Chapter 109: Rebuilding the Foundation
After spending a few moments trapped in that stiff, silent atmosphere, "ding," a text notification popped up on Eric’s smartphone. He picked it up and read it. The message was from Avery, letting him know that Melissa had finally regained consciousness; she still couldn’t move from her hospital bed at all, but she was awake enough to talk.
As for the emergency contact listed on Melissa’s hospital profile, it had already been updated to her parents’ number in another state. Eric immediately forwarded Avery’s text to Detective Norman so he could get right on it, then shot back a quick "thank you" to Avery.
Once that was taken care of, he set his smartphone back on the table. He looked at Mike and Jade across from him, then shifted his position slightly so he was sitting directly in front of Jade.
"Melissa is in the hospital. She’s awake now," Eric said out of nowhere.
Hearing Eric’s words, Jade instantly snapped her head up to look at him.
"You’re still in touch with her? The girl who made that video of you sleeping with her? Are you out of your mind?" Jade asked, completely snapped back to reality.
"No, it’s just that there were a few things I had to take care of that involved her recently. It’s all settled now," Eric answered. In reality, he was only bringing Melissa up to get Jade to stop shutting down.
"Oh, I see. Well, that’s good then," Jade said, looking visibly relieved as she lowered her head again.
"Are you ready to talk now?" Eric asked suddenly.
At his question, Jade lifted her head once more, her eyes locking onto his. This time, Eric didn’t look nearly as cold as he had yesterday, even though he still hadn’t completely let his guard down around her.
Seeing a tiny glimpse of her cousin starting to resurface, Jade’s eyes began to well up with tears, though none fell. Sitting right beside her, Mike kept quiet, but a faint smile played on his lips.
"I... I’m sorry," Jade said softly, her voice trembling.
"For what?" Eric asked, completely genuinely confused by her sudden apology.
Eric’s question caught Jade off guard. She stared at him, and a small smile began to break through her watery eyes.
"Haha... you’re right... for what... you don’t even want to talk about the past or anything to do with that city," Jade realized aloud.
"Exactly. That’s why I’m asking. Why are you apologizing? There’s nothing to forgive," Eric said.
"Caleb already talked to me. He told me he filled you in on everything. So, what do you think? I’m not actually your family. I’m just an adopted kid they took in out of pity," Jade said.
"Hmm... you and Caleb are still my cousins. That doesn’t change a single thing," Eric replied casually.
Jade went quiet. She just stared at Eric, who looked completely relaxed, entirely unbothered by what she had just said, and completely expressionless.
"You really have changed. A few weeks ago, you panicked in front of the reception hall when you ran into me. Now, you’ve become so much more mature that you seem like a completely different person, someone I don’t even know," Jade said.
"I’m exactly the same, nothing has changed. If you feel like I’m someone you don’t know, it just means you never really knew me in the first place," Eric replied casually, smiling as he looked at her.
"I suppose... you’ve always been calm and quiet, no matter what was going on around you," Jade said, lowering her gaze.
"Drop it, no use talking about the past. So, what’s the plan moving forward? You didn’t come to this city without a goal," Eric said.
"I’m finishing nursing school... all the way until graduation... then I’m just going to work at a hospital out here. I’m never going back home... I finally understand why Caleb ran away back then. There were so many secrets I had to keep over there just to protect the family’s integrity and image, to the point where I felt completely paralyzed," Jade explained.
"Good for you," Eric said, leaning back comfortably.
"Thanks, Eric. For not hating me and for not being angry with me," Jade said.
"Yeah... you’re welcome... but to be totally honest, for things to go back to how they used to be... I still need some time. You need to understand that," Eric replied, shutting down whatever hopeful thoughts were forming in Jade’s mind before they could fully take shape.
"I get it... if I were in your shoes, I’d feel the exact same way. You don’t have to worry about that," Jade said.
Just as Jade finished speaking, "blam," the door flew open forcefully.
"We’re home!" Eric turned to see Emma, Chloe, Priya, Monica, Heidi, and Laura walking in. They immediately kicked off their shoes and walked over to him. Emma and Priya slid onto the couch right next to Eric on his right, Chloe and Laura took the spots on his left, while Monica and Heidi perched on the armrests, flanking the whole group.
Their expressions instantly turned tense when they spotted Mike and Jade. They glared at Jade so intensely that she visibly flinched.
"You guys are back early," Eric said with a smile.
"Yep... so? What’s going on here?" Emma asked, eyeing Mike and Jade.
"Oh, let me introduce you. This is Jade, my cousin. You guys met before, right? And next to her is Mike, her boyfriend," Eric said.
The room went completely silent. The six girls stared at Eric in the middle of them, giant question marks practically stamped across their foreheads. Seeing how hesitant and confused they were, Eric looked over at Jade.
"They know everything that happened to me," Eric told her.
"Oh... I see," Jade said, understanding the situation immediately.
"Hey... hey... stop it. She didn’t do anything wrong. Back then, she only stayed quiet because she was forced to. I’m not mad at her," Eric told the six girls.
Hearing Eric’s words, it was obvious that Emma, Chloe, Priya, Monica, Heidi, and Laura were all silently processing the information. But a moment later, their expressions softened and they turned to introduce themselves to Mike.
"Hi... I’m Emma," Emma said, reaching her hand out.
"I’m Priya, nice to meet you," Priya added.
Then the rest followed suit. This naturally put a smile on Mike’s face as he shook their hands one by one, while Jade just watched and smiled. But right after that, the six girls stood up and immediately swarmed Jade, catching her completely off guard.
"Um... what’s happening?" Jade asked, bewildered.
"It’s so good to meet you," Emma said, sitting right next to Jade.
"Yeah, you’re Eric’s cousin, right?" Priya added, sandwiching Jade from the other side.
"You already know all of our names, right?" Monica asked, leaning in next to her.
"Your name is Jade, right?" Chloe added, standing directly in front of her.
"Where are you going to school now? Oh, are you the same age as Eric?" Heidi asked from just behind the couch.
"Can you tell us some stories about how Eric used to be?" Laura asked right next to Heidi.
Jade was instantly overwhelmed. She shot a look at Eric as if begging for backup, but Eric just shrugged his shoulders. Ultimately, the six girls dragged Jade up to the fifth-floor rooftop, leaving Eric and Mike completely alone downstairs.
After they all disappeared upstairs, Eric and Mike kept staring toward the stairwell door for a moment. Then they looked back at each other, staying silent without saying a word. They both reached for their drinks on the coffee table and took a sip. After setting his can back down, Eric broke the silence.
"You’re not in a rush to get anywhere, right?" Eric asked Mike.
"Not really... I’m good. My business on campus is all wrapped up," Mike answered, relaxing a little.
"Because they’re probably going to be up there for a while," Eric said, gesturing behind him with his thumb.
"Let them be. It’s actually a good thing, helps break the tension," Mike said.
"I already heard about it from Caleb," Eric replied.
"Yeah... initially I wasn’t going to give her another chance... but it turns out she really did change and realize her mistakes... so I’m giving her one more shot. But everything is different now... you get it, right? Even though we’re back together, the foundation is cracked, and those cracks are never going to be perfectly smooth again. That’s why I said we’re taking things slow right now. I need to build a brand new foundation," Mike said, looking down.
"I get it. Once trust is broken, it’s impossible to just piece it back together unless you throw it all out and start from scratch. But it’s good that you two are willing to try starting over," Eric said.
"Thanks. Right now, she’s staying with Ruby temporarily, until she and I can live under the same roof again," Mike said.
"That’s smart. Hope everything goes smoothly for you guys moving forward," Eric said.
"Thanks, man," Mike replied.
Eventually, the two of them began talking casually, opening up to one another a little more. Meanwhile, upstairs, Jade, who had looked incredibly stiff and gloomy earlier, finally burst into laughter along with the six girls surrounding her.
