A Year Without Snow

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Wednesday, 13th April 2016 - The Past - Part 2

That was when I realised he had been speaking to me.

"Huh?" I asked still looking at him, now trying to understand what he had said.

"I asked you, what Grace was on about when she mentioned Jack?" He asked and I realised he had kept his gaze in the tv because this subject clearly made him uncomfortable.

"Jesus. I'm so tired of that subject." I let out a desperate breath, "Grace seems to think that I'm making a colossal mistake by not talking to him. It's becoming hard as it is to avoid him, let alone with other people insisnting on it."

"What do you mean avoid him? I though you hadn't spoken to him since  your... breakup." Bryson said clearly still uncomfortable.

"I mean I haven't. Not really. He has tried though. He texts me a lot." I said and Bryson turned on the couch to look at me, "Sometime when I come alone from a class he corners me- I mean comes to.. talk to me." I corrected myself as I saw the look on Bryson's face.

"What do you mean 'corner'?" He asks  with a concerned expression.

"It's not like that. He just really wants to speak to me. And I just don't want to do that."

"But has he been too pressing?" Bryson asked, "Is he ever forceful when he corners you?"

"Bryson, oh, my God. No, I've told you it's not like that." I insisted.

"Then how is it? What does he want?"

"Well, usually he comes to warn me about you." I explained and he rolled his eyes. "Then he goes on to express is undying love, and how I should give him another chance. It's a little sad, really. He's not doing well, but I can't run the risk of consoling him or he'll just take it as a sign." I said as I looked at the tv when but as I turned to look at Bryson his expression as progressed from concerned to full on fearful.

"Daisy, listen to me." He began and moved closer to me putting a hand on my shoulder I try to ignore the way my body reacts because I know I'm not gonna like what I'm going to hear, "I've known Jack my whole life. And even if you have too, you've only known the part of him he wants to show you. When you're near his whole personality changes to this caring and sweet guy, but that's only a persona, that's not the real him. He's not a good person." I rolled my eyes at this. "I'm serious. When it comes to you he's a bit... Phsycotic."

"What? Because he likes me?" I asked, "Because he's sweet when he's with me? Because he cares about me doesn't make him a bad person. And this 'cornering' that he does is precisely that, it's because he likes and misses me." I continued feeling a new wave of anger, "I'm sorry if that seems weird to you that someone could like me enough to be sweet to me, but that sometimes happens when you like someone."

"Daisy, you're taking this completely the wrong way!" Bryson exclaimed while getting worked up too. "What he feels for you it's not liking, let alone loving. It's an obsession."

"Oh, so it is that foreign to you that someone could like me. Okay, alright." I said angrily as I took the blanket from off of me and stood up.

"Daisy, come on. You're not hearing me correctly." He continued as he stood up next to me and grabbing me by the arm before I could go up the stairs. "Daisy, I could never blame someone who loves you, it's the sannest thing anyone who could do." Bryson said and I try to process the meaning of what he just said, "I'm just warning you, that what he feels for you it's not healthy."

"And how would you know that." I ask him daringly and tentatively wanting him to grab the bait.

"Why do you think, Daisy?" He asked his hand still on my arm as he looked at me with eyes full of emotion, "I know how it feels. But it's something slow and caring. And precious, it's a feeling that if you could you would keep in box and protect it from the rest of the world." He continued and I forgot what I was even mad at him about, "But I saw how he was with you. He looked like he wanted to drain you, to swallow you whole."