Chapter Twenty-Seven
Everest
I tried to give myself time to readjust. Two full days, to be exact.
I’ve spent almost every second since I walked through the doors curled up in my bed, which doesn’t even feel like my bed anymore.
It’s empty, it’s fluffy, and doesn’t smell like Jett, which just makes me sob every time I get a whiff of my laundry detergent instead of him.
I’ve cried so much that I’m probably dehydrated, which would explain why I’m still exhausted after being in bed this long and keep going back and forth with the world’s cruelest headache.
I groan as I roll over and glance at the clock on my nightstand to check the time.
The blinking numbers staring back at me only serve as a reminder that I still haven’t reset the time from when I had the breakers flipped off, so I have to grab my phone instead.
The dozens of notifications lining the bar at the top of my screen are the first thing that grab my attention, but just like the last couple of times I’ve looked at my phone, I ignore them.
Jesus. It’s three in the afternoon on my third official day home, and I’ve yet to even leave my house.
I’m technically back a little earlier than we originally planned, so I don’t have to worry about Callie’s graduation for a few more days.
That means I can wallow in my heartbreak a little longer before I have to get my shit together in order to face the real world.
I hear laughter coming from the kitchen, and my brows furrow in confusion.
I throw the covers off of myself and rush out of the bedroom in a flurry.
Callie stands completely frozen in my kitchen.
I’m assuming that she’s just shocked to have heard someone else moving around in my house when I’m not even supposed to be back yet.
She immediately scurries around the kitchen island and tackles me into a hug.
“Fuck! You’re home early!” She pulls back and glances over me. “God. You look like shit, Eve.”
“Gee. Thanks,“ I say with a chuckle. “I didn’t even hear you come in. What the fuck were you laughing about?”
She turns around and grabs a letter off the counter and shoves it at me before she crosses her arms.
“At how stupid I was. I didn’t get into a single college I applied for. I had everything riding on getting a scholarship to at least one.”
“Awe. I’m sorry, Cal.” I say as I glance down at the paper. “It’s okay though, I’ll cover it, I have plenty—“
She holds her hand up to stop me. “I said had. I’m fine now.
I actually got a call yesterday from some scout.
He was looking for students that were regarded in high esteem by teachers and classmates to fill positions at a holding company.
They’re looking for people to be a liaison for international trading, someone to be a representative for their company.
I sent them all my information, and they were really impressed with the college credits I have at my age, andddd that I’m valedictorian.
“ She explains with a wiggle of her brow.
“You got valedictorian?! I’m so proud of you! Man… I missed so much.” I groan as I run my hand through my greasy hair.
She shoves me playfully. “Hell, I would’ve left too if I had the opportunity. You need to go shower so we can sit down. You’ve gotta tell me everything, but seriously, you reek.”
I roll my eyes at her, but I don’t argue. I simply do as she says, going take my first shower in days while silently hoping that having her around will make this just a smidge easier.
“So, you’ve been staying here the whole time?” I ask as I pour both of us a fresh cup of coffee.
“Yeah. Mom went on another bender, so I’ve just been staying in the spare bedroom during the week. I didn’t think you’d mind.”
“You know that you’re always welcome here, Callie. I’d rather you be somewhere safe.”
I hand her one of the cups and sit down on the other end of the sofa. She takes a few tentative sips before glaring at me impatiently.
“Well? Start at the beginning.” She demands.
So, I do. I start at the very first day and go through every single detail. I’m surprised by my own recall, not even needing my notes to remember everything that happened. Honestly, I don’t think I’ll ever need them, because I don’t know how I could ever forget the last three months of my life.
My words get stuck in my throat after the initial meeting with Maven, right after I tried calling her.
Just before I met Jett.
I take a deep breath, and try to start talking, but…
what do I say? She’s looking at me expectantly, and I get it, because I haven’t even got to the actual prison part of the story yet, but I can’t get the words to come out.
Every feeling that I’ve been pushing away is clawing its way to the surface and suffocating me.
I don’t know how I’m going to survive this. I’m not even sure if it’s possible.
I choke on the words as a sob tears from my throat. Callie’s eyes dart back and forth between mine, her expression fading from anticipation to unadulterated concern.
“Everest…” She soothes as she scoots closer, pulling me in for a hug. “What happened?”
“I… um… then I met my guards,” I stammer out as I wipe my face.
“Lance was my guard for the days. He was funny, and witty, and always had something to say. Always. There was never any silence when he was around, but it was nice sometimes, you know? I was never lonely.“ I explain as more tears trickle down my cheeks. I’m quick to wipe them away, but it’s futile when more immediately replace them.
“That would probably be nice while you’re stuck in a prison.” She replies with caution.
I nod to agree. “It was. I didn’t always appreciate it, but it was.”
“So, you guys were friends?” She asks as she scoots back to give me some space.
“Yeah, we were. Really good friends. Um… Then there was my night guard.”
I can’t stop it; more tears start to form until I’m flat out crying again.
It’s embarrassing, really. None of this was ever supposed to happen.
I can’t even talk about the stupid place, and I’m expected to write a full-on article about it?
How? How am I going to do this? How am I supposed to live my life like I didn’t leave part of myself thousands of miles away from here?
How am I going to function like a normal human being when every fiber of my being longs to be there? With him.
Just… how?
“Eve, we can take a break if you need to.” Callie offers, but I wave off her suggestion.
“It’s— I’m okay. Just processing everything,” I wipe at my face again, trying to get my shit together. “His name was Jett. He— He was… Well, fuck. He was everything.”
I drop my face into my hands as I start to sob again, and Callie pulls me back into her arms.
“Oh, Eve,” she murmurs as she brushes my hair back. “You fell in love?”
I nod my head without moving my hands away.
The sleeves of my shirt are already soaked through, but I don’t know what else to do.
My heart is obliterated, and I can’t feel anything except for him.
I might have claimed him, but Jesus, every single atom of me belongs to him.
There’s nothing else left inside me anymore. Nothing but him.
“He loved you, too?”
I nod. “He did,” I choke out. “He did. So good, Callie.”
“Then why are you crying? Why isn’t he here with you?”
I laugh but the tears keep coming at the same time.
I wish it were that simple, that just because we loved each other that we would find a way to be together despite the circumstances.
Life is never actually like that, though.
Everyone has to make tough choices in the real world and sometimes sacrifices have to be made.
There are things that just don’t work out, and that’s what makes life so damn hard.
“He… uhh… he can’t leave the prison, Cal.”
“Ohhh…“ She holds me in her arms silently for a few minutes before whispering to me. “Why didn’t you stay with him, then?”
I laugh again, with slightly less crying this time. “I don’t know. I could’ve. I didn’t… but I could have. I have you and Axel and all of this…“ I explain as I finally tear my hands away from my face to gesture to all the stuff around my house.
“And?”
“And what? I couldn’t leave you here with mom by yourself!”
“I’m not with mom. I’m here. I have a good job lined up, and I’m gonna be fine. You can’t just babysit me for my entire life. I have to figure out how to survive on my own, Eve. I think I’m doing a pretty damn good job, actually.”
“You are...” I nod in agreement. “But what if something happens? I won’t be here to help, and then there’s Axel, I can’t just—“
“Speaking of Axel… where is he?”
I stumble over my thoughts, confused why she’s even asking about him.
How would she know that he isn’t already home as well?
I haven’t even taken the time to try contacting him yet, because I’ve been too busy drowning in my own misery.
Hell, Callie didn’t even know that I was home yet, so what the fuck is that about?
“I… um… he may not be back yet. I don’t know if they offered him a job like they did for me, so he could still be in his final quarantine. I’m not actually sure.”
“Mhmm… right. So, Axel is a big boy. And I have friends, Eve. You know, the ones I’ve leaned on the whole time you’ve been away.
The ones I stayed with this weekend. I have other people I can reach out to if I need help.
If you really care about this guy, maybe it’s time you let me be a big girl.
You should give it a shot. Do something for yourself, for once. ”
“It’s not like that, Cal. It’s not that easy.” I say with teary eyes. “If I go there, if… if I take the job, I’ll never be able to come back. Ever.”
“Wow. Okay. So, that’s a long time.“ Her eyes go wide with shock as she scoots back against the arm of the couch. “Why don’t you finish telling me the rest of the story, and we can circle back to the guy problems at the end, yeah?”
I clear my throat. “Yeah… alright.” I say as I wipe my face clean. This is gonna be really hard to get through considering the fact that every moment since I met him, it seems like my whole world revolved around him. The thing is…
It still does.