(Jayden)
Present day…
This had to end, I needed to make my choice. The choice between Bianca, Vienna and Rachelle. I know it may have looked like I was in a relationship with Vienna, but where else could I go? I had no family left, and I couldn't go to Bianca like I usually did. I felt betrayed then, but now I needed to make my choice.
I had called the three girls over to the house, I had one last big decision to make.
It was time. Time to whip out that poem I had written for this scenario.
I knew who I had in mind, but did Vienna know?
Would she feel more betrayed than Rachelle?
No, I needed to do this, it was essential. This was my chance to choose.
I had bounced around too much, this decision was final.
Quickly and carefully, I pulled out my binder of old poetry. "Where is it?" I said to myself.
I looked at the titles of each poem carefully. "My little well, We-' Suddenly, I found it.
This was the poem I needed. Another Day, Another Star. I hoped all my life I never had to use it, but if I had to, I had to.
I grabbed my phone and dialed Rachelle and Bianca's number.
It was time, time to end this once and for all.
I had gotten to know all of them. My brain was shuffling through the problems I had had with them.
Rachelle, she was an interesting one. I didn't have a strong relationship with her. She treated me horribly, she was definitely off the list.
Vienna, she helped me through the hard times but she was too clingy.
Finally Bianca, she was the first person I had truly opened up too. But I had my struggles and she didn't see that.
Vienna and Bianca had both helped me through hard times. But both had their problems.
I just needed to figure out who loved me more. Brattish friend, Clingy companion or Forgotten friend.
I couldn't figure it out, so it was time to call the calvary. My meeting was scheduled for three so I had three hours to decide. I called Ito to help me. She wasn't biased so it would make it so much easier for me.
She answered almost immediately. "Jayden?"
I sighed with relief, "Thank god, I thought you were busy."
Ito laughed, "I'm never busy, being homeschooled is really easy."
Ito had been a great person to talk to when I was feeling down, or needed an unbiased opinion (Something I used to ask from Sydney).
"So what's up?" Ito asked.
"You know how I've been stuck in the middle of a love triangle?" I asked.
"Yep, I know," Ito said.
"I need you to help me decide who to pick!" I told her.
Ito paused, "Aren't you with-"
"I don't know where that rumor started ok!" I said loudly.
"Ok, calm down," She said. "Well the only thing I can tell you is that only you can decide."
"Can't you push me in the right direction?" I asked.
"No Jayden, you need to figure this out on your own, but I will tell you this, who has had a bigger impact on you," She hung up, just like that. Some help she was.
The hours passed like minutes, I had to make my choice. Rachelle and Bianca were already on their way here, and I had nothing.
I scrambled around trying to figure out what to say.
The school year was almost over so I would graduate soon. Would Vienna kick me out of the house? I was more like a brother now, right?
"Jayden?"
I turned around, "Vienna, hey what's up?"
Vienna looked around my room, "I heard you on the phone with Ito, and I understand."
"You understand what?" I asked.
"If you choose Bianca, she's a better person anyways," Vienna sniffled. Tears started to roll down her cheeks.
"Vienna, don't cry," I said, trying to comfort her.
"It's ok, Bianca is the one, I know it and you do too!" Vienna cried.
She was so emotional, I had no idea what to do.
"Listen, you can stay here for as long as you'd like," Vienna said softly. "I, I'll still love you."
Those words, those were the last words I heard Bianca say to me that truly meant something. I still love you. Those words swirled around my head. I was so stupid, she hadn't betrayed me. She still loved me, and she knew that she hurt me. She was aware of all of that. Bianca, she was the one. Bianca was the one I needed to choose.
I hugged Vienna, "Thank you."
Vienna stopped crying for a second. "Your welcome," She sniffed. She buried her head into my shoulder.
"Listen, just because I won't choose you doesn't mean that I don't love you. You're like a sister to me, the closest thing actually."
Vienna seemed touched by these words. "Thank you Jayden, that means a lot coming from you."
I smiled at her. "Your welcome Vienna."
She smiled a watery smile. She was rather emotional, but that didn't matter.
"I'll always be here for you," I reassured her. "I won't ever let you go, not like my parents did."
Vienna wiped her tears off with her sleeve. "You'll always be in my heart Jayden, remember that."
I nodded, "You too."
Vienna started to cry again.
"Oh come on Vienna, it's not like I'll completely cut you off from my life," I said.
Vienna sniffed, "I know, it's just you'll be with Bianca all the time and have no time for me."
I shook my head, "Of course I'll have time for you."
However, Vienna didn't think that. She continued to cry. She was getting her tears all over the carpet.
"Um, no offense, but you're making the carpet a bit pink."
Vienna looked down at my reddish pink carpet. "Oh, I'm so sorry."
I stared out the window to find an asian kid walking his dog. He had left the dog's waste on our lawn. "Give me a second," I opened the window and shouted. "God damn it Wushi, pick that up!"
The kid quickly doubled back and scooped up the (As Sydney liked to put it) fecal matter.
"Anyways, what were you saying?" I asked Vienna.
Vienna peaked over my shoulder. "Looks like your friends are here."
I turned around and faced the outside of the window. "Well this is it."
Vienna nodded, "Did Sydney tell you about her concerns?"
"She did, why?" I asked Vienna.
"I have reason to believe that they're true."
(Bianca)
I was greeted by a smiling Jayden. He welcomed me inside and wheeled up the ramp.
"You seem to be doing," I gulped. "Well."
Jayden nodded. "The doctor said I'll be out of the wheel chair soon, so I can learn to drive."
It was kind of awkward just staring at him. He seemed so calm, so mature. "So what's up?"
Jay didn't answer. He just stared at the door.
"Are you waiting for someone?" I asked him.
"Yeah, I'm waiting for Rachelle," He answered.
My heart sunk. Was he good? Why would he be waiting for her, what did he want to tell both of us.
I noticed him clutching to a piece of paper. "What's that?" I asked him.
Jay looked up, "Oh it's nothing."
My curiosity was begging me to take the paper from him. I slowly reached for it.
"Hey Bianca!"
I was immediately interrupted by Vienna. "Oh, hi."
Vienna smiled gleefully, "Great to see you again," She hugged me then skipped into the room down the hall.
I gave Jay a blank stare, "What was that about?" I asked, pointing to the door of the room.
Jay just laughed, "You'll see."
I didn't exactly want to see. I wanted to leave.
"Come on, let's hang out in my room," Jay walked into the living room (Which if you remembered was his room).
I hastily followed behind him. However, when I entered, I noticed that I wasn't alone.
"Um, hello?" I said to the young woman on the couch.
She wore light blue jeans, a pink sweater and a yellow flower in her hair. Her hair was dark and she had eyeshadow under her eyes. "Hello, you must be Bianca."
I nodded, "And you are…"
"I'm Ito Jackashitsu," She stood up to shake my hand. "I like your skirt."
I looked down at my lime tennis skirt, "Yeah, I just came from tennis practice."
Ito smiled sweetly, "I play a little bit of tennis, maybe we could play sometime."
"Yeah, of course," I said.
The doorbell rang and everyone turned.
"I've got it!" Vienna shouted from down the hall.
It took a few seconds, but Rachelle appeared from downstairs.
"Hey, come on in," Jay said guestering to the couch.
Rachelle hurried over and took a seat.
"Now I think that you all want to know why you're here."
I looked at Rachelle and winked.
"I have reason to believe that Bianca still has feelings for me, so I've made a decision.
This was extremely nerve racking.
"This, is a poem, it's titled Another Day-"
"Another Star," I said, finishing his sentence.
Jay nodded, "Ito is my supervisor just so things don't get," He gulped. "Out of hand."
Rachelle crossed her arms, "I don't plan for that to happen."
"Good, now as Bianca is aware, I wrote this poem for this exact situation."
I was rather scared.
What was Jayden doing?
"This poem will go to the person I care for the most."
Wasn't that Vienna. Was he this naive?
"He walked over to Rachelle and smiled. "I know why you're here."
Rachelle paused. "I.. I don't understand."
"You think I'm so gullible, don't you," Jay laughed,
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Rachelle said in a voice that meant she was obviously lying.
"Of course I turned a blind eye to see if you had actually changed," Jayden scoffed, "And of course, you didn't!"
Rachelle laughed evilly, "Well you caught me-"
But Jayden wasn't done. "You caused all of this. Because of your stupid feelings, I had to reveal my past to everyone."
Rachelle crossed her arms.
He then walked over to me, "Do you still have that piece of tissue I gave you?"
I nodded to him.
"Take it out and read it."
I had been putting it off, I didn't want to read it. Slowly, I opened the tissue.
"Bianca, my shining star
You are the beacon of hope in my life
You were who I thought of when I was feeling down
The one who stopped me from ending the pain
I thought of you and you alone
Vienna may be like a sister, but you were the cure
You are the cure to my suffering
I'm sorry I didn't show you that this past year.
Your loving friend Jayden Davis."
I could hear bells ringing as I read it.
Jayden handed me the poem, "Do you want to read it?"
I nodded, but still looked down at the note.
I didn't want to read it, I might cry. I looked down at the paper in my hand.
"Everyday I think of you
Your laugh and smile make me beam
Everyday I want to be with you
Even if it's not true
You will forever be in my heart
But we'll always be apart
We must wait for the shimmer
The so called winner
Even though we may be afar
I will wait forever
Because after another day, there's another star."
Now I wanted to cry. I started to blubber. "It's so.. So beautiful."
Jayden smiled from ear to ear. "I know, I know," He hugged me and I hugged him.
I had no idea that I would have this happy ending.
Never in my life would I think that this would be my happy ending. An ending with Jayden.
Jayden Davis, my knight in shining armour. The one who would stay with me until the end. The american out of all the british people here.
(Rachelle)
I hated him, so much. He had found out my plan, just like that; and he brought me back just to glote. I mean what kind of idiot would do that. I thought he had forgiven me, but then again, this was Jay we were talking about. He was a stupid as they come.
I couldn't think, but as he handed Bianca the letter, I started to turn red.
Bianca started to cry, that was it.
I raised my finger and waved it at Jay. However I was so mad that I couldn't speak. All that came out was gibberish.
"Rachelle, keep it civil," Ito said, placing a hand on my shoulder.
I slumped down onto the couch pouting.
"Do you need a break?" Ito asked.
I nodded and stood up.
Ito led me out of the room with a calm smile on her face. "So, what's wrong?"
"What are you, a therapist?" I asked.
"No, I'm just here to make sure everyone stays happy," She exclaimed.
"Keep everyone happy? Did you see what he did?" I asked.
"Yes, and it's his choice, not yours," Ito sighed, "You just need a breather, you'll get over this eventually."
I took two deep breaths, "I'm sorry, it's just that Jay has caused me so much-"
"Pain?" Ito asked.
I nodded, "Yeah that."
"Rachelle, your pain is nothing compared to Jayden's; I mean look at him, he's a nervous wreck at times," Ito pointed back into the room.
Jayden was twitching his fingers.
"Yeah, I know but does he have proof?" I asked her.
Ito nodded, "Go ask his adopted mother, she's in the prison just outside of town."
"What?" I gasped, "Why?"
"I'll drive you," Ito said. "Jay just needs to know before you go."
"How come?" I asked her.
"He might want to come with us," Ito said.
We hurried back into the room and ran up to Jay.
Jay gave me a look of disgust, "What do you want?"
Ito whispered something in his ear and his eyes went wide.
"You want to see her, now?" He gasped.
"Yes, we need to talk to her," I said.
Jay looked over to Vienna, "Can you-"
Vienna nodded, "Let me go get my keys."
The ride to the prison was quiet. Nobody made a peep.
Jayden was fiddling with his finger and would wince every time we went over a speedbump.
"Are you alright?" I asked him.
Jayden put his hand out, "I'm… fine."
I kept noticing him placing an arm on his back. "Are you sure you're ok?" I asked him.
"Just go, leave me alone," Jay sighed. "It doesn't hurt."
Was he sure he was ok, he seemed to be in a lot of pain. "Jayden, I-"
"You know what Rachelle, I've had enough of your drama, you have no idea how this feels."
"How what feels?" I asked.
"My adopted mother was like a sister to me, she took care of me whenever I came by. Do you know what happened when I was nine?" I asked.
"You were homeless?" I answered.
"For most of my life, I only came to Manchester two years ago, before that I made a living on poetry!"
Was he being serious?
"Then I met my adopted mother and she was the first person to actually care about me."
"I'm sure your parents cared-"
Jayden scoffed. "Did they, my father was a drunk and he would torture me for the fun of it."
"But you mother, what about her?" I asked.
"She went along with it, I had a younger sister that she loved more, I was the reject, the black sheep!" He shouted.
Everyone turned to him.
"Why don't we give him a break," Ito recommended.
"Yes, how about you tell us about your newest book," Vienna suggested.
Jay shook his head, "No, it's ok."
"Are you sure?" Bianca asked.
Jay just shrugged and closed his eyes.
"My god Rachelle, what are you doing?" Vienna shouted.
"Shouldn't you be mad too, I mean he friend zoned you!" I said in a harsh tone.
"He already explained that I was more like a sister to him, I actually like that better," Vienna smiled to herself.
"So you're not mad?" I asked her.
Vienna looked up, "No actually, I've felt the same way for a long time, people just pushed for it that's all."
"So you two were never-"
"Nope, I don't know where that rumor got started," Vienna laughed. "But I can see why people thought that."
"I'm sorry about that," Rachelle sighed.
"It's ok, I can see that you've changed, even if Jay hasn't seen it yet." Vienna smiled.
That was comforting. However given the circumstances, I could see why she was being so nice.
"So has Jay always been like this?" I asked Bianca, "Shy and quiet I mean."
Bianca shrugged, "I only knew him a week before you."
Was Jay's past that bad?
Maybe his mother could tell us some things that he didn't want us to know.
"Well we're here, anything you want us to know Jay?" Vienna asked.
"Let me do the talking, I know how to speak with her," Jay said.
Everyone nodded and exited the car.
We saw the visitor lobby near the prison entrance.
Jayden ran there as fast as he could. He had a fiery look in his eyes. He was either really excited or wanted to give his mom a piece of his mom.
"Jayden, wait!" Vienna called as she chased after him.
Jay didn't stop for anyone. He burst through the prison doors.
"Um sir, are you alright?" One of the guards asked.
The rest of us entered out of breath.
This was it, time to meet Jayden's parents.
Jayden sat in a metal chair in a large cafeteria like room. "Come on," He said impatiently.
Vienna and Bianca sat next to him. Ito and I stood in the back waiting for his mother.
We heard a loud buzz and out came an Asian woman. She wore a black and white striped jumpsuit. Her hair had been done up in a ponytail and she had bags under her eyes. "Jayden?" She gasped.
Jay nodded, "Hello mother."
Jay's mother laughed, "No need to look so upset, what's wrong-"
"What's wrong, you know what's wrong!"
"Foster life that bad huh?" His mother said softly.
"Actually no, I've been living with Vienna Bauer," Jay said pointing to Vienna on his left.
"I see," His mother said. "How's her family?"
"Well besides the fact that I've been dealing with things that are out of my control," He turned back to me. "It's been quite great."
Jay's mother nodded, "And who's that?" She asked, pointing at me.
"That's Rachelle, my… acquaintance."
Wow, was that really the best way to describe me. I would've been much happier with enemy, or rival; but acquaintance made it sound like he didn't want me here.
"Hello Rachelle," His mother said. She was quite polite, but she was still a prisoner making me not trust her.
"Why don't you sit down and we have a chat," She said with a smile.
Jay stood up and gestured to his seat.
I walked over to the seat and locked eyes with Jay's mother.
"Mrs. Davis-"
"Pracilla," His mother said.
"Ok, Pracilla, what was Jay like back when he was younger?"
"Much more active, he was actually really loud, he sold poems in Boston for a few years, that's where I met him."
"Care to share with the class how you met him?" Bianca asked.
I turned back to Jay who was shaking his head.
His mother laughed. "Well, he had just pickpocketed me and I chased after him. He stole my wallet with all my credit cards and ID."
Jay sat down defeated.
"Anyways I finally caught up to him, but when I looked down, it was just a child. I think he was about six at the time."
"How old were you when you were abandoned?" I asked Jay.
"I was about five, but I was crafty for my age, I stole my father's laptop before I left," Jayden said with a heroic grin.
"Brutal, it's a miracle you're still alive," Vienna said.
"But why weren't you sent into the foster system, or an orphanage?" Bianca asked.
"I tried to avoid those places, I didn't feel like I could trust anyone."
"I was the first person he opened up to," His mother smiled.
"Didn't you have a sister, what happened to her?" I asked.
"She was the star, I vividly remember her, but from what I do remember, she was very loud." Jay laughed. "I can still remember her voice in the background as I would try to fall asleep."
"Anyways, after a while we adopted him and moved here," His mother continued.
"You missed some things," Jayden said.
"I know, but we only have forty-five minuites left, I need to speed this up."
Jay nodded and guestered for her to continue.
"As I was saying, we moved here. However my husband had other things in mind," Jay's mother explained.
"Like robbing the bank?" Bianca asked.
"We were a poor family, Jayden knows that."
"Yeah, that's the main reason I started writing," Jay said. "To make some extra cash."
I had no idea Jay came from such a hurting family. Even after adoption he still needed to work hard to keep his family running.
"I'm sorry Jay, I wasn't a good mother," Said Jay's mother.
He nodded, but kept his head lowered. "It's ok, I just wished that you hadn't done what you did."
Jay's mother smiled, "But you have a better family now, and by the looks of it you have a lot of friends," She nodded to the three of us in front. "Now who's this young lady?" She pointed to Bianca.
"I'm Bianca, Jay's-"
"Oh, so you're the one Jay spoke so fondly of. You were all he talked about at dinner," Jay's mother laughed to herself.
Jay hid his face from view, but I could see his cheeks turning pink.
Bianca laughed nervously, "Did he?"
"How about you tell me how you two met," Jay's mother asked.
Bianca looked at Jay. "Well it was an interesting story; Jay was auditioning for the choir and we expected him to be so full of himself like everyone else."
Jay nodded verifying the story.
"We were surprised to see that he was actually really good. Before he left though, I tackled him to the ground."
I couldn't help but laugh.
"It's not funny, this actually happened!" Bianca shouted.
"Sorry sorry, carry on," I said, still chuckling.
"Anyways, the next day, I peeked into his journal and saw a poem he was writing," Bianca stated. "Another Day Another Star."
"Oh I remember that poem, you said it was supposed to be given to-"
"I actually used it," Jay blurted out.
Jay's mother looked taken aback, "Did you now?"
Jay sighed, "I gave it to Bianca."
Jay's mother stared at Bianca.
Bianca looked flustered. All the color drained from her face.
"Good choice Jay, she's a cute one."
Bianca sighed. She hated when people called her cute.
"How do you feel about Jay?" His mother asked.
Bianca shrugged. "The same way I think, but I've had these feelings for a while now."
"I see, and Jay, do you feel the same way?"
Jay nodded, "I do, and I would walk the ends of the earth for her."
"That's a bit over the top Jay," I said. "Even for you."
"What do you mean?" Jay asked.
"You're a poet Jay, you're supposed to be dramatic."