I Know You [On Hiatus Indefinitely]

Chapter 12

"So, Sherry," Jenna spoke up after we'd silently been eating for a while, "tell us something about yourself."

I looked around nervously before talking, "Well, I'm 16 years old and I love reading books."

"What about your parents?" Elena asked, and I suddenly noticed the tense atmosphere in the room.

"Oh, they live a few states away from here," I told them, trying not to hesitate too much.

"What do you want to become, when you grow up?" Jenna questioned, chewing on her food, silently.

"I haven't decided yet," I told her, "but I'd love to do a job that would help people."

"Like a doctor?" The words were out of Elena's mouth and she froze all of a sudden. Even Jenna looked over at Elena, glaring at her. None of us were surprised when Jeremy pushed his chair back and walked away.

Elena sighed as she stood up too. "I'll go get him," she muttered softly, her tone apologetic.

I looked down at my food; still feeling famished, and looked over at Elena. Making a decision, I quickly stood up, going after Elena to stop her. "I'll go talk to him."

Elena and I both knew that he wouldn't pay attention to anything she said, so she nodded her head and stepped to the side to let me go upstairs.

Going up the stairs, I could see that the door to his room was slightly open.

"Screw you Elena," Jeremy muttered just as I was about to enter his room. He had his head in his hands which explained why he'd thought that I was Elena, "Go away."

"Actually, it's me. I told Elena to wait downstairs" I said as I walked into his room.

"Sorry," Jeremy said looking up at me, his eyes full of pain. Seeing Jeremy trying to cope with Vicki's death on TV had been hard enough, but seeing it in person was much harder. I tried to remind myself not to think about compulsion, and felt my respect for Elena growing a lot more.

"So, what happened?" I asked, sitting next to him on his bed.

"It's like they're always targeting me," Jeremy mumbled under his breath. "First it was the drugs, then my obsession with Vicki and then this whole dinner thing."

"That's why you called me here in the first place, isn't it?" I stated rather than asked, "So that Elena and Jenna would back off."

Jeremy looked like he was trying to search for the right words to say but just managed to add, "This isn't about the dinner..."

I continued his thought as he trailed off, "It's about Vicki." Jeremy stayed silent which just confirmed what I'd been saying. "To be honest, your obsession with Vicki was getting kind of creepy."

I tried to lift his mood by teasing him a little but he just shook his head. "You're all the same," he groaned angrily, "Just go away."

"Look Jer," I tried to tell him in a serious tone this time, "Jenna and especially Elena are both really worried for you. They care about you a lot. So it may seem irritating to you but-"

"I know," Jeremy interrupted and I wanted to hug him so badly right them, "It's just that every time I try to smile or be happy, I think about Vicki."

His voice broke at her name. It cracked at the last word and before I knew it, I had wrapped my arms around him. I felt Jeremy's body shaking and my clothes getting wet but I didn't dare to move. As I looked out of the room, I saw Elena standing there looking at her brother with concern. Her eyes met mine and I saw her mouthing a 'thank you'. I nodded my head and mouthed back a reply 'go'. She nodded her head, getting the point and quietly walked away.

Jeremy pulled away just a few seconds later, wiping his eyes and nose. I was forced, despite myself, to pull my arms away from him. I gently pushed his hair away from his face and felt an intense pain somewhere deep inside my heart. I couldn't see Jeremy like this, going through so much pain.

"You okay now?" I asked although I already knew the answer. He didn't think that there was a chance that he could ever be okay. A sudden flare of anger burst through me and I felt like punishing whoever had done this. Then I remembered who had actually done it and the flame just extinguished.

He spoke the next words so softly that I barely even hear him, "I didn't call you because of that."

I felt my heart speeding up as I asked, "Then why did you call me here, Jeremy?"

"Because I like you."

A/N: I know that Sherry seems like a Mary Sue right now and everything seems perfect but remember that this is just the beginning. Reality will set in soon enough and things are about to get a lot worse.