Pleasure

Chapter Forty-Seven

5 Months Later

I wake up to an empty but warm spot beside me. A sizzling sound comes from the kitchen, making me roll over and sit up. The light coming through my apartment window comes in beautifully, brightening the room. I stretch out and swing my legs over the side of the bed. I slip on my robe and walk into my kitchen to see Jacob standing over the stove, cooking.

He's been here a lot since I've moved in, and I don't mind at all. We've been so good, I could care less if he moved in with me right now. Graduation is slowly approaching and I'm waiting on its arrival. Now that Jacob and I are so good, I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I've sent out applications to local colleges, but I don't want to be too far from him. It would be weird to leave him after all we've been through.

"Hi," I groan weakly. He turns around and stares at me before pinching his lips upwards, forming a smile.

"Hello Beautiful."

"How'd you sleep?" He asks and grabs my hips, bringing my body closer to his. He plants a soft kiss on my forehead.

"Like a baby," I smile and grip his sides. He smiles down at me for a moment, staring into my eyes. He looks like he wants to say something, but his lips stay closed. "What?" I giggle, confused. He shrugs and lets go, attending to his food again.

"You check the mail lately?"

I poke my lip out and take a seat in the high chair behind the bar, folding one leg and sitting on top of it.

"No. I'm starting to get discouraged." I pout, thinking about my application to Georgia Tech. Jacob rubs my arm, pulling me from my thoughts.

"You'll get in. They'd be crazy not to accept someone as smart as you." He encourages, smiling down at me. He pecks a kiss on my forehead and walks over to the stove before turning it off. He scrapes food onto two plates and hands one to me. I smile and take it. I was hungry before, but looking down at the eggs and bacon makes my stomach churn. My face unwillingly tightens up as I swallow down last nights dinner.

"Are you okay?" Jacob asks after swallowing his food.

"Yeah," I plaster a smile on my face, trying not to offend him. I stab the eggs and throw some into my mouth. I take a few bites of bacon as well and eat my food slowly.

Without warning at all, the food begins to come back up. I quickly jump up and run to the sink before vomiting violently. With everything in me, I try to stop myself but it just keeps coming up and the smell makes me vomit some more. I feel Jacob's warm palm rub my back as I finish and sit there leaning over the sink. He pins my hair back and turns on the hot water, washing my food down the drain. I feel weak in the knees and I groan silently.

"What was that?" He questions, turning off the water before continuing to rub my back. I wash my mouth out with water.

"I don't know." I pause for a moment. "I'm just not hungry."

"You still want me to drop you off at school?" He asks. I nod and walk to my room to get ready for school.

While at school, everything seems to go by slower. Everything is too loud or too bright. I feel like I got no sleep. At lunch, I silently pick my food tossing it from each side of my tray.

"Are you okay?" Natalie asks, looking up from her phone. I nod but say nothing. The smell of the pizza is making my nausea worsen. "You look like shit."

"I don't feel good." I blandly state.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know," I shake my head in confusion. Nothing felt right and everything was off in my mind. "I threw up this morning, I think I'm getting sick. I can't really eat anything, it might be my period." She pinches her lips together hesitantly. I give her a questioning look.

"I hate to ask you this but are you sure you aren't pregnant?"

Her question nearly makes me laugh. An estranged giggle slips from the depths of my throat.

"I'm just asking. When my mom was pregnant with my little brother, all she did was throw up. She had morning sickness every hour of the day." She explains. She shoots me a sympathetic expression. The thought rushes in with a million other thoughts. I've been on the pill, so being pregnant doesn't seem likely to me.

"Maybe it's just your period." She shrugs and looks back at her phone. I look down at my pizza once more and feel that tingly, nauseous feeling in my stomach. My insides seem to knot and twist around itself.

By the end of the day, still nothing feels right and my thoughts consume every empty spot in my mind. I hate that Natalie put something like that into my head because now it's like a parasite. And one way or another, I have to get rid of it.