Pieces of Love

Chapter 10

Jacob

"Rosa!" I exclaimed as I ran to her tiny frame waiting for Emma and me, a huge grin breaking out on my face. After the long flight, I was feeling tired but I couldn't be more excited to see Rosa again. It was a long time since I saw her ever since she moved here with her fiancé to attend university. Heathrow airport was buzzing with tourists, since it was the winter holidays.

With a few long strides, I pulled my older cousin into a crushing side hug, making her groan good-naturedly and push me away. One thing you should know about Rosa is that although she has a body the size of a hobbit, she can throw in a good punch, which made me wince, rubbing my side continuously.

I then realized that Emma was still standing a good distance away, being the shy person she is around strangers. She was shuffling from foot from foot and was fiddling with her fingers, something I realised she did when she was nervous and felt left out or awkward.

"Is that your friend? Nice find," Rosa said, nudging me at the elbow due to our enormous height difference. Her head barely reached my shoulder. I scowled at her and went over to Emma.

"Come on Em, let's introduce you to Rosa," I said gently, placing my hand on the small of her back and guided her towards a beaming Rosa.

"Nice to meet you, what is your name?" Rosa asked kindly. "I'm Emma and thank you for taking the time to pick us up. Jacob told me that your house was a long drive away," Emma introduced herself more confidently, probably because of her height difference with Rosa. Of course I will never say this to her face, but Emma was considered slightly short for an average American teen. She was a head shorter than me but still, she towered over Rosa.

After introductions, we stepped out into the cold December air and I pulled my outer coat closer around me, welcoming the warmth that it brought. I guess as I was used to the hot weather in San Francisco, this was a totally new experience for me. To my right, I could see Emma visibly shaking with excitement, breathing in deeply as if she was trying to inhale as much of the London air as possible. For some reason, my heart seemed to flutter at the sight of her smiling as she realised she really was here, in London, performing in London.

For the whole of the car ride to Rosa's apartment, Emma was eagerly taking in the sights and sounds outside the window. She reminded me of a little girl, all happy and excited. Her cheeks were flushed pink from the cold and her blond hair bounced loosely on her back.

Now that I think about it, Emma always has her hair tied up whenever I see her in school. With her hair down, the strands frame her face, making her look prettier than usual. Ever since we spent time discussing our concert plans and rehearsing, my heartbeat seemed to race whenever Emma makes eye contact with me, and this puzzles me to the core.

I have only been in London once before and that trip was a short one. I was only there with my parents and Joseph to visit Rosa after she had just moved into her new house. As a result, we didn't really have time to sightsee or enjoy the sights. So it was with awe that I stared at the view outside the car window. However, my expression of awe is nothing compared to Emma's. She looked like she might just faint any minute with excitement.

As Rosa pulled her car into the driveway, she explained to us that her fiancé was coincidently out of town for a fortnight and gave Emma and me a choice of sleeping in either their bedroom or the extra guest bedroom. Emma, being the selfless person she was, immediately jumped in and insisted that we take the guest bedroom which launched into a verbal fight with both women. Being the internal debater that Emma is, she won, ending the ten minute fight in which I was the third wheel.

"Feisty, I like your choice," Rosa commented, nodding approvingly at Emma who was currently trying to take her luggage out of the car boot. "Now be a gentleman and help her," Rosa said, nudging me again and pointed in Emma's direction. With a nod, I scurried to Emma and pried the suitcase from her hands.

"You know that I'm perfectly capable of carrying that by my own," Emma glared at me, crossing her arms over her chest. However, I see the faintest hint of a smile on her face and knew that she was cool with my actions. Guess she's glad chivalry isn't dead after all. Rosa gave me a not-so-subtle thumb up and my eyes almost bulged out of their sockets. She gestured for us to follow her as she unlocked the front door to her apartment and ushered us inside into a small yet cosy home. I could sense Emma silently walking behind me as I made my way to the guest bedroom which I had slept in the last time I was here.

"Make yourselves at home guys!" Rosa bellowed from the kitchen. "I'll be out for a while so just feel free to take anything from the fridge or watch television! I'll come back with lunch. Jacob, better make Emma comfortable or I shall personally castrate you." Emma visibly choked at this sentence and pounded her chest a few times while I made a mental note to give Rosa a few strong opinions of mine. But since her house is the only place we can stay at, it might not be a good idea.

For the rest of the day, Emma and I saved our energy for the next day, or in less fancier terms, basically lazing around and stuffing ourselves with junk food while watching television. The ten hour flight has taken a toll on us and all we wanted to do is enjoy our lives to the fullest, before the busy day tomorrow. Rosa just snorted at our petty excuse of a reason and retreated to her room for a Skyping session with her fiancé.

At ten o' clock, we decided to call it a night. Knowing Emma, she would take forever to wake up, never the morning person. The person organizing this event, a Mr Smith, would be coming at nine in the morning to bring us to the concert hall. As we prepared for bed, I suddenly remembered that we were going to be sleeping in the same room. Saying that I was nervous was a total understatement. Two teens, a boy and a girl, sleeping in the same room. Even though Emma was one of my closest friends, it did not minimise the number of butterflies in my stomach.

"Hey Jake! Ready?" Emma emerged from the bathroom, having changed into an oversized sweater and black leggings. My heart lurched at the sight of her dressed down for the night, like as if she was more vulnerable. After some more fumbling around, Emma switched off the lights, plunging the room into darkness. I could hear her slip into the blanket on the bed, while I made myself comfortable on the mattress on the floor. Earlier this evening, Emma had another debate, this time with me, on who should take the bed. However, jet lag must have taken a toll on her for I won, surprisingly, making her take the bed.

For a few minutes, there was silence except for our silent breathing. Then, Emma's soft voice pierced the silence. "Jake?" It was a just a whisper, but it echoed around the room. Just one word contained so many emotions: worry, anxiety, apprehension, nervousness.

"I can't sleep," she continued. I don't know what made me do it, but I rose from the mattress and climbed into bed with her. "What are you doing?" Emma's eyes widened, something I could see in the dark. "Making you go to sleep," I said curtly, before sliding my legs into the blanket.

I pulled Emma to my chest and held her firmly there, while trying to ignore the furious pounding of my heart. I hoped that Emma wouldn't feel my heartbeat, if not I would probably die of embarrassment. Emma's breathing hitched and her body was stiff at first, but she soon melted into my touch. She buried her head into my chest and I wrapped my arms around her, stroking her soft hair. Her cold breath on my neck made me shiver slightly but I didn't push her away. Instead, I pulled her in tighter until there was nothing separating our bodies anymore except for our clothing. Something erupted inside me; something that I could not describe; a feeling that appeared every time I was near Emma recently. It scared me, but I also enjoyed that feeling.

Soon enough, Emma slipped into a deep slumber and I gently pried myself from her arms, very reluctantly may I add, back to my mattress. As I slowly fell asleep, I couldn't help but think about one thing: the warmth that I felt just now when I was hugging Emma wasn't there anymore.