The World How I See It

Chapter Eight

Jessie looked blankly down at her plate of fries that she had ordered just to look like she belonged in the cafe. Margaret hungrily ate her burger, looking up at Jessie on occasion. Margaret could make out the fresh scent of tears in the air but she noticed that Jessie hid them well.

"So," Margaret said as she wiped her mouth with her sleeve, "What's with your sulky mood and sudden late night dinner parties?"

Jessie glanced out the window, barely having acknowledged that the sun had long ago set. She watched as couples walked past the window with their hands clasped tightly together. A sob escaped her throat and she turned back to her friend.

Margaret set down her second burger and looked at her friend with new found concern, "Hun, what's wrong?" She reached out and took Jessie's hand, squeezing it slightly as she looked into her friends eyes to search for the reason there also.

Jessie's shoulders shook slightly as she tried to keep from crying for the third time that hour, "Maggie... What does a girl do... When her heart's been ripped out... And stomped on?" Jessie's eyes began to fill with tears.

Margaret's eyes widened and she slid out of her booth to sit beside her friend. She wrapped her arm around her shoulder and pressed Jessie tightly against her breasts awkwardly, "Th-there, there... Why have I only heard about this now?"

Jessie didn't care if anyone watched as she cried silently against Margaret's shirt, "It... Wasn't even real... Nothing even... Happened... But he... Hurt..."

Margaret made a calming hush as she slightly rocked back and forth, "Who did this to you? I'll kick his pathetic ass, whoever he is." She had anger hinted in her tone to tell Jessie that she wasn't in the least bit kidding.

Jessie shook her head against Margaret as her sobs slowly died down, "No..."

Margaret pulled Jessie back as soon as she felt that she was ok, "What do you mean?"

Jessie shook her head again, "I can't tell you.." As much as she wanted Margaret to threaten and hurt David, she would only get both of them hurt that way. She didn't want her to be involved in David's mind games that he already played on her.

Margaret pulled away fully and looked even more angry, "I have complete and total rights to your love life and clearly this is a broken heart love that's not being mended with fast food." She gestured to Jessie's plate.

Jessie sniffled, "I haven't eaten all day... I've barely eaten all week... I've lost just around five pounds and I just don't know if I can keep the food down now."

Jessie blew her nose into a napkin, "I've been... So worried." She looked up at her friend, "I went to a party with him last Saturday."

Margaret's jaw fell open, "You? You went to a party with a guy?"

Jessie looked down at her plate and suddenly picked up a fry, "Yeah... I woke up with a major hangover on Saturday. It was not fun." She shoved the fry into her mouth and picked up a few more.

Margaret's jaw dropped further, "Oh my gosh... You are lying."

Jessie shook her head, "Nope. It's true. I was so afraid that I had sex with him and when he told me that I hadn't... I felt strangely disappointed."

Margaret shook her head. She leaned back against the booth as she finally began to take in everything, "I guess it would be normal... Unless he was a complete geek."

"No. He's not at all a geek. He's... Sexy and..." She began to trail off as she began to think about all of these things. She hadn't realized that she had even remotely thought of him in these ways.

"Oh. Is he a bad boy?"

"Yes. I think you kind of see how mean and bad he can be."

 "Yeah. I think I know someone like that. David Nickols." Jessie looked at her friend in shock and she found her smiling slightly, "He was awesome in bed. He was a bastard afterwards too; just left me there. But I don't think he's who you're talking about."

 Margaret turned to look at Jessie and was surprised to see anger etched in her face, "What are you trying to say? That I wouldn't even have a chance to end up in his bed?" Jessie was infuriated that Margaret had even implied to it. Especially after admitting that she had sex with him.

"I never said that! I just figured--"

"Figured that he would never give me a second glance," Jessie finished for Margaret. "That he would never want to touch me?"

"Jessie, why are you acting this way?"

Jessie softly growled at her friend, "Because he's my mate." Margaret's eyes became bigger and bigger and she gasped softly.

"Oh... I didn't know, Jessie. I'm so sorry that I said that."

Jessie gave a deep sigh and picked up another handful of her fries, wanting to drown her sorrows in a different way then just thinking.

"It's true though. Everyone's probably been with him except me. He's the reason for my bad mood and me calling you here."

"Alright," Margaret placed her hand on her free hip, "Now that that's all out into the open, let's hear why he broke your heart."

"I actually don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?"

Jessie shrugged and began rubbing her cheeks to get rid of the feel of the dried up tears, "I don't know. I don't think he really likes me. He told me that he might but he also said that he could be playing with my heart." Jessie reached up and touched the place where David's hand had been. She blushed softly as she could still feel the lust and passion that she had felt at that moment. She had to push him away though. It just wasn't like her.

Margaret scoffed and stole a fry from Jessie's plate, "Typical men... But shouldn't he love you eternally if he's your mate? Are you positive that he is yours?"

"I'm positive. I don't feel like this around anyone else. I never even dared to think of other boys because of dad or I was too busy... But he's got such an effect on me that I haven't done any homework and I havane't picked up a single note."

Margaret shoved fries into her mouth and spoke while chewing, "That's really weird for you. He must be for real if he can actually get you to stop with homework and shit like that."

"He's got me crazy, but he seems mad at me all the time. I don't know what I did to make him hate me. Maybe he just hates me because he wanted somebody else as a mate." Jessie believed the last thing she said. Why would he want her if he's slept around with some of the most beautiful girls in school. She felt she wasn't close to being like them.

Margaret punched her arm harder than she normally would, "Don't you dare talk like that! I'll kill you if you ever think or utter a word that sounds like you're calling yourself ugly." Jessie rubbed her arm gently and nodded her head. She stared down at her plate of fries losing her appetite once again.

"Look, just ask him."

"What?"

"You should ask him why he's mad at you. It must be serious if he's your mate and all. It's hard for mate's to stay apart from each other so there has to be a reason for his hostility towards you."

"I can barely talk to him. When I do it's when I'm answering his stupid questions that make me feel like an idiot.

Margaret patted her back with a grin, "Don't worry. I'm sure you can pull yourself together and beg to him with tears in your eyes." She made a mimicking cry, "David, why don't you love me?"

Jessie punched her arm playfully with a laugh. On the inside she was trying to convince herself that she had to go and ask him. It couldn't hurt to try.