Something About The Way || Greta Van Fleet

Chapter 15 - You Told Me

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"Why do you care?" He said walking to the door.

"She locked it."

"Fucking great," he started banging on the door calling out for Layla.

"I'm not letting you guys out until you talk!" She yelled from afar.

I sat on the bed and Jake let out an irritated groan. "I don't want to hear anything you have to say."

"Yeah, you've made that very clear," I said in an annoyed tone.

He sat in the chair across from me while he glared, "You're such a shitty person." I chuckled and he shot me an angry look, "You're laughing? You're proud of that?"

"Oh, now you want to hear what I have to say?"

He rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair starting to bite his nails. We fell into an awkward silence for a while as I just watched him, "I do know you. You said I didn't, but I do. I know that you still cut the crust off your toast. That you bite your nails when you're nervous, sometimes when you're feeling shy. That you could run intellectual rings around anybody, but you don't because, despite everything you said to me, you're a really good person. Which is why you give me a hard time, more than anyone else I've ever met. Because you know that's what's gonna make me feel seen." He brought his eyes up to mine, "Every time I'm around you, all my cells are fizzy and alive, and everything feels hopeful. I just wish I could go back and stop Josh from doing what he did because...I'm really afraid I'm not going to have you in my life anymore. Yet somehow I've never hated you more than I do right now."

"Hate me?" He laughed, "What the fuck did I do?"

"Jesus Jake, after everything I said that's all you took from it? You went on and on without letting me tell you what really happened! If you had you would've known that I didn't let him kiss me! The pictures didn't show you what happened after. Yes, he did try to I'm not going to lie about that, but I didn't let him. I wouldn't do that to you." I felt tears coming to my eyes as I stood up and started to pace back and forth. I turned to face him again, "You know, I've been having a really hard time during this pregnancy but I never let it show. I knew how excited you were and I didn't want to ruin that for you. I thought my depression was bad before but it has never hit me as hard as it did when you left." I was fully sobbing at this point, "You fucking left me when I fucking needed you! You fucking left me when I was at my fucking low-" I stopped as my sobs took over me completely. I tried to catch my breath, "You left me at my fucking lowest! You told me you would never leave, Jake! Now that, that's something a true friend, someone who loves you wouldn't do."

He looked down at his feet as he continued to bite his nails.

"Now you're not going to say anything?" I scoffed.

"I don't know what to say."

I sat down on the bed again, "Hm, I don't know, how about I'm sorry I left you and our unborn child in the dust after calling you a greedy whore and telling you to stay out of my life? That would suffice."

He flinched slightly as I recited his words, "I'm sorry...for everything I said." He stood up and walked over to sit next to me, "I was angry and hurt, I would've never said those words to you if I wasn't. I'm not trying to make excuses, I know what I said was fucked up and I really am sorry. I should've let you explain yourself. Why didn't you tell me to shut up?"

I giggled, "I tried but I couldn't really get more than a word out." I looked down at my stomach, "You missed so much over this stupid shit."

"I know, there were so many times I wanted to call and see how she was doing but I was being stubborn," he said ashamed. "Could you lift your sweater so I can see?"

I nodded as I pulled it up showing off my huge belly, "The baby is the size of a pineapple right now."

He moved around kneeling in front of me as he placed his hands on my bump, "Seeing as you're still saying the baby I'm guessing you don't know the gender?"

I nodded, "It felt too weird doing it without you so I just kept putting it off."

I felt a jolt in my stomach and his wide eyes shot up to me, "Was that-"

"It was," I smiled.

His eyes went back to my stomach when there was another kick, "That's insane."

I giggled, "I know right."

He took it in for a moment before moving back next to me on the bed, "I kept finding myself back at the house we were going to buy."

"You did?" I asked, turning to look at him.

"Mhm, I don't know why. I would sit out front or in the back thinking about what our life could've been...d- do you think we could ever go back to what we were?"

"I think you're the one that needs to answer that, after all, you were the one saying there's nothing there anymore. I hope we can because I never stopped loving you."

"I didn't either, I thought I could move on but I couldn't. There's just something about the way you love me. No other person could ever make me feel the way you do," he said starting to bite his nails again.

I pulled his hand away from his mouth, "See, I told you, you do it when you feel shy."

Our heads shot over to the door when we heard it unlock. Layla cracked it open peeking her head through, "I heard the yelling stop, does that mean you guys are good?"

I looked at Jake waiting for him to respond, "Yeah, we're good."