Chapter Twenty-one

"(y/n)!!" A voice jumped out at you as you were walking towards the library.

"Gah!" you jumped, "Geez, Suki, what is it? You scared me," you pouted as Suki hugged you tightly and giggled.

"Sorry, Kitty! I want you to hang out with me, okay? I feel like everyone else is getting more time with you, it's totally lame!" She tugged on your arm and pulled you towards her secret room.

You didn't mind spending time with Suki, that would be fine. Maybe some lighthearted fun would ease your mind. You hoped she just wanted to chat or play games, nothing too serious. Before the two of you got very far, though, another person called from the end of the hallway.

"(y/n), Suki! Wait up!" Dianna walked to the two of you. You felt Suki's grip on you tighten. You sent her a worried glance before smiling at Dianna.

"What's up?" you greeted when she got close enough.

"I want to spend time with you, too," she smiled. "What were you guys going to do?"

You were about to invite Dianna to hang out with the two of you in your room when Suki pulled you closer and shouted, "No! It's my time with her, you can hang out with her never!" Suki stomped away and pulled you along. You followed along blindly for a moment. You needed to react. You had to say something.

"Suki, stop," you dug your heels in. "That was mean." You both turned to face a now very upset looking Dianna. Upset wasn't right actually—she looked pissed.

"Aw, come on! I don't want to share you, okay?" Suki whined. Suki, you sighed internally.

"Dianna, what if I spend time with you later?" you offered with a smile.

"What if you spent time with her later instead?" Dianna walked closer to the two of you. You didn't expect to find her cold glare directed at you; the shock sent chills down your spine. "Suki's overly clingy, and we all know it."

"Hey!" Suki shouted, wrapping her arm around your shoulder, "I asked to spend time with her first, it's only fair!"

"Guys, we don't have to fight," you smiled nervously. You thought your first compromise—hanging out with Suki and then later with Dianna—would have been fine, but Dianna refused. Now you didn't know what to say. You put some distance between yourself and Suki for the time being.

Dianna less-than-gently lifted your chin so she could look down into your eyes before retorting, "I don't like to back down, but if it makes you more comfortable, I'll stop arguing with her." Her glare turned to Suki, "You should be more careful with your blatant affections."

You felt goosebumps on your arms when Dianna walked away. You hadn't really seen her act so harshly before. You were glad she stopped arguing, but it was weird to see her so upset over something so silly. You rubbed your arm anxiously as you looked to Suki.

"That was weird," Suki mumbled. "You don't want to leave me, right? You like spending time with me?" she looked to you. Your eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"What's gotten into you, Suki? I'm not going anywhere," your concerned face morphed into a laugh. "I mean, I can't. We are all trapped here forever until the end of time."

Suki didn't laugh. She looked at you with a blank expression, "So if we weren't trapped here you would leave?"

"W-well I might not live in this house, but I'd still be your friend if we met," you tried to reassure her. Is she always paranoid about this sort of stuff? You wondered. Suki was already close to you, but she stepped closer.

"Something is scaring me, I feel like you're going to leave," Suki whispered. Her gaze was still cold, but you weren't sure if that coldness was directed at you or something else.

"Don't worry, Suki," you pressed a hand to her shoulder and smiled. I'm really not going anywhere. If we somehow had a chance to leave the House, I'd go with you."

You let out a subtle breath of relief when Suki's expression warmed and she smiled, "Yeah, you would. Thanks (y/n), I'm not sure what came over me."

"No problem. What do you want to do?" You asked cautiously.

"Let's hang out in my room!" She began pulling you that way. Suki's thoughts were piling up in her head and she wasn't sure what to do about them. She had...impulses she wanted to act on. She restrained herself. She wanted to press kisses to your skin, to tell you all the things she liked about you, to hold you forever. Had Jason been lying to her about you possibly returning her feelings? You certainly hadn't acted on them if you did.

When the two of you arrived, Suki led you to a comfy chair and sat on her bed. "Do you wanna play a game?" you offered.

"Let's just talk. Are you interested in anyone?"

You groaned in annoyance, but also felt a pang of nervousness, "Why is that all anyone wants to talk about? But no, I don't think so. Not really. I'm just focused on friends right now, I think..."

Suki frowned, "Who else has been asking? I don't wanna be left out of the loop is all."

"Can we talk about something else?" you requested. Telling Suki about your most recent interactions sounded like a bad idea.

"No way, angel! What are you hiding?" She leaned on her forward to rest on her palms. "Did you confess to someone? Who was it? Did they reject you? They're stupid if they did. But if they didn't, maybe you should break up with them." Suki was going a mile a minute, you could barely keep up.

"Suki, stop. I didn't confess to anyone, okay? It's not a big deal," you insisted.

"Someone confessed to you," Suki inferred, her gaze now on the floor. "Right? Who was it?"

You didn't reply, frowning. Should you leave? You were thinking about going to your room at this point.

"Who was it?" She said, louder this time. Her gaze snapped to you, but you didn't meet her eyes. "(y/n), come on, tell me. Okay?" You could hear her voice cracking. Oh fuck—is she going to cry? Seriously?

"Suki, it's not a big deal. Don't be sad, I'm not dating anyone. Let's just do something fun," you tried to end the discussion.

Suki scooted closer to the edge of her bed, "You really won't tell me? Why? Are you afraid I'll be upset? Or is this your way of telling me something?"

"I'm telling you to drop it," you scowled as you stood. "Suki, I can't do this right now. Let's hang out later."

Suki jumped up and held both your arms before you could get very far, "No wait! Listen, I'm sorry okay? I'm just anxious. I want to know what's going on, that's it. Is that so bad?" She began laughing nervously, "Why won't you tell me? I don't get it; do you not trust me?"

"Suki..." you looked concerned, "I just know that you might still have feelings for me, and I don't want to cause any trouble."

"You don't have to look out for me, even thought that's very sweet," she grinned. You didn't like the sight—she looked crazed. "You're driving me nuts though, just tell me. I can take it. Was it Jason? I thought he might like you, but he promised me he didn't. We're pretty good friends, but he's been acting so distant lately." When you stared blankly at her, she leaned closer, her breath hitting your cheek. You were backed into the door, trapped.

"When did he say that?" you asked quietly. The idea of him not being genuine with you hurt something deep in your heart. You didn't want to believe it.

"I don't know, a while ago?" She rested her head in the crook of your neck, her hands still gripping at your wrists. You stood, stiff. "Do you wanna go talk to him, cuz I want to now. Was it him? I can tell by how hurt you sounded. I'm hurt, too, (y/n)."

You didn't react or protest as she began to pull you along to Jason's room. You were having trouble forming thoughts. A part of you screamed to halt your progression and avoid further conflict, but you couldn't deny it. You wanted to know what was going on, too.

Before Suki opened his door, you tugged her shirt sleeve, "Hey," she paused and looked at you. "Maybe we shouldn't do this at the same time. It's personal..."

Suki grinned at you, you tried to convince yourself she wasn't having a breakdown right in front of you, "No way, kitty! I don't want to give him the chance to change the story, I want to make him sweat a little, don't you? Let's see what he can come up with when we're both there." She opened the door.

Jason was sitting by is desk hunched over a book. His posture was so bad that you almost laughed. You always knocked before entering, so you never really saw him like this—the way he acted seconds before he realized people were watching. He jumped up in surprise when Suki sang, "Jaaaason~! What the fuck are you up to?"

"Just reading," he answered. His reply sounded more like a question than an answer, the distinct, "and why are you asking?" sat in his tone.

"We had a question," Suki began, but you panicked. You realized you really, really didn't want to have this conversation. The embarrassment hit you like a brick, and you began to inch away.

"No, never mind! I don't want to ask anything. Suki let go of my arm I'm going to go to bed," you began pulling away desperately. Jason was standing now and looked confused, to say the least.

He placed a hand on your shoulder, and you froze. You looked at him as he spoke, "(y/n), what's all this about?" He looked so trustworthy and believable. He couldn't have lied to you about his feelings, that's too important. It would be too cruel.

"It's dumb," you deflected. "I feel embarrassed, why don't you just talk to Suki?"

"Sorry, (y/n), I already told you. I want you here for this. Jason, tell me the truth, okaaay?" She grabbed your shoulders and pulled you in front of her, pushing you towards him. "How do you feel about (y/n)? Be honest! Cuz you lied to one of us!" She sounded way too cheerful for someone who was clearly furious. It was unsettling.

"How have I lied?" He asked while staring down at you.

"You told me I had nothing to worry about; that you didn't have any romantic feelings for her," she hissed. "I was worried this was a competition and it looks like I was right. You've got (y/n) completely convinced that you have feelings for her, so what's the truth?"

"I never said that," you protested weakly. Vulnerability dripped from you like an unfortunate spill of paint. You felt exposed.

"You didn't have to," she tightened her grip.

"Things change," Jason shrugged. His face was mostly neutral, a subtle glare was the only indicator that he felt anything about this conversation at all. "I didn't lie to you, Suki, I just changed my mind." He lifted your chin to make you look into his eyes as he spoke, "Surely you can understand how easy it is to... take an interest."

Were you really supposed to be here for this conversation? You felt like you were eavesdropping. This was an argument between friends, and you didn't want to partake. You tried once again to pull away and escape the situation, but now you had two people restraining you. "Guys, can you sort this out on your own?" you pleaded.

Suki nestled her face to the side of yours, her lips just behind your ear, "Come on, don't you want to know what he thinks? Don't you want to hear what he's going to say? I can't help but be a little obsessed with you, (y/n). It's really not my fault. You're all I can think about... I'd say you've cursed me, but it's more like a blessing. Jason should explain himself or I think I'll really go crazy, okay Doll?" You flinched when she giggled. What was going on with her? She was acting like she did on Christmas night.

In a sudden movement, Jason dropped your face and turned his back to the both of you, "Suki, get out."

"What?" she almost shouted. "I hope you don't think that's enough of an explanation."

"I don't see how it isn't. Get out of my room."

"I thought we were friends!" She yelled as she leaped away from you, "I thought we had an understanding." Your shoulders felt cold when she let go, but you were thankful. She slammed the door, leaving you alone with Jason.

Tears sprang in your eyes. "I'm sorry," You croaked. Your voice felt trapped. Nothing was said for a moment, so you covered your own eyes and tried to wash away your feelings in the palms of your hands.

Jason turned when he realized you were crying and held you tightly, "You don't have to be sorry, (y/n). I didn't know she still acted like this."

"...Still?" you questioned.

"Yeah," Jason began formulating a lie. "She gets crazy possessive. I thought she had gotten better during her time in the house, but I guess I was wrong. I had worked so hard with her to make sure she never got like that again, but she relapsed when she met you. I'm sorry, I must not have done enough."

You hugged him back, and even tighter, "It's not your fault! Maybe when this all calms down we can try again." Jason was incredibly relieved to hear you believe him.

"Maybe. For now, I think you should distance yourself from her. It wouldn't be good for her to feed these feelings she's having," Jason spoke.

"Alright," you managed to nod. "I feel guilty, though. I still want to be her friend."

Jason was glad you couldn't see the scowl that quickly formed on his face "you and your damn friends. When will I be enough for you?" "Just think of this as a way to make sure you can still be friends when this all over. I mean, if something terrible happens, you guys might never be able to recover from it."

"That makes some sense," you mulled over his words as you pulled away from his arms. "I think I should go now, though."

"Alright," he smiled gently at you. "I'm here if you need me."

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