Jesse's Girl

Chapter 40

     His car wasn't in the driveway.

     It had been missing from its spot the five other times I'd driven by after school in the last week. The only difference in the scenery this time that had me pulling onto the side of the road across the street was the sight of a new car in its place.

     "He there?" Katrina asked. She had exams in her AP classes to study for, so she was accompanying me in the form of my phone's speaker. It was sitting on the dashboard, nestled into a small alcove right behind my steering wheel.

     "No...I mean there's a car. But it's not his."

     "What kind?"

     "Hell if I know," I said, but I was still stretching over the passenger's side seat anyway, trying to glimpse at a brand. "The logo looks like a bird. A Bentley?"

     "Maybe a Chrysler."

     "Aston Martin's look like birds too."

     "Mini Cooper's are also—"

     The sound I made next cut her off. It was a noise of pure panic. I'd meant to voice something that let Katrina know what I'd seen, but all that came out instead was a stream of obscenities as I yanked the lever of my seat and propelled myself backward. The force of my head hitting the backseat so quickly left me lying there for a minute.

     "Carson?" Katrina asked frantically. "What is it? What happened?"

     I remained where I was, eyes fixated above me. "The curtain upstairs. I didn't see someone standing there until they closed them."

     "Oh, boy."

     "I feel like a stalker, oh my God."

     I inched up a bit, watching the window upstairs in the shadow of where I was lying. After confirming that the curtain was shut, I picked my seat back up. My hands fumbled for the gear shift.

     "Well," said Katrina. "At least you know he's there."

     "That's good and all, but I'm getting the hell out of here."

     "What? Now's your chance!"

     I had shoved the gear into drive but didn't release it. My foot remained on the break. "What if he saw me?"

     "So, what if he did? He can't hide. You know he's there now."

     I sighed loudly, pushing the gear back into park. When I withdrew my hand, I cast a fleeting look at the window before I dropped my head onto the steering wheel. "This was so not how I planned this."

     Katrina's only response was a light laugh.

     I picked my head back up, my eyes landing on the driveway. "I wonder whose car that is."

     "Beats me."

     "What happened to his?"

     "Repair shop?" Katrina guessed.

     "That would explain why he's been gone from school..."

     "But, why would he go missing for so long when he has another car to use?" The phone went silent as Katrina and I were struck with the same thought. "You don't think...he has someone over...?"

     I was staring at the car, but as she spoke, my eyes began to narrow.

     At this point, I wasn't entirely sure if it was fair of me to feel jealous. After everything that's happened and everything that I'd learned, staring up at Jesse's house hit differently in my heart than it had ever before. While I wanted to feel resentful, all I could really feel was contentment. He deserved to know the truth, and if he really did have someone over, then he could decide what he wanted to do with the new information once he knew it.