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twenty two, a rainy day

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO ━━ A RAINY DAY
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RAFE NEVER CAME BACK LATER that night. Jules grew more and more anxious over the next couple days without knowing what had become of Rafe. Other than the vague, blurry memory she has of him in the pale darkness of her bedroom from that night, she hasn't seen him in well over two weeks.

The sky was overcast and the waves of the Atlantic were unsteady the day Jules finally decided to go find Rafe herself. She was watching a movie in the living room, a blanket loosely wrapped around her frame; it was proving to be too difficult to focus on the film with the great amount of worry and anxiety coursing through her veins, something that has been plaguing her for quite a while now. It was so difficult, in fact, that Jules caved and angrily turned off the television, then proceeded to storm to her room to get a sweatshirt, her keys and shoes.

Riley had made her promise not to go driving for a little while even after being cleared by the doctor for her concussion. And Jules knew she should keep that promise, but she tuned out the little voice in her head that she could have sworn sounded just like Riley anyways.

Once in the car, Jules hardly idled before starting the engine and heading in the direction of Tannyhill. A light sprinkling of rain began to dot the windshield as the sounds of Fall Out Boy played from the speakers. The mood of the drive was melancholic and stifling.

The irony of Bang The Doldrums playing as she approached her destination did not go unnoticed by Jules.

When she pulls into the Cameron's long driveway, she's relieved to see Rafe's truck parked off to the side of the house, a vehicle parked next to it that she, unfortunately, recognizes. Panic skitters down her spine with sharpened claws as she hesitantly pulls up.

Jules fumbles to kill the engine and get out of the parked car, tugging on the hood of her sweatshirt. She stuffs her keychain into her pocket as she gingerly heads towards the large house through the rain steadily falling harder.

She doesn't make it much closer before the door is swinging open, revealing Rafe, who is flushed red and clearly angry. Jules pauses as she watches Rafe slam the door behind him, a slight tremor ricocheting through her body at the unnervingly familiar sound. But he stops dead in his tracks when his eyes land on Jules; he falters for but a moment before rushing towards her.

Jules didn't get much time to prepare before Rafe was colliding with her, his strong arms coiling around her body and holding her against him. Jules managed to get her own arms around Rafe, latching onto his shirt.

With her ear against his chest Jules could hear the erratic thumping of her boyfriend's heart. She couldn't understand why his heart was racing so viciously, as the ten feet he'd crossed in order to reach her would not have evoked such a thunderous heartbeat. Something must have happened inside, whatever had made Rafe blatantly angry.

Rafe pulled away a few moments later. His hands immediately traveled up to her cheeks, his rough palms gently cradling her face.

"Hi, angel," Rafe said, his voice breathy and strained. "Wh-What are you doing here?"

"I was worried about you," Jules said as she placed her hand against Rafe's heart. The muscle was going out of control from within the confines of his ribcage. "So I came to check on you."

"Oh. I-I was gonna . . ."

Rafe trailed off as he looked over his shoulder to the front door of his house. His heartbeat stuttered from beneath Jules's palm as he eventually dragged his gaze back to her. He opened his mouth to speak, but, before he could get a single syllable out, the door opened wide. They both looked back at it to see two figures waltzing out.

Topper and Kelce seemed surprised at Jules's presence. They halted once they noticed her with Rafe, confusion and shock flitting across their faces. Jules's blood ran cold the moment she made eye contact with both boys. And if it weren't for Rafe's hands on her she may have done something extremely reckless.

"Why are they here?" Jules muttered without looking away from the two boys.

"Said they needed to talk to me," Rafe answered her. "But they just made me angry and this fucking close to punching them." Rafe slipped his fingers under Jules's chin, gently forcing her to look at him. "They tried to get me to forgive them for everything that happened. Tried to make me feel worse about it than I already do. But I chose you over them. I will always choose you. Okay?"

Rafe's choice of words had Jules's heart clenching. Her eyes stung and her head was spinning. Even with the thick fabric of her sweatshirt, Jules was beginning to shiver. If it was the impact of what Rafe had said or the chilling rain, she wasn't sure, but she wanted to leave immediately.

From her peripheries, Jules saw Topper and Kelce mumbling to each other as they inched closer to her and Rafe. She had a feeling they had more to say to Rafe, and maybe even her as well, so she wanted to get out of there now.

"Can we go home? Please?" Jules asked Rafe. "I've missed you so much."

"Of course," Rafe said, swiping a tentative thumb across her cheekbone. The calloused pad of the digit was an odd but welcome contradiction to the rain showering down onto them, raindrops spilling down Jules's and Rafe's faces. "C'mon, I'll drive."

Rafe shifted his grip on Jules, moving one arm around her shoulders as he pilfered her pocket for her keys. He herded her to the passenger side of her car before going around the hood to the driver's side. As Rafe started up the engine, Jules kept an eye on Topper and Kelce. They stood motionless in the rain as Rafe drove back down the extensive driveway. Unease washed over her, even as the Cameron's house faded away into the distance.

Then there was a warm hand curling around her thigh. That feeling of unease dissipated at the physical contact from Rafe. Jules sighed heavily. She grasped Rafe's hand with her own, his golden ring strangely cool against her skin.

Even though she didn't look at him, Jules knew Rafe was smiling wide at her.