidence. Fate I guess."
Bella nodded. She wanted to be angry with Jake and blame her for the problems between her parents but she knew Jake wasn't responsible for what her mother had done years ago. She wanted to be angry with Charlie for allowing all this to happen but she understood that sometimes...things just happen. She looked at Jake again. "Any suggestions?" She smiled.
"Friends?" Jake said extending her hand.
"Friends. Definitely." Bella replied meeting Jake's hand. They were silent for a moment as their hands met. Unsure of who pulled in first...they met in the middle and exchanged a very sisterly hug.
Bella accompanied Jake as they walked around the lake back to the dorm area of Rawley Academy. The long walk had provided them with the opportunity to catch up on the recent events of Jake's life, her mother and the reason that she was attending Rawley Academy as Jake Pratt. Bella told Jake about Grace and Charlie and expounded on some of her own favorite childhood memories. Jake stashed her bike behind the groundskeepers shed. "Ill walk back to town with you." She offered.
Jake and Bella sat in the window seat that looked out onto Main Street. Jake was calmer now, more relaxed. Her secret was safe with Bella, at least for the moment and she no longer had to be cautious about her voice or her mannerisms. "Is Charlie gonna freak if he finds me here?" Jake asked.
"He'll be Ok, eventually. It's a big shock to him too."
Jake flipped through a new issue of Seventeen magazine Bella had given her. "Can I tell you how much I miss this mindless crap." Jake chuckled. "Listen to this, Is Your Man Moving To Fast? Or how about this one...Lose Ten Pounds Overnight Without Dieting, Yeah right, and here's another, Secret Crushes And Lost Loves."
Bella looked at Jake from the opposite side of the seat. "Does he know?"
"Does who, know what?"
"Will. Does he know about us...and that you're a girl?
"Yeah, but he kinda found out in reverse order." Jake laughed but Bella didn't.
"Is he Ok with all of it?"
Jake looked puzzled. She wasn't sure what Bella was asking. "Is he Ok with what, us being related or me being a girl."
"Both I guess."
"I don't know, we haven't had much time to talk about it yet." Bella nodded her head in response. "Are you Ok with it?" She asked.
"Yeah." Bella smiled. "I'm gonna be."
"And speaking of Will, I should be heading back to school. It's really late. He's probably wondering where I am right now."
"Yeah, he probably is." Bella lowered her head.
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Will was seated on his bed with his back propped back against a pillow. He was half-reading a book but found it hard to concentrate. He looked at the clock again. Finally the door clicked open.
"It's late Jake, I was worried about you." Will asked as Jake entered their dorm room.
"Sorry, " Jake said, although not sounding sincere.
"How'd it go with Bella?"
"Pretty good actually, better than I would have thought. It's a lot to grasp, for both of us."
"For all of us. Is she really upset? Is she Ok?"
Jake looked at him, her expression stating the obvious. "She was, but I think she's starting to accept it." Jake noted the look of concern in Will's eyes, the sound in his voice. She had never noticed it as clearly as she did now.
"Come here." He said as he patted the empty spot on his bed. Jake thought for a moment and then joined him, seating herself with her back to him.
"That's much better." He smiled. He placed his hand on her shoulder and pulled her back against him. Jake took the moment to relax and clear her head. She liked laying there, next to Will, feeling safe, feeling like she belonged. Will leaned over her and gently pressed his mouth to hers. "I'm glad that you're back." He smiled kissing her again. "Did I mention that I missed you?" Jake responded to Will's lips. She turned wrapping herself in his arms. Will pulled up the bottom of the shirt she was wearing and drew lazy circles on her back. "Jake..." he whispered softly into her ear. She allowed his hands to reach up even farther under her shirt, his touch warming her. He pulled at the Velcro of her corset...the sound echoing in the stillness of the room.
"Mmmm" she cooed. She pressed her mouth against his neck and ran her tongue in circles around his ear. His shirtless frame held her tightly. Will skillfully pulled Jake's shirt off over her head and sighed as her satin covered breasts rested against his own chest. He nuzzled at her neck and planted soft sweet kisses down the length of her throat.
As Jake moved around to kiss him again...she heard Bella's voice in her head: you're in love with my best friend, the one guy that I've loved for my whole life. Jake stretched back and sat up on her knees.
"What?" Will asked looking surprised. Jake stared at him in silence. Her head spun slightly as the puzzle pieces in her mind fit together. She's the only girl that I've ever had in my life.
Jake got up from Will's bed. "It's been a really long day, you know. I'm really tired."
"Ok..." Will said a little perplexed.
Jake fell onto her bed without bothering to change her clothes. Her stomach was in knots and her head suddenly hurt. Will loves Bella and Bella loves Will. She thought about it over and over again in her mind. Bella was her sister. Her family. Jake had feelings for Will, she knew she did. How could she ever knowingly pursue a relationship with the one guy that her own sister admitted to 'being in love with for her whole life'? Jake stared up at the ceiling. Now what was she going to do? She thought
***********************************************************************
Will walked down to the docks, it was early and he was surprised to find Jake already gone when he had awoken. He saw her slight frame near the waters edge as she replaced the oars she had been using. "You're up early."
"Yeah, " Jake said already feeling uncomfortable.
"Look Jake, I'm sorry." Will said apologetically.
"Sorry?"
"Yeah, I'm sorry if I pushed things. I don't want to do that. It's just...it's just that..." Will licked his lips and lowered his head to meet hers. Jake stepped back out of his reach.
"Will, please...anyone can see us." She carefully avoided eye contact. "Look Will, I'm the one that should be sorry. I should have known better. I should have stopped. I'm sorry if I misled you. I didn't mean to do that. I never meant for it to get this far. I really appreciate everything that you did to help me get into Rawley but your reputation could be at stake here...and so could mine. I have to be really careful." She had rehearsed the speech repeatedly as she floated on the water at dawn. She had to push Will away. She needed to give Will and Bella a chance to be together. She needed to do it for her sister...she needed to do it for Will...and she needed to do it for herself. She was strong and independent. The fates had dealt her an unfair hand but she was still willing to play the game. She was happy to hear the words spew forth from her lips as she'd planned.
"Wait...what?" Will said questioningly.
"I shouldn't have let this...us...get this far. I'm gonna end up hurting you and that's not what I want. Really. You've got to believe me." She finally looked away from the boat that she had been so carefully pouring out her heart to and looked at him. She hoped her eyes would give him some sort of confirmation that she was sincere. "Look, I'm gonna be out of here really soon and I don't think it's fair of me to use you or your feelings like that."
"I..." He stopped and thought about what to say. Will's mouth opened but no words came out. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and started again "It sounds like you're breaking up with me...and what's really funny about that, is that I wasn't really sure that we were together...until now." He smiled hoping to make light of the whole subject.
"Well...I just think that it's better this way, that's all."
"Jake, we live together in the same room. It's going to be hard for us not to see each other."
Jake processed the comment. Realizing the truth she looked up at him. "I don't think we'll have to worry about that for much longer." She picked up the backpack that had been lying on the ground, slung it over her shoulder, leaving Will and the peacefulness of the lake behind her.
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"That's it!" Jake exclaimed as she tossed her bags on the floor and collapsed onto her bed.
"What's it?" Will asked.
"I'm never leaving this room again."
"Really?"
"Really."
"What happened?"
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
"Sure I would. Try me."
"Bella...your friend Bella, Charlie's daughter Bella..."
"Right...I know who Bella is Jake. What about Bella?"
"She came on to me. Out in the open, in front of Friendly's, she came on...to me."
"What?" Will's eyes opened wider than even he thought they could. He now wished he had been there to witness this monument us event instead of smoothing things over with Scout.
"You heard me. And, if that wasn't bad enough, Charlie actually caught us! I can't believe I let this happen!"
"Caught you? What were you doing...exactly?" Will scratched his head.
"Will...God, your such a guy! We weren't doing anything. Charlie got all freaked out and when Bella left, he told me I shouldn't be hanging around his daughter anymore."
"Huh, that's odd. So tell me again, what were you and Bella doing?"
Jake grabbed the pillow from under her head and tossed it hard at Will nailing him directly in the side of the head. "Oh, that's right...nothing."
"Damn it Will, this is getting too weird. This whole thing isn't gonna work. If I get caught they could arrest me for fraud or something." Jake said trying to catch her breath.
" Just Breathe Woman!" Will said.
***********************************************************************
Jake walked through the center of town carrying a small banded bunch of daisies in her left hand. Will made her realize how ridiculous the thought of closing herself off from the world was and convinced her to go and talk to Bella. Bella was someone that she felt a "girl-type" connection with and she hated the idea of losing the possibility of her friendship. She just had to concentrate on "turning Bella off". Jake was reluctant to be seen riding her bike on the off chance that Charlie might recognize it. Bella had mentioned that they didn't get many motorcycles in New Rawley and assumed Charlie would easily spot hers. Jake walked up the two steps and pushed the screen door open allowing herself access to the office of Charlie's Gas 'n Tow. She hadn't really thought of how she would explain or even apologize to Bella. She'd never really been in the situation of fending off an amorous female before. She had no plan of what she was going to say. She hoped that it would just come to her.
"Mr. Pratt." The deeper voice called from behind him. "I thought I made myself clear to you yesterday."
"You did, sir. I was just hoping to see Bella and...um...explain stuff. That's all." Jake held up the flowers hoping that Charlie would see that Jake's intentions were admirable.
"Jake...sit down."
"I remember when your mother went to Rawley Girls, Jake."
"You knew my mom?"
"I remember her very well. We were close, your mother and me. Too close. I was married to Bella's mom, Donna then, and she had just found out that she was going to have a baby... Bella. We hadn't been married long and it was really hard. Donna and I were born here and it's hard growing up in this town. Rawley kids seem to have everything that you think you want. Sometimes the two sides do get together, but the results can be...upsetting." Charlie watched Jake and could tell that she was fighting the urge to understand what he was implying. "When your mother came to me and told me she was pregnant, well I didn't know what to do. I considered my options, I really did. I just felt like I didn't really have any. I had to stay with Donna. I had my family here to consider. So you see Jake, you and Bella can't be together."
Jake's mouth fell open. She stared back at the man who claimed to hold her paternal heritage and was dumbstruck. She felt the walls closing in on her and felt the flowers fall from her hand to the floor. Jake's breathing quickened and she thought her pounding heart would leap out of her chest. Air Jake thought...I need air. Jake leapt up from the cushioned seat and bolted through the screen door running straight into Bella.
"Hi Jake." Jake couldn't even think straight.
"I gotta go." Jake said barreling past her.
"But you just got here."
"I gotta go." Jake was gone leaving a bewildered Bella in her wake. Confused and disappointed Bella stepped in through the garage door and saw Charlie sitting on the bench wiping his bandana across his eyes.
***********************************************************************
Jake's motorcycle raced down the dirt path and through the woods. She didn't know where she was headed but she knew she needed to ride. The wind pushed against her face and echoed in her ears keeping her from hearing her own thoughts. I should leave Rawley. I should go back to New York. I should never have come here. My father.
The front tire hit a rock in the road making Jake lose control. She brought the bike to a grinding halt and stood for a moment, catching her breath. She dropped the kickstand into place and dropped her body onto the grass. Her trip hadn't taken her as far as she would have liked. She sat and watched the sparkle on the lake's glassy top. She peered across, looking at the sandy bank that led to Rawley Academy. Will's view, she thought. Jake closed her eyes reliving the previous hour in her head.
"Can I assume things didn't go as you'd planned?" Will stood behind her walking his bicycle.
"You could say that." She answered choosing not to open her eyes. Will dropped his bike to the ground and settled himself next to her on the grass. He reached out and ran his hand over her cheek. Jake felt comforted by his touch, opening her eyes to gaze up at him. "You aren't going to believe what I'm going to tell you." She said and she took the time to fill Will in on what she had learned.
"You're kidding?"
"I kinda wish I was. Man, fate plays some pretty strange games with your life. Of all the schools in the country...I pick the one town where my father and sisters just happen to live." Jake shook her head and lowered her face to rest on her knee, still unable to accept it all.
"Did you talk to Bella?"
"No."
"Have you told your mother yet?" Will asked.
Jake raised her head and looked at Will, "What exactly am I gonna say? Hey Mom, I met this girl at school, her name is Bella. And guess what? Her father is my father too."
"It's so...Jerry Springer." Will grinned at first hoping to lighten Jake's mood. It appeared that it wasn't working. Will reached out and put his arm around her and pulled Jake sideways into him. "It'll be OK Jake, I promise." Will craned his neck and kissed her gently on the lips.
"Ah-hem." The sound of a girl clearing her throat startled them both.
"How long have you been standing there?" Will asked.
Long enough to know." Bella answered. Jake and Will exchanged worried glances. After a long pause, "Jake and I need to talk."
"Well, that's my cue." Will exhaled as he stood. He picked up his bicycle and headed down the dirt road leaving the two girls alone. Bella said nothing at first. She walked past Jake and went to the waters edge. She backed up and leaned against a wooden post and looked back toward Jake. Jake followed her lead and joined her leaning against a matching post. The girls inadvertently stared at each other, each of them looking for a sign, for a resemblance. Something...anything that would confirm or deny what they thought to be true.
"Well, I guess good looks run in the family." Bella said feeling brave enough to speak first.
"That's not funny."
"So, who's laughing?"
"What do we do now?" Bella asked.
"I don't know, it's so out of our hands."
"You're my brother Jake."
" Ah yeah... about that." Jake hesitated. "Bella, there's something else you should know."
"It's OK, I already know."
"You do?" Jake looked surprised.
"Yeah, I saw you and Will kissing. So, you're my brother and your gay and you're in love with my best friend, the one guy that I've loved for my whole life. It's a lot to process...but I'll manage."
Jake laughed. "No...Bella, I'm not gay. That I promise you."
"What, you just had a sketchy moment but now it's over?"
Jake inhaled. "Actually Bella. " Jake exhaled. "I'm a girl."
Bella looked at her now totally confused. "What? Come on Jake."
"Really, look I'll prove it to you." Jake looked around and seeing that she and Bella were completely alone and out of view, Jake reached under the black shirt she was wearing and removed her corset. Bella watched as Jake's obviously female figure filled out the front of her shirt. "And these, " she said pointing at her chest, "are not fake."
Bella took in a long breath and slowly exhaled. Her head was spinning. Jake watched her eyes hoping for some reaction. "I can't believe this is happening."
"I know. But Bella, you've gotta believe me...I never came here to do this, to hurt you or your family. I never knew. It was all just...coincidence. Fate I guess."
Bella nodded. She wanted to be angry with Jake and blame her for the problems between her parents but she knew Jake wasn't responsible for what her mother had done years ago. She wanted to be angry with Charlie for allowing all this to happen but she understood that sometimes...things just happen. She looked at Jake again. "Any suggestions?" She smiled.
"Friends?" Jake said extending her hand.
"Friends. Definitely." Bella replied meeting Jake's hand. They were silent for a moment as their hands met. Unsure of who pulled in first...they met in the middle and exchanged a very sisterly hug.
Bella accompanied Jake as they walked around the lake back to the dorm area of Rawley Academy. The long walk had provided them with the opportunity to catch up on the recent events of Jake's life, her mother and the reason that she was attending Rawley Academy as Jake Pratt. Bella told Jake about Grace and Charlie and expounded on some of her own favorite childhood memories. Jake stashed her bike behind the groundskeepers shed. "Ill walk back to town with you." She offered.
Jake and Bella sat in the window seat that looked out onto Main Street. Jake was calmer now, more relaxed. Her secret was safe with Bella, at least for the moment and she no longer had to be cautious about her voice or her mannerisms. "Is Charlie gonna freak if he finds me here?" Jake asked.
"He'll be Ok, eventually. It's a big shock to him too."
Jake flipped through a new issue of Seventeen magazine Bella had given her. "Can I tell you how much I miss this mindless crap." Jake chuckled. "Listen to this, Is Your Man Moving To Fast? Or how about this one...Lose Ten Pounds Overnight Without Dieting, Yeah right, and here's another, Secret Crushes And Lost Loves."
Bella looked at Jake from the opposite side of the seat. "Does he know?"
"Does who, know what?"
"Will. Does he know about us...and that you're a girl?
"Yeah, but he kinda found out in reverse order." Jake laughed but Bella didn't.
"Is he Ok with all of it?"
Jake looked puzzled. She wasn't sure what Bella was asking. "Is he Ok with what, us being related or me being a girl."
"Both I guess."
"I don't know, we haven't had much time to talk about it yet." Bella nodded her head in response. "Are you Ok with it?" She asked.
"Yeah." Bella smiled. "I'm gonna be."
"And speaking of Will, I should be heading back to school. It's really late. He's probably wondering where I am right now."
"Yeah, he probably is." Bella lowered her head.
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Will was seated on his bed with his back propped back against a pillow. He was half-reading a book but found it hard to concentrate. He looked at the clock again. Finally the door clicked open.
"It's late Jake, I was worried about you." Will asked as Jake entered their dorm room.
"Sorry, " Jake said, although not sounding sincere.
"How'd it go with Bella?"
"Pretty good actually, better than I would have thought. It's a lot to grasp, for both of us."
"For all of us. Is she really upset? Is she Ok?"
Jake looked at him, her expression stating the obvious. "She was, but I think she's starting to accept it." Jake noted the look of concern in Will's eyes, the sound in his voice. She had never noticed it as clearly as she did now.
"Come here." He said as he patted the empty spot on his bed. Jake thought for a moment and then joined him, seating herself with her back to him.
"That's much better." He smiled. He placed his hand on her shoulder and pulled her back against him. Jake took the moment to relax and clear her head. She liked laying there, next to Will, feeling safe, feeling like she belonged. Will leaned over her and gently pressed his mouth to hers. "I'm glad that you're back." He smiled kissing her again. "Did I mention that I missed you?" Jake responded to Will's lips. She turned wrapping herself in his arms. Will pulled up the bottom of the shirt she was wearing and drew lazy circles on her back. "Jake..." he whispered softly into her ear. She allowed his hands to reach up even farther under her shirt, his touch warming her. He pulled at the Velcro of her corset...the sound echoing in the stillness of the room.
"Mmmm" she cooed. She pressed her mouth against his neck and ran her tongue in circles around his ear. His shirtless frame held her tightly. Will skillfully pulled Jake's shirt off over her head and sighed as her satin covered breasts rested against his own chest. He nuzzled at her neck and planted soft sweet kisses down the length of her throat.
As Jake moved around to kiss him again...she heard Bella's voice in her head: you're in love with my best friend, the one guy that I've loved for my whole life. Jake stretched back and sat up on her knees.
"What?" Will asked looking surprised. Jake stared at him in silence. Her head spun slightly as the puzzle pieces in her mind fit together. She's the only girl that I've ever had in my life.
Jake got up from Will's bed. "It's been a really long day, you know. I'm really tired."
"Ok..." Will said a little perplexed.
Jake fell onto her bed without bothering to change her clothes. Her stomach was in knots and her head suddenly hurt. Will loves Bella and Bella loves Will. She thought about it over and over again in her mind. Bella was her sister. Her family. Jake had feelings for Will, she knew she did. How could she ever knowingly pursue a relationship with the one guy that her own sister admitted to 'being in love with for her whole life'? Jake stared up at the ceiling. Now what was she going to do? She thought
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Will walked down to the docks, it was early and he was surprised to find Jake already gone when he had awoken. He saw her slight frame near the waters edge as she replaced the oars she had been using. "You're up early."
"Yeah, " Jake said already feeling uncomfortable.
"Look Jake, I'm sorry." Will said apologetically.
"Sorry?"
"Yeah, I'm sorry if I pushed things. I don't want to do that. It's just...it's just that..." Will licked his lips and lowered his head to meet hers. Jake stepped back out of his reach.
"Will, please...anyone can see us." She carefully avoided eye contact. "Look Will, I'm the one that should be sorry. I should have known better. I should have stopped. I'm sorry if I misled you. I didn't mean to do that. I never meant for it to get this far. I really appreciate everything that you did to help me get into Rawley but your reputation could be at stake here...and so could mine. I have to be really careful." She had rehearsed the speech repeatedly as she floated on the water at dawn. She had to push Will away. She needed to give Will and Bella a chance to be together. She needed to do it for her sister...she needed to do it for Will...and she needed to do it for herself. She was strong and independent. The fates had dealt her an unfair hand but she was still willing to play the game. She was happy to hear the words spew forth from her lips as she'd planned.
"Wait...what?" Will said questioningly.
"I shouldn't have let this...us...get this far. I'm gonna end up hurting you and that's not what I want. Really. You've got to believe me." She finally looked away from the boat that she had been so carefully pouring out her heart to and looked at him. She hoped her eyes would give him some sort of confirmation that she was sincere. "Look, I'm gonna be out of here really soon and I don't think it's fair of me to use you or your feelings like that."
"I..." He stopped and thought about what to say. Will's mouth opened but no words came out. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and started again "It sounds like you're breaking up with me...and what's really funny about that, is that I wasn't really sure that we were together...until now." He smiled hoping to make light of the whole subject.
"Well...I just think that it's better this way, that's all."
"Jake, we live together in the same room. It's going to be hard for us not to see each other."
Jake processed the comment. Realizing the truth she looked up at him. "I don't think we'll have to worry about that for much longer." She picked up the backpack that had been lying on the ground, slung it over her shoulder, leaving Will and the peacefulness of the lake behind her.
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