Frankie was screaming as he held his broken hand on the ground. Donnie pulled Jack away.
"You better jam, man."
Jack almost laughed. As if that piece of shit crying on the floor mattered.
As if anything mattered anymore.
He picked up the fallen tequila bottle and stalked out of the bar to the back stairs and up onto the roof.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Janet
Janet crawled back into her window, the frame biting painfully into her stomach. She didn't care though. She didn't care about anything.
Jack didn’t want her. He was probably in bed with that other girl right now. Touching her… kissing her like he’d touched Janet. He was a badass who could have any girl he wanted.
He’d been horny and she had been there. That was it. End of story.
She was an idiot for reading anything more into it than that.
As soon as her feet hit the ground the light flicked on. Her mother sat on her bed while her father stood by the doorway. They'd been waiting for her.
Oh no…
She wasn't even surprised. Nothing could surprise her at this point. Jack had picked up another girl in front of her. As if she meant nothing to him. As if she were replaceable.
Obviously, she was.
She stared numbly at her parents as they started to yell at her.
She was a disappointment.
(That didn't surprise her.)
She was to be harshly punished.
(Not exactly surprising either.)
She was going to be locked in her bedroom until further notice.
That last one she managed to respond to, rolling her eyes.
"What if I have to go to the bathroom, mom?"
Her eyes widened as her mother held out a bucket.
"You're joking."
"No, I am not. This is for your own good. You will not be coming out until we can be sure you won't humiliate us again. We know where you've been going and with whom."
Janet's jaw dropped. She almost forgot about Jack for a moment. Almost.
"Bikers Janet? Really?"
Her mother's cheeks were red with fury.
“You have humiliated me for the last time, young lady.”
So that's what she was worried about. Her good name. Give me a break. Janet's world tilted as her father shook his head sadly.
They stood up and walked out of the room, shutting it behind them. She heard a dead bolt slide into place.
"What if I need some water?"
"There's a bottle on your desk."
She turned to see a small bottle of water. How long would that last? How long did they plan to keep her in there???
"What if there's a fire? Or would that solve all your problems?!?"
All she heard was footsteps walking away from her. Leaving her alone. They didn’t care if something happened to her.
They didn’t care at all.
She glanced at the window and decided to make a run for it. She could crash with Kaylie. Just start over, on her own. There was no time to pack. She grabbed her book bag and laptop and ran for the window.
Just as she reached it, her father slammed it shut in her face. From the outside.
She pressed her palms against the glass.
"Don't do this dad! Please!"
He ignored her, nailing the window into the frame. Her eyes got wide as she realized what was happening. Really wide.
He was shutting her in there. Permanently.
Janet sank onto the bed and wondered how she'd managed to ruin everything. Her parents hated her. Her career as a dancer was over.
She had nothing now. No school, no freedom, no Jack.
The last one burned the most. She'd felt so alive in his arms. So desired.
It had felt like she was the most cherished woman on Earth when he kissed her.
And she'd wanted him more than she'd ever wanted any man before. Who was she kidding? She'd never kissed anyone like Jack, not that she had much experience. She doubted she ever would again.
She pressed her hand to her lips.
She could still feel him touching her… she felt hot and cold all over, just thinking about it. She still wanted him. If he walked into the house right now, she would beg him to take her away.
To do anything he wanted to her.
Everything he wanted.
But he didn’t want her.
Jack had made sure she understood she was disposable. One of many.
Kaylie had been wrong. He probably had a different girl every night. The thought burned into her, stealing away any hope.
He didn’t want her.
She curled into a ball as wracking sobs shook her body.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Kaylie
Kaylie stood outside Janet's front door and knocked. She hadn't heard from Nettie in three days, since the night of the barbecue.
She'd heard something happened after she'd left. Something between Janet and Jack. Dev had given her the PG version, but supposedly people had seen them together.
That was good. She wanted her friends to be together. In their own ways, they were two of the loneliest people she knew.