Gripped

Chapter [3] - The Plummer's Residence

After giving Chad the directions to Jade’s house, I finally arrived at the Plummer’s residence.  The Plummer’s home was a neat little terraced-house. The familiar color of daisies and petunias greeted me as I neared the front porch. Mrs. Plummer had this undying love for plants, thus their house was covered with blooming flowers giving their house a bright, sunshiny essence. It was as familiar to me as my own home. The grass on their lawn was neatly trimmed, reminding me of Jade herself. Their entire house projected what kind of family they were, and as an only child, Jade had been well-taken care of. Her parents were strict, monitoring most of what she was doing, but despite all of that, the Plummers had always been very nice.

I made my way to their front door, just in time to see Jade, who had known I arrived without me even ringing the doorbell. She was standing in her pajamas, barefoot. Her long, raven-black hair stuck up in different directions, showing some nasty signs of bed head.

“Janie!” She said as she greeted me with a hug, “What happened?”

I sighed. “Long story…”

“What do you mean—“ She broke off midsentence. I glanced up at her face and realized she was staring at Chad with a confused look on her face.

“Janie,” she said as she pointed her finger at Chad, “who Is that?”

Chad was leaning against his car, just across the street. He didn’t seem to notice Jade, since he was too busy staring off into the distance. When I looked back at Jade, to tell her who Chad was, she scrunched her face up in mild horror and glared at me with hands on her hips.

“Please, tell me he’s not some new guy you hooked up with.”

Hearing what she just said, I widened my eyes at her, almost horrified at what she thought.                   

“Of course not!” I said in an exasperated voice.  “Listen, I’ll explain everything.” I went inside the house with Jade following behind.

I flopped down on their living room couch, hugging one of her mom’s silky green throw pillows. After Jade had offered me some warm milk, I began to explain everything to her, recounting the events of the previous night.

After I finished telling her how chaotic the previous day was for me, I glanced at Jade to see her reaction. She was staring at me with deep concern in her eyes. Her Lips were slightly parted, as though she didn’t really know what to say at all.

“Oh my gosh, Janie. I never expected your brother to go overboard with his drinking.”  She finally said and  gave me another hug. “I’m so sorry you had to go through all of that. Man, I never should have let you go home alone that night.”

“Yeah, well… I’m okay now.” I gave her a reassuring smile.

I took a sip of the warm milk and realized I hadn’t eaten anything since I left Jade’s house that night. I felt my stomach grumble.

A smirk immediately appeared on Jade’s lips. She must have heard that grumbling noise as well.

“it Looks like someone’s really, really hungry.” She laughed and proceeded to the kitchen. A few minutes later I could smell bacon and eggs cooking on the stove. I realized she was cooking at 5 AM in the morning just for me. I was glad I had her around. If It wasn’t for Jade, how the heck would I even survive my life?  I was overwhelmed with gratefulness.

“Thanks, Jade!” I yelled loud enough so she could here me from the kitchen.

After drinking the last of the milk in my glass, my eyes wandered over to the window. I could see the outline of Chad’s car from afar. Suddenly, It hit me.