Trapped

Years: "How long are we talking?"

Stella's POV

I sit in an organised office, filing cabinets line the walls, folders and computers litter the desks, you would think it was a law firm. As I take in all the features, from the creamy white plaster walls to the colourful strings marking suspects for a murder case. Linkin sits down opposite me and I'm snapped back to reality. "So, we are here to discuss numbers." He states firmly. Numbers? What kind of numbers? Linkin must be reading my mind because he says, "Years. The number of years you will be at Opal Hill County Jail." I flip out. "YEARS?! I WAS DRUNK AND ENTERED A MAKEUP STORE, YOU'RE TELLING ME IT'S A MATTER OF YEARS?!" "Ok Stella. Number one: Yes you heard me correctly, a matter of years. Number two: Talk to the Sherriff with that attitude again and it will become a matter of decades."
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Jonah's POV

"Dude what can you hear?" I ask my mate Dean. "Woah, easy king, eager much?" I look down. " Wait, I hear something. My head snaps back up, I think I just got whiplash. " Stella's cracked the shits..." Dean starts. Oh no, bad decision, girlie. "Oh god, they're talking jail time." My heart pounds. How long? Compared to what I've done, what Stella did is about as appalling as not saying please or thank at the dinner table. If she has to negotiate with Linkin about this, it can't be good.
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Stella's POV

"How long are we talking? 1? 2 years?" I ask, needing an answer ASAP. " Oh, sweetheart, you'll be lucky if you get three years." WHAT?! I am seriously considering my temptations to lunge forward and grab this nutter of a Sherriff by the throat. Instead, without even knowing why, I burst into tears. "W-wha-what about m-my ff-family-y?" I say in between sobs. "You can get one call every week, choose wisely. If it goes to voicemail, bad luck. Another week you shall wait." At this point I struggle to imagine life without my family, my mum, who helped me with my schooling and kept my life on track after dad died. He was a soldier in the army, the most courageous of them all. He sacrificed himself for our freedom, and I couldn't remember him in a better way. My younger brother, Nate, died not long after his birth. He had an unknown deformity with his lungs, he couldn't breathe, he died a slow and painful death, and it tore my heart to pieces. If he lived, he would be 12 now, I wonder what he would think of his older sister in jail. I remember where I am and turn my attention back to Linkin. "Visits are different. They're one every month, and you don't choose who comes. That's up to your family and friends to decide." Friends. Jen. Would she visit me? Would she give me the explanation I need? Will she look at me the same when I'm in an orange jumpsuit? Who knows. I'll just wait and see. " I've talked to the other officers and made a couple of calls to the judge, your sentence is 3 and a half years jail time. Does that sound ok?" "Do I have a choice?" I retort. He chuckles, "Not really." Linkin gets up from his chair to lead me back to the cell room. When we reach the door, he wishes me luck, and I head back in, officially an inhabitant of Opal Country Jail.
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Jonah's POV

I lay on my bed, waiting for her to come back. Just when I think she'll never come back, I hear the door creak and footsteps follow. I shuffle so I'm in a sitting position, and I see Stella walking towards her cell. She makes eye contact with me, and I give her a pleading look but she just shakes her head. Not caring whether I wake the others up, I yell, "Please, just let me explain!" She turns to me, and I think I might have hope. "Look Jonah, you think you know me, but you really don't. I made one mistake, the only mistake I've ever made in my life, and it's landed me 3 and a half years here." My eyes widen at the number. I want to ask her how she got such a big sentence, but she continues. "I'm willing to let you explain tomorrow, but for now, I've had the shittest day and I just want some sleep, even if It's on a mattress that feels like it's made out of brick." I smile and nod, letting her go to bed. I lay back down, attempting to get some sleep myself, and my last thought before I drift off is her deep brown eyes.
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A/N: Hey guys! Chapter six out, didn't expect to do it, just kinda got bored. I'm not sure, but I might aim to get seven and eight out by the end of tomorrow too. Next week I'll be in camp so I won't be able to update, but bear with me. Love you all and thank you so much for your support! Whether you voted and commented or just skimmed through, every read counts!!
Xx Adriana 💋💋