3: 3
3
I pushed down the sting in my eyes, drew in a deep breath, and stepped into the living room.
"Nettie!"
The moment she saw me, Corinne cried out, delighted.
She started to get up, ready to rush over to me.
But Jayden's hand came down and held her in place.
Not hard, yet with a firmness that left no room for argument.
"Where do you think you're going? Your hair isn't dry yet. You'll be complaining about a headache tomorrow."
"I know how close you two are, but drying your hair won't cost you more than a few minutes."
Corinne shot him a look, cheeks puffed out, her voice carrying that sulky, coaxing edge.
"Nettie, look at your Jayden."
"He's so fussy. He watches over me more than my own dad does."
Corinne grumbled with her mouth, but her body was honest, settling right back down.
She even leaned back a little, shifting into a more comfortable position.
If this had been before,
I would have taken Corinne's side without hesitation, joining her to gang up on Jayden and his bossy, high-handed ways.
But this time, I said nothing.
Jayden kept at it for a while longer.
Only once he'd confirmed every root of her hair was dry did he switch off the blow-dryer in his hand.
"There. Done."
Corinne got up at once, eager, and looped her arm affectionately through mine.
"Nettie, you're finally home."
"You have no idea how over the top Jayden is. I just have low blood sugar, it's not like I've come down with something serious, and yet he actually goes limiting my freedom..."
Corinne chattered on and on, unstoppable.
She meant it as complaining, but it came out exactly like a couple's flirty little bickering.
Before, I would have listened with genuine interest to every word, then tossed in a few comments of my own.
But today, all I felt was that her noise made my head throb.
"I'm not feeling well. I'm going to my room."
My voice came out cold, and a flicker of surprise and awkwardness crossed Corinne's face.
I pulled my arm back and turned to go into my room.
Jayden finally noticed something was off with me too, and followed me in.
"What's wrong? Why do you look so awful?"
He reached out to touch my face the way he always did.
But I tilted my head slightly and dodged his hand.
"It's nothing."
Jayden froze, his hand stiff in midair.
Then he sighed, his tone weary.
"What's gotten into you?"
"You've been carrying on all night. Still not done?"
"When are you going to grow up a little?"
"Do you have any idea how worried Corinne and I were about you? Corinne especially. She thought something had happened to you, got so frantic she nearly called the police."
There was a note of reproach in Jayden's voice.
As if I were the one throwing an unreasonable fit.
Something wet and cold sat wadded up in my chest.
I gripped the medical bill, and a bitter laugh nearly rose in me.
Worried about me?
If he'd really been worried about me, would he have gone all that time without a single phone call?
Whether it was worry for me or aching over Corinne, who'd been so frightened on my behalf, only Jayden himself knew best.
"Didn't you say you'd come get me?"
My eyes stung, and in the end I couldn't hold back the question.
Seeing me cry, Jayden frowned.
"So I didn't pick you up. What's there to cry about?"
Hearing that, my tears fell harder, coming in a rush.
"But I clearly remember telling you my asthma had flared up, and that I'd forgotten to bring my medicine."
Jayden's face went cold in an instant, plainly impatient.
"Jeanette, how much longer are you going to keep this up?
"You're a grown woman. How can you still act like a child, getting jealous of someone who's sick?"
"Corinne has low blood sugar. She could go into shock anytime, anywhere. You're different. You just get a little wheezy. Tough it out and it passes."
"See? You're perfectly fine right now, aren't you? Nothing wrong with you at all."
