September-
"Jason! Do you have my purse? I can't find it anywhere! It's the one Mom gave for my birthday- the Vuitton one!" I called out rummaging around my room looking for the bag.
"Have you checked the living room?" he called up to me while he made himself breakfast. "You should hurry up or you're going to be late." He got used to caring only for himself over the summer, so he got up late and was only now making breakfast. I didn't care; I just toasted some waffles and ate that. I was just glad he was still my guardian; that he was even still here.
I spent all summer traveling across Europe with my parents, while Jason stayed behind- because of work he had said. But I knew he just wanted to get away from me. My pesky and nosy questions to be more exact. Every time I brought up that night- he immediately changed the subject. I figured I should tell my friends about his strange behavior, but then they'd start suspecting him of something else and I was tired of their childish attempts to bring justice and protect themselves and whatnot. A was gone. Mona wouldn't be bothering us anymore. I just wished my family could finally get a break. Ever since Ali died that night, my family has been stuck in a tornado, forced to bend to its every turn and whim. I was tired of seeing how broken Mom was; I was tired of looking my father in the face, knowing the only real child he had was now dead; I was tired of seeing my real dad around town avoiding Jason and me like we were a plague when it was his faults and mistakes that caused Jason to be born…and then me later- as if he proved that adults were as bad as children and didn't learn. He had ruined my family and his own family by cheating. Spencer still couldn't fully accept me as her younger sister yet, and I didn't exactly blame her, but it still hurt when I would reach out to her and she'd sometimes unconsciously shrink away.
It was awful looking into my older brother's face, and knowing he wasn't telling me what was troubling him, even though I had thought we were in this together, whatever 'this' may be. Jason wanted to pretend that incident where he almost died never happened. He even said so.
"Jason, you have no idea how worried I was! I was wishing Maya was dead- in front of Emily- just because I'm so selfish I'd rather see my friends suffer. You're alive! You should at least act like it! I was so scared when I found out you could be dead! I waited in that hospital for what seemed like forever, wondering and praying. The moment I knew you were okay…I'd never been more relieved!"
"Maddie-" he sighed.
"NO!" I cut him off, about to cry at how he wasn't even really listening. "You can't pretend it didn't happen! You don't see me pretending that I didn't almost die in that fire-"
"I'd like to forget that happened too-"
"Why? You'd love to erase Ali's death from your mind as well huh? A person isn't alive unless they've felt pain and loss Jay! So start living! Accept it! It's life! You can't change anything about it! I can't forget that it happened…if I lost you too…I'd be as good as an only child! You idiot, talk back to m! Scream, cry, and just show some damn emotion!" I slunk to the ground and buried my face in my knees and sobbed. "You're so stupid. You're the oldest and I'm still smarter than you."
He stared for a moment, and then said, "You really shouldn't be so concerned for me. You're the only sister I have who does." And then he left the house, took his car, and was gone for the rest of the day into the late night.
He was a moron, thinking it wasn't important to care about him. I wanted to know what happened that night, but I knew it was pointless to press him about it.
Jason seemed happy to see me go that summer; he didn't have to worry about a pesky little sister like me for a whole 2 months. While traveling though, as fun as it was, in the back of my mind I couldn't forget anything that had happened this year.
I rushed downstairs and on the couch was the purse I'd gotten in Paris. I picked it up along with my books and slipped on my shoes. I then went into the kitchen and said, "I found it."
"That's good. You should get going." He looked up at me. "You seem really tired…or else you wouldn't have forgotten where you put your purse."
"Shut up." I growled under my breath and spun around to leave.
"You shouldn't have slept over at Spencer's last night and left all your things for the next day here."
I had indeed gone over yesterday, but it was next door, so it didn't matter. It was a back to school party, or rather last night of summer party. We had gotten together, the girls and I, to reunite and talk about our summers. We all had done things to get past the last school year's horror, and now we were at peace. When we went to sleep later, we woke up in the middle of the night to discover Emily was gone. Of course we all went out and chased her down…to the cemetery…over by my family's plot. We were nearing that one grave when I noticed mounds of dirt all around it in shadows. We got there and realized my sister's grave had been dug up. While the others stared, I gaped for only a moment, and then sprinted back to Spencer's place, scared out of my mind, wondering who the hell would do this to us, to me? Why couldn't we all get past this!
I held back tears as I ran, feeling pathetic and weak-minded. Whatever bastard did this…I hoped they would rot in hell, because there was no way Emily could have done that, I knew she was being set up.
The girls called after me, but I heard Hanna say, "Let her go, we'll catch up later." And they let me run away. But they found me in front of the Hastings' fireplace when they returned and I could tell they wanted to talk, but I clearly didn't, so they simply said they'd be upstairs and to come on up when I got sleepy again, and then they disappeared. I stared into that fire for at least half an hour, wondering what new horrors were to come.
Of course, Jason had no idea this happened the previous night and I just walked out on him when my phone rang.
I answered without looking at caller I.D, because I felt careless.
"Hello?"
"Mads! How was your summer?" Toby sounded.
I smiled. "It was great, you?"
"Fine…I was just checking on you…to see how you were…"
"Today's the day isn't it?" I whispered and I could see Jason from the corner of my eye look down and sigh inwardly. The anniversary of the day they found Ali's body.
"I'm coming over, I need to see you." He knew I needed my best friend. He probably figured out Jason wouldn't be of much help today.
"Toby- don't go out of your way-"
"My best friend can call me anytime, tell me come get her, and I will. It's not out of my way if it's for you. Plus, I can see Spencer after you kick me out." We both laughed. "I'll be there in a few." He hung up and I pulled the phone away from my face, hitting end call. I turned on my brother. "That was Toby." He said nothing. "Jason…what's gotten into you lately?" I asked quietly so he couldn't hear, and then the doorbell rang. I answered and Toby was there. "That was fast." I said and then he crushed me into a bone-breaking hug and said, "I'm here, you have nothing to worry about. Just let the past go."
If only he knew about last night. I smiled warmly and buried myself in his embrace.
After he went over to Spencer's, I walked over to the Montgomery's place to see my own partner. Mrs. Montgomery answered and remarked how tan I had gotten this summer, how long it had been….I smiled politely and made sure not to tread on any toes because I knew from Aria and Mike's emails and texts their parents were officially divorcing. She let me go on upstairs and told me she'd give me a ride to school with her children and I accepted her offer nicely. I went into Mike's room and sat down on his bed to wait because I could just hear the water in the shower turning off. I got up a moment later and went up to his bathroom door and knocked.
"Mom I know! I'll be ready in 10 minutes! I'm not going to be late on the first day!" I stifled a laugh and he walked out about 2 minutes later, his hair gelled, pants on, towel around his neck…shirtless. He realized it was me and said, "It was you?" and then he picked me up and we started making out, making up for lost time this summer.
"I missed you so much." We both said in between kisses.
"We have school though." Mike said when it began to get heavy.
"We have time." I said feverishly, and we fell onto the bed, never breaking apart. The only thing that made us sit up and stand far away from each other was when his mom asked if he was ready yet.
"Hurry up you two, or I'm leaving you behind!" Aria and their mother sing-songed from downstairs. Mike and I grinned slyly at each other.
Maybe things weren't so bad after all.
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