Author's Notes: For once I can't
blame my J/R fic on Ross...this time all the blame lies with Ruby. I
was all like "Nope, no sequel. No more J/R." And she just kept bugging
me. So this one's for you, Ruby ;-) But I've gotten lots of help from
Ross, so we can thank him, too.
In case you missed it, this is the sequel to 'Family Bonding,' which means Jake/Rachel romance lies ahead. Reader be warned. But lots of thanks goes out to all the fans of 'Family Bonding,' it's amazing how many J/R fans are out there and I love you all.
Promises Made, Promises Kept
By: Forlay
Chapter One -
Rachel laid down on the couch in her hotel room and kicked off her shoes with a sigh of relief. This had quite possibly been the longest week of her life.
It had been a week. A week exactly since she'd stepped off that bug fighter, shaking all over from adrenaline and exhaustion. A week since she and the other Animorphs had been able to tell the world about their three year war. Three years that seemed like a lifetime.
And maybe they were.
The last week had been a flurry of activity for the Animorphs and their families. They'd visited the state capitol, the national capitol, and the United Nations in New York City to address the general assembly. It'd been a relief to finally speak about what had happened, but mentally and physically exhausting. This evening was the first she'd had to do whatever the hell she wanted.
But what to do? If she stepped outside of the hotel, she was going to be mobbed by the press. Tobias had gone out hunting earlier, and was now spending time with Ax, something everyone in the group had been trying to do since no one, not even Ax, knew when he was going to be called back to his people. Or if he'd even go when the call came. Marco didn't have plans that Rachel knew of, but he was about the last person Rachel wanted to spend her free evening with. And Cassie and Jake were spending the evening together, having a romantic dinner and the like, to see if they could salvage their relationship.
"So it looks like it's just me and the TV tonight," Rachel muttered as she picked up the TV remote. But just as she pushed the power button there was a knock at her door. She quickly turned down the TV and glared at the door suspiciously. The families were staying on a different floor, and there were guards posted at every entrance and exit to ensure the privacy of the Animorphs. No one could get to her room without Rachel being notified beforehand.
"Rachel? Are you in there?'
Rachel relaxed immediately upon hearing the voice. "Yeah, Jake. Hold on." Rachel went to the door and undid the locks. "What are you doing here? Cassie told me you were spending the evening with her," she said when the door was open.
"Um, yeah. That was the plan," Jake said. "Mind if I come in?"
"Go ahead," Rachel said as she stepped back to let Jake in.
"I think your room is bigger than mine," Jake said as he entered and looked around.
"I need more room than you for all my new clothes." Rachel sat down on her couch again. "What's up?"
Jake sat next to Rachel. "Cassie and I...well, you know we planned to spend the evening together, right?" Rachel nodded. "So we met in her room, ordered in from room service, and the night started out really well."
"But?" Rachel interjected softly in the long pause.
"But we started talking and realized...it's just not going to work now. Too much has changed, and it's never going to be like it was again."
Rachel put a hand on Jake's. "I'm sorry." But why are you here? she wanted to ask. Why isn't Cassie telling me this and why aren't you talking to Marco?
And then it came back to her in a flash. The camping trip, just over a year ago. And the promise she and Jake had made.
"So this ends here. Tonight," Jake said.
Rachel nodded firmly. "I won't tell anyone and neither will you."
"No. Not now, at least. But after we win...."
Rachel smiled and squeezed Jake's hand. "Yeah. After we win."
"Oh, God. Jake...."
Jake's mouth quirked up in sardonic smirk. "So you do remember."
Rachel shook her head. "How could I forget?"
"Actually, if you weren't my cousin I'd love to - to date you," Jake admitted.
"I've kinda thought the same thing."
"We did win, you know."
Rachel laughed a little. "I could hardly have missed it."
"This has been the hardest year of my life, in more ways than one," Jake whispered.
Rachel had to take a deep breath to calm her nerves before answering, "I know. I've thought about it, too." And then she gasped. "Is it - I mean, between you and Cassie - because of me?"
"No," Jake said firmly. "Well, not entirely. Somewhere this," he squeezed Rachel's hand, "does factor in, but Cassie realized as well as I did that, for many reasons, a romantic relationship between us wasn't going to last. And hey," he smirked again, "we managed to break it off amicably, without me snapping at her."
Rachel smiled slightly. "And I'm very proud of you for that. And relieved." Rachel looked at her and Jake's entwined hands. "So what about this?"
"I guess I was going to leave that up to you," Jake said. "You're the only one in a relationship now."
Rachel looked toward the window, her unconscious reaction to thoughts of Tobias since that had been his way into and out of her bedroom for years. "Yeah, I am."
Jake shifted uncomfortably. "Y'know, maybe this wasn't the best idea. Surprising you like this. I really don't want to force you into making any decision, Rachel. After all, we have all the time in the world now."
"But how many more opportunities?" Rachel asked. "Do you know where we're going to be tomorrow? How about next week? How long before the six of us are split up all around the world, or the galaxy, if Ax ends up going back with the Andalites?"
Jake shrugged. "I don't have the answers anymore, Rachel. For once things are out of my hands and I couldn't be happier."
"So don't go."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Stay here." Rachel leaned in towards Jake. "I don't want to lose this opportunity."
Jake took that as an invitation to eliminate the last few inches of space between him and Rachel. He kissed her briefly but passionately. "Do we really want to start this?" he whispered. "There's nothing to stop us this time."
Rachel grinned dangerously. "Less talk, more action."
***
The next morning, Rachel rolled over in her king sized bed, only to be stopped halfway by the warm body next to her. She was startled for a moment, until she saw his face and realized it was Jake. She smiled lazily and pushed a lock of hair off his forehead. Even though her touch was gentle, Jake stirred.
"Rachel?"
"Morning."
"So it wasn't a dream."
"Nope."
"Thank God." Jake stretched. "So what now?"
"I don't know," Rachel said as she stretched. "A shower sounds like a good place to start, though."
Jake raised an eyebrow. "Is that an invitation?"
"No!" Rachel said sharply. "I mean, a woman needs to have some privacy, Jake. And this is one of them." She winked. "For now." She climbed out of the bed and gathered her clothes for the day from the nearby closet while Jake stayed in the bed. As soon as Rachel was in the bathroom, Jake put his clothes from the night before on and called room service for breakfast. The food arrived just as Rachel stepped out of the bathroom.
"I hope you don't mind," Jake said to Rachel as the cart was wheeled into the room.
Rachel glanced nervously at the woman who'd brought the cart into the room. "No, not at all," she said in a guarded voice. "Thank you," she added to the woman as she left the room, then Rachel rounded on Jake. "Wasn't that just a little risky? You don't have any good reason for being in my room first thing in the morning."
"They're going to assume we had an itinerary to look over."
"Then why aren't the others here for that?"
"Rachel, this is the first morning we've had off in three years. Will you calm down and enjoy breakfast for once? We really do need to talk."
Rachel sighed. "Fine." She sat at the small table the breakfast cart was positioned next to, and helped herself to a plate of French Toast and a glass of orange juice. Jake also took an orange juice and a plate of waffles.
"Last night was fun," Jake said as he cut up his waffles. "Probably one of the best nights of my life. But I need to know what it means, Rachel. Like it or not, officially you're still in a relationship with Tobias."
"And that's just it: I don't know if I like it or not. The relationship with Tobias, I mean. He needs so much...I don't know if I can give that to him." Rachel sighed and ate a piece of her toast.
Jake nodded. "I understand. But we still need to decide something. Like is this going to happen again?"
Rachel focused on her orange juice as she thought. "Not before I break it off with Tobias," she finally said. "Even if it's not romantically, I do care about him, and I don't want to hurt him."
"I don't either. I don't want to hurt anyone," Jake said emphatically. "We've been through too much for things to start falling apart now. So if last night was the only time...then that's it. And we'll just have to live with that."
"Right," Rachel agreed.
They ate the rest of their meal in uncomfortable silence. When they were both finished, Jake stood up. "I promised my parents that, y'know, I'd spend time with them today."
"Oh, of course," Rachel said. "You need to do that. And I guess I've got some talking to do as well." Rachel stood up and walked Jake across the room to the door.
"Isn't this where I'm supposed to say 'I love you' and kiss you?" Jake asked.
"Usually. But don't." She kissed Jake quickly on the cheek. "We have too much stuff to do." She opened the door, "Say hi to Aunt Jean and Uncle Steve for me."
"You could come, too. They'd love to see you."
Rachel shook her head. "Our families are another thing we need to worry about. Later. I don't need that stress now, and I really do need to talk to Tobias."
"I know," Jake said. "But it was worth a try."
"Come see me later tonight," Rachel said as she gently prodded Jake out the door. "After spending a full day with your parents. They need you more than I do."
"I know," Jake repeated. "And I will. Come by. See you later."
Rachel waved, then shut the door to her room. She took a deep breath, then went to the phone and checked the list of phone numbers next to it for Tobias' room. Tobias and Ax always got rooms at these hotels. They preferred to be outside, but sufficient security couldn't be provided for them. No one had any means of knowing exactly how many Yeerks survived on Earth, or how many of them or just crazy humans would attempt to kill one of the Animorphs, especially Ax. So Tobias usually spent the night perched on a closet door, and Ax made a jury-rigged scoop out of the bedclothes. Both of them complained profusely, but it worked.
Rachel let the phone ring for at least two minutes on Tobias' end, to allow him to morph, before hanging up. He'd spent the night in Ax's before; Rachel assumed that's what he'd done this time, so she dialed Ax's room number.
After about a minute, Ax picked up the phone. "Hello? Low?"
"Hey, Ax. It's Rachel."
"Hello, Rachel. Chel. Hell. I do not like these telephones of yours. Their design is very primitive. Tiv-uh."
"I know, Ax." This wasn't the first time she and Ax had had this conversation. "Did Tobias stay with you last night?"
"Yes he did. Would you like to speak to him-uh?"
"Yeah, thanks."
Ax must have taken the phone away from his ear, because now his voice was softer, though Rachel could still hear him. "Tobias. Rachel is on your telephone."
Rachel shook her head. Within a minute Tobias picked up the phone. "Hey, Rachel."
"Hey," Rachel said softly. She felt butterflies beginning to form in her stomach. "Are you doing anything today?"
"Not yet," Tobias said.
"Why don't you come down to my room. We...I need to talk to you."
Tobias was silent for a moment. "Sure. I'll be right there. I think Ax's room is actually just next to yours. 719?"
Rachel felt the blood drain from her face. He'd been that close the whole night? Shit. "Yeah, that's me."
"Just a second then." He hung up the phone. Rachel did so as well, slowly.
He didn't hear a thing. He would have...done something I'd have noticed. Before she could debate with herself more, there was a knock on the door. "Come in!" Rachel called.
Tobias stepped into the room. "What's up?"
Rachel smiled out of habit. "Hi. Come on in. Sit down," she gestured to the couch. Tobias sat down, and Rachel sat next to him.
"Is something wrong?"
Rachel bit her lip. "I don't know."
Tobias took one of Rachel's hands. "You know you can tell me."
Rachel gently pulled her hand back. "I know I can, but that doesn't make this much easier." Rachel looked into Tobias' eyes and sighed. "Tobias, you know I really care about you, right?"
"You can just say it, Rachel. I'll understand," Tobias whispered.
"I'm sorry, Tobias. I wish there was some other way."
Tobias shrugged. "I knew this was going to happen eventually."
"You know I didn't want to hurt you, right?"
"Doesn't mean you haven't."
"Tobias. . . ."
"I think I should be going," Tobias said as he stood. "I'll see you later, Rachel."
"Yeah. See you," Rachel muttered. She waited until Tobias had left, the door shut firmly behind him, before falling back on the couch, her hands covering her face and muttering every curse word that came to mind.
A few minutes into Rachel's misery, another knock came at the door. Rachel looked up with a start. "Yes?" she called.
"It's Cassie."
Rachel sat up and wiped at her eyes. "Come on in."
Cassie opened the door. "I saw Tobias out in the hall and he refused to speak to me, so I thought I'd come in and -" she got a good look at Rachel then. The casual onlooker wouldn't have noticed anything different, she hadn't broken down into hysterics, after all, but Cassie wasn't Rachel's best friend for nothing. "Oh, Rachel. What happened?" She quickly joined Rachel on the couch.
"I- I broke up with Tobias," Rachel stammered, her voice thick with emotion.
"Oh. Oh, no." Cassie hugged her best friend. "I'm sorry, Rachel."
"I didn't want to hurt him," Rachel whispered into Cassie's shoulder. "That's the last thing I wanted. But it wasn't going to work out, I just knew it." She pulled back slightly to look Cassie in the face. "I did the right thing, didn't I?"
"Yeah, I think you did. Just...give him some time, I guess. It's hard." She shook her head. "This has just been a bad day for relationships."
"What do you mean?"
"Jake and I broke up last night, too."
Rachel sniffed. "This just sucks."
"Yeah, it does. But it makes sense, too."
"How?"
"We're moving on to a completely new stage in life. We don't need to keep our old relationships. There's too much baggage associated with them. And before, if you and Tobias or Jake and I had broken up, we would have completely altered the group dynamics, and that just wasn't safe."
Rachel remembered, with a slight pang of guilt, her and Jake's conversation a year ago.
"Because we both have significant others." Jake looked at Rachel. "Right?"
"For the moment."
Jake sighed and massaged his forehead. "Our families would freak."
"Our friends would freak."
"But it's safe now, to have broken it off," Rachel asked for reassurance.
"As safe as it ever is. I don't think either of them is going to try to murder us in our sleep for revenge."
Rachel could only force a laugh at that image. But what if you knew the real reason for the breakup?
"This really has you freaked out, doesn't it?" Cassie asked quietly.
"Yeah, I guess it has."
"Let's go back to my room, and hang out for awhile. I can't even remember the last time we did something as simple as that."
Rachel frowned. "I can't, either."
"So come on." Cassie stood up and pulled Rachel up with her. "I think we have some catching up to do."
In case you missed it, this is the sequel to 'Family Bonding,' which means Jake/Rachel romance lies ahead. Reader be warned. But lots of thanks goes out to all the fans of 'Family Bonding,' it's amazing how many J/R fans are out there and I love you all.
Promises Made, Promises Kept
By: Forlay
Chapter One -
Rachel laid down on the couch in her hotel room and kicked off her shoes with a sigh of relief. This had quite possibly been the longest week of her life.
It had been a week. A week exactly since she'd stepped off that bug fighter, shaking all over from adrenaline and exhaustion. A week since she and the other Animorphs had been able to tell the world about their three year war. Three years that seemed like a lifetime.
And maybe they were.
The last week had been a flurry of activity for the Animorphs and their families. They'd visited the state capitol, the national capitol, and the United Nations in New York City to address the general assembly. It'd been a relief to finally speak about what had happened, but mentally and physically exhausting. This evening was the first she'd had to do whatever the hell she wanted.
But what to do? If she stepped outside of the hotel, she was going to be mobbed by the press. Tobias had gone out hunting earlier, and was now spending time with Ax, something everyone in the group had been trying to do since no one, not even Ax, knew when he was going to be called back to his people. Or if he'd even go when the call came. Marco didn't have plans that Rachel knew of, but he was about the last person Rachel wanted to spend her free evening with. And Cassie and Jake were spending the evening together, having a romantic dinner and the like, to see if they could salvage their relationship.
"So it looks like it's just me and the TV tonight," Rachel muttered as she picked up the TV remote. But just as she pushed the power button there was a knock at her door. She quickly turned down the TV and glared at the door suspiciously. The families were staying on a different floor, and there were guards posted at every entrance and exit to ensure the privacy of the Animorphs. No one could get to her room without Rachel being notified beforehand.
"Rachel? Are you in there?'
Rachel relaxed immediately upon hearing the voice. "Yeah, Jake. Hold on." Rachel went to the door and undid the locks. "What are you doing here? Cassie told me you were spending the evening with her," she said when the door was open.
"Um, yeah. That was the plan," Jake said. "Mind if I come in?"
"Go ahead," Rachel said as she stepped back to let Jake in.
"I think your room is bigger than mine," Jake said as he entered and looked around.
"I need more room than you for all my new clothes." Rachel sat down on her couch again. "What's up?"
Jake sat next to Rachel. "Cassie and I...well, you know we planned to spend the evening together, right?" Rachel nodded. "So we met in her room, ordered in from room service, and the night started out really well."
"But?" Rachel interjected softly in the long pause.
"But we started talking and realized...it's just not going to work now. Too much has changed, and it's never going to be like it was again."
Rachel put a hand on Jake's. "I'm sorry." But why are you here? she wanted to ask. Why isn't Cassie telling me this and why aren't you talking to Marco?
And then it came back to her in a flash. The camping trip, just over a year ago. And the promise she and Jake had made.
"So this ends here. Tonight," Jake said.
Rachel nodded firmly. "I won't tell anyone and neither will you."
"No. Not now, at least. But after we win...."
Rachel smiled and squeezed Jake's hand. "Yeah. After we win."
"Oh, God. Jake...."
Jake's mouth quirked up in sardonic smirk. "So you do remember."
Rachel shook her head. "How could I forget?"
"Actually, if you weren't my cousin I'd love to - to date you," Jake admitted.
"I've kinda thought the same thing."
"We did win, you know."
Rachel laughed a little. "I could hardly have missed it."
"This has been the hardest year of my life, in more ways than one," Jake whispered.
Rachel had to take a deep breath to calm her nerves before answering, "I know. I've thought about it, too." And then she gasped. "Is it - I mean, between you and Cassie - because of me?"
"No," Jake said firmly. "Well, not entirely. Somewhere this," he squeezed Rachel's hand, "does factor in, but Cassie realized as well as I did that, for many reasons, a romantic relationship between us wasn't going to last. And hey," he smirked again, "we managed to break it off amicably, without me snapping at her."
Rachel smiled slightly. "And I'm very proud of you for that. And relieved." Rachel looked at her and Jake's entwined hands. "So what about this?"
"I guess I was going to leave that up to you," Jake said. "You're the only one in a relationship now."
Rachel looked toward the window, her unconscious reaction to thoughts of Tobias since that had been his way into and out of her bedroom for years. "Yeah, I am."
Jake shifted uncomfortably. "Y'know, maybe this wasn't the best idea. Surprising you like this. I really don't want to force you into making any decision, Rachel. After all, we have all the time in the world now."
"But how many more opportunities?" Rachel asked. "Do you know where we're going to be tomorrow? How about next week? How long before the six of us are split up all around the world, or the galaxy, if Ax ends up going back with the Andalites?"
Jake shrugged. "I don't have the answers anymore, Rachel. For once things are out of my hands and I couldn't be happier."
"So don't go."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Stay here." Rachel leaned in towards Jake. "I don't want to lose this opportunity."
Jake took that as an invitation to eliminate the last few inches of space between him and Rachel. He kissed her briefly but passionately. "Do we really want to start this?" he whispered. "There's nothing to stop us this time."
Rachel grinned dangerously. "Less talk, more action."
***
The next morning, Rachel rolled over in her king sized bed, only to be stopped halfway by the warm body next to her. She was startled for a moment, until she saw his face and realized it was Jake. She smiled lazily and pushed a lock of hair off his forehead. Even though her touch was gentle, Jake stirred.
"Rachel?"
"Morning."
"So it wasn't a dream."
"Nope."
"Thank God." Jake stretched. "So what now?"
"I don't know," Rachel said as she stretched. "A shower sounds like a good place to start, though."
Jake raised an eyebrow. "Is that an invitation?"
"No!" Rachel said sharply. "I mean, a woman needs to have some privacy, Jake. And this is one of them." She winked. "For now." She climbed out of the bed and gathered her clothes for the day from the nearby closet while Jake stayed in the bed. As soon as Rachel was in the bathroom, Jake put his clothes from the night before on and called room service for breakfast. The food arrived just as Rachel stepped out of the bathroom.
"I hope you don't mind," Jake said to Rachel as the cart was wheeled into the room.
Rachel glanced nervously at the woman who'd brought the cart into the room. "No, not at all," she said in a guarded voice. "Thank you," she added to the woman as she left the room, then Rachel rounded on Jake. "Wasn't that just a little risky? You don't have any good reason for being in my room first thing in the morning."
"They're going to assume we had an itinerary to look over."
"Then why aren't the others here for that?"
"Rachel, this is the first morning we've had off in three years. Will you calm down and enjoy breakfast for once? We really do need to talk."
Rachel sighed. "Fine." She sat at the small table the breakfast cart was positioned next to, and helped herself to a plate of French Toast and a glass of orange juice. Jake also took an orange juice and a plate of waffles.
"Last night was fun," Jake said as he cut up his waffles. "Probably one of the best nights of my life. But I need to know what it means, Rachel. Like it or not, officially you're still in a relationship with Tobias."
"And that's just it: I don't know if I like it or not. The relationship with Tobias, I mean. He needs so much...I don't know if I can give that to him." Rachel sighed and ate a piece of her toast.
Jake nodded. "I understand. But we still need to decide something. Like is this going to happen again?"
Rachel focused on her orange juice as she thought. "Not before I break it off with Tobias," she finally said. "Even if it's not romantically, I do care about him, and I don't want to hurt him."
"I don't either. I don't want to hurt anyone," Jake said emphatically. "We've been through too much for things to start falling apart now. So if last night was the only time...then that's it. And we'll just have to live with that."
"Right," Rachel agreed.
They ate the rest of their meal in uncomfortable silence. When they were both finished, Jake stood up. "I promised my parents that, y'know, I'd spend time with them today."
"Oh, of course," Rachel said. "You need to do that. And I guess I've got some talking to do as well." Rachel stood up and walked Jake across the room to the door.
"Isn't this where I'm supposed to say 'I love you' and kiss you?" Jake asked.
"Usually. But don't." She kissed Jake quickly on the cheek. "We have too much stuff to do." She opened the door, "Say hi to Aunt Jean and Uncle Steve for me."
"You could come, too. They'd love to see you."
Rachel shook her head. "Our families are another thing we need to worry about. Later. I don't need that stress now, and I really do need to talk to Tobias."
"I know," Jake said. "But it was worth a try."
"Come see me later tonight," Rachel said as she gently prodded Jake out the door. "After spending a full day with your parents. They need you more than I do."
"I know," Jake repeated. "And I will. Come by. See you later."
Rachel waved, then shut the door to her room. She took a deep breath, then went to the phone and checked the list of phone numbers next to it for Tobias' room. Tobias and Ax always got rooms at these hotels. They preferred to be outside, but sufficient security couldn't be provided for them. No one had any means of knowing exactly how many Yeerks survived on Earth, or how many of them or just crazy humans would attempt to kill one of the Animorphs, especially Ax. So Tobias usually spent the night perched on a closet door, and Ax made a jury-rigged scoop out of the bedclothes. Both of them complained profusely, but it worked.
Rachel let the phone ring for at least two minutes on Tobias' end, to allow him to morph, before hanging up. He'd spent the night in Ax's before; Rachel assumed that's what he'd done this time, so she dialed Ax's room number.
After about a minute, Ax picked up the phone. "Hello? Low?"
"Hey, Ax. It's Rachel."
"Hello, Rachel. Chel. Hell. I do not like these telephones of yours. Their design is very primitive. Tiv-uh."
"I know, Ax." This wasn't the first time she and Ax had had this conversation. "Did Tobias stay with you last night?"
"Yes he did. Would you like to speak to him-uh?"
"Yeah, thanks."
Ax must have taken the phone away from his ear, because now his voice was softer, though Rachel could still hear him. "Tobias. Rachel is on your telephone."
Rachel shook her head. Within a minute Tobias picked up the phone. "Hey, Rachel."
"Hey," Rachel said softly. She felt butterflies beginning to form in her stomach. "Are you doing anything today?"
"Not yet," Tobias said.
"Why don't you come down to my room. We...I need to talk to you."
Tobias was silent for a moment. "Sure. I'll be right there. I think Ax's room is actually just next to yours. 719?"
Rachel felt the blood drain from her face. He'd been that close the whole night? Shit. "Yeah, that's me."
"Just a second then." He hung up the phone. Rachel did so as well, slowly.
He didn't hear a thing. He would have...done something I'd have noticed. Before she could debate with herself more, there was a knock on the door. "Come in!" Rachel called.
Tobias stepped into the room. "What's up?"
Rachel smiled out of habit. "Hi. Come on in. Sit down," she gestured to the couch. Tobias sat down, and Rachel sat next to him.
"Is something wrong?"
Rachel bit her lip. "I don't know."
Tobias took one of Rachel's hands. "You know you can tell me."
Rachel gently pulled her hand back. "I know I can, but that doesn't make this much easier." Rachel looked into Tobias' eyes and sighed. "Tobias, you know I really care about you, right?"
"You can just say it, Rachel. I'll understand," Tobias whispered.
"I'm sorry, Tobias. I wish there was some other way."
Tobias shrugged. "I knew this was going to happen eventually."
"You know I didn't want to hurt you, right?"
"Doesn't mean you haven't."
"Tobias. . . ."
"I think I should be going," Tobias said as he stood. "I'll see you later, Rachel."
"Yeah. See you," Rachel muttered. She waited until Tobias had left, the door shut firmly behind him, before falling back on the couch, her hands covering her face and muttering every curse word that came to mind.
A few minutes into Rachel's misery, another knock came at the door. Rachel looked up with a start. "Yes?" she called.
"It's Cassie."
Rachel sat up and wiped at her eyes. "Come on in."
Cassie opened the door. "I saw Tobias out in the hall and he refused to speak to me, so I thought I'd come in and -" she got a good look at Rachel then. The casual onlooker wouldn't have noticed anything different, she hadn't broken down into hysterics, after all, but Cassie wasn't Rachel's best friend for nothing. "Oh, Rachel. What happened?" She quickly joined Rachel on the couch.
"I- I broke up with Tobias," Rachel stammered, her voice thick with emotion.
"Oh. Oh, no." Cassie hugged her best friend. "I'm sorry, Rachel."
"I didn't want to hurt him," Rachel whispered into Cassie's shoulder. "That's the last thing I wanted. But it wasn't going to work out, I just knew it." She pulled back slightly to look Cassie in the face. "I did the right thing, didn't I?"
"Yeah, I think you did. Just...give him some time, I guess. It's hard." She shook her head. "This has just been a bad day for relationships."
"What do you mean?"
"Jake and I broke up last night, too."
Rachel sniffed. "This just sucks."
"Yeah, it does. But it makes sense, too."
"How?"
"We're moving on to a completely new stage in life. We don't need to keep our old relationships. There's too much baggage associated with them. And before, if you and Tobias or Jake and I had broken up, we would have completely altered the group dynamics, and that just wasn't safe."
Rachel remembered, with a slight pang of guilt, her and Jake's conversation a year ago.
"Because we both have significant others." Jake looked at Rachel. "Right?"
"For the moment."
Jake sighed and massaged his forehead. "Our families would freak."
"Our friends would freak."
"But it's safe now, to have broken it off," Rachel asked for reassurance.
"As safe as it ever is. I don't think either of them is going to try to murder us in our sleep for revenge."
Rachel could only force a laugh at that image. But what if you knew the real reason for the breakup?
"This really has you freaked out, doesn't it?" Cassie asked quietly.
"Yeah, I guess it has."
"Let's go back to my room, and hang out for awhile. I can't even remember the last time we did something as simple as that."
Rachel frowned. "I can't, either."
"So come on." Cassie stood up and pulled Rachel up with her. "I think we have some catching up to do."