Broken Promises

Chapter Eight; Jade

Jade frowned as soon as Jenna disappeared into the backroom in the distance.

Which left her with... this... guy. She'd actually never seen him before. At least, his appearance, as well as his gruff voice, rang absolutely no bells to Jade. All she knew about this teenager was that he knew Jenna... somehow. It gave her a knot in her stomach; she wasn't sure who to trust, let alone a stranger, or even the blonde who had gone to the back of the store to puke. There was a huge part of her that just wanted to go back where Jenna was, regardless, and at the very least, guard the door for her only remaining friend.

It might've been the way that Jason had just betrayed her by admitting he knew about this place as well as the Cat, then just running off, that set off the trust issues, but really, she'd learned to be cautious before this whole mess started. Although... with Hope around, it had always been much easier to go by on her way with people. She knew that if anyone had turned on her, Hope wouldn't have hesitated to take action for them both. Which made the brunette even more upset; thinking about her friend. She was gone, and Jade wasn't sure how she was going to survive without her.

The boy cleared his throat, and that was when Jade realized that she'd been standing there like an idiot, worrying her head off in silence. She did not force a smile this time. Being on her own, she had to be careful on who to trust, heck, she was probably better off by herself. Either way, she knew that it was rude not to respond, as he seemed to be waiting for her to speak... or maybe introduce herself? It irritated her a little bit that he was nudging her to make the first move to start a conversation.

"Uh... hi?" Jade asked with an eyebrow raise, stuffing her hands into her jean pockets. "You're... uh..."

She couldn't recall if Jenna had said his name earlier; she couldn't remember. His appearance and demeanor did not give her the greatest feeling. The boy's state; his clothing, his messy curly hair, the dirt and blood staining various parts of his body, as well as his ragged clothing, made it seem like he had been living out in the forest for years. He was thin, skinny to the bone, which gave off the hint that he struggled to find his own food. His face wore the permanent expression of exhaustion; the definition of a guy who appeared to be, "raised by wolves." The only thing that gave away he wasn't that feral, was the polite attitude he wore around both her and Jenna. He had a very... serious, feeling to him.

"My name is Robin." The boy tipped his head slightly, giving her a blank blink as he also studied her state. "You are Jade, I assume? From what I could observe, Jenna seems to have a positive opinion of you."

Jade hadn't bothered to hide her slight offense at the way he worded things. He was... a little odd, and it was hard to tell how exactly he meant it, because both his face and voice carried a blank delivery of the meaning.

"Erm... You're probably one of her town... friends?" Robin continued when he noticed her uncertain glare, obviously trying to be friendly, but it appeared like he wasn't sure how to interact. "Jenna... mentioned you while explaining that she was here to search for you and her other friends. I don't remember the others' names... but she mentioned there were three of you. Did the Cat split you up?"

"Who are you?" Jade asked cautiously, keeping distance between them both as she shook her head to dismiss his question. "I know your name, but who are you, to Jenna?"

"I... I'm her... 'forest friend.'" Robin replied, slight embarrassment showing in his amber eyes. "Jenna likes to give people she cares about nicknames... but I'm sure you already knew that?"

Jade nodded, not saying anything further to explain her own side just yet. She wanted to see if he genuinely meant to help, or if he just wanted to use them both. She had to be extra cautious now that Hope was out of the picture.