Chapter Three
“So do you want my bed?” Jake slurred as we ascended the staircase.
“No,” I shrugged. “It’s your bed, I’ll sleep in the guest room.”
“Well, I don’t see why I gave you a choice,” I looked at him confused, one eyebrow raised. “We don’t really have a guest room yet, we’re still unpacking and all the boxes are stacked up in the spare rooms.”
“So then I’ll sleep on the couch.”
“It’s a pain the neck to sleep on that thing.”
“Ok then we’ll share your bed.” I said in a jokingly stern voice.
“Fine with me.” He shrugged.
I looked at Jake then, confused once again. Share a bed with him? Why is he so nice to me? Entering Jakes room I paused in the door way as he walked past me. He turned back to me and raised his eyebrows in question.
“Why are you being so nice to me?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Because I kind of just ignored you today after school. You were just trying to talk to me-”
“I’m not supposed to communicate with people of the unknown.” He said in a rush. “Take that as you will. You’re in danger just by staying here. Trust me. This was the last place you wanted to end up tonight.” His voice grew angry, sort of scary. He was too serious for me to take anything he said as a joke. Is this guy insane? Jake pulled back the plain black comforter on his bed and pointed at the bed. “Sleep.” He demanded.
“I’m not a dog,” I said slowly, kind of hurt. My eyebrows scrunched together and my lips pouting. Why is he so mad all of a sudden?
“Sleep, Iris. Just lay down and go to sleep. Please. I beg you, just go to sleep.”
“Jake what’s going on? You sound mad at first and now worried. Is there something I should know about?” With no warning Jakes body fell to the floor, limp. “Jake!” I cried out involuntarily and rushed over to him.
Jake lay motionless on the beige carpet of his room I couldn’t detect his chest moving up and down to signal his breathing. Not knowing what to do I called for his mother. Two sets of heavy footsteps pounded up the steps and hands gripped my shoulders, wrenching me from Jakes side, throwing me across the room. My leg stung with carpet burn. Carla pulled me up and shoved me out of the room. The bedroom door was slammed in my face as soon as I turned around to protest being in the hallway and I was stunned into silence.
The dark oak door opened and I stood from sitting with my back against the wall, opposite the door. “He’ll be fine,” his father walked out. “he has random fits like that, something about low iron I think is what Carla said.” My eyebrows scrunched together in misunderstanding shock. Jakes father didn’t know what was wrong with him? “You can go back in the room now.”
Without a second glance I went into Jakes room and walked over to the bed where he now lay. “Let him sleep,” Carla whispered. “You may take over Anna’s room. She’ll sleep with us tonight. I’ll show you where.”
Carla led me down the crimson hallway and into a room clad in pink walls with posters of My-Little-Pony and others from various children’s toys and television shows. “I just realized that her bed might be a little small for you. You could sleep on the couch,”
“I’ll be fine in here Mrs. Carla.” I smiled and took a few steps into the pink room.
Carla left me alone in the room, shutting the door behind her. With a raise of my eyebrow and pursing my lips I looked around the room. It was way too girly for me, but hey, it was only one night. Flipping the switch on the wall close to the door the ceiling fan light turned off and a small lamp flickered on. With a sigh I crawled into the bed and lay on top if the hello kitty comforter, spending about three hours tossing from side to side, back to front, trying to fall asleep.
