Beneath the Glass

A few hours later, the door pushes open and I instantly sit up, hoping my face isn’t tear-stained.

“What?” I hiss, glaring at William.

“Uh, Jake’s gone, so I... have you been crying?” he asks abruptly, leaning down to see my face better.

“No,” I lie, pushing him away and grabbing the remote to the small TV in my room.

“You’re lying!” William remarks, shoving his finger in my face.

“Look, I wasn’t crying okay? Just shut up and get out.”

I flip on the television and turn up the volume tuning out William’s voice.

“Fine, I’ll just go make out with your sister.”

William smirks and heads for the door and I hop out of bed and grab William’s arm before slamming the door shut.

“My sister just graduated from high school. She needs to focus on college and boys her own age. You are a distraction,” I explain.

“Am I really?” William asks, smirking.

“Yes and you’re just going to hurt her anyway.”

“What makes you think I’m going to hurt Nicole?” I sit down on my bed and sigh.

My mother had told me the story a million times as a warning, there was no way I could have forgotten.

No musicians and no older men, always rung out shrilly in my mind.

“I just know okay?” I mumble and William snorts.

“Yeah okay, I’m supposed to break up with your sister because you think you know everything?”

“I do not think that. I just know that my sister deserves better than some arrogant wanna-be rockstar,” I retort but William just laughs. Before he can respond Nicole pushes open the door looking uneasy.

“Um, I...William,” Nicole says, turning bright red.

“Yeah?” William asks, raising an eyebrow at my obviously distraught sister.

“I thought we...um...we were gonna um...hang out,” Nicole mumbles, staring down at the floor. William shifts his gaze between Nicole and I in absolute confusion.

“C’mon Beckett, use that tiny brain of yours,” I say. “I don’t...oh! Right, of course,” he says, after a few seconds. Nicole smiles in relief and grabs William’s hand. William smiles and leans down to kiss Nicole.

“Can you guys take this somewhere else? Preferably somewhere where there are no beds or horizontal surfaces,” I suggest and Nicole pulls away.

“Actually I was hoping you would leave,” she says cautiously.

“Leave my apartment so my sister and her pedophile boyfriend can have sex?” I ask and Nicole sighs.

"Sounds like a plan," William says, causing Nicole to laugh.

I narrow my eyes, "if you ever-"

“Okay we're leaving,” she interrupts. Nicole and William leave my apartment hand in hand and I turn back to my television, although I can no longer focus.