Growing Up - Jenna Ortega x Fem Reader

44.

December 14th

The phone felt heavier than usual in your hand as you stared at Jenna's contact, your thumb hovering over the call button. It had been two days since that night with Hailee, two days since her lips on yours couldn't erase the image of Jenna from your mind. The realization that you couldn't move on without understanding the why gnawed at you, an ache too deep to ignore. You took a deep breath, steeling yourself, and finally pressed the button.

The ring echoed in your ears, each second stretching into an eternity. When Jenna's voice finally came through, it was soft, almost hesitant. "Hey."

"Hey," you replied, the word catching in your throat. There was an awkward pause, the silence between you charged with everything left unsaid. You cleared your throat, forcing yourself to speak. "Can you... can you come over? We need to talk."

She agreed, and you could hear the nerves in her voice, a reflection of your own. After hanging up, you paced the room, trying to gather your thoughts, to prepare for what was to come. But how did you prepare for a conversation that could either bring closure or break you even more?

When Jenna arrived, the tension was palpable. She stood in the doorway for a moment, as if unsure whether she should step inside. You motioned her in, and she took a few tentative steps before settling on the couch, her eyes darting around the room, avoiding yours.

You sat down opposite her, the space between you feeling like a chasm. For a while, neither of you spoke, the weight of the silence pressing down on you both.

Finally, you broke the stillness, your voice sharper than you intended. "Why did you do it, Jenna? Why did you cheat?"

Jenna flinched at the bluntness of your words, her gaze dropping to her hands. She took a deep breath, and when she spoke, her voice was barely above a whisper. "I was scared."

"Scared?" you echoed, the word bitter on your tongue. "Scared of what? Scared of me?"

"No," she said quickly, finally meeting your eyes. "Not of you. Never of you. I was scared of what we had, of how deep I'd fallen, of what it meant for the rest of my life." She paused, searching for the right words. "Everything happened so fast, Y/N. One minute, we were best friends who grew up together with a 6 age gap, and the next, we were something so much more. It felt like the ground was shifting beneath my feet, and I couldn't catch my balance."

You shook your head, frustration bubbling up inside you. "So you thought cheating would help with that? That betraying me would somehow make it easier?"

"No, of course not," she said, her voice trembling now. "It was the worst mistake of my life, and I know that. But at the time, I was so overwhelmed and didn't know what to do. From day to night after Wednesday aired, the world was watching me, scrutinizing everything I did. I wasn't ready for people to see me as anything other than an actress. I wasn't ready for them to see me as gay, as someone in a relationship with another woman."

Her words hit you like a punch to the gut. You'd always known Jenna struggled with the public side of her life, but you never imagined it would lead her to this. "So what, I was just collateral damage? Instead of telling me how you were feeling, you kissed another girl?"

"No, it wasn't like that," she said, her eyes filling with tears. "I know it sounds like an excuse, but I was so scared of losing everything. And I felt trapped, not specifically because of you, but because of how perfect you were. You were always there for me, always supporting me, and I felt like I didn't deserve it. I am younger than you, and I just... I just want to make my own mistakes, to learn from them, even if it meant hurting myself in the process. That day we argued just because I smoked a cigarette with Gideon, I felt like you were depriving me of those mistakes."