Violet's Awakening, PT. 4

“Vi!”

Georgia stood beside her yellow Fiat, waving frantically. Last night, her world turned upside down, but it was apparent that Georgia was still stuck on Tobias and his nonexistent crush.

“You left me hanging last night!” Georgia said as she hooked her arm through Violet’s.

“I passed out,” she said apologetically.

“I’ll forgive you if you let me see one of his poems.” When Violet gave her a level stare, Georgia sucked her teeth. “What if he’s carefully crafting these poems to express how he feels, but you’re too stubborn to see it?”

“And what if they are just poems and not secret love letters?”

“That’s what you have me for!” Georgia said cheerfully.

Her brow arched. “And you’re a whiz at poetry?”

“No, but I am a whiz when it comes to love.”

 She frowned. “You’ve never had a boyfriend.”

“Exactly! Those who can’t fall in love are fated to spot it miles away for everyone else.”

Before she could respond to that, someone pressed against her other side.

“I see Jesse’s still with Sasha,” Marie sang.

Georgia held up her finger like she was trying to sense the way the wind was blowing. “My senses say they’ll be done before the end of the week.”

“I think they make a cute couple,” Marie said.

“You say that about every girl he’s with.”

“And I’m right!”

“He’s hot. He could choose someone butt ugly and his looks would bring her up three levels.”

“Georgia!” Violet and Marie exclaimed, appalled.

“You know I’m right,” Georgia said and glanced around before she whispered, “Is it just me or does Jesse look bored out of his mind, no matter who he’s with?”

Violet stiffened. “What do you mean?”

“I mean,” Georgia emphasized, showing off her pink braces. “He’s going through these girls like hotcakes because they aren’t what he really wants.”

“That’s crazy. Why pick them in the first place if he’s not interested?” Marie asked.

“I don’t know.” Georgia bumped into Violet. “Why don’t you ask him who he’s really stuck on and go for her instead of breaking all these girls hearts?”

She made a face. “Can we not talk about my brother’s love life? This is just weird, and speaking of, please do go up to Tobias and ask him if he’s in love with me.”

“But,” Georgia began, but the bell rang, saving Violet from having to hear any more of Georgia’s insane theories.

***

Violet decided not to go to the cafeteria for lunch. Her sleepless night was catching up to her, and she wasn’t in the mood to run into Jesse or be harassed by Georgia. She detoured to the library, which she could always count on for peace and quiet. She nodded to the librarian and got a nod in return before she walked on the outskirts, looking for a cozy chair to curl up in for twenty minutes.

As she neared the back, she spotted Tobias in his normal spot. Her mood perked up a bit. Tobias may be a little eccentric, but he was kind and didn’t mind sitting in silence. She didn’t technically want to be alone, so finding him here was great. As she approached, she realized he was talking to someone out of her line of sight, and he looked upset. She slid into an aisle and peered above the line of books to see who he was talking to. Her mouth sagged when she spotted Jesse. What the heck? She didn’t think Jesse knew Tobias, so why was he talking to him?

Jesse must have asked Tobias a question because he nodded adamantly. Satisfied, Jesse turned on his heel and walked down the main aisle. Violet made sure to exit the row and hide at the end of the bookshelf so he wouldn’t see her. When the coast was clear, she hurried toward Tobias, who was on his feet and shoving his notebooks in his bag.

“Tobias.”

He visibly stiffened and didn’t turn to look at her as he tossed his bag on his shoulder.

“Tobias?”

He started toward an exit door that led outside.

“Hey!”

She rushed after him, aware that several heads shot up from around the cluster of work tables.

“Tobias, wait!”

She jogged to catch up to him. He stared straight ahead.

 “What happened?” she demanded.

“I never meant to make you uncomfortable,” he said stiffly. “I apologize. It won’t happen again.”

“Uncomfortable?” she echoed. “What are you talking about?”

“Your brother said I was making you uncomfortable with my poems. I won’t bother you with them anymore.”

She was so taken aback, she stopped trying to keep up. Tobias continued across the field, putting as much distance between them as possible. Why would Jesse lie about his poems making her uncomfortable? How did he even know…? An image of him scrolling through her phone a minute after he orgasmed flashed in her mind. If she wanted conformation that last night actually happened, this was proof positive that he’d read her messages with Georgia, which he would have been unaware of if he hadn’t come into her room.

She stood there, staring into space when her phone chimed. Mind awhirl, she reached for it and wasn’t pleased to see a message from the person who was responsible for her current distress.

Where are you? I bought you soup.

She pocketed her phone and made her way back to the library. She got several sidelong glances, but she ignored them as she staggered to a one-person desk. She placed her backpack on top of it and used it like a pillow, burying her face against the cool nylon. What was happening to her life? Yesterday, everything was fine. Everything was right, and now everything was going topsy-turvy. Her brother, who she thought she knew better than herself, had gone rogue. Why?

The bell rang. Immediately, those around her began zipping up backpacks. She forced herself to get up and follow the crowd into the hallway. She made her way to her next class and took a seat at the back instead of the front where she usually sat. Her friends spotted her and made their way over with puzzled expressions.

“Why are we sitting back here?”

“I didn’t get much sleep last night. I’m worried I’m going to fall asleep in front of Mrs. Gindler,” Violet said in a monotone.

“Violet.”

Marissa wove through the desks toward her, carrying something.

“You don’t have this class,” she said.

“I’m at the lab down the hall. Jesse told me to give this to you,” Marissa said, setting a paper bowl on the desk before she left, giving the teacher an apologetic smile.

She wrapped her cold hands around the bowl, knowing without sniffing it that it would be her favorite lentil soup. When Mrs. Gindler called their attention to the board, she obeyed, but she didn’t hear one word the teacher said.

***

“Violet.”

She jolted awake at the sound of Jesse’s voice. She raised her head to see him coming around the couch where she’d been napping.

“What time is it? You’re done with practice?” she mumbled, fumbling for her phone.

“You shouldn’t have asked Georgia to give you a ride home. I would have skipped practice if you said you didn’t feel well.” He brushed her hair aside to feel her forehead. “What is it? Do you have a fever?”

“Migraine,” she muttered, pushing away his hand.

“Migraine? Do you have your…? No, not for another week,” he muttered.

She peered up at him through one bleary eye. “What are you talking about?”

“Nothing,” he said gruffly. “Did you take something?”

“Yes, I just need to rest. Stop fussing.”

There was a short pause, and then he asked, “Are you washing something?”

Her heart skipped. “I tossed my bedsheets in the wash. Can you hang it when it’s done?”

“Sure. Do you want anything to eat?”

“No. I… I just need to sleep.”

He stood over her for a moment before he pulled her into a sitting position.

“What are you doing?” she grumbled.

“Taking care of you,” he said as he sat and pulled her down so she lay with her head on his lap.

“I’m not really sick.”

“If you weren’t sick, you wouldn’t be so pale. You should have stayed home today,” he said as he stroked her hair. “Did Marissa drop off the soup?”

“Yes.”

“Why couldn’t I find you?”

She closed her eyes. “I got held up talking to my teacher. I decided to go to class early to get some studying in.”

“Hm.”

“Hm, what?” she said testily.

“I went by both classrooms. I didn’t see you.”

“That’s odd,” she said, words slurring a little as she unwillingly relaxed under his soothing touch.

“Must have missed you,” he said in a low voice.

“Must have.”

“Next time you don’t feel good, you tell me. You don’t tell your friends to take care of you. That’s my job, remember?”

“But…”

“Next time I’m sick, you can baby me.”

She peered up at him. “But you’re never sick.”

“I’ll pretend so you can pay me back.”

Against her will, her mouth quirked. It was impossible to stay angry at him. He was so ridiculously caring and protective. Before she realized she needed something, he provided. That had to be why he said what he had to Tobias. He’d misinterpreted her texts with Georgia and thought Tobias was bothering her. She would seek out Tobias and apologize for what Jesse said, and reassure him that she hadn’t been uncomfortable in the least.

As Jesse’s fingers tunneled into her hair, the confusion and turmoil she carried throughout the day slipped away. This was the Jesse she knew. The Jesse she loved. The brother she’d come to depend on. For three years, they’d been deliriously happy. For the first time in her life she had stability. She needed everything to stay the way it was. She had everything she’d ever dreamed of and more. She didn’t want to give that up.

Whatever happened last night was a one-off, an impulsive mistake that would never happen again. Whatever had possessed him to enter her room, to do what he’d done, that wasn’t him. She chose to forgive and forget. Everyone made mistakes. She couldn’t let one action ruin their relationship. She wouldn’t. She would erase it from her memory like it never happened.

Decision made, she relaxed completely and allowed herself to enjoy Jesse’s comforting touch. Everything would go back to normal.

**This is a raw draft of the prequel for Corrupt Idol. Please do not share or distribute.

Copyright © 2024 Mia Knight. All Rights Reserved.