𝐜𝐫𝐮𝐢𝐬𝐞

𝟏𝟑

WARNING: this chapter contains talk of substance abuse. if this is triggering to you, please refrain from reading. message me personally and i will give you a summarized version of the chapter.

i hope you enjoy this triple update! just so you know, chapters 11, 12, and 13 are all grouped together for this update so make sure you read them in order! happy reading ;)

***

"Jaydennn," I whined as he dragged me out of the bathroom and towards the pool deck. "I don't even like coffee," I pouted.

"You will after this," he told me. We were out of the bathrooms and were near the elevators, looking through the glass doors, trying to see if there are any workers on the deck. It was around three in the morning at this point, so it would be surprising to see people awake at this time.

Jayden dragged me out of the doors, across the pool deck and to the shaded area of the deck, near the buffett, but still outside. There were tables set up for people to eat and sit, with a long island that usually contains complimentary snacks, but now only contains the closed ice cream machine and the fixings for coffee.

I sat down at one of the tables while Jayden walked over to the coffee machine and started making coffee for the both of us. They didn't have any mugs, so he used a cup instead.

"I prefer my coffee iced, so I made yours like that too," Jayden said as he sat down with two cups of iced coffee.

"Thanks," I said, looking down at the coffee.

"Just try it, your taste might have changed," he said as he took a sip of his, looking over the rim at me.

I knew I was being dramatic because it's just coffee, but I never liked coffee. I've tried everything I could to make it taste better, but nothing was appealing to me.

I decided to stop being a baby and just take a sip. I looked at Jayden as I raised the cup to my lips and took a sip.

He looked at me expectantly. "So...?"

"It's not bad," I told him. "As long as it keeps me awake, I'll drink it."

"Good," he said and then took a sip of his coffee. "You kinda need it because, no offense, but you look really tired."

"Wow, thanks. Exactly what every girl wants to hear," I said straight-faced and then taking a sip of my coffee. When I looked back up at him, he looked mortified, as if I was legitimately offended. I laughed loudly at his expression, which then turned into one of confusion. "Jayden, I was joking..."

"Oh, yeah... right," he said, looking relieved. "Not that you're not beautiful, I just noticed that your eyes are getting droopier and you keep yawning."

I blushed at his compliment and smiled slightly. "You really pay attention, huh?" I asked him as I took another sip of my coffee.

"Yeah, most people don't really think that I'm all that observant," he said with no emotion.

"Why's that?" I ask, genuinely curious.

"I don't know. I guess most people think that because of the things I do, that I'm not that smart or I don't care about things," he said as he looked down at his coffee. We sat in silence for a minute. He seemed as though he was having an inner battle, his eyes distant.

I broke the silence. "You can talk to me, Jayden." I reached across the table and grabbed one of his hands that was resting on top of the table.

He looked up at me with lost eyes. "Promise you won't judge me?"