Chapter Fifty-One: Waiting
Author's note: Ange wishes to be recognized for her extreme genius in recognizing a couple that will become a stronger theme from now on.
"Please tell me that this is the last box," groaned Jake, as he stumbled in the door to their apartment. Ryan smiled at him over her shoulder.
"We're almost done. Nathan's brining some, isn't he?" she asked, craning her neck to look around Jake.
"Can he bring ten? Guy spends so much time working out, you'd think he'd be more helpful," said Jake bitterly. Ryan let out a giggle and picked up the box.
"Whiner," she said. He stared at her lift the heavy box toward her room.
"Now how do you do that? No offense, but… how?"
"I work out. Much like Nathan. Now go help him out," she said.
Two hours later, the main room was a mess, and Ryan's new room was cluttered in boxes, surrounding the bad that Nathan and Jake were attempting to put together.
"I blame you. If you hadn't bought so many things for her, my place would still resemble my actual place," said Jake.
"Our place," said Ryan gleefully, skipping in to the room. "You have absolutely nothing in your cupboards."
"We have nothing in the cupboards, you mean?" he said innocently. She laughed.
"Go shopping. Don't starve to death," said Nathan sternly.
"You worry too much," said Ryan saucily. He smiled.
"I have to agree with the guy. Do you have any body fat at all?" he wondered, watching her bounce experimentally onto her bed.
"Ryan's been doing ballet since she was a kid. They're not big on the body fat," explained Nathan.
"You know, I'd heard that. But none of my girls ever did it," he said distractedly. Nathan looked distraught. Haley, Brooke and Peyton would always be Jake's girls in ways they couldn't be anyone else's. But Nathan couldn't help but wish that Haley could be wholly his, just once.
"We're done here. Let's get pizza," said Nathan, standing up abruptly. Jake watched him go in confusion before glancing over at Ryan, who shrugged before following him out of the room.
Nathan was quiet all evening. Even when he left, at which point Jake and Ryan had both predicted him to make a scene and suggest subtly another night at the Scott mansion, he left easily.
"That's weird," said Jake, glancing toward her new roommate. She narrowed her blue eyes.
"Completely. I'll be right back," she said, vanishing out of the front door.
Nathan was already halfway down the block. Ryan quickly located him and began to run.
"Nate!" she called. He made a half turn and saw his baby sister running toward him, her long blonde hair swinging behind her.
"Ry," he said, sounding happy to see her. As soon as she reached him, Ryan threw herself into his surprised arms.
"You've got to stop being jealous of Jake," she said empathetically.
"I'm not," he said, instantly putting forth a denial.
"You are too. He doesn't want Haley like that, his past shouldn't interfere," said Ryan. Nathan smiled and kissed the top of her head.
"You're intuitive. I've got to give you that," smiled Nathan.
"Yeah, yeah. Nathan, go after her. Please. For all our sakes," she said.
"Ryan, I told you…"
"No, you didn't. Not once in a year have you given a good excuse as to why you can't be together. Because there isn't one. You've always loved her. And I promise, she still loves you. She's waiting, Nate. She'll always be waiting," said Ryan.
"You will be too. You think I didn't notice?" asked Nathan, nodding toward her new apartment building. She blushed.
"Shut up. It's been a year. How much longer are you going to let it be?" asked Ryan, suddenly detaching herself from Nathan and leaving the way she'd come.
By the time she arrived back Jake was on the couch, watching a basketball game. She walked over to join him.
"Yeah Knicks," she said enthusiastically, dropping onto the couch. Jake glanced sideways at her and smiled.
"Whoever marries you is a lucky guy, Ryan Scott," he said. Smiling, she dropped down and easily laid her head in his lap. Unsurprised by her gesture, Jake began to slowly comb his fingers through her hair.
Like he'd done with Brooke.
Like he'd done with Haley.
But completely different than anything he'd done with Peyton.
"Hey, Ryan? I'm going to make some coffee, do you want?" he asked, walking in to her bedroom uninvited.
Ryan glanced over her shoulder at him and automatically covered herself with her hands. Jake's eyebrows raised as he caught a glimpse of her tight, dark wash jeans, and the noticeable absence of anything else.
"Knock much?" she asked feebly. For a moment, he took in the sight of her form.
"Sorry. With Peyton, I just got used to… Sorry. Coffee?" he asked.
"Actually, I was going to go out. Buy food," she explained. Jake slowly noticed white lines in her tanned skin, notably from a string bikini.
"Anorexic much?" he asked, mimicking her voice as he stepped out of her room. Ryan took a deep breath.
"At least he stared a little," she said to herself, before pulling a shirt over her head.
Ryan stared blankly at the rows of shelves at the grocery store when she found herself there an hour later. Growing up as an East side Princess had in no way prepared her for that. She looked at the list that Jake and her had compiled.
Staring at a wall of laundry detergent, she blindly made a grab for the only kind she'd ever seen on a commercial and dropped it into her cart. When she looked up again she met a familiar pair of eyes, eyes widened in disbelief at seeing her perform such a menial task.
"God, Peyton? Hi!" said Ryan, moving around the cart to embrace her.
"Ryan. What are you doing here?" she asked in surprise.
"Oh, I moved out. Turned eighteen and everything. How are you, I haven't seen you in months!" said the younger girl enthusiastically.
"Good. As good as possible. So where do you live now?" asked Peyton. Ryan quickly considered if there was any way that her new would not hurt her.
"With uh, Jake. In the extra bedroom, so he can afford to live there." Ryan shamefully looked down as Peyton considered this.
"Good. That's good. You know he slept with Davis last year?" said Peyton. Ryan raised her eyebrows.
"Uh, yeah. But so have both my brothers and I haven't exactly exiled them, so…" Peyton began to move down the aisle.
"You know I have to go. Go do a really, really important thing. I'll just see you later," she said. As she waved, her sleeve caught on a shelf and she brought down three boxes of fabric softener. Embarrassed, she began to walk more quickly away.
Ryan frowned before leaning down to pick up a box of softener to add to her cart, wondering what she could possibly tell Jake.