I've Known All Along (A Jarcey Story) NO MORE JARCEY

8

BEFORE READING: REMEMBER YOUR LEGAL DOCUMENT

Ruby's eyes widened "Stella? No! Of course I know her!"

"Really?" Emily looked shocked.

"Yeah, she's..." Ruby stopped as flashbacks went through her head. Flashbacks of a secret even Emily doesn't know "Michael's sister"

Emily picked up on this odd feeling from Ruby but decided to drop it. She was starting to feel kinda tired.

"I'm tired" Ruby stole the words right out of her mouth "I'm gonna hit the hay" she said before causing the two of them to instantly have another laughing fit and feel too awake to fall asleep again.

The next morning

Livia woke up to the sound of the kettle being boiled and two voices laughing in the kitchen. She looked down and saw Sam and Carly still sleeping and saw out of the many windows in the room that it was now bright outside. Seriously, though. Who needs that many windows in one room?

Livia slipped her slippers on and walked into the neighbouring room.

"No" Ruby said through laughs "Cause where did the chicken come from then?"

Emily tried to breath through her giggles and as soon as the quietened down slightly she said "God" which made them start all over again.

"Good morning" Livia smiled at her friends "Did you guys even sleep?"

Ruby tried to respond to her through her laughs "We tried to but then we talked about farming and then zoos and then pets and then jobs which somehow led onto humans? Humen? We fought about this for at least half an hour"

Emily was laughing so hard, it was silent.

"Then chicken" Ruby laughed before doing a chicken impression which looked more like she was drunk.

Livia rolled her eyes and laughed but no where near as much as the other two girls "So, no to sleep then?"

"Nup" Emily replied.

Ruby pointed at her and started cackling again. Clearly, this was now an inside joke. She then heard the noise from the kettle, indicated the water was boiled and ready to be poured. Ruby laughed at the small noise more that she should have, causing Emily to start laughing at it too.

"Tea? Coffee? Hot chocolate?" Ruby offered me. "She's making the coffee" she indicated to Emily while pretending to throw up "I'm having hot chocolate"

"It's 9am? Really? That early?" Livia asked.

"9AM" Ruby held her stomach, laughing before slowly falling onto the floor. Another inside joke, somehow. We only left them for seven hours-

"I told you she'd say that!" Emily laughed at the girl, rolling around on the ground. "It's too early for hot chocolate!"

Ruby tried to catch her breath to respond with something else, likely to make them laugh again but Livia swooped in. She couldn't deal with another moment of this.

"Ruby, are you going to tell Sam about what happened last year?" The girl asked, saving her own life.

The smiles instantly dropped off of Ruby and Emily's faces "Between me and Georgia?" (Ooooh name reveal) Ruby asked "No, no I'm not"

"Are you sure? Surely she has the right to know..."

"This isn't your choice, Livia" Ruby told the girl "I'm sorry but I'm not telling her... Not yet, anyway. And please don't tell her either"

Livia nodded "I understand, I won't"

They all sat in silent for a moment before Emily asked "So, tea, coffee or hot chocolate?"

"Screw it, when have I ever said it's too early for hot chocolate? Hot chocolate please!" Livia smiled.

"Please" Ruby burst out laughing, causing a reaction from Emily too. They're like dominos. One starts, making the other start too. Then the don't stop.

Livia took her half made hot chocolate, added milk, cream and marshmallows and took it into the living room to flick through Netflix.

She heard the girls slowly stopping laughing and Ruby say to her "Wait, two seconds" in a worried tone. Ruby never gets worried, or at least that worried... Lol that's a lie, most dramatic thing it is is that Harry Styles has lost a nipple. Oh no! He only has three left!

"Guys" Ruby's voice shook, worriedly. She ran into the living room, phone in hand, after, clearly, spilling her hot chocolate everywhere but not caring. She ran in and looked right at Livia. Her face was serious and her eyes looked like they were almost ready to cry.

"What's wrong?" The girl asked as she sat up, knowing Harry Styles still had four nipples and this was way more serious than one of them disappearing.

Emily gently shook Sam and Carly awake so they could hear the news at the same time as the rest of them.

Ruby sat down in the space beside Livia and took a breath before saying "My dad just messaged me"

The words she's saying and the way she's saying it doesn't add up. It sounds like her dad is sending her something worrying or bad but why would anyone do that? Wait until you're together to tell eachother so it must be something good... But her voice...

"I refuse to believe this" first stage: denial "Claire's pregnant"

(Oof why am I doing this to myself 🥲 no not that. 😭 This.)