My Friend's Sister

Chapter Sixteen

Author's Notes: just a little dedication to all the people commenting on my last chapter for me to update. I always feel so bad because your comments are so emotional, but on my last few chapters your comments make it so worth writing this! I've never had such a support system spurring me on! Thank you for your support ❤️ ily

Also thank you guys so much for almost 1.9K reads on this and over 23.5 K reads on My Brother's Friend. That's over 25 K in total. Crazy right??? I appreciate all of my lovely readers, so I hope y'all enjoy the new chapter!

xoxo, Rosie

- -

. . .

[Mason]

I'm just really sad

But it's okay

It usually goes away

-o.s.

[Emma]

Why don't

You understand

How much

Your words

Are hurting me?

-Unknown

. . .

- -

Emma's POV

I sit staring at my phone. Ring. Please ring, I think. It doesn't. "Hey you have to stop that," Naomi says. I look up at her. She's all dressed up, heels on, makeup done, but she's holding a cup of tea. She holds it out to me and I gratefully accept it. "You know what they say right? A watched phone never rings."

"It's a watched pot never boils actually," I say taking a sip and burning my tongue.

"Whatever," she says rolling her eyes. "The same still applies."

"I just... I need him to call me."

"He will Emma. In his own time. If he loves you enough to do what he has so far I'm pretty damn sure he'll call."

Naomi picks up her purse and slings it over her shoulder. "I hope you're right," I whisper.

"I am," she says confidently, nodding her head. "But I have to go now. You sure you don't want to come with? The party should be pretty hopping." I shake my head ademently, remembering the last time I went to a party with Naomi. That didn't end up very well. And at this point it doesn't seem like Mason would come around to save me. She shrugs again, "Your loss. Don't mope the whole night," and then closes our door behind her.

It's been almost a week since Mason left me at Kyle and Juile's place. I don't know how their doing now, but Kyle got me a cab and when I got back to the boarding house my mom and Daniel reported that Mason came, got his stuff and left with no explanation. And since then... radio silence. He hasn't been in class, he hasn't called me. I've even dropped in at the bar where I found him last time we weren't talking, but he hasn't been there either.

When I asked Naomi if I should go right to his apartment she told me no. "Let him cool off for a bit Emma. He needs to think things over and you need to give him the space to do that." She might be right, but I wish she wasn't. I want to talk to him. Why would he say those things? Why would I kiss Kyle?

I've gone from a mess to an actual home wrecker. If I split Kyle and Julie up... I don't know what I'll do with myself.

My biggest fear though is what might be happening to Mason. He is obviously an alcoholic and he's always been unstable, but this... this might put him over the edge. Is he a danger to himself? I feel sick imagining him hurting himself again. Oh god what if he kills himself? Even if it's just by accident what if he mixes the wrong pills with alcohol or cuts too deep.

I pick up my phone and dial his number. It rings and it rings and it rings.

"Hi you've reached Mason's phone. I'm not available right now, but leave me a message with your name and number and I'll call you back as soon as I can. Bye!" My voice pulls at my heart. He sounds so cheerful, so there. Like I could touch him and hold onto him through the phone... just through his voice.

I hang up and sit back on the couch. I'm a despicable human being.

I try to watch tv, but there's nothing on. I flip through channels anxiously until I stop on the Fairly Odd Parents. This too plays with my head making me think about the first night we were together when he held me and ate Chinese food. "No turn it back that was the Fairly Odd Parents!" Mason had whined.

Compulsively I stand and pull on my jacket, grabbing my phone. My legs carry me out of our dorm, down the stairs and outside. I don't know what I'm doing or why I'm doing it, but I start to jog down the block to Mason's apartment. I run up the stairs and knock on his door. No answer. I knock again. Still nothing.

I pull out my phone and dial his number. Nothing. "Mason?" I shout. "Mason you in there? You don't have to answer the door just tell me if you're there." Silence.

The door across the hall opens and the same blonde guy who told me Mason had gone down to the bar steps out. "Hey, chick. He's not here. He hasn't been here in weeks."

A sick feeling builds in my stomach. "You're sure?" I say, wanting to not believe it.

"Positive." I pull out a piece of paper of paper from my purse and a pen and scribble down my phone number.

"Would you do me a favor and call me if he comes back? I really need to talk to him." He nods and takes the paper. "Thanks a lot."

"No problem." I start down the stairs when I hear him call out, "Who are you to him anyway?"

"His girlfriend," I say quietly. "At least I hope I still am." Then I run down the stairs and outside.

My thoughts tumble around my head. I shouldn't be the one who's sorry. It was a meaningless kiss after he treated me horribly, but it's him. His emotions... they're unstable and even if that isn't an excuse I love him and I've hurt him. We both have sins to atone for.

I walk around campus for a while, trying to sort through my everything going on inside my brain. I see Alexander across the street at one point, but I just keep walking, keeping my head down. I even pass up my favorite coffee shop and my friend Will who would surely give me coffee for free. And I don't want to go home to have to answer Naomi's questions. So I just walk and walk and walk until my feet ache and I'm not exactly sure where I am.

I'm standing in the middle of a park with kids running around playing, moms and dads kissing on benches, nannies of the male and female variety fussing over scraped knees. Suddenly my phone rings in my coat pocket and I whip it out. "Mason?" I say into the reciever.

"No... not Mason," I hear.

I frown not recognizing the voice. "Who is this?"

"It's Jennifer Styles." Mason's mom. My heart races.

"Is it Mason? Is he okay? God please tell me he's fine," I say, squeezing my eyes shut tight. Jennifer is quiet. "Jennifer please," I beg.

"You need to come home Emma. Mason... He attempted to commit suicide," she says, her voice muffled. "You need to come home now."

A/N kind of a filler chapter because more stuff is supposed to happen later, but yeah.... I'm working on it. I'm still on vacation so that's what's been delaying me recently, but I love you all to the moon and back. Don't hate me! I'm working on more! Byeeee