WHAT COMES AFTER THE END OF THIS

Chapter 32

Chapter 32

Yrene's PoV

Katie lets me in as soon as I ring the bell and practically drags me inside, to her room. I sigh in relief when I realise that her parents still weren't back from their business trip therefore, minimising the chances of my parents finding out where I actually stayed over the weekend. 

Like an eager puppy she sits cross legged on her ginormous bed, jumping up and down.

"Tell me everything Nene. Aaahh I'm so excited for you man. So tell me did you do the dirty?" 

She waggles her eyebrows suggestively, forcing me to grimace,

"Eww no! Are you dumb! Why would I?"

"Babe in case you haven't noticed you spent two nights at his house." 

I tilt my head because it was fair enough that someone would get the same idea.

"No Kat we didn't 'do the dirty'-"

"Then what did you do?"

"Well we kind of just got to know each other properly, we talked and stuff. That's it."

"So you're telling me this is it? That's all you did? No kissing? Nothing?" 

Her eyes were wide in disbelief as she continues to bounce on her bed. Unknowingly I blush at her words and unluckily for me she caught the blood in my cheeks as quick as a panther.

"You bitch! You totally did something, didn't you?" 

"We just kissed a few times you sick minded dumbass."

All of a sudden she becomes serious,

"What now?"

"What do you mean?"

"Are you his girlfriend?"

"What? No! He didn't ask me out. And it's just that."

"Nene...I just don't want you to get hurt again. Not after Nick."

"Relax it's nothing but you tell me; what about Sean, huh? Is he still ghosting you?"

Suddenly the mood becomes sullen as she breaks down in tears. Sean was her on again off again boyfriend of a year, he was inexplicably rude to her and whenever he felt like it he would call her a prostitute and force her to sleep with him when she didn't want to and in turn then break up with her. 

My naive friend was too dumb to take note of his manipulative behaviour and believed herself to be in love with him when everyone else around them knew it was anything but love, just plain infatuation and lust.

 Aelin, Joss and I had tirelessly tried to confront her about the situation but she refused to pay heed to us. Joss was extremely worried for her, more so than Aelin and I even and that was because he was in love with Katie and the only reason he hadn't told her was because he feared it would effect our friendship; the only person who knew was myself because I had noticed the gleam of admiration in his eyes whenever he saw her, or the jealousy when she confessed her love for Sean and the anger that lit up like a raging fire in his eyes when he realised how badly he had hurt her, and had confronted him about it.

 After consoling Katie and telling her to forget about Sean and focus on the people that really loved her, a tub of ice cream and a chick flick later I decide to tell her about the decision of my engagement.

 We also take Aelin and Joss on call so that I don't have to say it more than once because every time I thought or spoke of it the words left a bitter taste in my mouth and a dull ache in my chest, where my heart rested. 

By the end of my explanation my voice is trembling and Katie and Aelin are both crying, Aelin loudly and Katie silently and Joss is silent because the shock has struck him so. 

A few moments pass and the doorbell rings, Katie and I go to get it and see Joss standing on the other side. 

He doesn't say a word and just walks in, engulfing me in a tight bear hug as he too let the tears flow. I remain strong through and through and don't even shed a single tear. Strong is the wrong word. I am numb. Devoid of all feeling and emotion in the moment because this is when the entire intensity and seriousness of the situation dawned upon me like a thousand splendid suns, ironically one of my favourite books. 

My parents had actually found a way to convert me into a pawn for their business after all. All the puzzle pieces fell in and I realised why they had so easily given in to Raymond and I's demand to let me peruse a career in mechanical engineering, the bastards had found a way to use me still, to make their business flourish. And yet again I was given no choice of right to choose.

 Aelin joined us fifteen minutes later and Joss is back to being his normal comical self trying to ease the situation and making it less tense with his numerous jokes and disgusting puns. The sun sinks and the stars come out, I decide it is time to head home, time to face my problems head on.
~*~
Ross is the one to open the door and as soon as he does that he hugs me to his chest tightly, continuously telling me he is sorry, sorry that he couldn't take a stand for me, sorry that he let me down, sorry that he couldn't save me this once just like he had promised to and sorry that he had not told me the moment he had found out; the day I saw him fighting with Raymond. 

I let him know that I forgive him by hugging him back tightly in return and kissing his cheek. For the first time my jock of a brother had been reduced to tears. I take my head from the crook of his neck and look ahead and there stands an embarrassed Raymond and a weary looking Michelle. 

Jason may have been her brother and the Dawfield's her parents but I knew the engagement wasn't her fault or even Jason's, I could see it in their eyes that day. The gloom, the sadness that they tried to mask with flattering smiles and indifferent eyes. 

Like I had no say in matters of my life neither did they, the only exception and good luck of Michelle's being that she was actually madly in love with Raymond. But I wasn't. I was t in love with Jason and he definitely wasn't in love with me, him snogging the dumb blonde in the diner in my presence was proof enough of that. 

I smile at Mishy, a warm smile that lets her know that I am not mad at her and that I  do not blame her for anything. She gives me a wry smile in return as I detach myself from Ross and make my way to her, giving her a tight hug. 

"Yr, I'm sorry, I really am. But-" I cut her off knowing what she has to say,

"Mishy, sweetie, I know you had no say in it. Don't fret about it."  

"But I should've told you Yr. Raymond should have told you. We should have."

"As I said it wasn't your fault, you clearly had restrictions." 

With this I give a hard, stone cold stare to Raymond and go up to my room. 

A few minutes pass in silence as I take off Chase's shirt, inhaling his scent of musk and aftershave before hanging it back in my closet and changing into my pyjamas not taking off my crop top that I  had originally left the house in two nights ago. 

I breathe a sigh of relief for my brothers not having noticed that I was in different clothes and that too of a man's; I snicker to myself thinking that they were probably grateful I was clothed more than when I had left.

 It strikes me then that I had forgotten my shimmery shrug at Chase's house and make a mental note to text him in order to remind him to bring it to school tomorrow, without anyone noticing.

A loud, clear sounds resonates through my huge room as someone knocks on my door, breaking me out of my thoughts. Ignore the fact that I do not feel like talking to anyone at the moment and that I'd probably hit whoever it is if they try holding a conversation with me, I tell them to come in. 

Mostly because I know the knock well. I can recognise it anywhere.