"What does the word elucidate mean?" I ask Jake. We're both sitting on my bed studying for our vocabulary test that we have tomorrow.
"Um, to make something easy to understand." He says. I nod my head and hand him the flash card.
We're playing a game to see who can guess the most words right. We'll either tie up at the end or one of us will win. It depends on who has the most flash cards at the end of the game.
"What does the word ruminate mean?" He asks me. I don't even have to think on this one.
"To think carefully and deeply about something." I smile. He rolls his eyes and hands me the flash card.
"I told Alyssa we would be over here studying today in case she wanted to come over, but she said she had something to do. She never turns us down." I tell him.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you. She had to babysit Naomi today." He says.
I raise an eyebrow. "Who's Naomi and since when did she start babysitting?" I ask.
"Daniel's little sister. Daniel is looking for a job so he asked Alyssa if she could watch Naomi for a while." He tells me.
I nod my head. "What does commiserate mean?" I ask him.
He thinks about it. "Dang, I know, I know this one. Doesn't it mean to express sadness or sympathy for someone?" He asks me.
I nod my head and laugh. "Yeah, it does. I don't think you get the card because you had to ask me if you were right or not." I smirk.
He snatches the card from me. "Whatever and can I stay over tonight?" He asks.
"Yeah, sure, but why? I thought your parents weren't taking any more out of town trips?" I ask him.
He lets out a humorless laugh. "You should have known that was a lie just like I knew it was a lie. You know work is all they can think about." He says.
"I'm sorry, Jake. I wish there was something that I could do." I say.
"I don't need you to commiserate me. Did I even use that word right?" He smiles.
I laugh. "Yeah, you did." I smile. There's a long silence between us and I debate on whether or not to ask him what another word means.
"I've always wanted another sibling, ya know? So I won't be at home alone." He says.
"Why don't you just tell your parents that?" I ask. A long time ago, Jake's house got robbed and he was the only one home. He didn't get hurt or anything, but it still scared him, so that's why he stays at my house.
"Do you think my mom actually wants to have another child. I doubt my parents even have sex anymore. Work is their only turn on." He says.
I cringe. "Okay, can we please not talk about whether or not your parents are having sex." I gag.
He laughs at me. "Sorry, but I really want another sibling. Maybe, they'll adopt a kid for me. I'll take care of him or her. I just really hate being the only child." He frowns.
I place my hand on his shoulder. "You should propose the idea to them. I'm sure they will agree with you." I give him a small smile.
"Maybe. You want to grab a bite to eat? Go to the mall or something. I don't want to sit here anymore and study." He says.
I pinch him. "We need to study. Especially you. I saw your last test grade and I refuse to let you repeat senior year." I say.
"We'll study more when we get back and I'm sure you already know the test. You're the smartest person in our grade." He smirks.
"Giving me compliments will not make me go to the mall with you." I point at him and scold him playfully.
"Please, Abby? I'd go by myself, but I don't have a car." He gets down on his knees in front of me and clasp his hands together.
I roll my eyes playfully and smile. "Fine, but we're not staying a long time. Just getting food." I say.
He nods his head and smile. "Whatever you say boss." He salutes me. I laugh at him and grab my keys off my entertainment system.
We both walk downstairs and enter the living room to see my parents watching Criminal Minds. "Hey, mom. Dad. Jake and I are going to go out for a minute." I say.
"Alright, honey. Don't be late coming back. It's a school night." My mom says.
I nod my head and turn around to leave. When I remember that I forgot to tell them he's staying tonight, I turn back around.
"Also, Jake is staying over tonight. His parents are going out of town. That's okay?" I ask.
My dad waves me off. "Yeah, it's fine. Now leave so we can see what Hotchner does with this scum bag." My dad says, looking at the TV.
I roll my eyes and follow Jake out the door. We both get in my car and head to the mall. Jake reaches for the radio and I smack his hand away.
"What are you doing?" I ask him. He looks at me weird like I've gone crazy.
"Um, changing the radio station?" He asks, unsure of his answer.
"The driver decides what plays. Also, this is my car so I play what I want in my car." I tell him.
I can't see him, but I'm sure he's rolling his eyes. "I'm just kidding. You can plug your phone up and play your music if you want." I tell him.
I look at him and see him smiling. "Thank God. Taylor Swift's voice annoys me." He groans.
I laugh at him and shake my head. He puts on his music and The Fray starts to play. The song How To Save A Life is playing and I start to tap my fingers on the steering wheel.
This song reminds me of Jordan for some reason. I start to think back to yesterday and what he said to me. Does Jordan really like me? If he does, do I feel the same way about him? I mean, I really care about Stephen and like him, but with Jordan it always feels like we're treading the line of friendship and being something more.
"Hey, Jake. Can I ask you something?" I ask him without looking at him.
"You already are, but sure." He says. I roll my eyes.
"Do you think that Jordan likes me? I mean, I'm not going to cheat on Stephen or anything, but I just wanted to know." I say.
"Uh, you are talking about another Jordan, right? Because if you're talking about Jordan Collins, I wouldn't get my hopes up on him liking you. He might like what he can get from you." He says.
"Yeah, I know, but he said some things that just made me think he likes me." I tell him.
"Abby, I'm saying this because I care about you. Don't be so quick to believe every guy that calls you beautiful. I mean, maybe Jordan actually likes you, but the guy has only dated one girl and that was Virginia and I'm not even sure that was a real relationship. I think it was a friends with benefits relationship." He says.
I nod my head. "Yeah, I know," I pause for a moment, "But could you ask him for me? If he likes me or not? You guys are pretty close." I say.
"No way. I am not asking him that. Ask him yourself." He says.
"Aw, come on! I'm doing you a favor right now by taking you to the mall. You owe me." I say.
"How about this. I'll make a deal with you. If we don't have to study when we get back then I'll ask him." He says.
I roll my eyes. "Fine, but I'm still studying. I don't care if you don't study or not." I tell him.
He laughs and holds out his hand. I keep my eyes on the road and shake his hand. He doesn't really get much out of it. I mean, I wouldn't actually force him to study. If he told me he wanted to stop, I would let him stop.
I pull into the mall parking lot. I can't find a parking space up front and I become mad because I really don't want to have to walk far. I find the closest one and park my car. We both get out and walk into the mall.
"Hey, Abby?" Jake says. We're walking beside each other and I turn to face him, but he's looking ahead.
"What's up, Jake?" I ask him. He seems to really be thinking about what he's going to say next and it scares me. Anytime Jake really thinks about something it's scary.
"Are you thinking about getting with Jordan?" He asks. I think about his question. I don't really know. I want to say no, but I feel like I'd be lying to him.
"I don't know. I wish I could tell you yes or no, but I feel like I'd be lying to you with whatever answer I give you and I don't lie to you." I tell him.
He laughs. "You just did because you lied to me about my toothbrush. That was really messed up, Abby." He cringes.
"For your information, I didn't lie to you. I just didn't tell you about it. There's a difference." I smirk.
He rolls his eyes. "Whatever. I should have made you take care of me." He smiles.
"Yeah, right. You made me do your missed assignments for you because you made me feel bad so I think we're even." I say.
"Hmm, maybe. You'll see when April fools gets here." He gives me an evil grin.
"I swear, if you do anything to me dealing with spiders, I will kill you." I warn him.
"You wouldn't kill your best friend." He ignores my threat. I wouldn't kill Jake, but I just want him to think I will.
I'm about to respond when I bump into someone. I look up to see Virginia and her plastic barbies next to her. I scoot closer to Jake as if it's a natural instinct whenever Virginia comes around.
"Well, well, well. If it isn't flat chested Abigail. What are you doing here? Finally decided to buy new clothes and get up to date with everyone else?" She smirks.
"Lay off Virginia. Besides, I'm sure you're the only girl in our grade who's had a boob job. Every guy knows your tits are fake. Freshman year you were flat then all of a sudden you're all blossomed." He uses his hand to demonstrate the blossom part and I have to hold back a laugh.
Virginia is red in the face and she probably wants to murder both of us. "Let's go Virginia. You don't have to listen to these lies." Kimberly says.
Virginia looks at her and holds her head up high. "You're right, Kim." She snaps her fingers and they strut off.
I turn to Jake and we look at each other before we start to laugh. "Did you see her face? That was so mean of you to say." I laugh.
"She deserved it and I don't think you're flat chested. Your breast are a very nice size." He winks.
I punch him in the arm playfully and he starts to laugh. "Perv." I smile. We walk to the food court together and head over to the pizza place.
What I don't expect to see is Daniel and Jordan working together. Jordan isn't wearing the uniform Daniel is wearing so it makes me think Jordan isn't actually supposed to be behind the counter.
"Jordan?" I question. He turns around when he hears his name and he stares at Jake and me.
"Midget?" He says.
Jordan's p.o.v.
"Do you know why Daniel didn't show up to practice?" Troy asks, coming up beside me by my gym locker.
"He told me he was going to look for a job after practice, but I guess he decided to go before practice and not show up. I haven't really talked to him since earlier today." I tell him.
"Yeah, he's become more quiet lately. Like he's always in his thoughts. The dude is starting to creep me out." He says, grabbing some of my deodorant.
"Dude, get your own!" I say, grabbing it back. He rolls his eyes at me.
Ryan comes up to us. "What's up. You guys know why Daniel didn't show up?" He asks.
I'm about to speak up, but Troy beats me to it. "He's getting a job." Troy winks at me and I shove him.
"What?! Is everything okay with him and his mom? Are things getting worse? Does he need our help?" Ryan starts to spit out questions.
I place my hand on his shoulder and shake him. "Will you shut up. I think things are getting a bit worse, but he told me things were fine. Of course I didn't believe that, but he doesn't want us to worry about him." I tell them.
"Well, I'm not going to let him work. That's crazy. The guy is only in high school. He can't juggle school, football, and a job." Ryan argues.
"People in high school get jobs all the time. I'm sure he can handle it and if he can't, then we'll help him out." Troy says.
"Think about it. Knowing Daniel, he'll probably try and work crazy hours just to help his mom out. The guy is going to tire himself out." Ryan points out.
I hold my hand up, silencing both of them. "I'll go check up on him. I'm sure he's at home and I'll talk to him. If it's really as bad as we think it is, we'll all get a job." I tell them.
"Woah, woah, woah," Troy starts to wave his hands in front of him, "Who said anything about getting a job. Can't we just ask our parents to give them some money?"
I hit him on the back of the head. "No, you idiot. His mom is just going to turn it down anyway. We'll get a job, each work, and whatever we make give it to Daniel. He'll be stubborn at first, but eventually he'll let us help him. We're his brothers." I say.
Ryan nods his head. "Alright. I'll catch you guys later. Let me know how things go with Daniel." We do our little bro hand shake before he leaves.
I turn to Troy who's looking at me. "I guess I'll catch you later as well. Oh, and you have a guest." He points behind me and I turn to see Stephen is standing there.
I close my locker. "What do you want, Stephen?" I ask.
"Nothing, really. I just wanted to let you know that Abby told me about you two going for a little run yesterday." He says.
I raise an eyebrow. "Okay? And?" I question.
"I would appreciate if you didn't make that a habit. She's my girlfriend and I can go running with her." He steps forward, trying to intimidate me.
I let out a humorless laugh. "What's wrong Stephen? Afraid that Abby will come to her senses and realize she doesn't want you?" I smirk.
"She's in love with me, Jordan. I'm not worried at all. I just want you to limit your time with her because I know for a fact that you aren't just friends with girls. You're up to something and I'm going to figure it out." He says.
"I'm not up to anything and you don't know anything about me Stephen, so stop trying to act like you do and the fact that you think Abby is in love with you is funny. She's not even sure if she likes you." He pushes me up against the locker and his face is a bright red.
"Don't you say a damn thing about her! Stay away from Abby! She doesn't need some piece of trash like you in her life!" He yells.
"Am I getting to you, Stephen? Don't worry, when she chooses me, I'll make sure to satisfy her in a way that you can't." I smirk.
He lets go of me and backs away. "You know what? I doubt you can. Aren't you still dealing with the death of your real parents?" He smirks.
My smirk drops from my face and is replaced with anger. He's taking it too far. I take a step forward and he takes one back still wearing that smirk.
"Were you such a fuck up that your parents purposely crashed the car to kill themselves. That's just the rumor. I feel bad for you though. They wanted to get away from you. That's why they saved you. They'd probably rather burn in a car than to live another moment with their fuck up of a son." He smirks.
My skin is on fire and all I want to do is strangle him to death right now. I grab my gym bag and storm out of the locker room. I open the door to my car and slam the door then shut it when I'm in.
I don't start the car, but try and calm myself down, but it doesn't work. I start hitting my hands up against the steering wheel and I scream. I'm pissed. I feel rage right now. I start to cry. Angry tears. Sad tears. Guilt tears.
Stephen is wrong. He has to be. My parents wouldn't kill themselves on purpose because of me. I wasn't even bad back then like I am now, but it doesn't make sense how we crashed. Dad was driving fine at first and then the next thing I know the car is going off the road and is flipping. Did my parents really not want me? They didn't have to kill themselves though.
I cry harder. Did I really kill my parents? My phone vibrates and for a moment I act like I didn't hear it. I just sit in my car and cry for another five minutes. When you think you're over something, it's not until someone says something that makes you realize that you're not really over it.
I grab my phone and look at the message. It's from Daniel. He tells me that he has gotten a job and they asked him if he could start work right away and he said yes that's why he didn't show up for practice. He also asked me if I could pick up Naomi from Alyssa's house. I send him a quick yeah before I start the car.
I turn on my music and I'm A Mess by Ed Sheeran starts to play. This song reminds me of myself. I would be Ed in this case, but I don't know who would be the girl he's singing about.
I start to drive towards Alyssa's house and carefully listen to the lyrics. Anything to get my mind off what Stephen said back there.
Oh I'm a mess right now. Inside out,searching for a sweet surrender, but this is not the end. I understand what Ed means. I'm a mess right now. I want to be freed from this pain I feel, but I don't know how to.
One lyric catches my attention and it makes me think about Abby and me. Easy baby maybe I'm a liar. I'm lying to Abby. I don't feel anything for her, but I'm trying to convince her I do just to sleep with her. It's sick, but I can't stop now. Besides, she knows how I am so if she decides to sleep with me it'll be her fault.
I pull up beside the curve of Alyssa's house and get out. I knock on her door and a few minutes later she comes to the door.
"Jordan? What are you doing here?" She asks, shocked that I'm here.
"I'm here to get Naomi. Daniel told me to come pick her up." I tell her.
"He didn't tell me." She says. I stare at her for a moment. Is she trying to call me a liar? I'm really not in the mood.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?! I'm his best friend! It's not like I'm going to take Naomi somewhere to kill her!" I raise my voice.
She puts her hand up. "Calm down. She's in my care so I'm responsible for what happens to her. If you could just show me the text of where he said pick her up, I'll give her to you." She says.
I roll my eyes. "No! Now if you'll stop being a bitch and hand me my friend's little sister over to me, I can leave and drop her off at her house. I have other things to do." I yell at her.
She's about to close the door in my face, but my foot blocks the door. "Leave! I will not have someone talk to me like that when they're on my property." She says.
I pull out my phone and go to Daniel's message. I show her and she nods her head. "Now was that so hard?" She opens the door for me to come in and I do.
I'm still pissed and Alyssa just made it worse. "Before I go get Naomi, I have a question." She says.
I keep shifting my weight, aggravated. "What?" I ask in a bitter tone.
"Why are you pursuing Abby? Do you really like her?" She asks.
I look down before looking at her. "Yeah, I do. Can you go get Naomi now." I say.
She nods her head. "If you hurt her, I'll hurt you and that's a promise. Not a threat." She says before going down the hall to get Naomi.
Naomi walks back into the room with Alyssa and when she sees me she runs into my arms. "Jordan!" She smiles.
She always liked me more out of Ryan and Troy. She was twelve and had a crush on me. It was cute, but I'm no cougar. I like to stick to my own age and sometimes a little bit older than me.
"Hey, kiddo. Ready to go?" I ask. She nods her head and turns to Alyssa.
"I had fun, Lyssa. I still want to go to the movies this weekend if that's okay with you?" She says.
"Of course. I'll ask Daniel and if it's okay with him, I'll come pick you up Saturday." She smiles.
Naomi and I leave and get in my car. She likes our little sister. We looked out for her just like we looked out for Daniel. We were all like family.
"So, you like Abby?" Naomi suddenly says. I can hear a hint of jealousy in her voice and it makes me laugh.
"Were you eavesdropping on our conversation?" I ask her.
"Kind of. I saw Abby in a picture that Alyssa had of her and Abby. Abby is pretty. You should date her." She says.
"She has a boyfriend." I tell her. I don't know why we're having this conversation. She's too young to talk about dating.
"I'm sure you look better. Just take her out on romantic dates and win her heart. Girls like stuff like that." She says.
I laugh. "Really? I'll take that into consideration." I smile.
She nods her head and smiles back at me. When I get to her house, I drop her off. "Thanks for the ride, Jordan. Remember, romantic dates." She waves goodbye before entering her house.
I shake my head at her before I get out my phone and call Daniel. I attend on stopping by where he works and talking to him. It rings a couple of times before he picks up.
"Hey, I'm kind of busy. Is this an emergency?" He asks. I place a hand over my heart, even though he can't see me.
"Well, hello to you too. Anyways, where are you working?" I ask. He says something to somebody in the background before he goes back to speaking to me.
"That pizza place in the mall. I can't really talk. I'll see you later. Oh, and thanks for picking up Nomi." He hangs up before I get the chance to say I'm coming.
I start my car and head for the mall. He must be getting a lot of business if he can't talk to me for five minutes. I feel like things are slowly falling apart. Maybe today just isn't my day.
I find a parking space up front and park my car. I get out and head inside the mall. I see Virginia and her friends and groan. Before I can make my get away, she spots me and calls my name.
"Jordan. What are you doing here?" She smiles. She's getting closer to me and I take a few steps back. I love my personal space.
"I'm here looking for someone. Now if you'll excuse me." I try to walk around her, but her friends block me.
"Jordan, we should hang out sometime. I miss you and I know you miss what we had." She smiles and rubs her hand up and down my chest.
I force a smile on my face. "Yeah, sure. I'll call you." I lie.
"Alright, I'll talk to you later then. I'm going to go in Victoria's secret and get some new lingerie." She winks at me before she snaps her fingers and her and her friends strut off into the store.
I roll my eyes and head to the food court. I walk over to the pizza place and snap my fingers when I see Daniel. He turns around and his eyes go wide.
"What are you doing here? I'm trying to work here." He says.
"I can be here. Besides, I want to talk to you. What time do you get off?" I ask.
"Ten." He replies. My eyes go wide and I jump over the counter. He stares at me like I'm crazy.
"Are you serious? You have school tomorrow plus we have a test tomorrow that I'm sure you haven't studied for." I fuss.
"Dude, you can't be behind here. My boss will kill me if he sees you behind here." He says.
"Does it look like I care. Listen, the guys and I will get a job and whatever we make we'll give it to you so you won't have to kill yourself working." I say.
He shakes his head. "No, I can handle this. It's not that bad really. On my breaks, I will study. I got this. Now leave before my boss comes." He says.
A man with a thick a mustache comes up to both of us. "Daniel, what is he doing behind the counter?" The man says. I'm assuming he's the boss.
I speak up before Daniel can. "I'll work for free. Just let me stay and talk to my friend." I say.
The man hears the word free and his eyes light up. "Fine with me. Daniel work hard, show new kid what to do." He says, going back to the kitchen part.
I roll my eyes and turn back to Daniel. "Dude, let us help. Your mom doesn't even have to know about it. We'll work small shifts so that we all won't have to work hard." I tell him.
"Dude, I said no! I don't need your help or the guys help. Let me do this!" He yells. I feel bad for him. He feels like he needs to be the man of the house now that his dad isn't there anymore.
"Daniel, we're just worried about you. We're your brothers and if we can help then let us." I say.
"Jordan, I'm sorry for yelling, but I'll let you guys know if I need your help. I appreciate everything you guys offer to do, but really I got this." He gives me a small smile and I nod my head.
"Jordan." I hear my name and turn around to see Abby and Jake standing there.
"Midget?" I question. I wonder what she's doing here. Shouldn't she be at home studying or something.
"Are you working here?" She asks. I walk over to her and get in front of her.
"Yup. Just for today though. What can I get you?" I smile. Seeing her reminds me of Stephen and what he said to me. I don't care about his feelings anymore. I'm going to make Abby cheat on him and get him angry like he got me angry.
"Two pizzas with pineapples on it." She tells me. I look at the cash register and realize I don't know how to work it. I turn to Daniel and he laughs at me.
"Just go get the pizza. I'll handle the money and stuff." He says, pushing me aside.
I go grab their pizza and hand it to both of them. Before she can walk away, I grab the sleeve of her shirt. She turns around and looks at me.
"We're going out this weekend Midget. So don't make any plans with your prince charming." I tell her.
She nods her head. "Okay, text me the details. See you tomorrow at school." She smiles.
I wave goodbye to her and turn around to face Daniel. He has his eyebrows raised and I give him a questioning look. "What?" I ask.
"Are you sure you don't like Abby. Because it seems like to me you like her. Just saying." He smirks.
I roll my eyes. "I don't like her. It's all for the bet remember." I say.
"Sure. You'll be surprised when you find out that you're falling for her. It's okay to like her dude. Just back out of the bet before she finds out and it ruins your chance of getting with her." He says.
"I'm not backing out. I don't have feelings for Abby. Now will you shut up about it and show me the ropes." I say.
"Just leave. I don't need your help. Things are kind of slow today anyway. I'll see you tomorrow at school." He nods his head towards the exit.
I smile and jump over the counter just to annoy him. "See you later bro. I'll text you and remind you to study for that test tomorrow." I tell him.
He nods his head and I make my way out of the mall. I think about what Daniel said. Do I have feelings for Abby? It's at times that I question whether I feel something for her, but I doubt it. I'm not capable of feeling something for girls. I only want one thing from them and that's sex.