The Speech

Chapter 23

Avery's POV

Upset can't describe how I feel. I'm pissed and drained of tears by the time Theo pulls up to my house. Before he could even put the car in park, I open the door and get out. He helps Jackie get out of the car and she starts to follow behind me.
"Aren't you coming in?" I hear her ask him.
"No he's not." I say for him. I catch his eye for a moment before he just stares at the ground. I know Theo's been ignoring me, and I don't want him to stay out of obligation or pity. Jackie stays quiet, heading into the house as I hold the door open for her. I look back at Theo and walk over to him, pulling him into a hug.
"I'm sorry for dragging you into my shit again." I pull back from him, wiping my eyes.
"You're too good a friend to me." I say to him, turning my gaze to the ground and walking away.
"Avery." He calls, and I stop, turning to face him. He stares at me, and I can see him gathering all of his thoughts in his head, sorting through to find the best thing to say. Then without a word, he closes the space between us. He strides towards me, wrapping his arm around my waist, and pulls me deep into him. Just when I think he's gonna cross the paper thin line that's between our lips, he pauses. It's immediate, almost as fast as he moved towards, does he stop. His forehead rests itself on mine, and I'm grasping onto his shoulder like it's the only thing holding me up. Maybe it is.

And in between the motion of my heart racing, I can feel in. The fear of what comes next. I'm scared of this moment, scared of his next move, scared of mine. Is gonna say something? Is he gonna kiss me? Was Haley right... He lets out a feverish breath, lifting his head from mine and I stare up at him. Without looking at me he moves close to my cheek and whispers
"Feel better."
Without looking back he walks to his car and drives away.
"Avery?" I hear Jackie call and see her standing in the door. I wonder if she saw any of what just happened, but from the way she's teetering at the door I know she wouldn't remember if she did.
"Come on, let's go watch a movie or something." I tell her, knowing she's too drunk to talk about Jayden and I tonight.

Dylan's POV

I can hear laughter as soon as I walk into the house, and I know that Jackie is here. I follow the sound up the stairs to Avery's room and find them huddled around a laptop. Jackie's the first to notice me.
"She let you leave?" She asks, and the question throws me off guard. Avery notices my confusion and speaks up.
"She's very drunk, just ignore her." Jackie hops off the bed.
"Give me a ride home?" She asks.
"You're not staying? Really?" Avery questions her, looking a little hurt.
"I can't stay here every weekend." She responds, walking towards me.
"We going?" She asks me and I shrug.
"I guess we're going." I say to Avery, but she's put her earbuds in by the time I do.

Jackie leads the way, but instead of going down the stairs she ducks into my room. I quietly follow her in, shutting the door behind me. She stands in the middle of the room, arms tucked together, searching the room with her eyes.
"Thought you wanted a ride home?" I question her.
"I thought you didn't want to be with May anymore." She responds, still searching the room.
"What are you looking for?" I ask, avoiding her statement. Her eyes snap to me.
"That." She says.
"You're avoiding my comment about May. You were with her tonight weren't you?" She asks me.
"You sound a little jealous there Jackie." I tease her, not wanting to talk about May.
"I'm not here to keep you entertained during your in-between moments with her." She says flatly.
"It's not like that. You don't need to worry about May." I try to reassure her.
"I wasn't planning on it." She responds confidently. She slowly makes her way around my room, grazing her fingers over everything. When she makes it to my bed she stops, her eyes darting between me and the bed. I walk towards her, sitting first.
"You don't need permission, you know." I say to her, knowing exactly what's on her mind.
"I'm just trying to decide if you're worth all this trouble." She says. I grab her hand, pulling her onto my lap.
"Fun is always worth the trouble." I say in a hushed voice that I know gets to her. She kisses me softly, then rests her head on mine. She lets out a sigh and I can smell the tequila on her breath, reminding me she's still drunk. We stay in silence for a moment, then she says this.
"I like you more than I should." She says it quietly, like she doesn't realize she's said it out loud. And I don't respond, I don't know what to say.