Burden

*~chapter thirty-eight~*

Currently, Jasper, Scott, Alexis, and I are all at my apartment—well, not really my apartment anymore. I told Alexis this morning that I was moving in with Jasper for three months. She was a bit mad I didn't tell her about having to move in general, but she was glad I had a place to go. When she asked when, I told her it was today, which meant she ran straight over.

Oh, and she finally met Scott, who I'm guessing got forced to help by Jasper.

"So, where do all these photos go?" Scott asks, standing at the stairs and slowly peeling them off the wall.

"Um... that shoebox," I say, pointing to the mess on the kitchen table.

As I pack away some stuff in the kitchen, Scott walks in, looking curious.

"Why are they all taped to the wall?" he asks, being nosy. Given the emotional shift, I've decided to tell him.

"My lame attempt to make my mum feel better," I admit, feeling a bit vulnerable as I continue packing.

Scott nods, seemingly understanding, and continues to help with the photos, while the rest of us work together to finish packing up my old place.

A little while later, everything is packed up for either Jasper's house, the storage place, or Mum's room. Oh, and the bin—a fair bit went to the bin today. I realized that Mum and I had accumulated a lot of junk that had no meaning or use whatsoever.

The apartment feels strangely empty now, stripped of the personal touches that once made it feel like home. Boxes are neatly stacked by the door, ready to be transported to their respective destinations. The shoebox filled with photos sits on top, a tangible reminder of the memories we're trying to hold onto.

Alexis, Jasper, and Scott have been incredibly helpful, turning what could have been a daunting task into a manageable one. As we take a moment to rest, I can't help but feel a mix of emotions—relief that the packing is done, sadness for leaving this place, and a glimmer of hope for a fresh start.

"Thanks, everyone," I say, breaking the silence. "I couldn't have done this without you."

"No problem," Alexis replies, giving me a reassuring smile. "We're here for you."

Jasper nods in agreement, while Scott simply gives a thumbs up. jasper comes over  "Ready to get moving?" Jasper whispers, looking at the boxes.

'Yeah, let's go," I respond, walking with Jasper to his car. Alexis is going to follow us while Scott helps out by dropping off the storage boxes.

The drive is quiet but comfortable, and I feel a mix of emotions about this new chapter. When we arrive at Jasper's house, I step out of the car, taking a deep breath. Alexis pulls up behind us and joins us at the front door.

When we all enter Jasper's house, Alexis pipes in, "Well, this place is nicer than I expected," she says, looking around approvingly.

Jasper smirks slightly. "Thanks, I try to keep it decent."

We start unloading the boxes, working together to get everything inside. Alexis helps me organize my things in the guest room, chatting about how we'll make the space more me. Jasper moves the heavier items, ensuring everything is placed where it needs to be.

"Are you sure you're okay with all this?" Alexis asks, her voice softening as she glances at me.

"Yeah, I think so," I reply, feeling a sense of gratitude for her concern. "It's going to be fine."

Once everything is inside and somewhat organized, we take a moment to sit down and relax. The weight of the day starts to lift, and I feel a small sense of relief.

"Thanks again, everyone," I say, looking around at my friends. "I really appreciate all the help."

"No worries," Alexis says, "now I have to go, me and Jake are going out" she adds on, and makes her way over to me and giving me a squeeze. "see you later" 

"yeah I have to go to" Scott says, giving me a hug swell then do some kind of man shake/hug with jasper. 

now its just me and jasper, he's leaning on my desk looking at me, while I awkwardly stand in the middle of my new (temporary) room. "thank you so much for this jasper" I mutter out. 

he shakes his head, pushing himself up and stalking over to me, "you know, you need to stop thanking me for this, this is like the 15th time" he mutter out. 

"well I'm very thankful" I smile up at him. 

"yeah" he smiles back. "yeah" I respond

"you hungry?" jasper ask's

"very"

grab my phone and walk out of the house with him. We hop into his car and take a short drive to a nearby bakery. The air feels a bit lighter as we pull up, and the smell of fresh pastries greets us as we step out.

It's a simple, quick stop, but there's something comforting about being out and about, even if it's just for a quick snack. 

jasper gets a coffee and a blue berry muffin, I grab a hot choc and a blue berry muffin.  we pay, well more like he pays before I get the chance to pay for mine, and we make out way to a booth.

Sitting there for a bit, I haven't touched my muffin yet. All I've been doing is staring at Jasper, lost in my thoughts and overthinking everything. We've known each other for a while, and he went out of his way to talk to me, to get to know me, and to help me. I can't help but wonder why he'd bother wasting his time on someone like me.

"Eat," Jasper's voice disrupts my thoughts.

"Sorry," I mumble, snapping out of it and finally starting to eat my muffin.

He watches me for a moment before asking, "What happened in the five minutes we sat down?"

I shrug, not wanting to delve into my overthinking. "Just... lost in my head, I guess."

"mae, you want to elaborate?" Jasper kindly suggests, his tone gentle but curious.

I hesitate, taking another bite of my muffin to buy myself some time. "I don't know," I start slowly. "It's just... we've known each other for a while, and you've always gone out of your way to help me, to be there for me. I guess I just don't understand why."

Jasper looks at me, his expression softening. "Why wouldn't I? You're important to me, Maeve. I care about you, and I want to see you happy."

His words catch me off guard, and I feel a lump form in my throat. "I just... I guess I don't see why someone like you would bother with someone like me."

Jasper shakes his head, a small smile on his lips. "You're worth bothering with. More than you realise."

this causes my cheeks to blush. "oh right" I mutter out smiling to myself just a tad. from that we break into a comfortable silence before going home.