that same God has every hair on her head numbered…”
4. zip line
The next morning Issy was on a tirade, swearing she was going to call the University first thing Monday morning and get our locks changed. I was pretty sure I had heard her say the phrases, “How dare he?” and “Who does he think he is?” at least fifty times. Pete, in the meantime, was excessively texting and calling her. She ignored him, rolling her eyes each time the phone made a noise. I guess that infatuation was a one-night event. I wished I could be as lucky. I couldn’t seem to get Jake out of mind. There was so much I didn’t understand. Who was he with last night, and why was he kissing me when he had just been on a date with someone else? I wondered who he really was. Issy kept alluding to the fun loving, partier he used to be, but all I had seen up to this point was a serious guy who seemed wounded in more ways than one.
It took all of my willpower not to ask Issy those questions. However, the last thing I wanted was for her to know the depth of my feelings for him, and she was incredibly perceptive. She fell on her lip love seat and looked at her phone
“Ugh! Stop calling me!”
“Why did you go out with him in the first place?” I asked.
“I don’t know. I was mad at Jake , and I knew it would bug him.”
“Why were you mad at him? I thought you two were bonded by some supernatural force.” I was hoping the teasing in my voice would mask the pure curiosity I had to find out as much about Jake as I could.
“It’s a long story. Let’s just say that he and I don’t always agree on the ‘family’ issues, and the older he gets, the more he tries to intervene. It has reached new levels since my Aunt Kathy died.”
My heart skipped a beat. His mom had died. I looked up at Issy. “When?”
“This summer. She had an inoperable brai n tumor that slowly took her. Her death was really hard on him and my mom. That’s part of why we fight so much. He idolizes my mom. He thinks she hangs the moon because she took care of them. It’s like he has this need to pay her back, and that means dote over her and protect me at all costs. And the cost right now is our friendship. Things just haven’t been the same since.”
My heart was heavy as I tried to imagine the pain he must be in. No wonder he was tired. No wonder he was guarded. My compassion for him overwhelmed me. I looked at Issy with a serious stare.
“Maybe you should cut him a break.”
“Oh, not you too! Ugh, is there no safe place from him? I told you to stay away from him. You didn’t listen,” she accused shaking her head. “Do you want to know why Betsy left? She was in love with Jake, and she couldn’t take being around him every day when he acted as if she didn’t exist. He charmed her just like he’s doing to you and broke her heart. Avery, I’m not exaggerating about this. You have to let it go.”
“ Issy, I don’t have to be in love with him to feel bad for him. I just think if you would put yourself in his shoes every once in a while, your relationship might not be so heated right now.”
Issy wasn’t hearing it. She got up and left the room. The tension in the apartment was more than I could stand with my already heightened emotions, so I grabbed my books and headed to the library.
I was thankful to see my study group in their usual corner and sat down next to them. They were working through problems in chapters one and two to get ready for the quiz. When it became glaringly obvious how behind I was, I excused myself, not wantin g to hold them back. A corner table was available in the back of the room, and I set my books out, ready to tackle the impossible.
I worked through five of the twenty practice problems, only having to re-work one of them to get the right answer. I was so engrossed in my studying that I had failed to notice my study group was gone, and I had company at my small table. He was leaning back in the chair
4. zip line
The next morning Issy was on a tirade, swearing she was going to call the University first thing Monday morning and get our locks changed. I was pretty sure I had heard her say the phrases, “How dare he?” and “Who does he think he is?” at least fifty times. Pete, in the meantime, was excessively texting and calling her. She ignored him, rolling her eyes each time the phone made a noise. I guess that infatuation was a one-night event. I wished I could be as lucky. I couldn’t seem to get Jake out of mind. There was so much I didn’t understand. Who was he with last night, and why was he kissing me when he had just been on a date with someone else? I wondered who he really was. Issy kept alluding to the fun loving, partier he used to be, but all I had seen up to this point was a serious guy who seemed wounded in more ways than one.
It took all of my willpower not to ask Issy those questions. However, the last thing I wanted was for her to know the depth of my feelings for him, and she was incredibly perceptive. She fell on her lip love seat and looked at her phone
“Ugh! Stop calling me!”
“Why did you go out with him in the first place?” I asked.
“I don’t know. I was mad at Jake , and I knew it would bug him.”
“Why were you mad at him? I thought you two were bonded by some supernatural force.” I was hoping the teasing in my voice would mask the pure curiosity I had to find out as much about Jake as I could.
“It’s a long story. Let’s just say that he and I don’t always agree on the ‘family’ issues, and the older he gets, the more he tries to intervene. It has reached new levels since my Aunt Kathy died.”
My heart skipped a beat. His mom had died. I looked up at Issy. “When?”
“This summer. She had an inoperable brai n tumor that slowly took her. Her death was really hard on him and my mom. That’s part of why we fight so much. He idolizes my mom. He thinks she hangs the moon because she took care of them. It’s like he has this need to pay her back, and that means dote over her and protect me at all costs. And the cost right now is our friendship. Things just haven’t been the same since.”
My heart was heavy as I tried to imagine the pain he must be in. No wonder he was tired. No wonder he was guarded. My compassion for him overwhelmed me. I looked at Issy with a serious stare.
“Maybe you should cut him a break.”
“Oh, not you too! Ugh, is there no safe place from him? I told you to stay away from him. You didn’t listen,” she accused shaking her head. “Do you want to know why Betsy left? She was in love with Jake, and she couldn’t take being around him every day when he acted as if she didn’t exist. He charmed her just like he’s doing to you and broke her heart. Avery, I’m not exaggerating about this. You have to let it go.”
“ Issy, I don’t have to be in love with him to feel bad for him. I just think if you would put yourself in his shoes every once in a while, your relationship might not be so heated right now.”
Issy wasn’t hearing it. She got up and left the room. The tension in the apartment was more than I could stand with my already heightened emotions, so I grabbed my books and headed to the library.
I was thankful to see my study group in their usual corner and sat down next to them. They were working through problems in chapters one and two to get ready for the quiz. When it became glaringly obvious how behind I was, I excused myself, not wantin g to hold them back. A corner table was available in the back of the room, and I set my books out, ready to tackle the impossible.
I worked through five of the twenty practice problems, only having to re-work one of them to get the right answer. I was so engrossed in my studying that I had failed to notice my study group was gone, and I had company at my small table. He was leaning back in the chair
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