Until I Met You

Unexpected (42)

Jake

We practiced one last time and okayed everything. We were done with our practice. Then we checked every instrument that was with us and made sure that everything was working. Everything had to be perfect after all. I can't take risk of having any sort of problem on the stage during our performance.

Finally, we packed and drove to our destination. We got out of the car and walked inside the place from a way especially made for people who were performing. As expected, I felt that the hall stadium was buzzing with sound. I walked on the stage and looked at the audience. It felt different. I felt like they were looking at me differently. Like, it was different from their usual looks I got, like admiration and cheeriness. Right now, it felt like they were gossiping about me. Ignoring them, I looked at Grace's reserved seat. It was empty. My brows furrowed in confusion and I looked around me to see if she was mingling with someone in the crowd but no. I couldn't see her anywhere. Maybe she went to the washroom.

Anyway I spoke to see if the mic was working, when Bob came to me and whispered, "I need to talk to you. Now!" His words held a sharp tone.

I looked at his face, trying to see if he was joking but his face was dead serious. So I followed him. He was a type of guy who always held a smile on his face and always was cheery self even when it was a really problematic situation. He was always calm. Thus, his intense expression told me he had some bad news. A terrible one.

He walked to a corner and pulled me there.

"Did you actually help that bastard humiliates this girl? Whom you call your girlfriend, huh?" He barked. I looked at him with a confused look.

"What are you talking about? Humiliating a girl? What Girl? And what do you mean by whom I call her my girlfriend?" I asked him. He looked like he wanted to punch me in the face, in his anger.

"Don't try to pretend to be innocent in front of me. Did you just get with her because you wanted to see her getting humiliated?" He asked again, pushing my chest back. Now, I was getting angry, at the way he was behaving with me. "What do you mean? Just say it clearly. Tell me what the hell happened?" I asked him, gritting my teeth's. All of a sudden, Mason appeared at my side, huffing out short breaths. He looked between me and Bob.

"Jake, everyone knows about Grace's job. Noah showed everyone a video. In that video Grace was shown having sex with a guy and going in and out of the main building where Grace worked at." He told me. All the colors left my face and I became pale.

"What?" I asked him. I could not believe what he was saying.

"That's not the worst part. He told everyone that you helped him find proof of Grace's job. He told it in front of everyone, including Grace." He said and I felt like I was just punched in my stomach. What? What the hell just happened?

"So you weren't behind that video? You really didn't know anything about it." Bob asked me. But I couldn't answer him. I couldn't speak.

At first, I just felt numb but then a blinding rage took its place and I stormed off to find Noah. I'm going to kill him today. I'm going to break every single bone in his body, one by one. I'm going to snap his neck with my bare hands. He will beg for my mercy but I will take out his eyes and feed him to keep him from speaking.

I searched for him everywhere but I couldn't find him on the stage. So I went downstairs to look for him in the changing room. Mason and Bob also started searching for him with me.

And then I found him. In the men's washroom. That fucker was smiling as he washed his hands but that smile disappeared when he saw my face. I didn't give him a single chance to speak and just walked up to him and punched his face as hard as I could. He went back with the blow and bumped into the toilet gate. I grabbed his face and punched him as hard as I could again and again, until Bob, Mason and one more guy held me back from murdering him then and there. I fought against their hold to kill him but Mason stopped me. He told me to ask him first, why he did it and then continue.

It took so much self-control but I did stop myself. I grabbed his collar and pulled his face closer to mine.

"Why? Why did you do it?" I asked him. He answered in a quivering voice as some blood came out of his mouth.

"Because you asked me to do it." He said. I raised my fist to hit him again, but he stopped me.

"Come on man. I think of you as a brother. Why would I do that if you didn't ask me? Your friend Ethan messaged me, telling me that you wanted me to do it. So I did it." He said and I dropped him. Ethan?

Ethan asked him to do what?

My mind went from buzzing with rage to blankness. He backed away a little but took out his phone. He opened a chat and showed me the message.

It was a chat between him and Ethan. I took the phone from him and read the texts. And my fear came true.

In that chat, Ethan asked him to make a video of Grace and show it to everyone on the stage. He told him that it was my demand.

Reading those words, I felt like I was being torn apart.

Ethan?

No. It can't be him. Why would he do that? Someone was trying to frame him. Yes. Why would he do this to me?

I looked around me but couldn't see him anywhere. He was nowhere to be found.

"Where is Ethan? Where is he?" I yelled. He came here with us. He even walked on the stage with us. So where did all of a sudden he disappeared? When no one answered, I started to search for him myself, but he was nowhere to be found. Mason grabbed my arm.

"Maybe he went home?" Mason suggested. I nodded my head. I grabbed Noah by the neck and took him with me to the car. He climbed on the back seat of the car. Then I climbed myself in. Mason followed the suit and got in the passenger seat. And I drove to his house without caring if I was speed driving.

I pulled up to his house and got out of my car. Ethan and Noah followed me. I knocked on his door, but he didn't open the door. I nodded to Mason, and he took out a spare key to his house. We all have a spare key to each other's house. Mason inserted the keys and opened the door. We all entered it at the same time. No one was there but I heard voices in Ethan's bedroom. I opened it and saw what I couldn't believe.

He was packing his suitcase. His clothes were thrown everywhere and like he was hurrying to leave.

"Yes. He told me." Noah said and Ethan stopped in his tracks. All this time, he was so invested in hurrying up to pack his bags that he didn't even notice our presence. When he heard Noah's voice he turned around and looked at us. I saw a crazed look in his eyes. I didn't even know what to say, so I asked the only question that came to my mind.

"Why? Why did you do it?" I asked him. At first, he looked too angry to say anything, but then he barked, "Because she's mine." He said and kicked the suitcase, hard.

"Because she was supposed to be mine. You stole her from me. Because you had everything in your life and I have nothing. When I thought I'd got to have one thing that I wanted, you took it from me." He shouted. His chest was heaving and so was mine. I had too many emotions to even feel anything. So I decided not to feel anything.

"I stole her?" I asked him coldly.

"Yes. I was the first to see her. I was the first to want her. I wanted to have her first but you stole her from me. Me. I just wanted one thing and you didn't even let me have that. You rich bastards like to have everything. You people couldn't stand to see that someone else could have something that you want." He said and a sense of déjà vu hit me. I heard the same words from many people. On the different parts of my life. But I never expected him to say that to me. "What do you mean?" I asked him.

"The first day she came to college, I saw her first. But this fucker," he pointed to Mason, "dared you to kiss her. When it was supposed to be me. But she denied you. And I was happy. She did exactly what I wanted her to do. I thought for once that God was in my favor. I thought that I'll use you as bait. Let you make her life hell by setting you up to meet her, where she worked so that I could save her from you and be a hero. But you, you turned it in your favor and asked her to become your girlfriend." He said.

"You knew who she was? That's why you booked her for me? So that you can save her from me?" I asked in disbelief. "Oh yeah. Remember the time, when she ran away from us, during the ride?" He asked. I nodded my head a little.

"Yes. I took the turn to drive while you both slept in the car. That day, I saw her taking a lift from a man. He looked familiar to me, so I searched her background and realized that she worked as a sex worker in a very famous building famous for the reason. And that guy was one of the bodyguards. That day I found out what she does to earn her living. I tried to use that opportunity but you ruined everything. Like you always do." He spat.

"What did you do to deserve her? Nothing. What did you do to deserve anything you have? Nothing. You were just born into a rich family and that's why you have everything when I don't! I live in this gutter-worthy house and work as a mechanic to make my living. Only because I wasn't born into a rich family. But you, you had everything. When I wanted just one thing in my life, even then you couldn't let me have it. You rich bastards only see yourselves. Just yourselves." He said, grabbing his head like it was aching as he sat on his bed.

"What have I done?" He said in a strangled voice.

"I thought of you as my friend. My Friend. But you - you, I never want to see your face. Ever again." I said, trying not to choke on my emotions and left him there. I walked to my car and drove to Grace's house.

I don't cry. I never cry. I am known for my control over my emotions. Then, why could I not stop the tears that were pouring out of my eyes? Why was I feeling like, I could die any minute.

I reached Grace's house and knocked on the door. No one answered my knock. I knocked again but no one answered me again. So I took out her keys and opened the door.

And I was left there stunned.

Grace was nowhere to be found. Her whole house was empty except for some furniture. Her wardrobe was vast open and it was completely empty. I checked every corner of the house like a maniac but I couldn't find her anywhere. Then my eyes went on a note that sat on the table.

"I know it's not your fault Jake." It read. It was her handwriting. She left it there for me, purposely.

I stood up. I told myself that I can't lose hope. I ran outside and knocked on her neighbors' door. A lady came out.

"Do you know where your neighbor is gone?" I asked her with a hope that she might know.

"No. She didn't say anything. She just left." She said, coldly.

And I fell on my knees. It was like the whole world had come crashing down on me. I sat there and sobbed and sobbed. For how long, I still don't know.

I returned to my house. How I got there, I had no idea but I somehow managed to get to my house.

I asked my dad to search for her. I asked my mom to search for her. I asked Mason or anyone I could find to search for her. I looked for her myself and searched everywhere, asked everyone, but she just vanished. And she never came back.