The Girl in The Black Hoodie

Chapter Two

Sorry it took so long to update! I swear I tried to update faster, but there's school and I think I've mastered the art of procrastination...

Anyways, I hope you like it!

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"And you're sure you've never seen them before?" Frances was sitting on the edge of her bed, hugging a pillow.

Pacing back and forth, Jayden shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair. "Yeah."

She sighed and fell back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. "Well, there must be something. The guy wouldn't just beat the crap out of a random person he saw like that."

Well, he didn't need her to tell him that.

He couldn't wrap his head around the fact that he was able to screw up so badly it almost got him killed. What had he done to that guy? Why couldn't he remember? It didn't make any sense.

"Where were you going, anyway?" Frances asked.

"Ty's new place. He invited me over," he said.

There had got to be an explanation. Maybe he hit his head somewhere, maybe he–

Jayden stopped dead in his tracks as realization dawned on him.

He sat down next to her, staring at ground. "I think I know why I don't remember."

She sat up straight and tucked a strand of blond hair behind her ear. "Why?"

He gazed at her light brown eyes. "Do you remember when I had...problems?"

"Problems?" she furrowed her brow. "You need to specify."

"When I was on drugs."

It was a part of his past he didn't want to remember. If he could go back and change it, he would do it. It was way easier to pretend like it had never happened.

"Oh," said Frances quietly. "But what does it have anything to do with this?"

He shrugged, trying to act casual. "Well, I–"

"Wait," she interrupted, realizing something. "You think you screwed something up unconsciously while you were..."

He nodded. It would made sense if he couldn't remember a thing. After all, it wasn't the first time. One night, he'd gone to bed. He remembered turning the lights off. But the next day, he'd woken up in his class. Barefoot. He wasn't sure he wanted to know what he'd done all night.

Frances stood up, crossing her arms. "This is so messed up. How are you going to tell your parents? Clearly, that cut on your cheek won't go unnoticed."

"I'll just say...I fell with a knife in my hand?" he said. It came out more like a question than an answer. "I can't think of anything else."

"Why not just tell them the truth?"

He shook his head. He couldn't imagine how his parents would react to this. They would put him in lockdown until college. "No. They have enough stuff going on. I can take care of myself."

***

Jayden could never understand how he could be friends with Tyler Elliot. They had absolutely nothing in common. When they were three, Ty would come over with his bike every evening and practically forced him to go cycling around the neighborhood until the sun set. Jayden would always made up excuses not to go, but Ty wouldn't take no for an answer. Until eventually, cycling together became a habit. There were even times when Jayden was the one who came over.