Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Bradyn really had us working our butts off doing this waltz thing. I was drenched in sweat by the time we were finishing practicing. It was only about an hour, but man was she determined to make sure we had it right. My feet never hurt so much in heels before. I thought just standing in them was annoying. Dancing in them was even worse. It's a mystery how ballroom pros do this for a living. I bet blisters were their worst enemy because that was mine right now.

We were finally done, and I was so happy to get a sip of water. My heart was racing, and my feet were completely dead. Twila looked to be in the same boat as I was ready to go take a shower. I hadn't forgotten what she told me before we left to come down here. Now having had conversations with Sienna it all made sense. As sure as Twila was about her, Sienna was not as confident. I didn't know what I was giving her advice for at first, but now it started to click. I'm sure they had encounters with each other while being here and Sienna seemed distraught by them. If things do go badly, I hope it wasn't because of anything I've said to her.

Regardless, this was something I was going to keep secret as well. She was holding on to mine and I was going to return the favor. It was nice knowing who her interests were though. I wouldn't have pegged her to be after someone like Sienna, but strange things have happened. She was a pretty girl though and deep down sweet. I could see why this was someone Twila just couldn't get over. From Twy's perspective, they have a history.

Nevertheless, I wasn't going to speak about it with her right now. When she was ready to go into more details I would be here to listen. It was the least I could do anyway.

"We're definitely going to be standouts this Saturday." Bradyn said, sipping her water too. I loved her excitement about this weekend.

"All thanks to you, Bray!" I say hugging her.

She smiled at us both. "Oh, stop it. You put the work in." She was trying to be modest.

Twila rolled her eyes. "We can't put the work in without a fabulous teacher and that's definitely you."

Bradyn never wanted to take credit for anything because she felt it would come across as overconfident. That wasn't always the case and I wish she saw it that way. This whole competition she's just been there. This weekend was her chance to change that. Come out of her shell a little bit. It was a long shot, but I knew she could do it. She's dancing with Cyrus. He'll make anyone feel comfortable in his presence.

Not dwelling on it any longer, we walked out of the dance studio to go take showers. It took about two hours to finish but once we did, we decided to get some lunch. It felt like it's been ages since we've been out. I can't quite remember the last thing we all did together. Nevertheless, we went to the nice little sandwich shop we went to when we were shopping. This place was good, and I couldn't wait to sink my teeth into their freshly baked bread.

As we were ordering, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Jason walking in. The man was everywhere and of course he would pop up here. Shortly after walking in, he saw me looking at him waving in the process. Whatever he said to the host, she let him come in and of course he walked towards us. He really wasn't helping the case against Twila about him being into me. I knew better but she was going to milk the hell out of this.

Sitting down across from me, he smiled at all of us surprised to see us here. "You guys come here too?" He asked delighted that he had some company.

Bradyn nodded. "They have only the best sandwiches ever!" She couldn't wait to get her meal.

He laughed, agreeing with her statement. "You're right about that." He spoke. "I won't intrude, I just wanted to say hi."

Twila scoffed. "Nonsense, join us. It'll be fun." She insisted.

I couldn't really argue with that. It was only the three of us and having another person would sure make for a fun time. And it was indeed because we were laughing with each other the whole-time during lunch. I was seeing a different side of Jason that I wasn't expecting to see. He was more relaxed and enjoying our company. There also wasn't any flirting and I was thankful for that. Even though it wasn't much this showed me a little why Cyrus was friends with him.

We finished eating and we were on our way out. Before we got in the car, I decided to stay and chat with Jay for a minute.

"So, what made you come out here today?" I questioned.

Jason shrugged looking down at me. "Just felt like having a sandwich, that's all." He responds nonchalantly.

I eyed him not really buying that story. "Are you sure about that?" It was oddly coincidental that he just so happened to show up here.

He chuckled, not getting where I was going with this. "I'm not sure what you want me to say here." His tone of voice was nervous.

I'm not sure what I wanted him to say either. He's made it clear that there was no attraction for me on his end. It was weird that he showed up here, I guess. This was a restaurant. Anyone was allowed to come here whenever they wanted. The timing of it all seemed weird though. Not that he would have known we'd be here at this time. Or did he?

Either way, I wasn't going to think too much about it. We were working on being friends after me embarrassingly accusing him of flirting with me. It sounded weird if I assumed he showed up here because he knew I would be. I got to get out of my own head.

"Never mind, I think I should go now." I say starting to walk away.

Jason stopped me, grabbing my hand in the process. "Wait, before you go, this Saturday would you like to be my partner?" He asked me catching me off guard.

I looked at him not expecting to hear him say that. Bradyn would be dancing with Cyrus this weekend, so I did need someone to be partnered with. However, Jay was the last person I would have thought would ask me. It was better that we were paired together. I think Cyrus would feel good knowing I was in the hands of his friend. But did I feel ok with it? I'm sure he meant it in a friendly way, but I still couldn't understand what made him ask me. We've had some conversations together but not enough for him to feel comfortable with me.

Seeing my face, he rolled his eyes dropping my hand in the process. "Is this about the attraction thing?" He asked me. "I already told you it wasn't true."

Part of me wanted to believe him but something told me there was more to this than just wanting to be partnered up. There was no evidence of this, so I had to take his word for it. I won't ever know the truth until something becomes known.

I sighed knowing I still needed a partner. "No, yeah we can be partners." I agreed, shaking the thought out of my head.

He looked at me like he knew I wasn't one hundred percent sure about this. "Autumn, don't do this if you don't want to." He said looking at me with this serious expression on his face.

I giggled nervously. "What are you talking about? I want to be partners. I don't have one, you're the perfect option."

His facial expression didn't change seeing right through my bullshit. "What do I have to do to prove to you I don't have any romantic feelings for you?" He asked me.

I stared back at him not knowing what to say. I don't need him to prove to me that he didn't like me. I was being ridiculous because I didn't want to upset Cyrus. Though I was free to do what I wanted because we weren't officially together. But we're just starting to rebuild our weird relationship again. I couldn't mess it up already. However, I didn't know if I would be messing it up or not. I couldn't really get a read about Jay or his intentions or how Cyrus would feel with me talking to his friend. My mind was confused.

I didn't have much time to think about it because the girls started yelling for me to hurry up.

"Please don't worry about it. I'll see you Saturday." I left it at that running to the car.

I'm not sure how he was going to take that, but it wasn't going to stop me from having a fun time on Saturday.

***********

Later that night, Bradyn was up in the shower while Twila and I sat downstairs in the kitchen. I'm not sure why Bradyn wanted to shower again but she's like this all the time. The girl takes about three showers a day never missing a beat. This time, however, gave Twila and I time to talk about her situation. More precisely, Sienna.

I was still shocked that she told me because she didn't have to. It only solidified our trust for each other, and I was thrilled that she could come to me about his. Granted, it was because I told her my secret but eventually Twila would have said something about Sienna. I'm guessing my secret pushed her a little more to tell me. Regardless I knew and I wanted more details on this whole thing.

We were sitting by the island enjoying a drink waiting for Bradyn to come back down. I was going to ask her questions, but I wasn't sure how to word them without coming off too nosey. Not that Twila would mind.

"So, how do you know each other?" I asked very intrigued to hear their story.

She sighed fiddling with her glass. "We grew up together here in Sunbury. We dated for two years prior to this." She speaks. "But we had a bit of an argument which caused us to break up."

I was listening very intently. I can't believe they had a relationship for two years! No wonder Twila couldn't get over here. In retrospect, two years isn't long but it's enough to develop some sort of deep feelings for her. I don't think I would follow her to a competition about a guy. However, I could see how this was her only hope. It doesn't make sense why Sienna pretended she didn't exist then.

Sipping my drink, I looked at her confused. "What was the argument if you didn't mind me asking?" The details were imperative for me to know.

She took a deep breath. I can feel the nerves radiating off her. "Well....I yelled at her about her sexual orientation. " She said not sounding proud. "I didn't mean to I was just frustrated because I'm in love with her. Though that's no excuse."

"What did you tell her? I'm confused." I admit trying to understand the story.

Twy shrugs. "When we first got acquainted, she told me she strictly liked girls. Two years later and now she's not sure what she likes." She continued. " I tried to force it in her that she was like me and liked what I liked when everyone knows that's not always the case for everyone."

Thinking about it, that made complete sense. From speaking with Sienna, the things she's told me lines up with Twila. If that was the case, then Sienna was just trying to find herself. I knew Twila was in love with her, but she couldn't force her to feel the same back. Or to force her to like what she likes. These things didn't work like that. She needed to give Sienna time to find herself. No matter how long it took.

There wasn't much I could tell her other than to be patient. When you're in love you don't want to hear those words. You want what you want when you want it. Unfortunately for Twila, that couldn't be the case.

"I just love her. It's been almost eight months since we broke up, but I can't get over her." She admits to me. The look on her face was the most emotion I've ever seen Twila show. This girl meant a lot to her.

Not knowing what else to do, I get up and hug her tightly. I didn't want to see her sad. It broke my heart that she couldn't be happy with the one she loved. Even if Sienna weren't the one, I knew she would end up finding someone. No offense to Sienna, but maybe even someone better than her. Or they could possibly get back together in the future. Nobody knows but what I know is she's going to be ok.

"Twila, it'll be ok. Love sucks ass but it can be beautiful and if you give it time things will work out for you." I say grabbing her hands smiling at her. "Just don't let this discourage you if Sienna ends up not being the one. Things happen for a reason." I try to explain to her.

She smiled back wiping the tears that had come down her cheeks. "I should stop crying before Bradyn starts overreacting." We both laughed. "But you're right. Thank you."

"Anytime Twila." I smile. "Now, let's go rush Bradyn out the shower and drink some wine!" I say excitedly.

"I'm totally down for that."