Come Break Me Down

Chapter 24

The harsh reality of life without him hit me smack in the face the week after he was gone. I was never this unhappy in my whole life and luckily, I had Sierra to remind me of that daily. "You're still sulking on the couch?" She said, walking in from the grocery.

"Don't start." I responded, sitting there in my pajamas in the darkened living room. It had been this way for days, lying around, crying and feeling sorry for myself most of the time.

She put the bags down, letting out a deep breath. Spinning around, she quickly walked in the room, opening the curtains and turning on the lights. "I don't get why you're sitting here crying over him. Weren't you the one who let him go?"
She went back to the kitchen to put the food away. "He was so disappointed that you wouldn't go home with him. He's hurt that you don't trust him, but I know that you do love him. Call him, Ava!"

"I don't want to talk about him anymore." I got up and walked toward my room. All I wanted to do was get back in my bed and keep busy by reading, which eventually led to falling asleep.

She finally talked me into going out with her to see her boyfriend's band play two weeks later. Dragging me out the door, she promised me a good time. My plan was to get so drunk that I didn't feel anything at all. We arrived at the bar and I got myself a drink before walking back over to stand next to James. It became painfully obvious why Sierra insisted that I come. Jared didn't see me at first, but when he did, he looked away quickly. His hair was even more faded than it was two weeks ago from what I could see of it sticking out from under his cap. My heart started beating faster the second he moved closer.

When the band took the stage, Jared walked behind me. "Hi." He said, raising his voice over the loud music as he stood next to me at the side of the stage. He shoved his hands in his pockets. I missed him so much, but I so wanted to yank Sierra's hair out. She was so busy watching the band play to pay any attention to me.

I had a hard time paying attention to the music with him so close. He took his sunglasses off and watched them play intently. I realized that I had to make things right with him. He wouldn't hurt me by cheating on me, I knew that in my heart and was stupid to ever believe it. When I didn't speak, he moved away.

After the show was over, I stuck close to my sister. James was in deep conversation with Jared, but he greeted Sierra warmly, hugging her and asking how she had been. After their short conversation, he leaned in, giving me a tight squeeze. "Good to see you."

"Jared, I have to ride with James to drop someone off, do you think that you can bring Ava back to my place?" Sierra asked, avoiding my eyes at all cost. I had no idea she was planning to do this and became instantly annoyed. That's not awkward at all..

"Sure." He smiled at my sister. "You ready?" He asked, turning to me.

Struggling to not say something shifty to Sierra, I nodded my head and followed Jared outside. He opened my door and gave me a hand climbing up into the seat. He walked around and got in. "I think I remember how to get there." He said as he drove toward Sierra's house. Looking over at me in the seat next to him, he smiled. "You look beautiful."

"Thanks. Good to see your hair is finally fading out."

We made small talk for the rest of the ride and I was dreading how things would be when we got back to Sierra's. She set me up, not telling me that he was coming and I knew that she would stay out with James. This was her way of getting us alone. He pulled up at Sierra's house and I unlocked the door. Standing there quietly, he spoke. "You happy here?"

"No. Jared, I owe you an apology. I should've believed you and trusted you more. I'm sorry that I didn't and I want to come home."

He smiled. "You think that I'm okay with that? You basically called me a cheater." He folded his arms. "The fact that you took Arianna's word over mine, is what hurts the most. I don't know, maybe we need this break."