"Jessie!" Katie called out to the dining room, where her fiancée was setting the table for two.

"I hear it!" Jessie called, as she jogged towards the front door, where someone was knocking on the other side.

She twisted the handle, and there was Grace, standing before her with a scowl on her face.

"Gracie?" Jessie asked, but Grace didn't reply, she simply stormed past Jessie and plopped herself down on the couch, folding her arms across her chest.

"Come In!….." Jessie mumbled, closing the door and following after her.

"We were just about to sit down for lunch…you going to stay…?" Jessie started, but Grace interrupted with a huff and a sigh; "I don't believe his nerve!" she grumbled.

"Who was it, Jess?" Katie asked, emerging from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a tea towel.

"Well hey Grace!" she smiled, and received an icy nod of acknowledgement from Grace.

Jessie looked towards Katie, giving an empathetic shrug. Katie gave a small nod, and scurried back into the kitchen, indicating that Jessie should handle Grace's mess…whatever it was…

"Ok, so spill!" Jessie ordered, taking a seat beside the subdued Grace.

GRACE well for starters you're brother is an…(waves her arms around, huffs and puffs, searching for a word)…an….oxymoron! Whatever the hell that is! And he's rude, selfish, passive-aggressive, a total idiot! Uncompassionate! Stubborn! Unlawful (groans loudly in frustration!) He's a…a…a pig!

Jessie stared at Grace, waiting for even the smallest sound to come out of her pursed lips. Grace turned to her, with a deep frown and cold eyes.

Jessie sighed and rubbed her forehead, "I'm guessing this has something to do with Eli?" she asked, softly.

"Don't say his name infront of me!" Grace spat, turning away from Jessie again, who gave another, deep sigh.

"What did he do?" Jessie asked, and received no reply. "Ok…what didn't he do?" she tried again.

"Grrrr!" Grace suddenly screeched, clenching her fists.

Jessie raised an eyebrow and waited for Grace to calm down, "it might help if you talk to me…" she started.

Grace turned to her, "you're brother came to me this morning…talking about how we have to 'keep the peace between us' and 'talk through our uneasiness'!"

Jessie nodded, allowing for Grace to go on.

"I was reluctant, but he said it would be the best thing for you and Katie, so I agree…and he takes me out for lunch at this nice restaurant…and to begin with he's all quiet and stubborn…then he mentions how it's a shame we didn't get to see each other over the past 5 years!" she ended on a sarcastic, angry note. "As if we didn't both plan to avoid each other! He acts as though it was me who avoided him! The nerve!" she grumbled.

"Go on..." Jessie urged, rolling her eyes.

"So then we loosen up and start discussing work and Uni…just life in general!…and I figure now is the perfect time to ask about the illusive 'Isabelle'…so I do…and he just goes…mental!" Grace huffed, running a hand tragically through her hair.

Jessie raised an eyebrow, "describe mental?"

"He just got this dark cloud over his face… and he asks me, in this really brutal tone… 'How many frat boys did you sleep with?'…The nerve of that…that…pig?" Grace huffed angrily, crossing her arms tightly again.

"And…" Jessie continued.

"And… he told me he didn't want to discuss Isabelle…as though she was some top secret business deal he didn't want to let me in on!…for god sake!" Grace rubbed her forehead, "we shouted, I got up and walked away, he tried to stop me…I yelled at him some more…and then I took off…and now I'm here!" she finally summarized, and turned to Jessie for guidance.

Jessie stared at her blankly for a moment, simply taking in the situation, the way she would with a youth that had come to her for help on family issues, or peer pressure….she didn't really want to make any solutions…she wanted to make Grace see that there was wrong-doing on her behalf aswell…

"Don't you think, maybe, you should have left the subject of Isabelle to a later date…when you two were on steadier ground?" she asked, quietly.

Grace stared at her, with pursed lips and an angry stare; "you're taking his side?" she asked, slowly and bitterly.

Jessie sighed and shook her head; "don't do this to me Grace! Not between you two…the people I love so much! Don't do this to me…please?"

Grace sighed again, and then reached for Jessie's hand, squeezing it tight; "of course I wont…it's you're big day coming up…you don't need this…I'll just go home and face the pig!"

Grace released her hand, and stood up, "I don't want to do this to you…really…I'm sorry for bursting in here…"

Jessie sighed, and tugged on Grace's jumper, pulling her back down; "don't be stupid…I am not taking sides…if you ask me, you and Eli were both in the wrong!" she started, somehow Grace had dragged her into giving an opinion, the way Grace always did. "But maybe the subject of Isabelle is a touchy one for Eli…close to his heart? I mean, I'm his sister and I don't even know the full story!" she gave a small nod, "maybe you should just go home and apologize…I expect he'd do the same…"

Grace gave a small nod, "ok…I will apologize to the pig…" she gave a small smile, "right after lunch…I'm starving!"

Jessie gave a small nod and a smile, "sure! Join us….we couldn't stop you anyway!" she sighed, and Grace gave her a quick hug, before bolting into the kitchen to see what Katie was cooking up.

While she was gone, Jessie reached for the phone that was on the coffee table, dialling in Eli's mobile phone number.

"Hello?" came a deep voice.

"Eli, it's Jessie!"

"Yes?" he replied, in a cold voice.

"I'm guessing you're eating lunch alone right now, huh?"

"How did you…" he began.

"Because Grace is over here right now, and she just told me her side of the story…"

"Oh! Jess! You will not believe what she asked me…" Eli began.

"I don't want to hear it right now, Eli! Just please come and pick her up from here when you've finished eating, ok?"

There was silence on the other end.

"I have reasoned with her…she knows it was her fault as much as your's…"

"Mine!" Eli burst out.

"Eli! Stop being such a stubborn jerk and just give the girl a ride home? Ok? Can you do that without you're ego getting in the way? Huh? Eli? I'm not asking! I will tell dad if you don't…"

"Ok! Ok! I'll be there in 30 minutes!" he said, and hung up.

Jessie sighed and put the phone down, "both so stubborn!" she muttered, standing up and heading back into the dining room, to change the table setting to 3.


Grace kept her eyes firmly fixed on the road ahead, not once turning to look at Eli, who's hands were gripping the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles were turning white.

"Radio?" he asked, through gritted teeth.

Grace didn't even bat an eyelash.

Eli huffed and turned mute again; Jessie had obviously lied about Grace knowing it was her fault….she clearly had no idea!

Grace looked over at the speedo quickly, and then back to the road, "you're speeding….slow down!" she insisted, coldly.

Eli gripped the wheel harder, keeping at the same speed; he didn't say anything to her.

Grace sighed and crossed her arms over her chest; if he wanted to be a bad driver that was his fault!

Eli quickly looked over at her bitter face, and then back to the road; "you know how to push my buttons…you know that?" he finally spoke, with a flat tone.

Grace scoffed, and turned to him with a raised eyebrow, "Yeah? Well you have the egotistical jerk act down-pat…I can tell you that!"

Eli rolled his eyes and clenched his hands around the steering wheel, "Nice, Grace! Egotistical jerk? That's real sweet!…"

She looked back out at the road ahead, "Oh! I'm sorry, Eli…I quit being 'sweet' when you insultingly asked me how many men I have slept with…not that it was any of you're business…infact…you were way out of line with that question!"

Eli shook his head again, and opened his mouth, about to blast another comment at her, when he heard a loud siren, coming from behind.

Grace turned around, and saw the police car, indicating for Eli to pull over. She turned back around, "I do believe I told you to stop speeding…didn't I Mr. Egotistical jerk?" she asked sarcastically, turning to him with a told-you-so look.

Eli turned to her, and gave a small shake of his head, "don't!" he ordered, and wound his window down, as the officer approached.

Grace sat back in her seat with a smirk on her face as she listened to Eli lie through his teeth about not seeing any speed signs.


Eli pulled into the driveway, reaching for the ticket that was on the dashboard.

Grace was still grinning from ear to ear, but just as she reached for the door handle, Eli spoke sternly, stopping her from jumping out; "you had no right to ask me about…Isabelle…" he said.

Grace didn't turn to him, "well I'm sorry…but you had no right to do or say what you did either…"

Eli gave a small nod, "maybe not…but it was in the heat of the moment…and I'm….I'm…"

"Sorry?" she asked, turning to face him.

He gave a small nod, and looked away from her.

"Well I guess I kind of am aswell… " She spoke softly.

Eli gave another nod, and then let out a small laugh, "only you could get me that angry over something…"

Grace laughed aswell, "I guess I know you too well…."

Eli turned to her, "I guess you do," he said, quietly.

They held that gaze for the shortest time. But it was powerful; Grace looked into his eyes and saw a sadness that she couldn't explain. She didn't know if it was bought on by the 'touchy subject' of Isabelle…or by the reminder of what they both once had in each another…

Eli looked away, he felt uncomfortable being so vulnerable as he stared at Grace, "I really didn't see any speed signs,…" he said, motioning to the ticket.

Grace laughed, "yeah! Right!" she said, sarcastically.

Eli smiled, and reached for the door handle, "atleast we cleared some air today!" he said, as they both hopped out.

"And let off some steam!" Grace added, closing her car door.

"Feels good, don't it?" he asked, as they walked side by side to the front door.

Grace nodded, "yeah, it does!" she smiled, "but lets not let off anymore for a while…"

Eli nodded in agreement, "friends?" he asked, outstretching his hand.

Grace looked down at it, and then back at Eli, she didn't know why she asked…but something deep down was still gnawing at her…. "will you ever tell me about Isabelle?" she asked, quietly.

Eli looked at her, stunned, for a moment. And then he blinked, and withdrew his hand.

"I don't know if I could ever tell anyone about Isabelle…let alone you…" he spoke, not in a harsh tone, but in a soft, whimsical one, that let Grace know that the subject was close to his heart…to his soul even….

He didn't say anything else, only opened the front door and stepped inside.

Grace stood for a moment longer, silently cursing herself for being so nosy and asking the same dammed question again!

GRACE (shrugs) I don't know what part of me wants to know….my head or my heart….

She sighed, and stepped inside, closing the door after her.

GRACE my heart?…to know if he ever had what we had…or my head, to reason that it was really over between us…he moved on and found someone else…loved someone else?


AUTHORS NOTE
I have been such a slack-ass! But life (mainly school) has been interfering with my writing and that sucks! I will try and sit down and write one or two more chapters over the next few days, to compensate for the lack-of writing I have submitted lately. SO SORRY!

Did we like this chapter? I'm sorry that the Eli/Grace fight was settled so easily, but I didn't want to drag out some passive-aggressive chapters…because I want to get my story across…and really dig into some new chapters….okey…until next time…bye bye!