Can't Believe That I Survived

*Jane POV*

"So, what do you think?" I ask Jack as he finishes reading the answers on my notepad. 

"You did really well. Really well. Definitely your best interview." he gives me a great smile from his place behind my chair, where I sit. 

I grin up at him. "He was super nice. Well, not nice, more... Humble. Or timid. He wasn't all arrogant and pushy like I thought he was going to be." 

Jack nods. "Prison changes people." he sighs, and shuffles a little. "I wish Anna could've met him. It would've been the best birthday present ever." 

His face is emotionless, but his voice is slightly disheartening. Yeah... Why couldn't we have done that? I feel stupid now.

"Maybe we could do it next year? We have time..." my brother ponders thoughtfully.

"We could..." 

"Anyway. Tell me more about your little adventure." he smiles lightly, and sits on the chair next to me. 

*Anna POV*

I head to the laundry room to put my dirty clothes in the wash after my shower. It's the only place where I can think to myself. 

Jane came home only a few hours ago, so I want to ask her about her trip.

As I step through the hallway and past the living room, I hear two nervous, but at the same time excited, sounding voices.

"-how you normally would?"

"Well, yeah, I have to keep it on a professional level, Jack. It's my job." 

I shake my head and walk on, placing my clothes in the washer.

They stop talking immediately as I walk quietly into the room and sit at our table. I smile at them innocently.

"Watcha talking about?"

Their eyes dart around awkwardly, and it's a few seconds before Jane speaks up.

"Oh, um, just work stuff. My trip." She nods like she's happy with her answer. 

This time I do believe them, but I don't know why they have to act all suspicious about it. I know nobody wants to talk about work, but this is the point where something is being obviously hidden. 

"Yeah, Jane and I are working on a page at the moment."  I can tell he's nervous as he scratches the back of his neck. It's a habit he's formed over the last, what, 8 years? That long? 
There always seems to be something he has to be nervous about.

So they're in this scheme together.

"Cool..." I decide not to pry into their little secret. I'm dying to know what's going on, though. I suppose I'll find out when the page is published. 

Maybe they were discussing my birthday present.

"So Jane, how was it?" I cradle my chin in my hands. 

"It was interesting. It's always fun interviewing people you've never thought about much. Other than that, it was a pretty average business trip. How was your guys' couple of days alone?" she winks suggestively at the two of us.

I can't help but blush heavily. The thought of Jack and I?  

"It was good. Good as in best friends hanging out together, good. Nothing more, nothing less." I smile at Jane sarcastically. "Bonus, he apologized. So we're okay now?" 

He nods slowly, without moving his absent gaze from the table in between us. I frown at his blankness.

"Are you sure?" I feel my heart pang in my chest. Is he sure? 

Jack's face turns into it's normal state. "Huh? Oh. What?" 

I raise my eyebrow and repeat the question.

"Yeah. I'm really sorry, Anna. I keep thinking about work and stuff... Why don't we go out tonight? It'll keep my mind off work, and I'm sure Jane doesn't want to cook anything right now." He smiles hopefully in my direction. 

"Agreed. Where are we going?" Jane leaps to her feet. 

I really don't feel in the mood for dinner out tonight, so I decide to stay at home. I don't want the risk of running into David again because of what happened earlier today at work. 

He sits quietly at the table in the front. He's with someone, a girl that I've never seen before. She's awfully close to him, playing with the collar of his shirt, stroking his thigh. 

"Excuse me, dear, can I order a coffee?"

I blink and switch my eyes to the old lady standing on the other side of the counter, who smiles. I try to seem as friendly as possible as I serve her, though my stare always glides back to the front table, where David and this girl sits. I'm far from jealous, but curious. 

The old lady pays for her drink and edges her way back to her table. 

David is now watching me, and has to tear his eyes away to listen to the girl's rants. He nods his head as if he's listening, but again turns his eyes to me. 
He knows I own this café, so why is he here, especially with his supposed girlfriend? He must be trying to tell me that he's finally over me, and that he's moved on. Good.

I decide to have a little fun, and smile widely at him. The girl scrunches her perfect eyebrows together as she glances between David and me in annoyance. She attempts to talk to David again but he doesn't listen, just observes me. When she finally gets his attention, she slaps him, hard. This makes me giggle slightly, and when she storms out I know my work there is done. I wink at David, and he glares at me as he rushes out to follow the girl. 

I give myself a sly smirk and carry on with my day.

"But what are you going to eat?" Jane asks me worriedly as she finds her keys and stuffs them in her jacket pocket, after changing into more suitable clothes. 

"Um, I'll probably just make toast. Don't worry. I'll be fine. I'm almost 24. I don't need supervision. Especially not in my own home." I poke a spot on her shoulder, and she flinches away from my touch. I've worked out that that's her ticklish spot, and I use it to my advantage. 

"Stoooppp!" she grins. "Jack? You ready? I'm gonna get in the car now!" she hugs me and walks out, into the hallway of our apartment. I can hear her heeled boots clicking on the wooden floor, which causes memories to flood into my mind. The sound of heels clicking is the sound of my childhood. You know when you have one tiny memory of something? That's it. My mother would always wear high heels, and I would listen to them clink down the corridor and out into the street as she left for work. 

"You know I don't like leaving you here alone..." I smile to myself as he walks quietly over to the doorway from behind me. I turn around to meet his face as I reply.

"Who's Mr. Over-Protective now? I'm fine." I give him a convincing look. 

He just nods, but drapes his long arms around my waist and pulls me into him. My eyes flutter close as I listen to his quick heart beat, my own pumping just as fast. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I wake from my light slumber to heavy knocking on my door. Groaning, I climb off my place on our couch, and make my way to the door as I rub my eyes to get rid of the sleep in the corners. Unless my roommates are back already, who would visit me at this hour? 

As I unlock and open it grumpily, my heart skips a beat when I see who it is. I already know it's too late to slam it shut again.
She slaps me right across my left cheek, just like she did to David. Although it was hard and should have stung, I was too shocked to feel anything. My eyes go as wide as plates and my hand presses against my swollen cheek as she smirks. 

"How did you-" 

"Find me?" she cuts in and laughs. "My boyfriend kindly gave me the address. All I had to say was please!" she bats her eyelashes and mimics herself sickeningly. "You'd better stay away from him, or you're gonna feel a lot more than that." She points at my cheek with a sharp, perfectly manicured finger nail that could probably slice my skin if she tried. I certainly don't want to be slaughtered with a French nail.

"I-I didn't touch him!" I move back and stutter helplessly as she steps menacingly towards me. She rolls her eyes. 

"Please. You were basically fucking him with your eyes. You're obviously still in love with him. Too bad, he's with me now. Do you want to know why he cheated on you? Because your worthless." She snickers maliciously.

How does she know all of this? I expect David would have told her the whole story. Asshole.

I feel tears welling up in my eyes at her painful words as she carries on, and I try my best to keep them from spilling over my eyelids.

"And why are you home alone? Shouldn't you be out with your friends? Oh, wait, you don't have any, because no one wants you. Not even your parents loved you enough to keep you."

I don't think I've ever been in a full-on argument in my life, so I have nothing to say. I'm stronger than her.

"Keep my family out of this." I snarl through gritted teeth. She squeals as I grab a fistful of her blonde hair and tug her out of my apartment. 

"Just get out. Stay out of my life, and I'll stay out of yours." I slam the door and when the tears start to leak out I let them fall down my face. They soothe my now burning cheek.

How could she accuse me of this? Sure, I smiled at him, but you wouldn't stalk someone and come to their house to beat them up just for that reason! I let more tears rush down my cheeks as I listen to her sickly sweet voice replaying over in my head, endlessly. 
"You're worthless. No one wants you. Not even your parents loved you enough."

My legs buckle under my weight and I sink to the floor. I don't bother to get up. 
I need to Jack to hold me, to tell me everything is fine, and to make me believe I'm beautiful and not completely worthless. I need him. But he doesn't come. 

Jane walks through our now battered front door a few minutes later. I didn't bother calling her, I don't think she would've made out any of the words I'd say. I'm so thankful she happens to come now.
I weep into her shoulder as we both sit on the carpet. I refuse to move nor speak for minutes until giving in and desperately asking her where Jack is. 

"He's... He stayed at the bar... I came home because I'd got a headache from all the stupid music... I'm so glad I came when I did. I'm sorry, Anna. We should have stayed home. It's our fault this happened to you." 

I can't tell who's fault it really was. David's, for making the mistake of hooking up with that and then giving her my address? Mine, for smiling harmlessly at my ex boyfriend? Jane and Jack's, for leaving me alone? Mine again, for wanting to stay alone? I don't care. All I want at this minute is someone to comfort me, so I slip into Jane's arms again. "N-no, it's o-okay. It's not your f-fault." 

She creases her brow, and wipes away the salty tears that are left staining my face after easing out of my embrace. "Why did she do this to you?" 

I tell her the whole story, every little detail, from when David and this girl came to the café, when I smiled at David for fun, when she left and David glared at me, and finally, when she stormed into my apartment and hit me. It all comes out in stutters but Jane understands.

"That's definitely not a great way to treat someone a few days before their birthday!" I giggle a little bit and shake my head like a little kid. "I should call Jack and tell him to come home." I nod and she whips out her phone. 

"Jack, you need to come home - Who's that? Oh... Can you just come home? Anna's upset... Are you okay? Wh - Where are you? Jack! ...Just get home now!" she presses end and sits there, a look of confusion flushes her face. 

"Jack's with someone... And... He won't be here for a while, by the sounds if it..." She says carefully, as if she's talking to a 5 year old. I know exactly what she wants me to comprehend. 

I don't know what goes through my head. Every emotion pounds, crushes, fixes, then smashes my heart over and over again. I don't want to imagine what he's doing right now. I'd probably start bawling all over again. Maybe he has found someone he cares about more than me. I feel selfish saying this, but I only want him to myself. I said those things in the park because I want him to be happy. I do want him to be happy, but I wouldn't bare to see him like that with someone other than me. 

Let me tell you, it's almost impossible to obtain the fresh tears welling up behind my eyes.

I've just realized what I should have, years ago. 
I think I'm in love with my best friend.