Don't give up on me ✓

[61] Finish What We Started

'The antidote for fifty enemies is one friend' - Aristotle

Chapter 61: Finish What We Started

The new year is like a new chapter. Crisp, blank pages waiting for an author's touch.

I don't know if I'll be the one to finish it. This might be my last chapter.

My last new year.

Maybe I'm just a footnote in someone else's story.

The Maythorne family didn't celebrate Christmas but Mrs Maythorne took Hugo to church. His real family were religious and she had promised to respect that tradition for them. I wondered if they had ever seen Hugo again.

I wasn't that sentimental for the holidays. The Visit was looming in the back of my mind. Every day was a day closer to it. 

On the morning of the 25th, at 2AM, Jesper snuck into my bedroom. I knew it was him the moment my door opened.

"Get out Jesper," I told him, "We are not doing so hot right now."

"G, don't be a grinch. It's Christmas."

I was sleeping under the covers, "Are we still doing this?"

"You think we're gonna let a tradition just die like that?"

He pulled the covers off me and I reluctantly got up. Ever since we were twelve, we had a little tradition. On December 25th, when we were meant to be tucked in bed asleep, we snuck out to an iHop and ate the biggest stack of pancakes our stomachs could handle.

This time, he'd stolen the keys to Mr Maythorne's car. A little search in the navigation system found an iHop 15 minutes away. We headed over there.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"I f*cked up, G. I know that and I'm sorry."

Jesper said that to me the moment our pancakes were served. I hadn't spoken to him much on the way over. 

"You didn't treat Holly with respect and you broke my trust," I said.

"I broke up with Holly because it wasn't going to work out between us. People break up all the time. I tried to be as respectful as possible. I didn't want to hurt her and I will never say anything bad about her. She is an incredible and talented girl. I can't help it if I don't love her." 

I forked a big piece of pancake. 

Jesper saw that I was still not going to say anything. He sighed and continued, "You and I are best friends. I never told Holly anything about you and Nate. She saw you two kissing in a classroom or hallway two months ago." 

"But Nate said-" 

"Nate said what Holly told him. She wanted to get back at you and me, by destroying our friendship. And it worked. I wish you would've asked me instead of believing rumors."

"Really?" I stared up at him. The confusion in my mind was getting worse and worse.  I didn't know what to say and, thankfully, Jesper didn't push it.

Jesper kicked off our tradition, "Highs and lows."

He didn't hold a grudge. He was so confident in trusting each other, forgiving each other, that he didn't want me to make a big story out of it. 

I took another bite of the pancake, "Easy. Low is being electrocuted. That mother effing lightning strike was pain like nothing else."

"And those three days after were a nightmare. At least you were passed out during that part."

Jesper and my mom had been sitting beside my hospital bed for three days straight, hoping I'd wake up.

"And high..." I thought about it for a second, chewing on my delicious pancake, "My high has to be this new family. We're not related by blood but... we got each other's backs."

"You think so?"

He was always more suspicious than me, but I could see that even he was starting to buy into it. Mrs Maythorne had created a family out of our situation.

"At the very least, they're unforgettable," I said, "I have a question for you."

Another tradition Jesper and I had for this night was to discuss any unresolved issues. Our pact as best friends meant we always cleared the air between us before the new year.

"Fire," he gave me permission.

"Why did you break up with Holly?"

I could see that one unsettled him. Jesper didn't like to open up with his emotions. But he shifted in the booth and answered me. He had to – it was part of the rules.

"I liked her. I did, but what sobered me up really quickly is this Visit. It's going to be life or death for everyone in the house. I couldn't bring anyone else into it and it didn't make sense to have all this other stuff going on."

Even though he was human, he was a part of this family. He ran the risk of losing us all.

"Jesper," I whispered, "I may never have another birthday."

He looked down, frowning. He used to be able to protect me from everything - except this. Then he said, "You know, I've been thinking. Let's end this new year on a bang."

I sipped water through a straw, "What do you mean?"

"You remember what we were doing the night you were electrocuted?" he said, "We were going to visit Taylor in LA. Or DJ T as he likes to call himself."

"Oh yeah," I laughed. That seemed like a lifetime away.

The road trip that changed our lives.

Jesper finished his meal. "I say, let's finish what we started."

A/N: I would say that we have about 7 or 8 chapters left in this story... so please vote for this chapter and stay tuned for the next one tomorrow!

It looks like Jesper didn't spill Nate & Georgia's secret after all.