Broken Pieces, L. S. [brene brown rising strong .txt] 📗

walking my way out of UCLA College of Psychology building when someone called my name. When I turned around to see who it was, I saw Christy’s Brother Adam.

“Hi,” I greeted him with a slight smile.

He was chasing his breath when he came in front of me, he is wearing a white tee with I’m an artist written on it, a pair of black jeans and black high cut converse.

“Hey, going home?” he asked.

I nodded and we started walking together. My class is only until 5pm today so I am planning to go home early to cook something special for Carter, my thank you present for the Bentley.

“Yeah, how about you?” I asked.

I saw his dragon tattoo on his left arm, he is really an artist.

“I still have one class left at seven,” he answered then ran her fingers on the strap of his back pack. “I’m thinking, if you can join me for a coffee, maybe?”

He was looking at me with pleading eyes. Now I believe Christy, he really does have a crush on me.

“I’m sorry, I can’t” I declined.

He took a deep breath.

“I know Christy told you some things about me crushing on you, and it’s true and I know that you’re with someone and I get it, but I just want to be your friend, I mean since you’re friend with my sister.” He said.

I don’t know what to tell him anymore. I don’t know why but whenever I go I always get attention from some guys in school, like Max in St. Louis and Justin from Florida. Who actually left a voicemail on my cell phone the day that I landed in California.

“Jillian, it’s me Justin. I don’t know what happened to you on why all of a sudden you decided to transfer school but I just want you to know that I was cool with you dating someone else, but at least you could’ve had the courage to tell me instead of pretending that you are single but just too busy to go out. I hope you have a good life.”

I don’t know where he got my number or how he knew I was moving to California. I was kind of hurt on how fast he judged me thinking we were friends but whatever he thinks of me, it doesn’t matter anymore, I can’t do anything about it anyway.

Adam still followed me to the parking area where I left the Bentley. I was about to answer him but I was surprised who I saw standing beside my car. It’s Carter.

“Carter,” I called him with an obvious surprised on my face.

He was wearing his usual office suit and he stood gorgeously with his freaking Greek-God smile as he waited for me to reach his side.

“Surprised baby?” he asked.

I nodded and smiled a bit forgetting Adam is still behind me. Carter’s smiled immediately disappeared when he saw Adam. I felt the sudden tension coming from the two of them. Carter is staring intently at Adam while Adam ran his gaze to Carter from head to toe, maybe wondering who Carter is.

I took a step forward, standing closer to Carter and keeping a slight distance from Adam.

“Carter, this is Christy’s brother Adam and Adam this is Carter----”

“---her boyfriend.”

I wasn’t able to finish what I was trying to say when Carter cut me off. I saw him offering his hand to Adam and I felt nervous as Adam accepted his hand. There’s still tension when the two guys shook hands. I never felt like this before. I don’t know what Carter is doing here at campus and I regret letting Adam follow me here in the parking area.

“Jillian, I’ll see you around, please think of my offer, okay?”

I was glad when Adam felt the tension and decided to walk away. I nodded at him an answer and watched him as he made his way back inside the building.

“So, who’s that?”

I turned to look at Carter, his expression is blank and his voice is stiff. I can’t sense if he is mad at me or not. This is the first time I saw him like this.

“Christy’s brother,” I answered feeling uneasy.

He knows Christy and Brooke. I told him about them the day I started school. He was happy that I made new friends.

“Why is he following you?” he asked again with the same stiff tone.

“He was asking me to join him for coffee,” I told him

I don’t know what he is trying to dig in. He was never like this before. I am not used to this kind of Carter.

“And what’d you tell him?”

I took a deep breath.

“I told him, I can’t” I answered, trying to keep myself on feeling aggravated. “Anyway, what are you doing here?”

He sighed.

“I want you to drive me home,” he teased, but not smiling.

I looked around trying to look for his car and Marcus but I didn’t find neither.

“Let’s go then,”

I walked to the driver seat and get inside the car, Carter did the same on the seat beside mine. I made sure we’re both wearing our seatbelts before I started the engine and drove away.

“So, that Adam guy, is he hitting on you?” he asked while we are on our way home.

“No, he isn’t”

He is still trying to pry and dig some information from me about Adam so I just decided to keep my eyes on the road.

“Then, what’s the offer he is telling you think about?”

I turned straight right to the Wilshire Blvd before looking at him.

“He wants to be friends with me,”

“Just friends?”

I feel like he thinks I am lying to him and it makes me irritated because it looks like he doesn’t trust me. Now, I regret making friends if it will be an issue if I hang out with a male friend. Besides, I didn’t even say yes to Adam, I declined going with him and he’s only offering me nothing but friendship.

“Yes, just friends. Christy told me he had a crush on me but he knows he doesn’t have any chance on me because I am living with you.” I explained, hoping that he’s drop the topic.

“So, if it happens that you’re not living with me and I am out of the picture, he has a chance?”

I took a deep breath before stopping the car on the road side.

“No. He doesn’t have any chance at all. He isn’t my type and the only reason why I see him because we go to the same school, nothing more, nothing less.” I told him straight forward.

I know I sounded upset because I am. I have been trying to be patient since I started driving but I just lost it. I feel like he is accusing me of things I didn’t even do.

He looked at me straight into my eyes with a blank expression on his face. The only expression he carried since he got inside my car.

“I don’t want you near that guy, ever again.” He said with authority.

“Okay,” I nodded, not wanting to argue with him again. “Can we go home now?”

He nodded and didn’t say anything else. I started the engine again and silently drove our way home.

I parked the car at the garage, I am still upset with Carter. I turned the engine off and got off the car. I didn’t say anything to him and so as he. I was the one who went inside the house first, I heard him follow me, and I withdrew the thoughts of cooking for him tonight on my head. I’ll just cook when we’re both not angry with each other. I went straight to our room to change for something comfy.

My attention was caught by a huge white rectangular box on the bed that has a yellow ribbon on it. There is another shoe box on the floor near the bed and a black velvet jewelry gift box on the bed beside the rectangular one.

I was still staring at the boxes on the bed when I heard the door opened. I know it’s him. I was about to go to the walk-in closet to avoid him when he reached for my hand and pulled me close to him.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered.

He put my hands on his chest making me feel his heart beat. He was looking at me with pleading and sincere eyes. I no longer see the blank expression he has been carrying on your way here.

He pulled me on a tight embraced.

“I’m sorry if I upset you,” he apologized, “I was jealous, he was young, good-looking guy and I was scared that you might fall for him”

I didn’t expect to hear that from him. Adam isn’t my type, though, his also gorgeous but Carter is a Greek-god and I am with him. I never thought that in spite of the perfect life he has, he’s still feeling insecurity towards Adam who doesn’t match with him at all.

I took a deep breath, I don’t know how to handle this kind of situation. I never had someone who feels jealousy towards another individual because of me. I was never in a relationship. Maybe Carter and I are romantically together, since we’re living in the same roof and sleeping on the same bed.

“You shouldn’t feel that way, Adam is my friend’s brother, nothing more.” I started, trying to gasp the right words to say. I want him to feel secured. “And if you don’t want me to see him or be around him, then I’ll try my best to avoid him at all cost.” I assured him.

“Thank you,”

Then he kissed my lips. It was rough and he was eager. It felt like he was so hungry for me. I responded to his kiss, I tug my fingers on his hair as he pulled me even closer to him not the breaking the kiss. He brushes his tongue on my lips asking for an entrance and I gladly gave him one, his left hand is supporting my back while his right hand is squeezing my butt really hard making me feel hot all over my body.

His lips went down to my neck and then sucking my shoulder blades then he stopped.

“Damn, I really want to fuck you right now, but we’re going to an important auction so I have to save you for later.” He said breathing so hard.

I was chasing my breath as he let go of my lips.

“Auction?” I asked

I didn’t have any idea about this auction; I don’t remember him mentioning it to me before.

“Yes, it’s a yearly charity event, and it totally slipped my mind,” he explained. “Phoebe, my secretary just reminded me earlier.” He let go of me and walked to the bed. “Here, I asked her to pick up something you can wear tonight, let’s check it, come here”

I walked to the bed and sat on it while Carter remained standing beside me. I pulled the biggest rectangular box towards my direction and slowly taking the lid off. I looked at Carter and he was smiling at me dearly. I was amazed what came after my eyes when I check what’s inside the box, it is a dazzling blue sequined long dress, it was beaded and strapless and it was sparkling. God, it’s so beautiful.

“Did you like it?” he asked as he slight squeezes my shoulder.

“Yes, it’s beautiful,” I told him.

I cannot take my eyes off the dress. I have never seen something this beautiful. When we attended a gala two weeks ago, he brought me to a dress shop and I chose the simplest dress I found, since the dresses in the shop were so expensive, it was also the cheapest one I got which was $3,000, not really cheap but that’s the cheapest I can find.

“Check out the shoes.” He said.

And so I did. I reached for the shoe box on the floor beside the bed and I was even more amazed, I saw a pair of silver rhinestones flat form ankle strap heels. I think they’re 5 inches high and they are also sparkling and