Chapter 17: chapter 16

After finally getting to take a shower and getting ready for the day, I went downstairs just in time for breakfast. Tristan did a pretty good job. I’m impressed. Cassy and Connor just finished setting up the table. She looks up and smiles at me.

“Breakfast is ready.” She says.

“I can see that. Should I tell the others?” I ask.

She nods and I start my search for the others. I find Brock and Alex talking in the living room while the televisions on. I sneak up behind them and tap Alex’s shoulder when they’re both not looking. As Alex turns his head, I duck down behind the sofa.

“What was that?” Alex asks.

“What?” Brock asks.

“Someone just tapped my shoulder?” Alex says but more in a question.

There’s silence and then Brock speaks.

“Dude, there’s no one here.”

“But I’m positive I felt someone touch me.” After a second Alex says, “Did you tap me? Are you just playing me?”

“What? No. Why would I do that?” Brock asks.

“I don’t know. My friends used to do that all the time. And since there’s no one else here it has to be you so stop playing dumb.” Alex says, irritated.

“Alex, I didn’t do it.”

“Sure you didn’t.” Alex gets up. “Anyways, let’s just go see if breakfast is ready.”

Alex leaves and Brock follows after turning off the TV. Thankfully, neither of them saw me. I just giggle to myself and go find the rest. Not surprisingly, I find Gale in the basement where I do most of my training. He’s looking at my knives. I go right behind him and wait for him to turn. I know he knows I’m here. After setting down one of my knives he turns and gives me a slight smile.

“Like my stuff?” I ask.

“The knives could be sharper.” He says quietly.

I scoff. Of course he would say that.

“Duly noted. Breakfast is ready. Come upstairs and eat.” I say.

Gale nods and follows me upstairs.

“Do you think we can train together later? Like old times?” He asks.

I stop and turn to look at him to see him looking at anything but me. Is he nervous?! I’ve never seen that side of him before. It’s surprisingly cute. I smile to myself.

“Sure. I would love that.” I say and Gale finally looks at me and I see a sparkle in his eyes. He’s being more expressive than in the past. Gale leaves for the dining room as I look for the last man. I find Jacks outside, just sitting. I go over to him and sit next to him.

“Whatcha doin?” I ask, trying to sound like a little kid.

“Just watching nature takes its course.” He says.

“That’s odd. I didn’t think you could actually be mature and sit still and enjoy the day.” I say honestly.

Jacks turns to me with a serious look which catches me off guard.

“I’m not a child like you think I am Anna. I might act like it sometimes but I can also be serious when I want to be.” Jacks says, not breaking eye contact with me.

I look away and look up at the sky. It’s a nice sunny day with very few clouds. It’s the perfect day to be outside.

“Why did you leave Jason?” I ask.

After a moment of silence, Jacks answers me.

“To be honest, I didn’t want to leave him but he forced me. Don’t get me wrong, I love you Anna, I do but I just got my brother back and I needed to be near him. I needed to make sure it wasn’t a dream.” He says.

“Jacks I understand, really I do. So why did he force you to leave?”

“Because he said he was fine and he couldn’t take me talking about you all the time.” Jacks says sheepishly as he looks away and scratches the back of his head.

I feel my face get hot and look away too. And here I thought it was just a little crush. Wait! He just said he loved me. I whip my head back to him but I didn’t realize he was looking back at me and moved closer. A lot closer. My eyes widen out of shock and how close we are. He looks down at my lips then back at my eyes. As if he’s asking for permission.

A flashback of the last time he kissed me goes through my mind. I think about how soft his lips were but the kiss was rough. How our breathe mingled with each other, right before the kiss. Just like now.

Just when I think he’s going to lean in, he pulls back and gets up. He hands his hand out. I look at it confused for a second before taking it and he lifts me up.

“Come on. It’s time for breakfast.” He says.

He leads me inside and before we go in, he lets go of my hand. I look at him confused but he just smiles sadly at me and walks in the dining room. I follow right after him and notice right away there’s only one place to sit and that’s between Brock and Alex who has these annoyed looks aimed at me. I sit down and look at them bewildered.

“What?” I ask.

“You were the one that tapped my shoulder!” Alex yells.

“You can’t prove that.” I state.

“Yes I can.” He says.

“How?” I ask.

“Cassy told us she told you to get us for breakfast. It’s pretty obvious who did it.” He says.

“Well whatever. Why are you annoyed by that anyway? I just tapped your shoulder.” I say.

“I wasn’t annoyed. Just admit it next time.”

“Sure you weren’t. Anyways,” I turn to the rest of the table. “Can someone pass me the bacon?” I ask nicely.

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So sorry I didn't post when I said I would. I got my computer fixed that day by my friend and a few hours after I get it fixed, the WHOLE damn keyboard stops working. I couldn't press any keys. And since I have to put a password in to even turn on my computer, I couldn't really type the next chapter. My parents wouldn't let me borrow their computer either. So sorry for the very long wait but since I took my computer to a professional, I finally got a new keyboard and the first thing I did was start typing the next chapter. Thanks for being patient! Also, one more thing. Who do you guys think Anna should end up with? Or should she not end up with anyone? Your answers can help me decide because I still am not sure. I'm caught between 3 guys. So let me know what you guys think.