Caught in Between

-26-

Georgia was in the kitchen grabbing a glass of water and Josh was sitting at the table, his mind blank. I walked up to him and he didn't notice I was standing so close. I snapped my fingers and that's when he glanced up at me. He opened his mouth to say something, most likely an apology, but I cut him off. I wasn't going to give him the chance to speak ever again.

"Listen, I'm not going to blame you anymore. Honestly, it was my fault too, I should've told her. I should've known you would've never got the balls to do it. But moving forward, since I know you care about her, you'd know to stay away from her. She loved you, probably still does, but trying to make amends with her will never work. So, focus on you and Jen, and stay out of her way."

He didn't say anything back, all he did was nod his head in agreement and went back to staring at the table in silence. Georgia awkwardly excused herself from the room, taking a bag of chips with her on the way out. If Debby and I weren't going to be friends anymore, this was the last thing I could do for her. I left Josh to be with his thoughts and joined Georgia in the living room.

She was scrolling through movies and shows on the TV while stuffing potato chips in her mouth. "Hey," she said as I plopped down next to her on the couch. "Do you think Debby will okay? She's been gone all night. I tried scouring the area for her, but I saw no sign of where she would've gone."

"Mm.. I don't know. She'll come back eventually. I just hope she doesn't do anything dumb, she's not completely Transitioned yet as a vampire."

"Yeah, definitely. Anyway, I'm in the mood to watch a dating reality show. You interested?"

"Sure, why not."

***

I had a great time hanging out with Georgia. We spent all day watching a show, talking and learning more about each other. We were both so invested in the show, we were debating on which guy on TV was hotter or who deserved who and which couple would make it to the end.

When the show ended and we saw which couple won, I jumped up from the couch. "I told you, Georgia! I knew it!"

She rolled her eyes and set aside the bag of chips. "There's no way in a million years that Katy and Donovan would've made it to the end. They fight all the time, Katy literally hooked up with two other dudes and Donovan would not shut the fuck up about how huge his dick is. Like what?!"

We both laughed out loud and I shook my head. "You're right, you're absolutely right, but I just had a feeling that they would make it through. They're perfect for each other," I said and Georgia laughed even harder.

"That's absolutely ridiculous." Georgia let out a long sigh and I was trying to catch my breath from yelling and laughing too much.

"Is there another season of this show?"

"There's three seasons."

"Hell yeah. Start the next one, I'll go grab us some more snacks," I told her and she gave me a thumbs up before I left for the kitchen.

Josh was still sitting at the table. Did he really sit there all day? It was nighttime outside and the moonlight was shining down on the trees. I actually felt bad for him. It got me thinking about how I was too harsh. Maybe I shouldn't have spoke to him like the way I did. I sat down next to him and gently placed my hand on his shoulder.

"Josh, I apologize. I felt like I was out of line."

"Don't be sorry. You were right. Everything you said was true. I loved Debby, I still do. It's just hard for me, because Jen is my Mate, and I what feel with her versus Debby are completely different. But they both make me happy. I'm just really conflicted right now, and I honestly feel like a piece of shit," he explained, pouring his heart out in front of me. His head was slightly turned away from me, so I couldn't tell if he was crying or not, but it seemed like he was.

"You didn't know Jen was your Mate before you got together with Debby. I mean, how could you have known?"

"I knew since Zach kidnapped you, when Jen got there to rescue you. I watched her fight when I freed you. I felt this uncontrollable attraction toward her, like this invisible rope pulling me, and I just knew. She knew too."

I sighed, trying to grasp everything he said. I leaned back in my chair, thinking of what to say next. "Well, there's nothing you can do about it now. All you can do is move on, and the same for Debby."

"Josh." Debby's voice called out from behind us and we both immediately turned around. There Debby was, standing by the door with her hair and clothes all dirty and a mess, while staring at Josh. "I did some thinking, you know, when I was gone. The best thing for me is to let you go and let you be happy with Jen. But there's one last thing I need you to do for me before that."

Josh stood to his feet. "What is it?"

"I want to lose my virginity to you."

My jaw dropped to the floor. I was not expecting to hear those words come out of Debby's mouth. Josh was also stunned, he was fumbling over his words.

"I.. I-Yes, but why?" He managed to speak, more confused than a baby deer.

"Because, it was always my dream to lose it to you. You were the one I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with. You were the one that I always thought I'd give myself to. And because I want to do this for me." There were tears in her eyes. She was saying goodbye to him one last time.

"Okay," he responded with a whisper.

"Let me get cleaned up first, I was literally running around the entire forest," Debby said right before she walked into the bathroom. I almost laughed, but I didn't. It was a touching moment between the two of them, and I felt awkward being the outsider, but I also felt a sense of relief.

"Thank you, Rebecca," was all Josh said as I watched him leave. I wanted to feel grossed out knowing they're about to have sex, but it was a proud moment for Debby. It made me feel jealous, wishing that Keith and Kaleb were there.

I grabbed a handful of snacks from the pantry and headed back to the living room to join Georgia. She had the episode paused on the screen and we both looked at each other as I sat down next to her, placing the snacks in between us. We didn't even have to say anything. I knew she heard, and she knew that I knew she heard. All she did was resume the episode and we went about our business.

***

Georgia and I ended up falling asleep on the couch. I woke up with a crook in my neck, and I regretted it. I wished I would've just walked my happy self to my bedroom, but I was too invested in the show. Since I couldn't invest myself into my own relationship for the next few days, my only choice was too invest it in strangers' relationships on a TV show. I used to not be interested in this kind of stuff, but I've been enjoying watching it with Georgia.

With the silence in the cabin, I could overhear Debby and Josh talking in her room. I was surprised she was being really mature about this. I imagined lots of screaming at him, throwing stuff around, and even trying to kill him since she's a vampire now. But I guessed that she knew doing that wouldn't change the fact Jen and Josh were Mates.

Then, they stopped talking and I started to hear sexual moans. Were they seriously doing it again?

Georgia woke up to those noises and we both awkwardly stared at each other. "Season three?" I suggested and she immediately nodded right after. She grabbed the remote and began playing the first episode, even turning the volume up a little bit.