Just Me ✔

Chapter 19

I stare at the ceiling in my room. Ugh. I hate being the only one awake at sleepovers.

I decide to sneak out of my room, carefully avoiding all the bodies on the ground, and go downstairs to make some tea. As I make the hot water in the coffee pot, I see my reflection in the glass of the microwave.

I never realized how much I look like mom. My brown hair framed my face like hers did, and I had her nose. All of a sudden, I see my mom. She's in the glass. I reach my hand out to touch her face only to be stopped by the glass.

"Mom," I whisper as a tear rushes down my cheek.

"Gumdrop?" I hear Chase ask from behind me. He startled me, which caused me to quickly turn towards him. I turn back to the glass that my hand was touching, and I notice my mom wasn't there anymore.

It's just me.

I whip my hand to my chest and feel it tighten. My breaths began to quicken.

"Jayden?" Chase asks.

I close my eyes and slide down the wall, and I put my head in my lap. I try to control my breathing. Tears begin to spill from my eyes.

Chase rushes to my side, and puts my hand on his chest. "Feel my breathing?" He asks as I feel his chest rise and fall at an even pace. I nod. "Focus on that."

I close my eyes. Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. Down. Slowly, my breathing matches his.

He sits down next to me, and wraps his arm around my shoulders.

"Thank you," I whisper.

"Of course." He responds before kissing my head.

"Why are you up so late? It's almost 2 in the morning," I ask, wiping my tears as I change the topic.

"Oh, I dunno. I just couldn't sleep, I guess," Chase shrugs.

"You don't seem so sure about that," I laugh, as he turns slightly pink.

"No! It's just," he quickly defends himself before cutting himself off, "Hey, you're up late too!"

"Yeah, I couldn't sleep , so I was making some tea to help," I smile at him.

"Ew, you like tea?" Chase asks, scrunching up his nose in disgust.

"Uh, yeah. It's freaking amazing. My mom used to make this really awesome tea from scratch. She made every year for Christmas," I say, but I slowly drift off. My parents won't be here for Christmas. I'll be alone on Christmas.

Chase brings me into his chest. "You know what, gumdrop?" Chase whispers to me, wiping a stray tear off my cheek with his thumb.

"What?" I whisper back.

"I think we'll have to make that tea this year. Maybe that'll make me turn into a tea lover," Chase smiles at me.

"Oh trust me, it will," I return the smile. I stand up and put my tea bag into the hot water.

"Hey, check it out," Chase says as he walks over to the back door. I walk over and see white flakes covering the ground, and falling from the sky.

"Holy crap! Is that snow?" I exclaim. I have never seen snow before - only in movies and pictures.

"Shh! You'll wake everyone!" Chase whisper-yells at me. I ignore him, and open the door. I giggle as I step outside. It looks like I'm in the middle of a snow globe! I look up at the white flecks falling towards me, and I feel the small wet flakes hit my face. I let out a soft laugh.

"Jayden! It's freezing out here," Chase says from the door.

"I don't care, it's beautiful," I smile at the sky. I bend down and run my fingers through the snow on the ground. The cold felt so nice on my hand.

"Yeah, I know." Chase said as I heard him come near me, "Here, arms up?" He asks as he draped something over my body, instantly filling me with warmth.

"Thank you," I grin at him.

He nods in response, I glance up at him and I see the snowflakes in his hair.

"Snowflakes," I say, staring at his hair.

"What?" He laughs.

"In your hair, they're pretty." I smile, as I ruffle his hair making the snowflakes disappear.

"Thanks," he mumbles. 

I stare in awe at the snowflakes before Chase snaps me out of it.

"Where are your shoes?" he shouts. I shrug. I forgot about all the cold. I just focused on the snow.

"You're gonna get frostbite if you stand in the snow!" Chase exclaims.

"I'll be fine, just 5 more minutes?" I ask him with hopeful eyes. His hard stare softens, so I know he caved.

"Fine. But, you gotta sit. On the heated deck." He says as he gestures to a swinging bench. I happily skip to it, and sit down instantly covering my feet. I had socks on, but now they are all cold and wet. I quickly rip them off. The deck is heated and covered, but the sides are all open giving me the perfect, yet warm, view.

I shiver, and squeeze my feet hoping to warm them.

"Hey," Chase comes near me and sits next to me on the bench. "Come here," He widens his arms, as I snuggle into him. He wraps his arms around me, and I feel my insides warm. I watch the snow breeze down, as it slowly gets heavier and heavier. This looks so much prettier in person than in the movies.

"So pretty," I say as I yawn, feeling my eyelids getting heavy. I'm so warm and cozy, it makes me so tired. I can't help but fall asleep.