Quoted By:
Ordinarily you’d jump at the chance to slug Jake… Hell, you still might do it, but something about the way he’s setting you up for it gives you pause. That and the little interaction between him and Pepper.
Frowning as the Vice-President continues to tap on his cheek and even leans in for you to hit it, you dispel the awkward silence with an annoyed groan. Now it’s just <span class="mu-i">awkward</span>.
Would he quit being a drama queen already and tell you what the hell he’s playing at? The cops are gonna be here any minute and you’ve only had two drinks!
Jake runs his hand through his disheveled hair as a long sigh escapes his lips. “... I wanted to… apologize.”
You expected bullshit like this, and yet the words still hit you like a red-haired truck. Excuse me?
“I heard everything from Pepper,” Jake continues as he leans against the wall with a rueful look on his face, “How you risked so much helping her gather evidence of Hauser’s corruption… how you rushed after her when she ventured into an abandoned mine… and how close she was to… how close <span class="mu-i">I</span> came to losing her.”
It’s only after a single tear trickles down the VP’s pale face that you realize there’s no smoke and mirrors at play here–no ulterior motives.
“She told you about why we moved here, didn’t she? How she almost drowned?” He asks, wiping the tear onto one of his ragged sleeves.
Yea, you nod, she said he saved her. Jake nods.
“Every cloudy day brings me back to that damn water park…” The redhead bitterly mutters under his breath, “I remember how cold it was… the look in her eyes and the bubbles escaping from her mouth…”
His fists are clenched at his sides as he struggles to continue–his fingers pale and white from lack of blood flow.
“I was so happy when she started breathing again… I was the luckiest brother in the world, Diesel. I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”
So what <span class="mu-i">happened</span>, you counter as you cross your arms across your chest. What happened to that feeling?
“She changed.” Jake explains with a shrug of his broad shoulders. “Everything was a secret waiting to be unraveled after that… every person, place, thing… all of it was just another target for one of her ‘<span class="mu-i">GRAND REVEALS</span>’... and after years of apologizing on her behalf… explaining to friends that she wasn’t <span class="mu-i">that</span> bad–that she was just misunderstood, well…”
He shrugs again. “I grew to resent her, I suppose.”
>CONTD.