Alive

"Mrs. Kirk?" The speaker from the office boomed.
"Yes?" She called back.
"Is Jake Gardiner in class?" The secretary asked.
Mrs. Kirk looked across the class. Jake waved his hand and she nodded at him. "Yes, he is."
"Can you excuse him? His mother has called and asked he come home right away."
Mrs. Kirk agreed and hung up. Jake slowly rose from his seat. Valerie watched him. She gained his attention and he turned to her. She furrowed her brows to ask him why he was leaving. He shrugged as he grabbed his things.
"Want me to let Jocelyn know when I see her?" Val questioned.
Jake shook his head. "No, I'll call her after school. I don't want her to worry."
"Okay. I hope everything's alright." She frowned.
"Thanks, Val. I hope so too." He smiled as he walked from the class.
Jake got what he needed from his locker. He piled everything into his gym bag and set off for home. He sent a text to all the guys, in the group chat Tyler insisted on, asking if one could drop his equipment off at his house. A rapid fire of questions asking why he was leaving early. He didn't bother answering their questions. Eddie replied that he would, realizing Jake didn't want to answer the questions. He locked his phone and continued his walk home.
Jake walked in his front door. He slid out of his shoes and hung up all his belongings. He walked into the living room. His little sister was crying on the couch beside his mother. Her face was blank. He saw his dad on a separate chair, his head in his hands. Jake felt his heart nearly stop. His sister and mom looked up at him. He sat down beside his sister. He pulled her into him as she cried.
"Are you gonna tell him?" His dad spoke.
The next day, Jake was at school. He didn't speak to anyone. Jocelyn knew he was upset about something, but didn't know how to talk to him. She sat down beside him at lunch. She held onto his arm, resting her head on his shoulder. He stood up, pulling his arm from her grasp. She watched him walk out of the cafeteria and past Morgan. Morgan watched him walk away before he looked over to Jocelyn. He walked over and sat down where Jake was.
"Is he alright?" Morgan asked.
"I don't think so. He won't talk to me, Morgan." She whined.
"I bet he'll come around." Morgan smiled at her.
She sighed, picking at her food. She silently sat beside Morgan as more people filed in. Jocelyn looked to Morgan. He cocked a brow at her.
"Is he cheating on me?" She whispered.
Morgan's eyes widened. He shook his head, pulling her into a hug as her eyes watered. She shoved him away and walked off. He looked at Kaitlyn and Felicia. Kaitlyn witnessed what had happened. She gestured for him to go after Jocelyn. He shot up and ran after her. She was standing right outside of the cafeteria. She saw Morgan and rolled her eyes. He stopped in front of her as she turned away.
"Don't come and lie for him, Morgan." She warned.
"Jocelyn, honestly? You think I'd lie for him about something like this?" Morgan raised his voice.
"I don't know!" She yelled, turning to face him. "I don't know what's going on with him! He doesn't tell me! Maybe he asked you to cover for him."
"All he's said to me was how much he likes you." He stated. She stopped. She frowned before Morgan pulled her into a hug. "You're my friend too, Jocelyn. I wouldn't be so supportive of you and Jake if I didn't think he was serious."
"Yeah." She hummed, stepping away. "Sorry for freaking out."
"Hey, it's okay." He smiled.
Jake turned the corner to see the exchange. Morgan saw him and waved him over. He walked over, seeing Jocelyn's face. His face fell more than it already was. He hugged her.
"What's up?" He asked, looking down at her.
"Jocelyn's worried about you." Morgan explained, smiling before he walked off.
Jake frowned, pulling away from her to see her face. "I'm okay. I just need some time to process some shit." He told her.
"I just want you to know you can talk to me." She said.
He nodded, kissing her. "I know I can but I can't talk about this yet. I'm not ready."
"I'll be here when you are." She hugged him.
"Thank you." He whispered, kissing the top of her head.
The day went on. Jocelyn still thought something was wrong. She didn't entirely believe Morgan but she didn't think Jake would've been how he was if he was cheating. He agreed he'd come see her before he went to practice. She was pulled from her thoughts by his arms wrapping around her waist. She smiled as he kissed her neck.
"Call me after practice, please?" She begged, turning in his arms to face him.
He nodded and pecked her lips. He pulled away slowly and made his way down the hall. She watched him walk off then gathered her things. He didn't call after practice. Actually, he didn't call her once that weekend. Not a text, nothing. On Monday, he wasn't at school. The week went on and we still didn't hear from him. She assumed he was just avoiding her.
The girls noticed the decrease in Jocelyn's typically happy mood. Felicia invited all the girls over for a night to forget all their problems. Jocelyn came last. She had her hair in a messy bun on top of her head. She was in a big sweater and sweats. The girls could tell how upset she was and they were determined to get to the bottom of it. Ainsley and Kristen walked to Jake's house that night once Jocelyn was asleep. He answered. He let them in, confused.
"You need to tell me what's going on." Kristen demanded.
"With?"
"Avoiding your girlfriend for the last week!" Ainsley yelled.
Kristen covered Ainsley's mouth. "She's really upset, Jake." Kristen frowned.
"Can you guys go? I don't wanna talk about this right now." He whined.
"Look, if there's problems in your life, you need to talk to J,"
"No! This isn't something I want to depend on her for! I'll figure it out myself!" He shouted.
Ainsley pulled out of Kristen's grasp. She pulled Jake into a hug. "I wish you the best. I hope whatever it is, gets better." She stepped back, walking to the door.
"Tell Joce I'm sorry." He sighed as they left.

Notes