Breaking Ice

Chapter Fourteen

The girls arrived at their house with Bexley not sure whether she had an explanation for her parents as to why she wasn't home at the time she should have been.

Brooklyn approached her, putting her hand on her shoulder as she gave her a sympathetic smile.

"Please, don't look at me like that. I'm upset at Jeremiah for lying to me that way. I went to help him clean his room and invited him to spend some time on the ice, and then he decided to lock me up in that rink?" she rambled, earning a squeeze from her sister.

"I wasn't questioning why you were out of the house this late. But one thing I know for sure, and that is he had his reasons for doing so."

"Yeah, and what are those?"

Brooklyn groaned, walking ahead. "I can't believe you are this dense, Bex. That guy is in love with you, and you can't see beyond your obsession with some other guy who might never love you. Who is he anyway that makes you so adamant not to like Jezzah back?"

"If only you knew," she muttered to herself, hoping her sister didn't hear her.

Brooklyn disappeared into the house, leaving the door open for Bexley to walk in. "How many times do I have to say I don't like him that way?"

It scared her that the more she denied having feelings for Jeremiah, the more everyone insisted she did. What was she missing? Could she really be what Brooklyn said and not realize what's in front of her?

Her obsession with Michael has blinded her, but there was no reason for her to like his best friend.

"Brooklyn!" She called her sister, standing in front of her when she saw tears in her eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's just that you and Jezzah could have something so beautiful. He doesn't seem like the kind of guy who would lie in your face and cheat on you. He's the kind of guy who would give it all just to have you, and not run towards a pair of legs that are not even yours."

"Something tells me this is not about me. Did Michael do something?"

Brooklyn didn't want to talk about it. She shook her head and smiled faintly at her sister before she headed upstairs, wanting to lock herself in her room and be left alone.

Bexley headed to hers, closing the door behind her before she leaned against it, thinking of those encounters with Jeremiah. "Could it be that I'm truly attracted to him and not see it? No, it can't be. I like..."

She ran her hand over her face, letting out a groan of frustration. Her love life, or lack thereof, was getting even more complicated by the day. Heading towards the bathroom, she took a second shower before she could sit down and finally finish her homework, which she left behind to help Jeremiah.

And that was something she never did. Her studies were more important than anything else, so why did she feel the need to rush to his help?

Only one person could make her see clearly, and that was Nabanji, so she hoped her friend was still awake, needing someone to talk to. Brooklyn was not in the right mindset to give her advice, but she needed to check on her tomorrow.

"Nabanji?" she called softly as she opened the door slowly, seeing her friend laying in bed, watching a horror movie. Nabanji looked at her, her eyes were not glowing with life just like the first day she arrived at her home, but that didn't keep her from smiling at Bexley.

"Hey, you finally arrived. Your mom was going crazy trying to find you." She said in a hoarse voice, not having energy to even talk. Bexley laid next to her and put her head on Nabanji's shoulder, both of them staring at the TV.

"Something is bugging you, right?" she asked. Bexley nodded, sitting back up and facing her. For a minute, she kept silent, but she couldn't hold it anymore.

"Jeremiah called me to let me know someone had broken into his dorm room and made a chaotic mess out of it. I went to help him, without even hesitating and then we went to skate a bit, so he could forget about what happened earlier. But then we supposedly got locked up because we lost track of time, and the rink had closed up. And then I came to find out we could have opened the doors from inside, even if they were locked on the outside!" Bexley rambled even more this time, laying back on the bed as she tried to catch her breath.

"Hmm..." Nabanji smiled to herself.

"Hmm, what?"

"Nothing."

"It sure didn't seem like nothing. Come on, you're my best friend. Spill it. Tell me what you're going to say."

Nabanji turned to look at her. "You have no idea what that man would do to have you near him. And it seems to me that you are taking your obsession for your sister's boyfriend as an excuse to hide what you feel for the cute country boy. Bexley, you like Jeremiah Redd, and it's scaring you that it might actually be true. So stop denying yourself, and accept he's the guy that really moves that muscle inside your chest."

Bexley scoffed, folding her arms on her chest while she pouted like a toddler tossing a tantrum.

"I remember when you met him the first time, back in Freshman year. You told me how cute he was and how you wished to have a gentleman like him. Someone romantic and caring."

"Yes, someone like him. Not actually him!"

"Okay, if you say so. But think about it. Consult it with your pillow. Maybe it will give you the answers you seek." Nabanji patted her leg. "Now, go. I need to get my beauty rest. Your mom is taking me early to an appointment tomorrow."

"Really? Why didn't she tell me anything?"

"She doesn't want you to worry. But I'll let you know what the doctor said."

Bexley knew she couldn't convince her friend to let her go to the appointment with her, so she smiled at her with unshed tears in her eyes and kissed her forehead, wishing her a good night before she walked out of the room and towards hers.

She prepared for bed, but as she laid on her pillow, she couldn't shut her eyes, thinking about what Brooklyn and Nabanji had told her. Then another thought came to mind, her sister.

Why was she so upset?

"Michael must have done something to her." She muttered, and instead of feeling a sense of relief, she felt upset as well for her sister. She loved that man for years, and the thought of him hurting or cheating on her made her blood boil.

Taking a deep breath to try to release the pent-up tension from the day, her last thought before she finally drifted off to sleep was to surprise Nabanji with something she never thought she would do, and hoped with the help of a few people, it might all work out.