Knowing Jude
Chapter 31

"No, you didn't!" I exclaim, looking wide-eyed at Nicki. It's lunchtime and we are in the courtyard outside the dining hall. We didn't get to talk after assembly, which ended way into the first lesson and we had to rush straight to class. The courtyard is barren of students given the July cold that's already crept into the end of June, giving proper privacy for whatever juicy stories she has for me.

She giggles, throwing her head back. "I so did. It was all Simon's idea, however, but I was glad to hop in."

I pout. "Of course."

While I had been lying all bored in my room on Saturday night, my two friends were sneaking out to attend a very illegal house party. "And let me guess, Cole was there too, right?" I prod, trying to sound annoyed at the fact that I'm just replaceing out about this now.

Nicki sighs and rests her cheek against her open palm. "Oh yes, he was. Jude was there, too."

"Oh."

"Yeah, so, anyway. Me and Simon. I was actually glad to replace Cole there because there was hardly anybody else from our school. They were all older kids, but Simon seemed to have some friends among them. I was actually scared, people were doing drugs all over the place, and I would have raced back home if it hadn't been that far off and so late."

"You're lucky your father never found out," I put in, then wave her on.

"Don't mention it. So, at some point, Simon ditched me "

"What?"

"Well, he said he was going to the bathroom, and left me by Cole, but he took his sweet time getting back. Like... He took a really long time. By the time he got back, I was nearly drunk."

"What!?" I gasp again, looking at Nicki and trying to imagine a drunken her. "You took alcohol?"

"Well, yeah," she replies, shrugging innocently. "That was the point of sneaking off to a party right?"

"I guess," I mutter.

"Luckily for me, I wasn't bothered by anyone because Cole stuck by my side..."

Nicki trails off, her cheeks reddening. She tries to play it off with a fake coughing fit, but I laugh. "That's so sweet," I croon.

"Oh shut up," she objects weakly. "So anyway..."

She trails off again and I arch an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

"One thing led to another-"

"Oh gawd no, you didn't!" I interrupt, my mind and mouth jumping ahead of me.

Nicki narrows her eyes at me. "I don't know what you're thinking, but I was going to say... I sort of, kind of, most likely did confess to him."

I sit there, stupefied, looking at her as if she's talking some foreign language. I didn't expect that. Maybe a drunken kiss but...

Not that.

"I know I know," she breathes when I still haven't given any sort of reply. "Stupid move, I know!"

"How did that even happen?" I blurt out.

She snaps up one finger. "First of all, I was tired. I couldn't take the sleepless nights anymore, and I think about him all the time, and I was going crazy. I had to do something. Or at least, I needed to just let it out, somehow let it out and know his side of things which yeah, I know was silly because we all know Cole and he wouldn't be interested in me like that, as he, of course, made clear that night. Second, the alcohol gave me a little courage. It was like I was floating on a cloud and everything was okay, fantastic. I mean, he was right there and it was just..."

This time when she trails off she closes her eyes and takes in a deep breath.

"You have no idea how this feels like, Jo.'

I'm starting to think so too, I can just see it on her face. Whatever crush I had on Jon, it clearly never got to this level.

Her big brown eyes snap open. "So I told him. Out of the spur, gathering all the courage I could muster. I told him that I like him. You know what he said? He asked if I was okay. Checked my temperature and all, as if I was sick. It was very embarrassing, because Jude was right there, giving me this absolutely pitiful look like he felt sorry for me. He went away seconds later, however, giving Cole space to let me down easy."

She pauses there, drawing in a deep breath.

"I think you can guess what followed. Saying he didn't deserve someone like me, he would only hurt me, I deserved someone better, blah blah blah. What the fuck, I don't care, I just want him."

"Oh, Nicki," I mutter and reach over to rub her shoulder.

"I just felt like crying, and that's when Simon decided to reappear. He was a little drunk but still steady on his feet. So I left Cole and told Simon I wanted to leave and he came with me. We took a taxi, and I cried all the way back. I felt so pathetic, and I absolutely didn't want Simon to see me like that."

"I don't think Simon minds," I put in.

Nicki sits up straight now, her face falling even more. "Oh, he sure minded that I was crying over Cole, trust me. Just before we got to my house, he decided to pour his heart out."

"About?" I whisper carefully.

As you reach the final pages, remember that 000005s.com is your destination for the complete story. Share the joy of reading with others and spread the word. The next chapter is just a visit away! Nicki fidgets with her fingers, gazing down at the table. "I don't know if I should-"

"Tell me, Nicki!" I urge.

She fidgets more, then bites on her fingertips, staring at some point in the clouds. "He said he likes me."

My eyes widen instantly.

"I yelled at him. I was already feeling shit about Cole, then he goes and drops that on me, making me feel even worse because I can't return his feelings. He totally blindsided me."

"I feel blindsided," I mutter. My mind is already going over any signs that could have pointed to this. Simon, apparently, can be slick.

"I tried to apologise the next day for whatever shit I might have said, but he refuses to talk to me until now. Cole texted me the next morning, and we talked, and well... I can't really stay mad at him even though it hurts, and so we're just... Friends."

She ends it all with a sad note, and all I can do is embrace her to my side as I take everything in.

"He had just found out all that shit about his parents, his emotions must have been all over the place," I whisper later, thinking of Simon.

"I get that," Nicki replies. "I just wish he would talk to me."

A small smile forms on my lips. "You know how Simon is. He can be grumpy when he wants."

"And if I'm being honest, it's kinda weird," Nicki mutters. "I mean, we are...friends. He's a good guy and all, but..." She sighs. "We're friends."

I hold back a burst of laughter. "I totally get you, Nicki."

"Anyway!" she says with a sudden burst of energy, pushing away from the edge of the table. "Guess who else was there," she asks, giving me a look. "You said Jude..."

Her head shakes rapidly. "Somebody else."

I groan, not bothering to guess. "Don't make me guess."

She rolls her eyes, now playing with a bracelet on her hand. "Jon, and Jane."

"Oh yeah, you had something to say about him in the morning?"

As you reach the final pages, remember that 000005s.com is your destination for the complete story. Share the joy of reading with others and spread the word. The next chapter is just a visit away!

"You won't believe it," she starts, gazes around, then refocuses on me. "So, he was, like, cheating on her."

My brow immediately frowns. In my mind, I have placed Jon on some sort of pedestal with the lettering 'perfect' on a plaque. And now Nicki is trying to taint that image. I have never been in a relationship before, but I hate cheaters. Like, if you're tired, or not happy anymore, get a move on, no one has clamped your feet on the spot. No need to go behind someone's back and trample all over their heart.

Not that I feel sorry for Jane or anything...

"With who?" I ask.

"That's the juicy part," Nicki says... Gleefully? "It was with a boy."

My eyebrows fold over my eyes again. "Uhhhhh..."

"He was there with that boy and Jane crashed into the party at some point, maybe she had gotten a tip-off or something. She screamed a lot and cursed, and all Jon said was that he was so happy they were finally over. I remember bursting into laughter then, breaking the silence that had developed as people eavesdropped, and Cole had to pull me away because Jane was already advancing on me..." she breaks off now, bursting into gales of laughter.

I let her have her moment while I process what she's just told me. So, does this mean that Jon is gay... Or bi?

"It just made me so glad, seeing that bitch put in her place..." Nicki manages to blurt between her laughs. She's calming down now, wiping at tears that are flowing down her face. "At least that night had a bright spot among all the other shit."

"I definitely missed a lot," I mutter grumpily.

"You've been saying how much you're over him Jo, and I really hope that's true because your crush most probably prefers boys from what I heard that night."

"I'm fine," I reply. "So over him."

"But then why all the staring on his part like he was actually interested in you?" Nicki mused.

I shrug, just as a blast of cold wind swept over the yard, making me shiver in my warm hoodie. I'm about to propose for us to go back indoors when the ringing of the bell permeates the air. "SHIT!" Nicki exclaims, startling me in the process. "I forgot!"

"What?"

"I didn't complete my Art homework and Reynolds agreed to let me off if I handed it in during lunch break, and now..."

...lunch break is over.

"I'm fucked."

My dear friend is in trouble.