lockets (a thatsojack fanfic)

part fifteen

I quietly hopped onto my bed that sat under the windowsill and looked around. It had been a long time since I last slept in here. For a minute, it felt weird. But then I remembered how many other times I had crashed at other houses and this wasn't much different. No light shined in the room except for the sliver under the door, signaling they were home.

Calm down, Rylee.

I took a deep breath and padded over to my dresser, tossing several shirts, pants, and undergarments into a duffel bag. I paused, realizing how my appearance had been all week, and grabbed a red dress out of my closet. I silently laughed at the fact that I would be wearing a dress, a dress that I hadn't worn since last Christmas. Suddenly, I was broken from my thoughts when I heard blurred voices from the kitchen. I slowly moved to stand behind my door, placing my ear against it.

"Rick, it's been several days. This is unusual."

"What do you expect me to do, Dana? This is Rylee we're talking about. This isn't the first time she's left." I shivered at the mention of my name.

"How can you sit there and act like this is okay? Our daughter is missing, for crying out loud!"

"Dana, please. We already called her multiple times, we checked the town, we checked with the school. What- do you want me to call the cops?" He slammed his hand on the counter.

My breathing picked up as they continued arguing about me. They wouldn't call the police; they couldn't. They didn't honestly want me back that bad, right? I felt a tear fall down my face, smudging it away quickly when I realized the time. I had two minutes before Jack would come to find me, and I couldn't let that happen.

Pulling my duffel bag over my shoulder, I headed back out the window just in time to see Jack opening the car door, running his fingers through his hair. When he noticed me, his shoulders relaxed and he sighed. I trudged over to him and he pulled me into his arms, squeezing me so gently.

"Are you okay?" He asked, looking at the house, and then back at me.

I wiped my eyes, "Yeah, I'm fine." I forced a smile. He grabbed my duffel bag from me and put it in the back seat while I jumped into the passenger seat, awaiting the next big mountain--dinner.

I sighed when the car turned off the street, but my anxiety consumed me still. It sent shivers up my spine knowing that my parents could easily be discovering my whereabouts at this second. They would think about the past 'slip ups'--staying past curfew, coming home with Jack, my loss of friends-- and figure out the only possibility. If I don't come to them and confess, they will find me and I won't have the chance to speak.

"This is overwhelming." I looked out the windshield. Everything seemed to be toppling all at once and I was underneath the topple.

Jack reached over and grabbed my hand, "Don't worry, Ry, it's all going to work out. Promise."

I smiled. "You always know what to say."

"I have to make up for your loss of words." He squeezed my hand and I smiled harder.

---

We arrived at Jack's house with an hour to spare, leaving me plenty of time to get ready. I closed the door behind me as I entered the bathroom, looking in the mirror first. My face was pitiful. Black mascara crawled down the sides of my face, giving me a look of a corpse. I had no makeup on, and I cursed at myself for not grabbing it when I was home. My self esteem was falling to an all time low, but I brushed it to the side along with my hair. My face cleared slightly as I washed the mascara stains from my cheeks. Lastly, I pulled the slim, red dress over my head and stared at myself in the mirror. Half pitiful, half smiling, I laughed. I really was a mess.

When I entered Jack's room, he was sitting on his bed with a laptop. "Is it too dressy?" I asked, pulling on the one sleeve of the dress.

His gaze lifted from the computer screen to me and his expression suddenly changed. "N-no, it's perfect." Jack stammered. "You look beautiful." He placed the laptop on the desk and moved over, an indication for me to sit next to him.

I intended to be a lady and take my seat on the bed but my brain had other intentions as I slowly ran to him, his hands pulling me onto his lap. My lips parted and met with his, as I wrapped my arms around his neck. His arms made their way around my waist and held onto me as we toppled over onto the bed.

Through everything, the one thing I knew best was distraction from reality.

Side note: Nothing sexual intended c;