Broken and Fearless // C.B.

Chapter 41

Colby's POV:

Sam came back alone. "Where's Jules?"

He met my eyes. "I took her to the airport. She wanted to go home. She doesn't want to hear from you. She said she'll contact you when she's ready. Man, I thought I told you to go easy on her."

"I did!"

"Apparently not, because your girlfriend doesn't want to talk to you."

Sam glanced at his phone and showed me a picture Jules had sent him. She'd taken a picture of the flight information with a black heart and a smiley face. "She seems happy, Colby. Give her time, okay?"

"Sam, I love her so fucking much it hurts. I hate that she's going through this. I hate that we're fighting. I hate that I can't do anything."

"I know, Colby. I know. Look, she plans to be in contact with me, so I'll reiterate to you until she contacts you herself. Okay?"

I nodded. "Yeah, okay."

One Week Later

I was busy editing, trying to take my mind off of my girlfriend. It was working a little.

Suddenly, my phone rang and I saw that I had a text from Juliet. 'Facetime?'

I FaceTimed her immediately and she answered. She gave me a tiny smile and said, "Hi."

"Hi. How are you?"

"I'm okay. Look. Mayflowers. They're in bloom."

"You visited at the perfect time. Jules, I'm really sorry about what I said."

"As am I." She replied softly.

"Are you coming back soon?"

She bit her lip and I found myself wishing I could kiss her. "No, not yet. But, I'm gonna go to games while I'm here. I'm going to a Sox game with my dad and sister, as well as a Celtics game at the Garden."

Her accent sounded thick, which made sense. "Sounds like you're keeping busy."

Jules nodded. "I am. Oh, thanks, Jenna."

She came into frame and glared at me. "You're being good to her, right? Julie said you two are in a fight."

I nodded. "We are, but I think it's cooling down. Yes, I'm being good to her. You know I'd never hurt her."

Jenna gave a satisfied nod. "Good. I hear otherwise, you're dead."

She left and I squinted at what was in Juliet's hand. "What is that?"

Jules held it up. "It's a Hoodsie cup. It's ice cream with a spoon. Gosh; these are great." She ate some and smiled sweetly.

I groaned. "You're torturing me, Jules."

"It's what I do best. Check this out."

She spun around while eating her ice cream making me laugh. Either my girlfriend was putting on a face, or her old self was back. I was pretty sure it was the latter.

"Whatcha doin', baby?"

Jules shrugged. "I have no idea. I'm happy. I'm actually happy, not just saying it. You made a good call, for me to come home."

"Yeah?"

She nodded. "Yeah. You able to come up?"

"I think I can swing a week."

Juliet clapped and her eyes widened. "Almost dropped my Hoodsie. Your fault. Also, yay!"

Juliet's POV:

I fussed with the kitchen, trying to scrub stains clean. Jenna came up behind me. "Julie, calm down. Those stains have been there for awhile. They're not gonna come up. Dad and I have tried. I don't think Colby will care."

"Fine. How do I look?"

She studied my outfit. I had on a red and black short pleated skirt and a black tank top that was reasonably tight. I was wearing my black Converse, as usual. "You look great. But you're missing something."

She ran to my room and came back a few minutes later with my black key necklace. She put it around my neck and smiled. "Perfect."

Two hours later, Colby arrived at the house. My dad had picked him up at Logan.

He slowly walked up to me and I ran the rest of the way and jumped into his arms. He wrapped an arm around my waist and whispered, "I missed you so much."

I caressed his cheek with my thumb. "I'm okay, just so you know."

His eyes were watery as he said, "I love you, Juliet. And I'm so sorry for all the shit I caused you to feel."

"It's okay, Colbs. I forgive you. I caused you some pain too, and I'm sorry for that."

"Don't. You don't need to apologize, Jules. I'm the one who fucked up. Again."

"And I'm the one who lashed out and pushed you away."

Jenna cleared her throat. "Oh, my gosh. Save your sappy love story for a romance writer. You forgive each other. That's great. Julie, we got the Celts game tonight. You gotta get ready. Colby, we have an extra ticket if you'd like to come. Dad got it for Jackson, but he's busy with directing a short film for homework."

Colby frowned and nodded. "Sure. I'll go. Uh, what color do the Celts wear? Celts?"

I rolled my eyes. "Celtics, and they wear white and green."

"Hey, don't roll your eyes at me. I was asking a legitimate question. Well, two."

"Yeah, pretty sure I've told you Celts colors before."

"Maybe, but I don't follow sports. I don't remember!"

I grabbed a Celtics hat and stood on my tiptoes to put it on his head. He adjusted it and smiled. "Thanks, babe."

I saluted him. "You're welcome, Coach."

Jenna and Colby started laughing. I frowned. "What's so funny?"

Colby pulled me to him, so my back was against his chest. He kissed the top of my head and said, "You, babe. I love seeing you so happy. I love seeing your humor back."

"Stop your cuteness." Jenna told him.

Colby smirked. "Can't. I love this girl too much. Gotta show it somehow."

I glanced up at him. "We should play a game together. Maybe Kingdom Hearts or Minecraft."

"I'd like that."

We made our way to the Garden and Dad got some nachos before the game. He promised me clam chowder, and I told him I'd hold him to it.

The game started and instantly, I was deeply into it. My phone chimed, but I didn't even look, as I was too into the game.

In the end, the Celts ended up winning. I was a happy camper. "Wicked awesome game!"

Jenna high-fived me. "I agree. Dad, what's next?"

Dad looked at me and smiled. "Julie expressed interest in clam chowder, so I think we should get her some."

We made our way to a restaurant to get New England Clam Chowder. The white kind; not the red.

All in all, it was a good day. A really good day one I haven't had in awhile.

[Why do I put poor Juliet through all of this? My poor little Juliet is really struggling. She wants to be strong, but she's crumbling.]