Trapped Together (Complete)

~ Chapter 14 - 4:13pm~

Rachel leaned her head back on the door as her thoughts tumbled around. She knew what just happened wasn't good, though her body was screaming at her that it felt high as a kite right now. Which actually caused her to smile, though she shouldn't, she couldn't stop it, and there laid the conflicting problems. She shouldn't want this, she shouldn't be happy, but she was. However, she shouldn't also be thinking about how wrong it was.

"Stupid, Rachel," she mumbled to herself as she finally pushed off the wall and walked into the room. She needed to think about this, and she could only do that if she went as far as she could. But being stuck in a cabin meant that far wasn't happening. But she could go to her room and lock her door for the moment while she tried to right the world that got knocked on its axis yet again. "You need to stop over-thinking this."

She paused as she opened her drawer to grab some comfortable pants and a shirt. Was she overthinking this? Really? They were consenting adults, they weren't drunk, and they sure as hell didn't take advantage of each other. The one and only problem in this mess was Jay because he would sure as hell kill them both if he found out about the sleeping deal. Or, well, deals, at this point. She sighed as she slipped her pants on, groaning as her foot got stuck and she ended up tumbling into the wall. Within seconds the door flew up and Jake stood there, staring at her.

"Are you okay?" he asked and she nodded. Guess she didn't lock the door like she thought she had.

"Yeah, you know me, causing accidents however I can," she said, wiggling her foot to show him how she got stuck.

"Sometimes, Rachel, it's a miracle how you stay upright. Or how you can even walk and not fall."

"I do, you know. But I just laugh it off," she told him. He came into the room and kneeled down before her to free her foot. She watched him, almost smiling at seeing him there. This was yet another mark in her book that Jake was a good guy. He didn't care that they just went their separate ways for the moment or that they needed space. He heard something happen and instantly came to check on her and then offer his services. Both of which were sweet to her; both of which were new to her as well. She thought a few men could learn a thing or two out of his book.

"Are you good?" She glanced down at her foot and nodded. Really, he didn't have to do it, she could have. And she would have been fine honestly. But she loved that he did it for her.

"Yeah. I just wasn't paying attention and thought my foot was out to move." He straightened up before her and she eyed him, noticing the clothes to be her brothers. "Decided to go for the sweats rather than the jeans?"

"Jeans are nice, but they aren't overly comfortable to be sitting around in." He looked around for a second before motioning to the door. "I'm going to go ahead and head back to the living room." He inched back and she nodded. She knew he was giving her the space again and she was grateful.

"I'm going to change." He nodded but didn't say anything else as he left the room. She let out a deep breath and then grabbed the sweatshirt to pull on, not realizing that it was Jake's. "Stop it, Rachel, just stop it," she mumbled over and over to herself. She could deal with this, they were friends, and they could ignore the attraction and what happened. And in turn, go back to being mean to each other, which is something she didn't want. "Fuck," she muttered to herself, sticking the shirt in her bag, again, not thinking about the fact that it wasn't hers. She zipped up her bag and tossed it back on the floor, turning as Jake knocked on the door. "Yeah?" she asked as she opened the door.

"Your clothes. I thought you might want to put them in the dirty hamper." He looked at her as he handed the clothes to her and tilted his head. "How the hell did you end up with my sweatshirt?" She glanced down at it and shrugged.

"I thought it was Jay's. I sometimes take his shirts. They are more comfortable as they are baggier. Guess it was in his closet and I just assumed. Do you want it back?" She made a move to yank it back and he shook his head.

"No, go ahead and keep it." And with that, he turned and walked back down the hallway to the living room. She heard him messing with the logs and she debated on closing the door. Instead, she left it open and just listened to him, smirking as she did so. Yup, he knew his way around the cabin as well as she did it would seem. She closed her eyes, thinking about how much he loved it here as she did. Another check mark to add in the 'great' column that she shouldn't have!

"God damn it, Rachel, you aren't doing yourself any favors." She threw the clothes that Jake brought her in the bag and sat down on the bed. Thankfully it would be big enough for the both of them if they both decided to stay there after all. Logically, it was still the best course of action, but then again, they shouldn't have done what they did either. Rachel blew out a breath, the hair falling back in place over her face. With a frustrated groan, she pushed it back and then fell back on the bed, her eyes staring at the log ceiling.

Okay, focus, think about why being with him is good, Rachel. Other than he knows how to work your body into a frenzy that is completely mind-blowing. He's smart, which is needed in this day and age. He's caring, which guys don't seem to be. He's dependable, and that was something uncommon with other men. And that brought her up short. He was dependable; he was there for her even when he didn't want to be. Somehow through her stickier situations, he was there, just like any friend should be. Was she having some strange case of hero worship?

No, she wouldn't peg their friendship, their attraction like that. It wasn't hero worship. Because even though Jake had been there, for a lot of the cases too, he'd been a dick to her. Treating her like the annoying little sister that he thought her to be. Even as they got older and moved out of high school. In fact, wasn't it just two weeks ago that her car was down and she was at her parent's with Jay when Jake came over and they had talked about going out? She wanted to tag along but Jake totally refused, saying he was past tired of her always going with them. Which, that wasn't true, because as they had all gotten older, she stopped going out with them. It wasn't always fun to hang with your older brother and his hot but annoying best friend.

She laughed as she recalled that night. It had cracked her up because she remembered planting her hands on her hips and just staring at Jake. Even Jay was laughing at his best friend. Hell, Jay told Jake that Rachel hadn't tagged along in ages. But Jake still said no, for whatever reason. Rachel didn't have it in her then to be a bitch, so she let it go. She wished, now though, that she had pushed him a little bit more, just to piss him off. Maybe, at times, she treated him like a big brother too. She always loved irking him, even from the onset of his and Jay's friendship.

She stood up as her eyes roamed over the wall and landed on a couple of pictures that she had framed. One was of her and Jay on the day of her graduation from college. She had struggled with some of her classes, a fact not too many people knew, but Jay helped her. She was grateful to him, and always would be. He was her knight when he didn't have to be, but he loved her and looked out for her. Maybe that's why he pushed Jake to make some unknown promise? Not that the fact still didn't piss her off, or the fact that he may butt his nose in where it didn't belong.

Next, her eyes moved to the photo next to it, which was of Jay and Jake for Jay's 21st birthday. Jake was only two months older than him, so they had chosen Jay's birthday to celebrate in style. She never heard, officially, what happened that night, but she knew it was wild. She ran her nail over the photo, a smile tugging at her lips. She loved how close they were, how thick as thieves they were. Friends like that didn't come along every day and you should always value those types of people in your life. And as her finger ran off the frame, she frowned. If she perused something with Jake behind Jay's back, wouldn't that betray their friendship? Could she actually be that selfish to want Jake and possibly break up their bromance?

She sat back on the bed, never having thought of that before. She couldn't do that to one of the most important people in her life. And she refused to put Jake in a position where he was forced to choose between his best friend and her. With that firm resolve, she jumped to her feet and marched to the door. She would have to keep her distance and fight this attraction. She would also be determined to find someone better for her than Jake could ever be!