Forbidden Things

Chapter thirty seven

-Tate- 

I drive back from the hospital to the apartment. I'm not going home tonight. And not for the next few days either. I'm done with pretending this is the most normal thing in the world.

Madison knew about it. She had known about it for a long time. I don't know how or from whom she knows, but it's not good for her to know. She's angry that I haven't said anything in all this time, even when she asked about it. Of course I understand her. She's my best friend, I should just tell her stuff like this.

I told her everything today. Coach has given us all day to talk things out. I really told her everything this time. I told her how Jacob really died, I told her about my father and what he does exactly, I told her about Callie and about my father's assignment.

She was mostly in shock that there were so many things I was withholding. Things that I couldn't share with anyone at all. She had just hoped that I felt with her that I could say such things to her so that I wouldn't have to go through it alone. She just couldn't understand why I didn't tell anyone.

She just had a bad day today. She wanted to confront me and she regrets hurting Callie so much to get it done. I've agreed with Madison from now on that I'll tell her everything that happens in my life. We may both still have to work on the trust issues between us at the moment, but we will work it out together.

Callie told me she is fine but I can clearly see she is in a lot of pain. She just doesn't want me to worry about her. I wish I could stay, but the doctors actually didn't agree with my visit. So I'll go back in the morning.

I park my car in front of the apartment and walk in. Some of Callie's stuff is still here because she lived here for a while. Her bag is also still in the corner.

I know I shouldn't look in her bag, but I'm just curious to see if I find the same person in there that she is towards me. I'm just curious what stuff she always takes with her. And I still can't sleep because of everything that happened today.

I grab her bag and open it. I see her books for school, her laptop and that's basically all she has in her bag. That's a bit boring. I open the side pocket in the bag and there is a kind of small container in it.

I open the tray and I see that it is filled with photos. Pictures of her from when she was young with her sister, with her mom and dad, herself with Chloe. She's a cute little girl. I look at all the photos and I don't recognize half of the people in the photos until I get to one of the last photos.

I look at the boy in the picture. I can not believe my eyes. I take another good look at Callie and then back at the boy in the photo. No I see it really well. That's Jacob. Jacob in a picture with Callie when they were both little kids.

I put the photo aside and in the next photo I see Jacob again. The next few pictures are all pictures with Jacob. Why does Callie have these pictures? What kind of sick joke is this? 

. . .

I could not sleep. I spent all night on those pictures. I don't understand where this comes from. I'm on my way to the hospital right now to ask Callie what this is.

I walk into her room. A smile appears on her face when she sees me, but it soon disappears when she sees what I have in my hand.

"What the actual fuck is this?" I hold the picture in front of me and I can see from her face that she is shocked that I have the picture.

"Tate where did you get that?"

"That's not important, can you explain this to me?" I throw her stack of photos in front of her on her bed. She looks at the pictures and she knows exactly what this is about.