𝓦𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓐𝓫𝓸𝓾𝓽 𝓜𝓔 ~ Jᴀᴋᴇ Bᴀᴋᴇʀ

0 9 ~ n i n e ~ 0 9

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T I M E  ^  T O  ^  C O N F E S S

RAELYNN'S POV:

AM I REALLY doing this?

I thought I was ready to open up to someone but, now I'm not so sure. My heartbeats racing as I think about Jakes reaction to what I'm about to tell him. He probably won't want to be friends anymore.

I thought and thought until I was snapped out of my gaze off into the distance. "Raelynn? You were saying?"

"Oh, yeah, right." I took a deep breath and when I exhaled, it was almost as if all my words slipped out as well. "I know you're aware that I came here from New York, but I never told you why."

He gave me an encouraging glance before I continued.

"A year ago, I hung out with a bunch of kids with a bad reputation that influenced me. I believed that they were my friends, but it's clear to me now that that was not the case. They didn't accept me into their group because they liked me, just to use me."

A curious look crossed Jake's face.

"Basically, they had this big plan. One that included a lot of bad things. Crimes. The only reason I was a part of it was that so they could get away. We stole a car, and drove it far from our neighborhood. We were all ages 12-14, but I was the one driving. Once the cops showed up, they all put on scared faces and blamed everything on me. Said that I threatened them to do it. I was so confused and nervous that I didn't defend myself at all. No one believed me. No one. So, I ended up going to juvie for a year."

He gulped and I could tell what he just heard what hard for him to process.

"Meanwhile, my so called "friends" are probably still out doing bad things and ruining another poor kid's life. When I was released, I soon found out news had spread throughout the city. My family couldn't bear to see all the dirty looks and comments, so we moved. Hoping this would be a fresh start. And so far, I really think it is."

Jake looked at me with wide eyes. "Jake? You okay?"

What have I done.

JAKE'S POV:

Wait what?! I can't believe Raelynn's been keeping this from me!

But, then again, I can see why. I'm actually happy for her. This is her clean slate, new beginnings. I don't want to be the one to ruin that for her. She was comfortable enough to share her story with me, so I'm going to be supportive. No matter what.

"Jake? You okay?" Rae worriedly spoke.

"Oh yeah, just thinking." There was a pause of silence. "I want you to know that I support you. Whatever happened to you before is in the past. What matters now is what you've learned and how you can use it to your advantage. I'll always accept you, Raelynn. And thanks for telling me."

I realized my hand was still on hers, so I awkwardly took it off.

My mom entered my room and told us some news, after saying hello to Raelynn.

"Your schedules for school came in! Oh, and Jill called. Her and Matt are going out on a date night so you can sleepover Rae. Nate is too."

Rae and I looked at each other as our faces lit up. We ALWAYS had the best sleepovers.

I couldn't wait.

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RAELYNN'S POV: