Two Sides Of Tova.

Sixteen

       He led us both upstairs, to say I was jealous of their spacious home. It was big on the outside and bigger on the inside. We stood outside his door, he clutched the doorknob and twisted leading to his bedroom.

  It looked neat, books were neatly packed and stuffs neatly stacked. His room looks even better than mine except boyish and normal.

    I turned to meet his gaze studying my expression expectingly. I started back at him inquisitively as to why he was looking at me expectantly.

He cleared his throat and rubbed his neck again.

"Jack what is it? You can just tell me you know?". I said to him.

"Um what do you think?". He asked clearing the air.

I smiled and walked closer to him before I stood directly in front of him. I took his hand away from his neck and put it down.

"Your room is great, it's much better than mine in fact. I like it Jack".

He breathed out in satisfaction.
"I'm yet to see yours so I'll be the judge of that". He smiled. "Wait I'll be back let me go get some snacks for us". He said as he left the room.

"Okay".

I began to explore his room, I walked towards his mini library. A shelf opposite his bed, I scanned through a list of books before taking out one to look at it.

I admired the penmanship before realizing that it was a personal journal. I immediately placed it back on the shelf and moved to another section to take out another book.

It contained some pictures of Jack and his family. I turned a page and saw mini Jack holding a toy gun with a big smile on his face blowing out his candles.

I smiled at his photo and placed it back on the shelf.

"I'm sure you find that photo amusing". Jack said from behind me. Startled, I turned to face him in a haste while clutching my erratically beating chest.

Immediately he rushed to me, I stood and started pounding my fists on him.

"Damn it Jack, you scared me".

"I'm sorry just been here for a while now, you didn't seem to notice". He said.

"Really? Well why didn't you say anything till now, what were you doing anyway?". I asked curiously.

"I was watching you". He declared bluntly.

His answer surprised me, it caught me off guard and I didn't know how to reply.

"Thanks for watching me but there's nothing pretty to look at". I said wearily.

He looked at me in confused pain before he came closer to me. He held my face gently in his hand then he coaxed me to look at him.

"Tova I can't believe that you don't see how much you're beautiful". He said melting my heart even further. "You're very pretty Tova, you should know that and it doesn't matter what anyone told you, you are beautiful".

   I've always imagined hearing those words from someone who mattered to me and could see through my glasses my true self. I realized that Jack made me feel special even when I'm down and unhappy. I just came to terms that my feelings for Jack were sincere and true. If Jack could see me like this I don't care what Kendra or anyone thinks.

I think that I'm in love with Jack.

I didn't even realize that a tear slipped past my eye before he wiped it away with his thumb. I smiled at him and he smiled back.

"Thanks no one has said that to me before". I told him.

"No one needs to, it's the truth Tova, enjoy it". He said deeply looking at me.

  His hand still held me face and my hands held his waist. It felt like forever before we started leaning in to each other. Sparks sizzling, a long awaited moment. Something I've always wanted to happen was coming and nothing was going to stop this.

My gaze darted between his eyes which was trained on my lips and mine on his. Our lips lightly brushed one another before I felt this excruciating pain coming from my body, burning me from both inside and out.

I cried out in extreme pain as I fell to the floor writhing, rolling around trying to quench the fire burning around me.

I could feel Jack holding me in his arms calling out to his parents who barged into his room seeing me in pain. His face showed fear, fear for me and what would happen. A force pressing me down, wrapping itself around me, silencing my consciousness, binding me.

I shout out trying to ease myself of this force raging inside of me. At the background, I could hear Chris shouting on his phone for an ambulance and Margie barking at Jack for explanations which he couldn't give, trying whatever thing she can to ease me through the pain I was feeling. She was ordering Jack to look for help and his eyes telling that he couldn't leave me laying on the floor.

The twins at the door watching as I was contorted in pain unable to do anything. 
Jack took them out of the room, I couldn't reach out for him to stay with me. Tears spilled out of my eyes as I cried in pain.

I felt my eyes closing up pulling me into unconsciousness. Trying to fight it but it was pulling me harder and harder. I once again felt almost the same way I felt when Ara-ñat and I merged.

I could feel the connection I had with Ara-ñat strained, I could feel the pull, the equilibrium, the calibration, the symphony, the synchronization, the explanations, her feelings.

    All of a sudden, I wasn't with Jack anymore,I wasn't with anyone, I was alone as I got up from the uncomfortable bed looking around the room.
I stood up from the bed which I laid upon. I walked towards the cracked and torn down wooden door, I opened the door ajar only to be met with a village filled with huts and rare faced Asians.