Chapter 60: James

Ian's here.

Ian. Is. Here.

I sat there gaping, repeating those same words until I heard a knock.

"Hey um Lidia? It's me James. I'm coming in." James said. I wordlessly nodded, totally forgetting that he can't see me.

"Lidia? Hey, there you are!" James said as he walked towards me.

"Where else would I be? In the woods hauling ass?" I sarcastically told him. But seriously, where would I be? Hanging on the ceiling and hoping my blood doesn't seep through the bandages?

"Har har, you're so funny." He rolled his eyes and leaned against the balcony.

I raised my right eyebrow. "Why aren't you sitting on the chair like a normal person?"

James snorted. "Because being normal is for losers." His eyes looked dead serious. Not the kind of serious that I always see but a different kind of serious. Like a serious with a deeper meaning.

James studied me for a bit while I was awkwardly staring back at him. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Nothing," he shook his head, "I was just seeing why you were sitting there like a kid in a candy store." He shrugged.

I didn't know what to feel. Offended that someone saw past my mask? Happy that someone saw me for me? "When? I want to know this information so I can shut it down properly." I said while crossing my arms.

James smirked. "Three minutes ago," he crossed his arms, "I've only seen you like that once before, and that was when you and Ian went on your date. Meaning that Caden is a bitch and told you that Ian is here when he shouldn't of."

Stunned I uncrossed and crossed my arms again. "Th-that that shouldn't be possible," I tilted my head, "no one has that kind of power to read minds. No one." I shook my head as a final reminder that no one could do it.

"Are you sure?" He asked slowly.

"Yes because-well no one knew about my life before you so no one, well I guess what I'm trying to say is-" I stumbled around my words.

"-because you thought that since we couldn't see past your first veil, we can't see past your second?," he dipped his head and paused, "Lidia, when are you going to cut those veils and learn-really learn-that we won't hurt you? That's the last thing we would even think about doing."

My eyes were blurry from unshed tears. What he said was true. All of it was true. Why does he have to be so Gosh damn true? "I think I liked you better when you were a dick to me." I wiped my teary eyes.

He chuckled. "Yeah I was one, wasn't I?" He looked at me and smiled one of his rare smiles.

I snorted. "Major dick. But that's okay, you sorta made up for it in teaching me to box and your smiles." I grinned.

He shook his head playfully. "Worst mistake ever."

"Hey! I wasn't that bad!" I defended myself.

He put his hands up in mock surrender. "I never said you were. I just said it was the worst mistake ever."

I raised an eyebrow. "Even worse than wanting to slap Audrey?"

He playfully flinched. "Zip, zap, oof, bang, you got me again Lidia. But actually, come to think of it? I don't regret wanting to slap that annoying shits face, if anything she deserves it. The only thing I regret is not trying to do it again."

"Okay one, don't call her an annoying shit or I'll kick you where the sun don't shine, and two, did you really just say zip, zap, oof, and bang?" I held onto the last word.

His cocked his head to the right. "So what if I did? What are you gonna do about it?"

I shook my head. This is James in a new light. He's not being mean, but he's not exactly being Zack or Jesse nice. But he's not Caden. He's simply James. James the hothead. James, the man who publicly tried and failed to assault his sister's best friend.

"Why haven't you said anything about the Diary?" I questioned him.

"Because there's nothing to say. You didn't trust us, that's okay. A man was abusing you, that wasn't okay. I punched him repeatedly, so many times that even Luke had to step in and tell me to save him for you."

He said it like he said it everyday. Like he punches people for a living. Well he probably does do it everyday but other then that, he said it so casually that you would assume he said 'hey, how's school going?'.

Regardless of how he said it, my heart grew three sizes. "Thank you." I said softly while tearing up.

"Lidia, stop crying. There's no need for that." He said stiffly.

I nodded furiously and sniffed. James was a no cry guy. You didn't cry in front of him. I don't know why, and I don't agree with it, but he just refuses to see someone cry.

I looked at him. He stared down at me like I held the secrets of the universe in my palm. Wonder and adoration clearly evident in his screw-you-I-don't-give-a-fuck face. I've never seen him look at someone like that. Nor would I thought he would look at me like that.

"So are you like a cage fighter or something?" I bluntly said.

He blinked out of whatever universe he was in. "Excuse me?"

"Are you a cage fighter? Like you know, do you fight bears or something?" I said in a 'duh' tone.

James' face was super confused. Like major confusion was shown everywhere on his face. So confused that even a toddler could see how confused he was.

"No I don't fight bears. And no I'm not a cage fighter. I sorta, box." He said. Just box. Nothing added to it. Just box.

And he was telling me to cut my veils.

"You box? Just box? That's it? Like no adjectives or anything?" I cleared up the confusion.

He looked down bashfully. "Well I mean," he stuttered and glanced up and saw me grinning, "I don't know! I just box!" He shouted, exasperated that I was acting this way.

"Okay." I giggled, being a little jerk to him. I've never really talked to James, thought I don't know why. I guess I'm just too blindsided by his closed off personality to see what type of person he truly is. The type that refuses to see his little sister cry, the type where he almost killed his little sister's abuser, the type who's so passionate about something, yet he can't admit it.

That's who James is.

This is the James that Jesse sees. I'm very thankful that I'm apart of the few that get to see him like this.

I smiled softly at my elder brother. "Thanks for not killing him."

He smiled one of his rare smiles back. "You're welcome."

A lot of references in this chapter! Some of them from movies, books, etc, some of them from my own personal life! If you can spot all those references here's a cookie 🍪 if you manage to spot the ones from my personal life! Where are you hiding? James new personality is based a bit off my own brothers's personalities. They absolutely won't let me cry in front of them. They one time kicked me out of their room for letting a single drop slip through! I hope you liked it and don't forget to vote, comment, and obviously like:)