Unexpected //Jack Gilinsky

Chapter 8

     The worst thing about being sick was definitely feeling like you need to stay in bed all day. I loved to sleep, but it was a different story when you were doing it for over ten hours. My back was killing me. I should have just got up earlier and made some food, taken some medicine, anything other than this. I knew that doctors said sleep is important if you're sick but really, if I got up and drank some orange juice maybe this would just go away. It was five now, I didn't know if anyone was even home with me. The only person I'd seen this morning was Matt before he left. I should shower, maybe that would make me feel better. Standing up made me feel nauseous though, laying back down wasn't an option. I drag my feet across the floor over to my bathroom. I was a mess. My hair was all over the place and I looked like I had been crying for days, my eyes were so puffy. I didn't think I cried last night. I don't remember crying at least. I proceed to strip my clothes off and get into the shower. The warm water running on my skin felt amazing, now I didn't think I could get out. I was in the shower for so long and my whole bathroom was fogged up but I did not want to get out. It felt impossible. Yet I found myself turning the knob slowly to the left and the shower eventually trickled to a stop. It left me feeling bare and cold. I wish I would've started the dryer with pajamas in it so I had warm clothing to step into, but I didn't think like that. I always thought of the right thing to do when it was too late, one of my many faults. After slipping on some new pajamas I stomp down the stairs into the kitchen. That's what it sounded like at least. I needed to take some medicine for my ongoing headache. Taking pills was hard for me, I didn't know what it was about it. When I was little if I would need to take medicine that wasn't liquid I'd sit and argue about it with my mom for the longest time, then I'd try to take it and I just couldn't. She'd get so mad at me and tell me I wasn't trying hard enough, and I'd spit the pill out and go to my bedroom. It was so disgusting, the pill would start to melt on my tongue. It was the worst taste I probably experienced. When I was really sick, with fevers over one hundred, when I absolutely needed to take medicine my mom would crush the pill up and put it into water. How delicious. I managed to get my pill shoved down my throat with out throwing up and got a bowl of cereal. I probably should've eaten more then this considering it was already dinner time and I didn't eat all day but I wasn't feeling it. I took my cereal over to the couch and plopped down. The medicine would kick in soon and maybe I could get some relief. While munching on my cereal I pick a show to watch, just something random to fill up the quietness. I wonder when Eve would be home, maybe she was. I should have brought my phone down, I would have texted her if I had. My family must have thought I didn't care about them anymore. That I had just left them and never intended to come back or contact them. It was far from true, in fact I was going home for a few days in just a week or so. It has been marked in my calendar since October, and I already had those days off. I needed to call them, I needed to speak to someone I trusted and someone who actually knew me. Knew me and wouldn't leave for their boyfriend all the time. I was frustrated with Eve right now. I finish my meal and bring the bowl to the sink, I was feeling a little better now. Thank God because I had to work in a day. The thought was repulsive. I crawled up my staircase and back into my room, I needed to call my family and talk to people who will cheer me up. I called Ali because she usually always knew what to say, she was so wise for being fourteen.
"Hello?" Ali's sweet voice answers within seconds.
"Hey Ali." I greet, I already felt so much better, emotionally.
"Hi!" she excitedly says. I hear her yell to someone that I was on the phone.
"How are you?" I ask her.
"Good, what about you?" Ali answers, I heard tiny voices in the background shouting at Ali to let them talk too.
"I'm okay, I'm ready to come visit you guys though." I sigh into the phone.
"What's wrong?" Ali asks me, she never missed anything.
"I'm just, I just miss you guys." I say. It wasn't a lie, it wasn't the full truth either.
"Something else is wrong. Spill it." she demands.
"It's not a big deal Ali.."I trail off.
"Yes it is. Please tell me what's wrong." she pleads. I shake my head.
"Remember how I told you about Jack?" I ask her. I knew she remember I didn't even need to ask.
"Of course." Ali cheers happily.
"Well a lot has happened with him. First we just became good friends and I know this will sound like everything had happened fast because it has..but anyways we became good friends. We didn't hang out all the time because of his work and my job and so we just texted a lot. This was only over the course of a couple weeks, from when he drove me home that one night. A few weeks ago now I went over to his house and hung out with him and spent the night there, we didn't do anything at all we just talked until super early in the morning and it got too late to go home. The next day I stayed over a while longer and went home later that evening. That was a Saturday and so the day after I went back to his house and hung out for awhile. Things got a little heated and then Jack Johnson walked in on our moment and Jack got mad at me because I told him I didn't want to date him right now. I didn't want to risk our friendship and I just didn't think I was ready for a relationship yet. Jack got mad and was super rude to me the rest of the day so I had him drop me off at home and we haven't spoken since right? Well last night I went out with Eve, her boyfriend Nate, Johnson and Matt Espinosa. Johnson brought Jack and Jack brought Madison Beer, they've been getting close recently. Basically last night Jack made a big scene about me riding with them in the car and flipped out on everyone and now here I am." I told Ali. I heard her gasping throughout the story.
"Well, that sounds dramatic." she says after a long pause of silence. I couldn't blame her, I didn't know what to say either. It was dramatic. We might as well have been in high school still.
"It is. I really don't know what to do Ali. I'm so confused about my feelings for Jack and he obviously has moved on from his short session of feelings for me." I tell her.
"I bet he isn't over you. How could he be?" Ali asks me. It warms my heart that she's trying to make me feel better, but she knew and I knew that Madison was way better.
"Have you seen Madison Ali? She's anything a guy could want and more." I say laughing. It wasn't even funny.
"No Lexi, you are anything a guy could want and more. I can't deny that Madison is pretty, obviously she is. That doesn't mean you aren't too. That doesn't mean that your personality doesn't top hers by one hundred percent. Stop thinking like that. My call is that Jack is doing this to make you jealous. He wants you to see him with another girl and he wants you to think he doesn't care about you. I bet he cries every night thinking about you." she giggles, I join in.
"I doubt that. He's a strong guy, the only time I've ever seen him look anything less then that was when he was asleep. Even then he looked powerful." I state, sitting down on my bed.
"Oh I bet he looks so cute asleep." Ali daydreams on the other line.
"Ali! That's enough of that. I didn't call to listen to how star struck you are by Jack. I know he's famous but I know him as a friend. At least I used to. It's weird to talk about him like you know him. Trust me, he's way different in person then what websites probably say about him." I inform her.
"I know I know. I'm not daydreaming I'm just joking." Ali says.
"Okay, hey let me talk to mom." I say, I wanted to talk to her about me coming up for Thanksgiving. I had told Ali when I first moved down that I would, but last month when she asked I said that I wasn't sure now. I wanted her to be surprised.
"Okay, I'll go find her." she says and I hear her get up and walk to find our mother.
"Hello?" my mother says now on the phone.
"Hey mom." I reply.
"Hi, what's up sugar?" my mom always called us kids something sweet. Sugar, honey, even cake. I didn't understand it fully, how could it make sense to call your kids cake? It was her thing though, it made her more..her.
"I'm not on speakerphone right? I need to talk to you about something." I tell her.
"Nope. Not on speaker, what is it?" she asks, I hear my little brother chanting my name over and over again in the background.
"I wanted to remind you about Thanksgiving. I am coming down. I'm leaving in a week, eight days I think actually." I remind her.
"How could I forget! I've been so excited!" she yells. I hoped she wasn't around anyone who could hear her. I didn't want anybody guessing the secret.
"Yeah me too. I have so much to tell you in person. It won't be the same over the phone mom." I say, sighing deeply.
"I can't wait." she repeats.
"My flight is next Sunday at six in the morning. I wanted to get there early..you'll pick me up right?" I ask her, twirling a piece of my hair. It was still wet.
"Of course I will. The earlier the better." she confirms. I nod.
"I took off a whole week for this. I'll be there Sunday to Sunday." I reply.
"That's perfect." my mom says. I didn't really know what else to say, and I could tell she felt the same. "Honey, I'm going to have to go. Your little brother needs to get some sleep, he's not feeling well." she tells me now.
"That's fine, give everyone hugs and tell them I love them for me." I say, a faint smile plays on my lips.
"Oh I will, I love you sweetheart." says my mom. It was a distant I love you. Not because she didn't mean it, not in the way that she was thinking about something else. It was distant because we were far away, different states, miles apart.
"Love you too mom." I tell her, pressing end on the phone.