Heaven // Ryan Tedder

Chapter Twelve; Secrets

About a month later, Abby Gonzalez was out for one of her daily walks, on her way to the coffee shop to meet up with Janelle, who said that she had something to tell her friend. Abby was curious as to what this might be, since Janelle no longer talked about her relationship status, although Abby had pushed her to give her details occasionally.

The thing was, over the past month, Janelle had gotten rather quiet. Abby seemed to have a sixth sense about when something was wrong with her; they were best friends, and they had known each other since high school, after all.

Abby mainly wondered about what had happened with that Ryan guy. Janelle hadn't mentioned anything about his coffee deliveries anymore, so she wondered if he still brought anything to her.

She could only hope that she would have her questions, or at least the majority of them, answered today.

When she stepped into the cafe, she looked around a bit, eventually spotting Janelle,  who was sitting at a corner table, looking out the large window. Today, she wore a light pink hoodie, and a pair of black skinny jeans that seemed to match her dark hair. To Abby's surprise, there weren't any dark circles under her eyes like usual, but as she approached her friend, she realised that she was only wearing thick makeup to cover them.

"Janelle," Abby Said, causing her to look up.

"Oh, Abby," she smiled a little, before motioning for her to sit down in front of her. "How are you?"

Abby sat, looking at Janelle warily. "I'm fine," She Said, eyeing Janelle up and down. "How're you?"

Janelle looked down at her hands, biting her lip a little. "I'm alright."

Something in Janelle's behaviour told Abby that she wasn't, in fact, alright.

Abby opened her mouth to ask Janelle what she wanted to tell her, but a barista walked up, interrupting her by asking, "Can I get you anything?"

Janelle gave the barista a soft smile. "I'll have a cup of chamomile tea, please."

Chamomile tea? Janelle never drank tea. In fact, Abby could've sworn that she hated tea.

"What about you?" The barista asked, making eye contact with Abby.

"Oh, um.." Abby thought for a moment. "I'll have a vanilla latte."

"Alright, I'll be right back with that." The barista gave the two of them a wide smile, before she walked away.

Abby looked over at Janelle. "Tea?"

Janelle shrugged. "I felt like something different, today."

Abby chuckled a little. "You? Different?" She Asked.

Janelle wasn't the type to switch things up. When she found something she liked, she tended to stick with it. It was something she had done since high school, so when she ordered tea instead of her typical caffeine-infused coffee, Abby was certain that something was up.

Janelle bit her lip, looking out the window again. "Tea just sounded good, okay?" She mumbled.

Abby sighed, biting her lip. If she wanted Janelle to tell her what was up, she was clearly going to have to ask.

"What is it that you wanted to tell me?" She Asked, and Janelle looked at her for a moment, before looking back out the window.

"It's complicated." She stated.

"Complicated is okay."

"You have to promise you won't be angry." Janelle added. "Just hear me out."

Angry? Why would Abby be angry? This caused her to wonder even more what was going on, if that was possible.

"I won't be angry," she said, although she wasn't quite sure if she could keep that promise, depending on the situation. "What's up, Janelle?"

Janelle hesitated, before she quietly rushed out, "I'm back with Joshua."

Abby's eyes widened. Joshua? That jerk? Even though he had always pretended to be a decent guy in front of Abby, she knew what he was all about, and she didn't like him at all, especially after he cheated on Janelle. Why on earth would she go back to that dumbass?

"What?" Abby Asked, almost unable to believe what she had just heard.

Janelle opened her mouth to speak again, but just then, the barista came back, placing a mug in front of her, before setting a coffee cup down in front of Abby.

"Can I get you anything else?" She asked kindly, and Janelle shook her head.

"No, but thank you." She gave her a small smile, and the barista smiled back.

"Enjoy." She Said, before turning around and stepping away again.

Abby immediately looked back at Janelle, her eyes still wide. "You have to be kidding me."

"He's a good guy, Abby." Janelle mumbled, beginning to fidget with a strand of her hair.

"You really believe that?" Abby laughed ironically.

"Yes, I do." Janelle Said. "You Said you'd hear me out."

"But this? This is ridiculous." Abby scoffed. "Good luck explaining this one."

"He's changed, okay?" Janelle sighed. "He's gotten his act together and realises that what he did was wrong."

"And You believe him?"

"Yeah." Janelle Said.

"Janelle, that's bullshit!" Abby Shouted, before lowering her voice. "You know he's a manipulative asshole."

"That's not true." Janelle shook her head. "He's been kind to me. And I still love him."

"Are you sure it's not because he pays your rent?" Abby mumbled, causing Janelle to look at her, a shocked expression on her face.

"Abby.." She Said in an offended tone.

"Why are you even with that bastard?" Abby questioned. "He doesn't care about you."

"You don't know that!" Janelle defended him. "He loves me."

"Do you love him?"

"Yes!"

Abby scoffed. "You're making a mistake." She mumbled. "I can't believe this.."

Abby stood, and Janelle looked at her.

"Abby, don't go.." she sighed.

Abby shook her head, turning and walking away. She stepped out of the coffee shop, slamming the door once she made it outside.

She couldn't believe her friend. Joshua had given her millions of reasons to run from him, he cheated on her, for goodness' sake. Yet, she really thought that he loved her? He was an insensitive and cocky asshole.

And although she knew Janelle would be stubborn about it, she was determined to get her away from him. Only, she just didn't know how.