Gaia was currently standing at the door of the Jacobs' household. Nate's mother invited Gaia and her mom over for dinner since all the parents used to go to school together.
Her mom had already spent time with Leslie and Suze, so she wanted to see her oldest friend.
" Monique!" Mrs. Jacobs greeted Gaia's mom with a big hug.
" Martha! You look great," Gaia's mom greeted back.
Martha and Monique were best friends in high school. The two of them both met Cal and Clay around the same time. They both dreamed of moving out of the town and starting their lives in New York together. That was until Martha got pregnant with Aaron.
" No, you look great. You know, all things considered, " Monique's eyes bugged out at the statement made by Martha.
Seeing the look on her oldest friend's face, she quickly adds, " You know, with the back and forth you do for work, it must be exhausting. "
Gaia looked at the two adults suspiciously, making a mental note about this weird exchange.
" Come in!" Martha moved out of the way so they could enter the house.
Martha then greeted Gaia with a big hug.
"Your outfit is so cute; I miss having you around. Now I'm surrounded by all these boys," Martha joked at the girl.
She wasn't just saying that to Gaia. She missed having a pseudo-daughter relationship with her.
" Maybe we can grab brunch together. " Monique suggested. Martha nodded her head excitedly.
We all turn to the stairs to see Cal, Aaron, and Nate coming downstairs. Cal was in front, Aaron was close behind, but Nate was slowly descending the stairs. His eyes were glued to Gaia. She wore a cute baby doll dress with stockings and heels. Nate thought she looked perfect. He just wanted to pull her upstairs and fuck her in that outfit, but he knew that wouldn't happen anytime soon.
" Monique and Gaia. How are you?" Cal greeted. He gave Monique a kiss on the cheek and a hug. Then Cal moved on to Gaia and gave her a hug. When he pulled back, he took notice of her outfit. She was overdressed, but he liked the effort.
Cal moved away so his two sons could greet their guests. He started to talk to Monique and Martha, who were talking about Monique's tech company.
Aaron came up to Gaia, giving her a hug. " Hey, double A!" he teased. That was the nickname that they gave each other when they were little. Since both of their names had 2 A's.
She and Aaron had stayed close even after her split with Nate. She had always thought of him like a goofy older brother. He wasn't the most intelligent person and definitely kind of a screw-up, but he was a good person. Coming from this family, that's a miracle.
" Hey, Double A. How is your emotional state since I beat you in Mortal Kombat?" she greeted, playfully teasing.
" Hey, the only reason you won was because I got distracted," Aaron defended.
" What was the distraction? That you suck?" Gaia teased.
"You know, when you were younger, you were so nice. Now you're just mean!" Aaron rolled his eyes, trying not to smile.
Nate finally got off the stairs and greeted Monique first. Then he moved his attention to Gaia. She was in a deep conversation with Aaron about video games. It made his blood boil that she was still close to his brother. Nate repeatedly looked in his older brother's phone to ensure he wasn't trying to fuck Gaia. When he saw the messages, he was filled with envy. He was jealous that they would talk and text frequently.
" Hey, GG. You look pretty " he stuffed his hands in his pockets, knowing she wouldn't hug him. To his and everyone else's surprise, Gaia gave him a sincere but quick hug with a thank you.
Ever since Maddy told them about Nate's phone, she felt terrible for him. She knew how his family was, so trying to figure out his sexuality must be tough on him. Gaia felt like that was what changed him all those years ago. Little did she know.
Nate returned the hug, taking a deep inhale of her sweet perfume. Her body temperature was precisely how he remembered it. She was hotter than most other people, making cuddling her great in the winters.
Everyone gave the two glances. Cal looked on with judgmental eyes towards Nate. Martha looked on, wishing they could reconcile. Monique was happy they could still be cordial after the breakup. Aaron looked joyful. Not because he wanted them to get back together, but that could lead to Gaia finally hanging out at the house again.
They all travel to the dinner table, where Martha and Cal sit at the end. Monique and Aaron sat on one side; surprisingly, Nate and Gaia sat on the other.
Monique and Gaia always felt something was slightly off with the Jacob family when they came over. Like there was a bright pink elephant in the room that nobody wanted to acknowledge it.
" I made lasagna today. With mixed vegetables," Martha said proudly. From the looks on her family's faces, she shouldn't be.
She served the food to everyone, and Cal said grace. Gaia was an atheist, but she didn't mind.
Gaia and her mom looked at each other and shared a look. The food was very bland and tasteless. They remembered how much Martha was a lousy cook. Usually Monique would cook if they came over, which was appreciated by the whole Jacob family.
" So Monique, how long are you staying in town?" Cal started the conversation.
" For about 3 more days. I'm going to be gone for 2 weeks. My company is about to require another app, so I'm preparing for that, " Monique explained. Cal listened intently, and Martha hung on her every word.
" What about you? How's business?" Monique returned the answer.
" Yeah, I'm constructing some new buildings on the outskirts of town. One of the biggest projects I've had to date," Cal said proudly.
Gaia and Monique listened as Cal bragged about his work while his family pretended to care. Gaia looked at Nate, who had a slight scowl while his dad was talking about the project.
Gaia remembered that Nate and his dad didn't have the best relationship. They've been in a pissing contest ever since he was 11.
" Sounds exciting! " Monique complimented.
" What about you, Gaia? How's school?" Cal turned his attention to his son's ex.
Gaia was mid-chew and took some water to swallow it down. "How is lasagna tough to chew," she thought.
" Well, school is great. I still have my 3.8 GPA, so I'm just trying to maintain that. Also, I'm co-captain of the cheerleading squad this year, so I'm happy about that!" she answered.
"With Maddy, right?" Aaron asked.
" you're doing great. Your routines are amazing. There are sometimes the best parts of the game." He chuckled, giving Nate a slight glance.
Everyone chuckled uncomfortably besides Nate.
" Oh, Cal! knock it off," Martha swatted at Cal jokingly.
Nate's jaw tightens at his dad's words. Cal was always taking shots at Nate. He would say they were jokes, but he knew it was a way to maintain dominance.
Gaia felt the tension between the two and decided to try to diffuse it. " Mr. Jacob, you're too kind. However, we all know Nate is the main attraction. " Gaia gestures to Nate.
Nate looks at Gaia with a blank face. He was confused but happy that Gaia had spoken up for him. Why was she being so nice? Did Gaia realize Gaia still had feelings for him? Did she want to be together?
Nate gives her a small appreciative smile, which is reciprocated.
Martha notices this moment between the two and tries to interject with a story from their childhood " remember when you and Gaia got married, Nate?" she asked her son.
Nate rolled his eyes, annoyed, and replied, " Mom. Please, no stories, OK?"
" I remember that! Aaron was the minister," Monique said, reminiscing about the memory. It was around when her husband and youngest daughter were alive.
" I remember. Gaia threatened me to do it." Aaron laughed, which made Gaia giggle, also.
" I remembered it clearly. Nate had professed his love for Gaia to us. He begged his mom for a ring, and Martha gave him one she couldn't fit anymore. Then when they had a play date, he proposed to her while they were playing house. " Cal adds his memory to the conversation.
" You remember the "wedding" ?" Martha put it in quotations.
" They dressed up and decorated my living room and told us we had to sit and be witnesses. They were so cute." Monique cooed at the cuteness.
Gaia and Nate looked down, slightly embarrassed about their parents talking about their fake wedding.
Nate remembered that all too well. They were about 8 years old, and he was sure he was in love with her at the time. Gaia's younger sister was the flower girl. Her dad even walked her down the aisle. Even though it was silly, that was one of his favorite memories that he had from his childhood that he could remember. If he was honest with himself, he wished he could live in that memory forever.
" You two were such cute kids and a cute couple!" Martha took a sip of wine.
" Yeah, they were," Cal sighed. He looked at Nate with disappointment. Nate could feel his eyes staring but didn't acknowledge it.
Dinner was over, and Cal left for some late-night work. Aaron asked Gaia if she wanted to play spider man with her while their moms had a bottle of wine. She went to use the bathroom to reapply her lip gloss.
When she came outside, Nate was leaning by the bathroom wall.
" I want to talk" Nate gestured to follow him and went to his room. Gaia reluctantly followed, hoping it didn't end up in an argument.
Gaia looked at his perfectly organized room with familiarity. She had spent so much time at his house and in his bedroom over the years.
Nate sat down on his bed and patted the side of him for Gaia to sit, which she did.
" Look, I wanted to say thanks for being nice to me tonight. I appreciated it. I hope this means we can be friends," Nate expressed. Gaia looked at him suspiciously. She was waiting for the other shoe to drop.
" ...And?"Gaia questioned.
" And I wanted to show my gratitude by taking you to that Italian place we used to go to all the time. "Nate smiled.
"There it is." Gaia thought
When they were dating, the two would always go to the same restaurant every other week. It was like a tradition. Nate knew how much Gaia loved that place.
" We can't go on a date. You're dating my best friend, " Gaia said quickly, getting up.
" I meant as a friend. No flirting or trying to fuck you. Just friends," Nate explained.
The crazy part about this, Nate was serious. He really wasn't planning on tricking her. He just wanted to talk and hang out like they used to.
Gaia thought long and hard. She knew Maddy and Nate weren't going anywhere anytime soon, and she couldn't escape him. She sighed in defeat and said," I'll have to see. I don't want to upset Fez."
" What? He's like your boyfriend now?" Nate laughed condescendingly.
Gaia folded her arms in defense " Actually, he is."
Nate cupped his face in frustration, trying not to get angry at the thought of them together. " Come on, GG, you're not really going to date him? He's a drug dealer!"
"OK? he's a great person. Everyone knows he's doing it to support his family" Gaia was getting irritated by the minute.
" He's fucking lowlife that doesn't deserve to be with you!" Nate getting slightly louder.
" oh? and you're some prize? You cheated on me and then started dating my best friend. In terms of boyfriends, he's a step up. " Gaia spat. She stood up to lead, but Nate stood in front of his door, keeping her from leaving.
" And you fucking lied to my face multiple times. You said you never did anything with anyone before. You said you didn't have a relationship with Harvey. you fucking lied, Gaia!" Nate's voice was starting to get louder with every word she spoke.
Gaia's hand started to shake while he listed all the fucked things that happened in the relationship. she had wanted to forget about Harvey altogether, but this town was a constant reminder of him.
" And two months after we broke up, while I was heartbroken, YOU fucked him at some random party!" Nate backed her to the dresser, making her legs hit the drawers. Nate really wanted to be friends but how she talked about the relationship made his blood boil. She fucked up first.
Hearing Nate says that made Gaia mentally break.
" I didn't want to!" she blurted out of frustration. Nate's face changes from anger to genuine shock.
A thick silence filled the room. So much so you could hear a pin drop.
"...didn't want to?" Nate thought to himself
" What did you mean you didn't want to?" Nate asked in a softer tone.
" I-I meant that it was a mistake. " Gaia quickly recovered.
Nate looked deeply into her eyes and saw that something wasn't right " GG-"
" Just fucking let it go! You need me to be the fucking bad guy? fine. I'm sorry for lying, and I'm sorry for fucking Harvey two months after, like our relationship didn't matter. It did matter to me!" Gaia spoke in a low, angry tone. She grabbed the back of her head in pain as it heated up from getting upset.
" Are you OK, GG? Do you need some Asprin?" Nate asked, concerned. He has only seen Gaia this mad a couple of times.
Gaia nodded, and Nate went into his bathroom to get the pills, but Gaia used this to slip out of the room and run downstairs.
" Hey, sweetie, are you OK?" Monique asked, her words slightly slurring.
" I'm going to wait in the car, mom. I'm feeling slightly tired," Gaia lied.
"Well, if you want, you can take the car home. I can call an uber sweetie. " she came over and wrapped her arms around her daughter. Gaia notices how skinny her mom has gotten again.
" thanks, mom" Gaia pulled away from her mom and kissed her cheek. She said goodbye to Martha and left the house.
Nate came out of the bathroom with the Asprin, but Gaia had already left.
The memory of her words already replayed and echoed in his mind.
" I didn't want to."
Did this mean she never wanted Harvey?
He ran his hands through his hair out of frustration. He wished Gaia didn't run away and they could finish talking.
Nate walked to his closet, took a shoe box from the top shelf, and sat down with it on his lap. When he opens the box, it's filled with memorabilia from his and Gaia's relationship.
There were old pictures from when they were kids to them in high school; tickets from his first football game and their first concert; a tiny empty bottle of Gaia's favorite perfume; two of her drawings she did when they were together; and an old bonnet Gaia use to wear when she slept over.
Gaia got into the car and shot Aaron a quick text while finally answering Rue.
Gaia:
Sorry! gotta rain check on spider man.
Aaron:
I heard you and Nate arguing. I get it. Just know that argument saved you from getting your ass beat.
Gaia:
Lol, OK, double A. if you say so.
Rue:
GG?
Rue:
Hey GG. You probably heard what happened with Fez and me, and I just wanted to say I'm sorry. I was having a bad day, and I took it out on Fez, which wasn't cool. PLEASE, PLEASE don't hate me.
Gaia:
I don't hate you. Fez and I know you're a drug addict and will say anything for drugs, so we know we can't take what you say seriously when you're in that state. However, you need to apologize to Fez in person.
Rue:
I know. I'm just embarrassed. I don't think he will forgive me.
Gaia:
Trust me. He will.
Rue:
OK, I will. Sorry again
Gaia put her phone down and let out a big sigh. She took out the jar of edibles, popping one in her mouth to relieve the stress.
"Do you guys think mermaids are like a thing?" Maddy asked while doing her eyeliner.
Gaia, Maddy, and Kat were on face time, talking about random shit before getting ready for the Carnival. Gaia was currently finishing her essay. It wasn't due until next week, but she liked getting things out of the way so she wouldn't procrastinate.
No wonder she had better grades than most of us.
" Maddy, are you high?" Gaia joked, making Kat laugh.
" No bitch! I'm just asking, " Maddy laughed.
" I think they are like the ocean is so fucking deep. There's probably like a secret place where they're all just chilling," Kat expressed.
" What? on some Little mermaid shit?" Gaia chuckled. She closed her laptop and started to do her makeup.
" I mean, yeah. Kind of," Kat replied.
" I really want to be a mermaid. They're so fucking pretty!" Maddy whined.
" Maddy, you're so random," Gaia laughed at her best friend. She was currently doing a soft glam look since she didn't want to go all out for the Carnival.
" Speaking of randomness, when did you and Ethan become friends, Kat?" Gaia teased.
Ethan was her lab partner last year. She was cool with the boy because he was a decent person and, unlike most of the guys in the school, didn't try to fuck her. So when she had economics with him this year, she was ecstatic. Then when Ethan realized Gaia and Kat were friends, he started asking questions about her.
" Ethan? Kat, you fucking someone?" Maddy asked curiously
" NO! We're just friends. We met in class. Nothing more," Kat explained, trying to swat away their questions.
"That's code for fucking" Maddy giggled.
" What about you and Fez?" Kat tried to redirect the conversation to something else.
" Well. Me and Fez are together now, like in a relationship," Gaia grinned.
Both Maddy and Kat started screaming in happiness for their friend. They knew how long it's been since she had a person she liked and was happy that she was in a good relationship.
" Yass bitch!" Maddy exclaimed, making Gaia giggle.
" you guys already act like a couple with all the fucking gross cutesy shit you do," Kat said.
" Yeah. I asked him after I found out about Samantha!" Gaia scrunched up her face in anger, saying her name.
" What a fucking cunt " Maddy cursed.
"She has the nerve to try to fuck up my relationship after having a boyfriend the whole time we were dating" Gaia sucked her teeth. The thought of Samantha was making her mad.
" Bitch I still can't believe she had a boyfriend that whole time!" Kat exclaimed.
" She basically made me a side bitch. Then she told me about him and said she wanted to break up with him for me. Like why would I want to be something who lied since the beginning of our relationship? " Gaia scoffed. She really liked Samantha, too, but she couldn't get over the lies.
" Damn, GG! She was going to leave him for you? What type of tongue game you got?" Maddy joked.
" Come over and find out !" Gaia winked into the camera, making all of them laugh.
" But seriously, I got a plan for her today. Watch!" Gaia grinned evilly into the camera.
" Has anyone ever said you look kind of hot when you're planning something evil?" Kat complimented.
" thank you!" Gaia said.
The trio continued to get ready for the Carnival. They were still talking about random shit until Gaia's Grandma called out for her.
" Hey, I got to go. MiMi is calling me. Bye! " Gaia waved.
Both of them said their goodbyes, and she shut it off.
She put her outfit on and her shoes before she went to Mimi's room to see what she wanted.
" Yes, MiMi," Gaia asked.
" Have you seen my diamond necklace? The one I let you borrow a couple of months ago?" Mimi asked while looking through her Jewelry box.
" Oh wait! I have it. Let me go back to my room. " Gaia walked back to her room.
She looked in her big jewelry box. She checked the first two drawers and found nothing but the Fentanyl patch she accidentally took. Then she checks the last big one and found it. Before she closed it, she saw something she hadn't seen in years. Gaia picked up this ring and held it between her two fingers; it was Martha's ring.