Two Moons

Chapter Twenty Eight

Jared

"Hey, hey! Look at this shirt!" May holds up a plain striped T-shirt. "Isn't it so cute?" I smile, and nod. She squels, and goes back to Chloe and Lena.

"I will never understand women's fashion," I muttered.

"Tell me about it. When your best friends are both girls, its kinda hard to get away from this," Alex replies, sighing. I chuckle, smiling sideways at him. Lucas emerges from a rack of clothes, holding up a solid color maroon tank top. He thrusts it to May, and she smiles in delight.

"Well, I never guessed you were quite the fashionista, Mr. Big Bad Alpha. I'm going to try these on, be right back. Chloe, Lena? Come with me?" The girls follow her, and Chloe turns around, giving Lucas a thumbs up.

It is so good to see May out of bed and happy. Lucas and I took turns taking care of her, and it was hard. The first few weeks, she didn't eat or talk to anyone except for Max. Max took it hard, but not as hard as May. She still thinks it's her fault.

"Damn, Lucas is getting brownie points for that." Alex pokes my ribs.

"Yeah, yeah. Be right back," I walk out of the store and head to the bookstore, hoping that a hook will take her mind off her mom. I stroll along, and find The Heartbreakers. I know she's been wanting to read this one for a while, so I grab it off the shelf and pay for it. While May was coping, I went out and got a job at the local coffee house. I get back to the store, bag in hand, and see May. She is smiling, but I can see that deep down, she looks sad. She nods, and Lucas, Chloe, and Lena go up to the cash register to pay for something. Her face falls as soon as they leave, and her hair hides her face. She rolls her lips in, pressing them together tightly. I walk over to her and she looks up, her face transforming from sadness to a fake happiness.

"Having fun?" I press my hand against the small of her back. She smiles slightly, nodding her head. She blinks, and adverts her eyes down.

"Hey, its okay. You don't need to fake happiness," I lift her chin up to meet her gaze. She presses her lips to my mine, softly. She pulls back.

"I know," she whispers. "I just would rather be at home, watching a movie with all of us. I don't need to buy things to make me happy." I smile.

"What if we curled up together while you read a book?" I asked.

"I would need to buy a new book or go to the library," she counters. I pull the book out of the bag, and flash it in front of her. Her mouth drops in surprise and then forms into a wide grin.

A real one.

"Jared, you got this for me?" I nod, and she gives me a hug. "Thank you! I've been wanting to read this forever!" She pulls away and hands rest on her arms.

"You want to get out of here?" She nods, biting her lip. The others come out with a few bags in hand. May smiles again, a wide, fake smile.

"Hey, I'm getting pretty tired. Can we all just go home and watch a movie?" She asks the others. They all nod, smiling. Lucas hesitates and nods. He eyes the book in May's hand, and they flicker over to me-only for a second-and he and nods. May smiles, and hooks arms with Alex.

"Let's go!"

~*~*~*~*

As the credits roll in, May has her head against my chest, my fingers playing with her hair. Her hands play with the hem of my shirt, and she casually slips her hands to my stomach, running her fingers along my stomach and pressing them against my warm skin. The others are passed out on the couch, bowls of popcorn surrounding them.

"Jared? You still awake?" May asks quietly.

"Mmhm," I reply, inhaling her scent.

"Can we go upstairs to my room? I'm tired." She yawns.