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Chapter Two Misplaced
LOOKING over her shoulder feverishly wasn't a good look for Jia, but she found she didn't have much choice. Deep down she had to admit, she was still scared Ghostface was going to pop out from around a corner, which made her feel like a scared little girl. She wasn't liking that look for her, either.
If she thought she felt out of place being at school, Jia was in for a surprise when she stepped foot into the hospital. She ducked and shuddered when she passed the ICU unit. It was hard to believe Tara had just been there fighting for her life. Thankfully, Tara had been moved to a slightly better room, where she'd have more privacy and space to recover. As far as Jia understood, Tara had multiple stab wounds. She knew Ghostface — whoever it was this time — had carved Tara up like a fall pumpkin. It was still hard to say how or why Tara survived though.
Jia didn't realize she was lingering in the doorway, fingertips grazing the cool metal of the lock as she stared on until Tara said something to her.
"You came."
Jia shrugged, digging her hands into her pockets. As she put the weight into her slightly oversized pants, the hem shoved lower and revealed the waistband of her Calvin Klein's. "You called."
She could have sworn she saw a flicker of a smile pass by Tara's lips, but just as quickly as it came, it went. Before she could say any more, she seemed to have a pain in her stomach and quickly pressed her palm to her abdomen as she wiggled in the bed covered with light blue and white blankets. Tara herself was hooked up to many things Jia didn't understand, like the "clippy thingy that goes on your finger", but she did take notice of the oxygen tubes tucked into Tara's perfect nose.
Part of the reason Jia felt so out of place was that she knew she did not look anything like Tara, Liv, or even Amber for that matter. Every person in their odd squad was nicely put together and good-looking, leaving her feeling like the Shaggy to their Mystery Inc. If Shaggy had an arc where he became a paranoid drug addict with hardly any real friends anyway.
"I don't wanna crowd you," Jia waved a hand, taking a step back out of the room. "I'll just wait for Sam. I, uh... haven't seen her in forever anyway."
Amber, Chad, Mindy, and Wes watched as Jia dodged any sign of genuine emotion from entering or leaving her body, but they were used to that. What they weren't used to, however, was the dancing of Jia and Tara's eyes as they followed each other.
"Don't be ridiculous," Chad stood from his chair. "Come sit. I'm going to go use the bathroom."
Well, there was no way out of it now. She wanted so desperately to be able to sit near Tara, to be with her, but she was afraid of throwing up or saying something she'd later regret. She wasn't sure how she could possibly make this situation any worse, but so far, that had been her specialty. If Jia had a place in this world, it was being the rock in the heel of someone's sneaker. The joker in someone's poker game. The background character in someone else's movie.
