Mismatched

Chapter 5

Yvette was pacing back and forth in my living room. She stopped for a few seconds and opened her mouth to say something but she didn't. Instead, she continued walking around my living room like a lost sheep.

"Stop walking around and talk to me, Eve," I sighed.

"You almost kiss Jace Leighton for the first time in five years on the first day you're seeing each other in five years!" she hollered. "What the hell, Bella. What the hell. I told you to talk to him and see what he's like now, not try to kiss him at the end of the day!"

I covered my face and groaned, "It was in a spur of the moment. Besides, the kiss didn't even happen! He pulled away before anything could happen. He even apologised."

"He had self-control. Why didn't you?" she asked. She shook her head and continued, "You're going to make him think that he has a chance and he's going to keep pouncing on you. Gosh, he even gave you a friendship bracelet! It's like—"

"It's like he's trying to relive our first date," I finished. "It's like he wants to remind me how happy we were back then. It's like he's trying to tell me that he wants us to give it another go. It's like he wants me again."

"Yes," she replied.

I lifted my hand and admired the friendship bracelet Jace gave me. The colour code was exactly the same as the one in my friendship ring. Blue for unity, white for purity, pink for love. It's so beautiful. It's so meaningful. It's so perfect.

I sighed, "Don't you think this is so nice, though? Imagine how much time he had put in just to make this. It makes me think back to six years ago when he made a shorter version of this and made it into a ring. He used it to ask me to become his girlfriend. Oh, how romantic!"

Yvette placed her hand on my shoulder. "Do you still love him, Bella?"

"I don't know," I murmured. "I'm not going to lie. This bracelet touched my heart a little. There was a flutter in my heart when he presented this to me and when he placed it around my wrist. I felt so complete. What is wrong with me, Eve?"

"Oh, Bella, I think you still love him," she replied with a sympathetic look.

I shook my head. "I don't get it. How can you love and hate someone at the same time?"

"The deeper the love, the deeper the hate. You love him so much but he broke your heart and you hate him for doing that," she explained. "Hate is a reflection of love and a feeling of sorrow. You love him a lot. He hurt you. All the love you had for him turned into hate. But, deep down, you love him to no end."

"Why do I love him so much?" I groaned.

"Well, you always said he was so handsome, so fit, so strong, so sexy, so hot, so perfect..." she replied with a smirk.

I blushed upon hearing all those things I used to describe Jace. "Okay, that's enough. I don't need to hear all those cringe-worthy things I said when I was in high school. That's just about his appearance. That's lust. But love..."

Yvette chuckled, "Oh, those are not the only words you used to describe him. You said he was nice, sweet, caring and humble. I don't think those are just appearances."

I rolled my eyes. "Well, whatever I felt back then could've been an infatuation. I could've just liked him for a period of time. But love stands the test of time. Jace's so-called love didn't. That's infatuation. But now he's making it sound like it was love. I'm confused."

She sighed, "Well, I can't help you with that. You will have to listen to your heart."

"My heart?" I asked, gently placing my right hand over my chest. "So I only have to count on myself to know why I still love him and whether he actually loves me?"