True Colors

Chapter 14 - Out of 50 Messages...1 was unexpected.

Chapter 14 – Jessica Montez

I woke up the next morning: Sleeping. On. The. Floor.

“Katie?” I asked, looking around the room—gone.

What the hell?

I picked myself up and walked into the kitchen where Katie was fiddling with her cell phone.

“Good morning,” I greeted, groggily.

“You sound lovely this morning,” Katie replied.

I scoffed, “Don’t remind me,” I stuck my tongue out at her and grabbed a water bottle from the fridge; “You texting Jackson?”

I tipped the water bottle back gulping down almost half of it in an instant, “No, I’m texting Nicholas.” She replied—I, literally, spit all of the water that was in my mouth out.

“You’re texting who?” I repeated.

“Nick?” she replied, completely confused, “You know—that guy you dated in seventh grade, your best friend?”

“I’m not stupid Katie; I know who he is…” I replied, rubbing temples, “Why are you texting him?? What does he want?”

Katie gave me a weird look and then looked back at her phone, “He wanted to know what I was doing.”

“What’d you tell him?” I asked, clearing my throat.

She made a ‘tsk’ sound with her teeth, “I just told him I was waiting for you to wake up and then he asked if we wanted to meet him for breakfast this morning.”

“Could he come and pick us up?” I asked, “’cause none of us know how to drive here.”

Katie laughed at my comment, still looking at her phone, “I’ll ask him.”

I nodded, “Cool…be right back, going to go and get dressed really quick.”

She waved me out and I walked back into her room and threw on the clothes she had let me borrowed—god, I wish I had Katie’s wardrobe. I picked up my phone on Katie’s bed side table and unlocked it…fifty freaking messages.

13 from Eric.

7 from Jake.

1 from Jessica.

10 from Kyle.

9 from Lucas.

7 from Ky.

2 from Jackson.

My heart stopped when I saw who the final message was from.

1 from Dad.

I dropped my phone and backed up into the corner of Katie’s bedroom—just staring at my phone. What the hell did he want? Why was he texting me? I was too afraid to look at the message.

“Jessica?” Katie’s voice was a little bit louder since she was walking down the hall, towards her bedroom.

I quickly walked over, picked up my phone and shoved it in my pocket, “Yeah?” I called.

Katie showed up in the door way and leaned against the door hinge, “Nick said he could give us a ride.”

I nodded.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, pushing herself away from the door and walking closer to me, “You look like you’ve just seen a ghost or something.”

“Nope, no ghost,” I replied quickly.

Katie eyed be suspiciously as she closed the door behind her, taking her phone out of her pocket and putting it on the charger.

“Really, Jessica?” she said, quietly, “What’s wrong?”

I sighed and handed her my phone.

She unlocked my phone and went straight into my messages, “Geez, fifty?! What’s got you so freaked about—,”

Katie was quiet as she saw that my father had sent me a text message, “Oh my god.” She whispered.

“I’m going to read it,” she warned me. “Do you want me to tell you what it says?”

I sigh, “I don’t know—I’m kind of freaked out about what it’s going to say.”

Katie just nodded and tapped the screen; it didn’t take long, heck, it took all of one second for Katie’s eyes to go completely huge.

“Katie…”

Silence; she didn’t even reply to her name.

“Katie?” I repeated.

Katie turned her head towards me; she looked like she was about to start crying, “I’m going to protect you, Jess…I swear.”

I stole my phone back from Katie—what the hell was she talking about?

1 New Message

From Dad:

I will find you…if it’s the last thing I do.

I sat there…completely and utter speechless, I was extremely afraid as I stared back at Katie. I jumped as Katie’s phone went off—Nick.

Katie stood up, took her phone off the charger, and read the message, “Nick’s outside…”

I nodded, standing up from the bed and walking out into the hall, “everything’s going to be okay,” Katie reassured me. She unlocked the door to see Nick and his mom sitting in their car, waiting for us.

“Shall we go?” Katie smiled at me.

I smiled back at her, “We shall.” We looped our arms together and walked towards Nick’s car.