something new - [dolan twins]

eight

JILL POV:

It's been almost three weeks since Grace and I have seen the twins. I'll admit, I miss them. I miss Ethan. We haven't seen each other since the kiss, and I hated leaving things unfinished, but Grace begged me to stay away from him and Grayson. I could tell by the look on her face that she was hurt and confused, and anyone who did that to my best friend is a no-go for me, so I did what she said and stayed away.

She told me they were bad news- especially Ethan. After days of asking her to specify, I finally gave up. Something happened the night she didn't come home. Ever since then, she's been hiding out in her room, afraid to leave the apartment out of fear she'll run into one of their all too familiar faces in the lobby. I loved Grace, but I didn't like her keeping secrets from me. I grabbed my bag from off the counter and quietly left the apartment, heading up to the tenth floor. I needed answers, and if I wasn't going to get them from Grace, I had to take matters into my own hands.

I was greeted with the stern smirk I missed a little too much, "Jill! How have you been?" Ethan stepped aside, motioning me to come in. I kept my head down and gave him a small nod. I didn't think I would be so tongue tied seeing him for the first time since what happened.

Snap out of it, Jill. This is for Grace.

I sat down on the sofa and Ethan joined me after shutting the door behind him. "So, this is a pleasant surprise. What brings you here, and no Grace today?"

I met his eyes. He had an innocent look on his face, but I wasn't buying it. I was immediately flooded with anger as I stared into his secretive eyes. I was sure he knew something.

"What did you do to her?" I asked firmly, trying to keep my tone monotonous. "What did you say to her?"

"Who, Grace? I haven't even seen her. She slept here a couple weeks ago, but unfortunately, her presence has been... scarce. It's really getting to Grayson, too. Tell her to stop by or he'll probably lose it. She's been ignoring his texts and she's never home when he goes to say hi, man that kid is seriously stuck."

I had no idea why Ethan was rambling about Grayson. He couldn't hurt a fly. I mean, out of the two of them, he was definitely the more charming one, so what could he have possibly done to upset Grace so much?

And then it hit me.

"Ethan... does Grayson have feelings for Grace?"

He was now across in the open kitchen. Grabbing an open bag of chips, he lightly jogged back, placing his feet on the coffee table and shoving a couple of chips in his mouth as he answered. "Oh, yeah. Like, madly in love. I mean, I was gonna go for her, but then there you were looking all fine, and when I got home that night he was all frantic about having her over and I was like, shit, he really loves her, and, well, yeah."

Ethan continued to shove chips in his mouth, completely unphased by everything that just spilled. And, wait. Did he just call me fine?

All the confusion I had radiating my thoughts were now gone, and I was overwhelmed with pure joy. I snatched the bag of chips out of Ethan's hand and threw it on the table. I took his face in both my hands and smashed my lips into his quickly but passionately.

"Ethan," I felt heat rush to my cheeks, but for once I didn't mind it. "Thank you."

I fumbled with my bag as I ran out of his apartment and down the hall. I slammed down the fifth-floor button on the elevator over and over again, hoping for some reason it would speed things up.

I swung the door open with probably too much force. "Grace!!" I yelled, completely forgetting that the walls were thin and we had neighbors.

She shuffled out of her room, pajamas still on. I rolled my eyes, unamused by her lack of effort. I didn't understand why she was sitting here moping around when one of the hottest guys in L.A. was head over heels for her!

"Grayson!" I yelled, unable to form any real sentence. It startled Grace; she began looking around frantically as if she thought he would pop out of the cupboards at any second.

I took a deep breath, pulling her toward to couch. "Grace, why are you acting like this? Do you not love him back or something?"

GRACE POV:

Those two questions replayed in my head for a moment. Jill was right. Why was I acting like this? It's not like a boy liking me is the end of the world,

right?

"I don't know, Jill, I'm not like you. Guys don't usually go for me, they go for you."

Her eyes fell, and I immediately felt guilty. "I mean, as they should, obviously. Look at you," I motioned to her and she smiled a thank you, but concern still flooded her face.

"Grace," she began, "listen. You're beautiful and smart, and so many other things I don't feel like listing." She gave out a small laugh as she continued, "and any guy would be so unbelievably lucky to have you to call theirs! Don't be afraid to let yourself fall, because you know Grayson will be there to catch you."

Her words sank in, but I still didn't know what to do. I wasn't even sure if I loved Grayson; I've never been in love! I always saw him as such a good friend. He was always there for me, always made me laugh, and was able to make me smile when I wasn't feeling one hundred percent.

I thought back to the night I went to his house after I walked in on Ethan and Jill. I softly ran my fingers over the top of my left hand, trying to remember his touch. That moment I felt something different for Grayson. I wanted to be closer to him. Was that love?

Almost as if she read my mind, Jill spoke up, her voice now delicate. "I know it's terrifying. You don't have to completely throw yourself at him and ask him to marry you, but I think it's time you two at least talk. There's no use in sitting inside trying to avoid him. Explore your options, you just need to give it a shot."

I smiled at Jill, unable to process how lucky I was to have a best friend like her. "You know, you should take your own advice. I can tell you have feelings for Ethan." I paused, thinking back to what Grayson said about him weeks earlier. I didn't want Jill to get hurt, but she was right. There was no reason not to try.

Jill's expression became soft as she looked past me, "yeah well, I don't know what's going on there, but I'm just letting the wind take me wherever it wants to. And by the wind, I mean Ethan. He's hot. If we don't become something serious, I still wouldn't mind fooling around." She winked and we both laughed, enjoying each other's company for what felt like forever.

I grabbed the bull by the horns and texted Grayson to come over tonight. He answered quickly with an okay, and once again asking me if everything was alright.

Not yet, but I hope they will be.

I walked into the bathroom for the first time today and almost screamed as I saw my reflection. It's been days since I showered last, and by now, you could definitely tell. I had about two hours before Grayson was supposed to come over, so I jumped in the shower as soon as possible.

I felt the hot water fall down my body, and I was no longer afraid. It felt as if all the worries were being washed away. I let out a sigh of relief. I missed Grayson. I was going to see him, and for once, I believed everything was going to be okay.

-

so i decided im gonna finish this up before starting another story that i have slowly developing in my mind hah

i really liked writing this chapter because I haven't written about Jill or from her POV in a while, so I was glad to bring that back in because I wanted to make her more present. votes and comments are appreciated and encourage me to update faster :) thanks for reading!