badnews { jace norman }

forty-six

"Shes not there"

"What?"

"Someone already bailed her out"
Jace sighs, pushing back his hair as he sits himself down. Exhausted from the fast traveling between the county jail to me.  And stressed at the fact that his mom was missing.

"Did they say who? When? Anything?"

"All they said was it was a guy, seemed to be in a hurry. I checked home she, wasn't there"

"Maybe you should, stay there in case she comes back?"

He hesitates "Yeah, okay"

"I can stay with you if you want"

"No that's okay"

"You sure?"

"...your dad doesn't like me does he."

"What?" I chuckle lightly as an act of innocence.

"He told you to get me to leave" he begins to shove his clothes into a few of his boxes he's moved over within the time he was here.

"..I dont want you to"

"I know"

I watch in silence as he brings his belongings into his bags. Leaving it pristine and clean, the way my mom had set it up years ago.

"At least let me help you settle in?"

"Yeah, okay" He nods, leading his way downstairs as he comes face to face with my dad; recently having come back from the week away.

Jaces jaw stays clinched. Attempting to put on a fake grin towards him,
"Thanks for letting me stay sir"

My dad reply with a grunt, almost setting Jace off as he ignores the feeling to break.

"Sorry for him.." I mummble; closing the door behind us

"Seems like your always apologizing for him"

》》》》》》》》》》》》》

"Its freezing in here" I lightly see the vapor of my breath as we enter the quiet, emptying house.

"They cut off the furnace after about a month of the bills not being paid."

"What happened to the furniture?" My glance trails around the bare livingroom, left with an empty coffee table. They're collection of old records and disks gone along with most of the rest of their belongings.

"Sold it weeks ago. Brought up the balance of the money I was supposed to use to bail my mom out"

"...do you at least have water?"

"Yeah, kept paying that one so that the water doesn't freeze in the pipes and end up costing us. No hot water though"

"You can't live here, Jace"

"Where else am I supposed to go?" He pauses, shifting his loaded arms.
"Im fine here anyway"

"You'll freeze"

He shrugs, beginning to carry his stuff upstairs.

I follow behind him with a few of his shirts in hand, along with a backpack filled with odds and ends from his bathroom supplies.

We come into his same bedroom; nothing changed from the years of last being there. Give or take his dresser and nightstand that is now sold. The same blankets blend in his same dark, comfortable room. The smell of him remains after all of the months being away; but the warmth is gone. Leaving my nose ice cold and my skin covered in goosebumps.