When Confidence Collides

Chapter 24: Mature

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The door opened and the first thing I saw was a girl sitting on the bottom steps of the wide staircase.

She was staring at the ground till she heard the door open and her head shot up in our direction. A smile spread across her young face; her eyes set on Jace. She jumped up and ran into Jace, holding him in a tight hug. Jace returned the hug one handed, not letting go of my hand.

When she pulled back and stood in front of us was when I realised that I recognised her. She glanced at me and smiled at first but then took a double take. The expression on her face mirrored my own. We knew each other but couldn't work out where from.

She had darker hair than Jace and her freckles were more prominent on her face. Her green eyes glimmered in admiration when she looked at Jace. I could tell the type of bond they have; it was as clear as day. She idolises him and he spoils her.

"Ivy, this is Skylar, my younger sister," Jace introduced us to each other.

"Hi Skylar. It is nice to meet you!" She shook my hand before embracing me in a large hug.

"Hey, Ivy! Call me Sky since you can be my friend," she said when she pulled back.

I noticed Jace's eyes flicker to mine as a smile formed on his lips. Skylar considered me as a friend but is that all I am to Jace as well?

"Thank you for letting me be your friend," I told Sky.

"You're welcome," she replied, twirling a little with a smile on her face.

It was in that moment that where I knew her from hit me like a bus; she was the girl out shopping with her friends. She was the one who was walking behind.

I was about to tell Sky that I had remembered, but the look on her face stopped me. Something told me that she hadn't told Jace and I wasn't going to reveal something if she didn't want me to.

I sent her a knowing smile and discretely nodded, letting her know her secret was safe with me. She nervously smiled back.

"How's your arm?" Jace asked Skylar. You could hear the brotherly concern in his voice. It was nice seeing this side of him and the way he interacts with Sky.

Arm? What is wrong with her arm?

I inspected her arm when I realised that her left one was in a cast. Holy shit. How did I miss that?

"It is a lot better. It doesn't hurt as much now," Sky replied to Jace.

"Oh no. What happened?"

"Remember that day when I was around your house, got a call and then left? That was because I got a panicked call from our Mom," Jace finally clarified for me. It was nice to know the reason to why he left. If I am completely honest, I felt kind of bad for feeling resentful that he left but how was I supposed to know when he doesn't tell me this stuff?

"Yeah, sorry about that," Sky sweetly apologised, "I was with some friends and we all had our bikes but when we were going somewhere, my wheel hit a stone and I flew off the bike. I Jumped up because I'm strong, but then my arm started hurting."

Something about the story was off. She wasn't telling the truth and the way she looked tentatively at me afterwards confirmed what I had been thinking. Again, I wasn't going to tell Jace what I had worked out, but I was definitely going to speak to Sky about it later. I have been in that position before, so I know what it is like.

She can't keep lying to everyone, protecting her so called 'friends' when they should face consequences to their actions as much as everyone else has to.