Status: Just starting!! :)

Two Different Worlds Collide

nineteen.

“Uh… sorry to interrupt,” we both looked over to see it was Eric that had came over to us, and while Jared looked mildly upset with his brother for interrupting us making out, he was more interested in the why. Eric wasn’t like Jordan; he didn’t tease us the way Jordan did, so this had to have a reason.

“Tasha’s here Jared, I thought you guys would want a heads up,” he ran a hand through his hair the same way Jared did when he was unsure of what to do, and I swallowed hard as I thought of the prospect of another run-in with the gorgeous blonde girl who really didn’t like me.

“Thanks Rick, if I need backup I’ll let you know,” Jared tried to make a joke of it, but it failed miserably. I buried my face against his neck as Eric cut through the crowd to return to the group, and Jared sighed.

“I’m so sorry Cheyenne, I’m probably ruining your spring break with all of her shit…” I cut him off with a quick kiss, seeing the concern in his green eyes.

“No, you’re not. I can’t imagine how boring this spring break would have been without you,” I quietly admitted. We kissed once more, slowly swaying from side to side with the music. I saw her before Jared did, and didn’t miss the glare she sent my way before downing her drink and talking to her friend. I watched her from the corner of my eye as her friend looked me up and down before making a face and replying. I shut my eyes then, not wanting to even think about the things they were saying about me. It wasn’t until I felt someone grab my shoulder that I opened them again.

“Get the hell off of him!” I heard a growl, and turned to see it had come from Tasha.

“Excuse me?” I hardly even got the question out when Jared pulled me behind him, probably to keep me out of the way of her ridiculously long and manicured nails.

“Tasha, what are you doing here?” he asked, sounding finished with the conversation already. She crossed her arms and pouted, before taking a step closer to him and putting her hand on his arm.

“I missed you Jare,” I nearly growled when she used the nickname that I did, even though I knew I was being absolutely ridiculous.

“Oh, so did you and what’s his face break up? Decided I was good enough now?” he spat the words out, and the color drained from her face beneath her makeup.

“Jare, it was a mistake; I love you,” she insisted, but he shook his head, taking a step back and running into me. I quickly shuffled further back, knowing he wanted to distance himself from her.

“No, if you loved me you would have never cheated on me in the first place Tasha,”

“No Jare, I do. Would we have lasted four years otherwise? Remember how good those years were?” she all but purred, closing the distance between them once again and touching his arm. Jared stayed stoically still, not moving a single millimeter as she traced some little pattern on his forearm.

“We’re done, Tasha. That’s what a break up means,” he told her through clenched teeth.

“So you’re willing to just throw all of that away Jared?” she asked, and I saw the way she bit her lip, right before there were tears in her eyes. What a fake bitch.

“You did when you decided you could cheat on me when I was hundreds of miles away and couldn’t do a thing about it,” he whispered, and she sniffled.

“Jare I love you. He was a mistake; I was stupid and lonely because you were so busy… but I understand that you couldn’t help it Jare, I know I made the biggest mistake of my life by doing that,” she turned those big blue eyes up to him and it was all I could do to not cry, because I didn’t have a clue what was going through his brain right now. “You’re the only one I want to be with.”

“Did you think I’d just wait around for you Tasha? Did it ever even cross your mind that maybe I’d find someone else? We might have four years of history Tasha, but that’s pretty irrelevant considering at least a year of that you were cheating on me. I’m done with it Tasha, done with all of it – we broke up months ago, and we aren’t getting back together. I’ve got Cheyenne, and she’s all I need,” I squeezed his hand tightly, trying not to choke up.

“So you’re going to throw away everything we had for some random girl? I know she isn’t from here Jared, and I also happen to know she’s just some girl from the bar. She’s not your girlfriend, and she’s not staying in Charlotte. So you’re going to throw away everything we had for a week-long bed warmer?” she asked, and that was my last straw. I pulled my hand from Jared’s and took off across the bar, hoping to find the bathrooms at the back. I couldn’t handle standing there and listening to her like that.

I’d dealt with enough shit and issues that I didn’t need her making it worse. I was used to being talked down and made fun of, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt.

I found the bathrooms and burst in, the tears rolling down my cheeks before the door had even shut. My reflection in the mirror was horrid – my makeup running from the stupid water works, my eyes red and my cheeks flushed. I took a few swipes at the tears on my cheeks but they just kept coming, and there was nothing I could do.

It wasn’t just Tasha’s words getting to me; it was months of Chad having done the same thing, months of believing I was as worthless as they thought. I looked into the mirror and saw the girl who’d nearly been admitted to the hospital because she wasn’t eating enough or properly, because her boyfriend made a snide comment about finding some scrawny blonde more attractive. The one who completely lost herself for months trying to live up to his expectations – of dresses and skirts and high heels and makeup and saying ‘the right thing’, all while she was falling apart inside and no one had any idea.

I wasn’t sure when I’d fallen onto the floor, but it wasn’t long after that Alice and Liza had come into the bathroom and immediately engulfed me in hugs, holding me tight and letting me cry. Liza was murmuring quietly that everything would be okay, while Alice kept assuring me that Tasha was a cold-hearted bitch and that I shouldn’t listen to a word she said. Alice had no idea of the war raging in my head, the one that I’d tried so hard to forget about and put an end to. The one Liza and my music had helped me through, and the one Jared had made me forget.

“Come on, you can come to my place until the guys are done celebrating,” Alice cooed, helping me shakily get to my feet. I wiped off the makeup that had ran, hoping I looked somewhat presentable enough to make my way through the crowded bar without anybody being too suspicious.

We got out the door and all of ten feet before I spotted Jared and he saw me. Relief flashed across his face for a split second before it was pure worry, and he started weaving through the crowd to get to us. I didn’t know if I wanted him here beside me or not, and Alice and Liza had no idea what would be best either.

“Oh my God Cheyenne are you okay? You just took off and I didn’t know what to do and I was so worried something had happened to you or you’d left,” his words came out so fast I could hardly decipher them as he pulled me into his arms and against his chest. I began to shake, knowing the tears were coming back.

It was hard, but I pulled myself from his grip, and taking a step back toward Alice and Liza.

“I think I’m going to head out,” I whispered, wincing when his expression fell.

“I’ll take you,”

“No, Jared you should stay – celebrate, have fun – you deserve it,” I insisted quietly, wishing he wouldn’t step closer or reach for my hand the way he did.

“Cheyenne—”

“Honest, Jared, I’ll be okay. Have fun, all right? I’ll talk to you later,” I tried to work up a smile for him but failed, and after giving him the quickest hug possible started to leave with the girls again. I didn’t miss his dejected expression, and felt even worse for having probably ruined his night with my stupidity.

Alice herded me into her car, Liza getting in the back as she got in and started the engine, letting it run for a few moments before exiting the parking lot. I stared out the window, not really seeing anything, but when the car came to a stop I looked around, not sure why we were at a grocery store.

“Ice cream, chocolate… and I happen to be craving some gummy worms right now,” she explained, and I nodded, following her and Liza as they made quick work of getting the things they wanted. When we arrived at Riley’s apartment we hurried inside, hanging up our coats and putting our shoes on the mat before Alice wrapped her arms around me and led me into the living room. It was obvious that she’d helped him decorate – compared to Jared’s apartment this place looked like a home – the walls were painted and the furniture coordinated with the colors on the walls.

“All right, ice cream?” she asked, and Liza nodded. A few minutes later we were all situated in the living room with a bowl of ice cream, the chocolate and other junk food on the coffee table, and a glass of wine each.

“Do you want to watch a movie?” Alice asked quietly, I shrugged, not really sure. I wasn’t really in the mood for anything, I just wanted to curl up and go to sleep.

“Okay, um…” she started going through the DVD’s and put in Pitch Perfect. I felt awful, because I could’ve easily just got a cab back to the hotel and not have ruined everybody’s night.

“I’m sorry - I could’ve just went to the hotel and you guys could’ve stayed,” I apologized, and was immediately wrapped up in hugs by the two girls.

“Cheyenne it’s fine – I’d rather be here with you than dealing with that bitch,” Alice told us, before slapping a hand over her mouth when she realized what she’d said. I couldn’t help but giggle, and soon the three of us burst into laughter.