Chapter Twelve: Unfold
My hands are high and I'm holding on
Emma
"Can you believe that today is the last day of school?" I asked Ellie as we walked down the hall.
"Yeah," she answered, staring at the ground.
"Ellie, are you okay?" I asked. She'd told me that she was pregnant the day she found out. That was a week ago, and I hadn't talked to her since then.
"I'm fine."
"Do you know what you're going to do?" I knew she wouldn't like the question, and she probably wouldn't answer it.
"I don't want to talk about it right now. Not in school anyway. Besides, I have eight months and a week to decide."
"I just…" but I was interrupted before I could get the words out.
"Emma, I need to talk to you!" a familiar voice rang out from somewhere behind me.
"See ya," Ellie said, walking off quickly to her homeroom. I spun around, only to find myself face to face with Manny.
"What's wrong with you?"
"I have been waiting a week to tell you one of the most important things of my life and you've been close to invisible. Hello? I'm supposed to be your best friend. Where have you been?"
"Sorry I didn't think I was having a huge effect on you by not being at home," I joked. "I've been…"
"Never mind!" she squealed, interrupting me yet again. "I have to tell you."
"Tell me what? Will you spit it out already?"
"I had sex with Jimmy Brooks!" she whispered excitedly.
"Whoa Manny. Whoa…" I trailed off. I didn't know what to say. "Wait, isn't he going out with Hazel?"
"Seriously Emma, where have you been? They broke up like a month before he even came back to school. Why aren't you happier for me?"
"I'm just…surprised. I mean, I'm not trying to be insensitive, but I didn't even know he could have sex."
"Trust me, he can," she said, smiling.
"I don't need any of the details," I told her, hoping she wouldn't elaborate.
"So…if you haven't been sitting at home all of these nights, where have you been? You have a new boyfriend, don't you?"
"Well…I guess you could say that."
"You have to tell me who it is!"
Before I could say anything, my cell phone started ringing. I flipped it open to see who was calling. I couldn't help but smile at the picture. It was Spinner, sleeping with his mouth wide open. It was the picture I'd taken in the van.
"Is that him?" Manny asked, trying to look at the picture.
"I gotta answer this," I said, walking away from her and putting it up to my ear. "Hey," I said into the phone.
"Em!" Manny called after me.
"I'll talk to you later!" I yelled back to her before returning to Spinner's call.
"Hey Emma," he said. Just the sound of his voice made me happy. Over the past week, we'd been talking every night on the phone for hours. We both talked about the shooting a lot, and how we felt, and it really did help. So far, I wasn't hearing Rick's voice anymore, and I wasn't having nightmares either. I'd even been able to forget about what happened to me in the van…well, almost.
"What's up?" I asked him.
"Come outside," he said, without really answering my question.
"Why?" Before he answered me, I was out of the school. I saw him standing next to his car.
"Let's go for a ride," he said.
"You know I can't, I have school." By the time I said that, I was next to him, and we hung up our phones. He quickly kissed me before looking around to make sure that no one saw. We both agreed to keep our relationship secret for awhile. Ellie and Jay didn't even know.
"It's the last day. I don't think they'll miss you that much," he said.
"Fine, but where are we going?"
"I don't know. But I don't care either. As long as I'm with you."
As we drove away, I took a quick look back at the school. Manny was standing out on the steps, watching us go.
Marco
"Are you ever going to talk to me again?" I asked Tim. I sat down at the table where he was sitting alone. He didn't answer me. All he did was glare into my eyes. I felt like such a jerk, but what could I do? "I know you hate me right now, but I can't tell him."
"That's not my problem Marco," he said, looking down at the table. "You mislead me."
"How many times can I say that I'm sorry?" I asked. "I'll tell him when I'm ready."
"I understand that, I really do. But you can't pretend to be something you're not. You're doing it to your dad and you did it to me. I just need some more time to think okay?" he asked.
Without letting me answer, he stood up and grabbed his tray, leaving me behind.
Spinner
"The beach?" Emma asked, grinning over at me as I turned the car off.
"You told me how much you love it and never get to go," I said, leaning in and kissing her softly.
"You remembered?" She smiled.
"Of course I did. Now let's go."
We both got out of the car and I grabbed the bag I'd packed for the trip. We got halfway to the sand before Emma stopped in her tracks.
"I don't have a suit or anything!" she said suddenly.
"So what? You can just swim in your clothes. I have some extra stuff for you to change into if you want."
"Okay," she finally agreed, once again leading the way.
We barely got onto the sand before she pulled the bag down to the ground and grabbed my hand, practically dragging me to the water. I cringed as it hit my feet; even though it was already summer, the water was freezing. All thoughts of the cold water evaporated the moment I looked at her face. She was laughing as she pulled me down into the water and kissed me. She looked the happiest I'd ever seen her.
After we finished swimming, I lay my huge blanket down in the sand and we fell onto it. Emma began shivering so I pulled her closer to me and held her in my arms.
"Let's get you out of these wet clothes," I whispered into her ear.
"Were you trying to make that sound sexual?" she asked, pulling away from me and sitting up. The frown on her face made me realize she was serious.
"What? No! I just meant that you should change because you're obviously cold. That's all."
"Fine then." I watched as she dug around in my bag for something suitable. She ended up with a black t-shirt, a pair of my boxers, and my hoodie. "Turn around so I can change," she ordered.
I turned and closed my eyes. When she was finished, she came around in front of me and climbed into my lap, placing an unexpected kiss on my forehead. I kissed her lips then, and trailed the kisses down her neck until I got to her collarbone. I moved her in my arms and gently placed her onto the blanket under me. We began kissing again and I let one of my hands travel up her side.
She suddenly pushed me away and sat back up, her breathing labored.
"What's wrong?"
"I just don't want to…" she trailed off, looking away from me and out towards the ocean.
"Emma?" I asked. I remembered that same look in Paige's face, the same way she pulled herself from me and wouldn't look me in the eye. When Dean raped her… "Did something happen to you?"
"What do you mean? I just don't want to have sex before marriage, that's all," she said, still not looking at me.
"I wasn't planning on it. All I did was touch your side." She flinched as I reached for her, but relaxed a little as I cupped her face in my hands and turned her head towards me. I could tell that she was trying not to cry. "It's okay, you can tell me," I whispered.
With those words, she burst into tears and threw herself into my arms.
"I didn't want to do it Spinner," she cried into my chest, soaking my shirt.
"It's okay Emma. I have you now. I won't let anyone hurt you. Do you want to talk about it?" I asked.
"No," she choked out. "I just want to stay like this." I held her while she cried, silently fuming on the inside. Who did it? I wondered to myself. Whoever it was, I wanted to kick his ass for making her feel this way. I stroked her hair and kept her as close to me as I could.
Jimmy
"Can you believe that Paige and JT are together now?" I asked Manny. The school year was finally over. It was a year all of us wanted to forget, but new relationships were already underway, and people seemed happier.
"What?" she asked. She was staring off into space while we sat outside the school, waiting for my driver to pick us up.
"Are you okay?" I asked her. "Is it about us?"
"No, not at all," she said, looking up at me and smiling. "We are fine. We're great actually," she said, holding onto my hand. "It's Emma…" she trailed off.
"Is there something wrong with her? Is she okay?" The first thing a guy has to be concerned about, after his girlfriend of course, is his girlfriend's best friend.
"Yeah, she's great actually. I just can't believe she's doing this to me! Or to you even!" she was raising her voice.
"Doing what?" I was interested now. If it had something to do with me, I really wanted to know.
"I think she's dating Spinner," she blurted out, close to tears.
"You think?" I asked. I'm definitely not one for gossip.
"Well, she hinted that she 'kinda' had a boyfriend today, and then she got a call on her cell. She ignored me when I asked if that was her boyfriend. So I followed her outside where I saw him kiss her and then they drove off together. So I'm pretty sure she is." She was crying then.
I lifted a hand up to her cheek and brushed away a tear.
"Look Manny, I know you're upset, but we can't control either of their relationships. If Emma wants to ruin her life with that jerk, then you have to let her and hope she'll realize that she's losing her best friend over it," I said, reaching up to hug her.
"She probably doesn't care. She has her new best friend Ellie now. They're all a bunch of losers," she said, referring to the whole crew of people that hung out at the ravine.
"I still can't believe Ellie fell in with those people. Or Emma for that matter. I guess Rick had an impact on all of us," I said, starting to space out. Every time his name came up, it was like I went into a trance. All I could remember was the sound of the gun going off and the force of the bullet throwing me to the ground. I even felt the pain in my back as I remembered it.
I must have cringed, or twitched, or something else, because Manny was suddenly kneeling down by my side.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," I lied. I didn't need to bother her with my problems when she had enough of her own to deal with.
"Come on, your driver's here."
She stood up and held my hand as we made our way over to the van. I'm not sure how we ever found each other, but I'm definitely thankful for her. I don't know what I'd do without her.
Ellie
I walked by the park on the way home from school and saw him. My hand instantly flew to my stomach and I held back tears. How did I get myself in this situation?
Instead of running straight home like I wanted to, I found myself walking towards Jay. I watched as he pushed her on the swings and then chased her around before falling to the ground. She pounced on top of him and started tickling him.
I chose that moment to approach the two of them.
"Having fun?" I asked, startling them both.
"Ellie!" Abby yelled, jumping up and hugging me. I was startled by her enthusiasm.
"Are you stalking me now?" Jay joked, holding out his hand. I helped him up off the ground and tried to hide the smile that was forming on my face. I didn't know why, but seeing him made me happy. All of my uneasy thoughts about the baby disappeared as he stood beside me.
"Why weren't you in school today?" I asked.
"Oh please. Why would I show up on the last day? Besides, Abby and I had a great day planned," he said, smiling down at her.
"Jay, can I go on the playground?" she asked, sticking her bottom lip out.
"Sure, go on ahead. We'll be there in a minute," he told her. She hugged him quickly before running off.
"You're really good with her," I pointed out. "Do you ever think about having kids?" I asked, trying to sound as casual as possible. Jay snorted and smiled at me as if I was an idiot.
"Are you kidding? I'd be a terrible Dad. Abby needs me because her parents suck. Nope, I'm never having kids." My heart sank into the pit of my stomach and I held back tears for the second time that day. I bit my bottom lip and looked off into the distance. I knew I couldn't just leave because he might suspect something. So I stood my ground and forced a smile. I was a pro when it came to pretending that things were fine.
JT
I couldn't believe how great life was being to me. Paige and I had our second date the Monday after our first one. I was surprised that she walked up to me in school that day, and so was everyone else. Since then we've just been spending so much time together.
"Earth to JT," Paige said, waving her hand in front of my face.
"Sorry, I was just thinking," I replied. That night, to celebrate the last day of school, we'd walked all the way to the mall for a movie. Now we were back at her house.
"I had a great time," she said, kissing me.
"I'll call you later okay?" I asked, about to leave.
"Why don't you come inside and rest for awhile?" she suggested. "My mom isn't home…"
"What about your dad?" I asked, unsure. I shoved my hands into my pockets and shifted my weight from foot to foot.
"Well, seeing as my parents are divorced, I don't think he'll be home," she said, smiling.
"Oh yeah, I forgot."
"You don't have to come in if you don't want to."
"Are you kidding? Of course I want to." I followed her into the house and stood by the door.
"Why don't I give you the tour?"
Manny
"I just don't get it," I sighed. Jimmy and I went to his house straight after school, and we'd been there ever since. It was almost nine, but I just called my mom to tell her that I was over at Emma's. We watched a movie and made out for awhile, but that was all.
"Don't worry about it," Jimmy told me.
"I'm trying, but it's not working. She's supposed to be my best friend," I whined. Jimmy pulled me into his lap on the couch.
"Just think about us," he said. "And what I'm gonna do to you…" he kissed the corner of my mouth before slowly making his way down my neck and chest. He was pulling open my shirt a little to gain easier access when the door opened and his parents walked in. I flew off of him and slunk down in my seat while Jimmy turned and smiled at them.
"I think it's time you went home. Mr. Brooks can drive you," Jimmy's mom said, coming around the couch and glaring at me.
"I'll see you later Jimmy," I said, standing up. But he pulled my arm so I was back down next to him and kissed me. I felt my cheeks flush; I didn't like kissing anyone in front of parents. It was just too awkward.
"I'll call you later," he said as I stood up, glaring back at his mother.
Paige
"And finally, this is my room," I said, leading JT inside.
"It's great," he said, looking around. I pulled his hands from his pockets and held onto them while I kissed him. He finally loosened up and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me to him and sliding his tongue into my mouth. We broke apart for a minute and I started to take his t-shirt off. He didn't stop me, so I kept going. Once it was down on the floor, I leaned into his chest and kissed his shoulder.
"You smell so good," I said, slightly moaning into his mouth as he kissed me again. I backed up, pulling him along with me until we reached my bed. He sat down beside me and started to put his hands up my shirt as we kissed yet again. I slowly pulled my own shirt off, and JT just smiled.
"You're beautiful," he said, running a hand softly down my arm before brining his lips to mine.
"Do you have any condoms?" I asked between kisses.
"No…he said, trailing off and looking up at me.
"You're a guy! How could you not have any?" I asked.
"Because I wasn't planning on this."
"Well, luckily for the both of us, I have some around here somewhere." I stood up and walked over to my dresser. I rummaged through the top drawer, finally pulling one out and handing it to him. "Here."
"Paige, are you sure about this?" he asked.
"Of course I am," I told him, smiling. I sat back down on the bed and kissed him hard.
"But what about…him?" he asked as we pulled away from each other. I knew who he was talking about right away.
"JT, you were the first person to stick up for me when it came to Dean. I still remember how cute you looked trying to beat him up in that mascot uniform." We both shared a laugh at that before I continued. "And I've gotten closure since then. I want to thank you for that."
"I don't want it to be about that; about him."
"It won't be. It will be about us. You," I said, kissing him softly, "And me."
Alex
"I got most of the dishes. I'll be right back; I think there's another plate on the table. Then I'll wash them," I said.
"Alex, slow down. You don't have to do any of this," Joey said, taking the plate from me and putting it in the sink.
"Thank you for letting me stay here Mr. Jeremiah," I said.
"You've thanked me enough. Why don't you and Craig go out or something? It's summer now," he reminded me.
"I think I'll stay in tonight," I said, flashing a genuine smile his way.
"Oh and call me Joey!" he yelled after me as I walked up the stairs.
I was halfway up when I ran into Craig who was going down.
"Just getting some more clothes," he said, holding them up.
"You don't have to let me stay in your room. I'd be fine in the garage. It's probably nicer than my whole apartment," I pointed out.
"I don't mind. I'm just glad that you're so happy," he told me.
"How do you know that I'm happy?" I asked.
"Because you're smiling," he answered.
I was about to say something else butwas interrupted when his lips crashed into mine.
I didn't know what to do or say. When he pulled away, I just stared into his eyes and smiled again.
A/N: Obviously Paige is not going to be getting with Matt in this story, and Emma will not be getting with Peter either. He probably won't come into the story at all because I don't have a place for him. This was definitely my longest chapter out of any that I've written in all of my fics. Hope it wasn't too long (I've actually read a chapter by someone else that was 66 pages long in word though…so it could be worse…) Please review and let me know if you liked it. The title and lyrics are from the song "Unfold" by Jason Mraz and he owns it.