Tangled

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Eighteen

"Thanks for coming."

Walking up the cool, grey steps of her house, Tatum noticed her sister standing at the doorway. She was not alone. In front of her, stood a retreating girl with brown hair whose face was flushed. From her view, she seemed awfully familiar and as Tatum crept closer, she understood why. It was Bailey.

"Bye, Tess." She waved a little to the older girl, walking away when she noticed Tatum. She shot her a small smile and rushed past, as if scared of inquiry. Which, truth be told, would have happened if she had not been so fast.

"Oh, you're back!" Tess exclaimed, a grin taking over her former expression. Tatum strode inside, dropping her bags at the door.

"Was that...?"

Tess nodded. "It was Bailey, yeah. She came by an hour ago to...um, apologize and what not. We're not friends, but I have forgiven her."

"Really?" Tatum was unsure. Tess was definitely not the forgiving type, plus, how much could a person change in two days? "Are you sure?"

She nodded again, happily linking her arm with Tatum's. "Yeah, yeah. Lets forget it now, okay? How was your trip? What did you do? You've got to tell me everything!"

The two sisters walked into the living room, dropping down on the couch and crossing their legs. The smell of homemade brownies danced in the air, filling Tatum's nostrils. Tess noticed and instantly sprang back up to grab them off the counter. They were set in little squares on a dish, pretty blue flowers along the rim. It was their mother's favourite set and one of the most expensive they owned. It was given to them as a gift from their deceased grandmother. Tess had pulled it out for two special reasons: her sister's arrival and her mother's new job. Now, instead of teaching in a high school, she would be teaching English Literature to prospective college students. It was an enormous honour, as the college was one of the best in the country.

"It was amazing." Tatum said, a smile tugging at her lips as she remembered her short but sweet time spent with Niall. "If I could, I'd live it all over again."

Tess peered at her sideways. "You were 'safe,' right?"

Tatum's eyes widened. "What?!"

"Well, you know, you're young and you don't want to fall preg-"

"Stop. Oh my God."

Tess giggled. "Sorry. It's not my business."

Tatum shook her head, blushing a deep scarlet. "No, Tess, it's just that, you're not the only one whose asked and well, truth be told, we didn't do anything besides talk and laugh...and maybe kiss." Her curly blond hair fell as a shield to cover her embarrassment.

Tess pushed the locks back, smiling warmly, "you look just like me the first time Jason and I got together."

"How is he?"

Tess leaned back, biting her bottom lip. "He's forgiven me. But we're still trying to rebuild the same relationship we had before. It's hard for him, to you know, let me incompletely after everything that's happened. I treated him like...I treated him so bad and he had nothing to do with any of it. I blamed him for not sticking up for me that summer, but I realize now that I never gave him a chance to. My anger got the better of me and I destroyed so much. I hurt you, I hurt Mum, I hurt Jason...and I hurt myself. I wish I could take it back. I wish I had seen what was right in front of me the whole time."

Unexpectedly, Tatum pulled herself towards her elder sister, snuggling into her side. "Just let it go, Tess."

"Okay. One thing, though," Tatum looked up expectantly, "how did you know it was Bailey and not someone else?"