Three's a Crowd

[PrincessKaty]

Jace looked over at Eva and raised his eyebrows slightly, then looked back towards the road. "I don't understand why you'd want to hang out with him. He's so.. Confrontational and rude. Every time I'm around him he just wants to fight me. I can't see him being any nicer to you. He's a bad influence anyway.. All he does is drugs and he's drunk half the time.." He started to rant and rave about him but he was quickly stopped when she told him to turn around.


"No. I'm not taking you back to him," He answered,"I'm taking you home. Your mom is worried about you. We all were, Evangel."


Atticus crossed his arms as he leaned back and thought. Maybe he was just really, really stupid. There was no way that Eva actually wanted to be with him. Jace could give her way more than he ever could. No, that couldn't be right though. She said that she loved him.

 

[kailey]

Evangel looked at Jace hard, her jaw set in determination. "Take me back or I swear to god I'll jump out of the car." She said firmly.


She needed to get back to Atticus soon. If she knew anything about him, he would be flooding with anxiety before long, and she couldn't stand to have done that to him. Not again.





"Please Jace, you don't understand. He's going to hurt himself just take me back before anything bad happens"

 

[PrincessKaty]

Jace rolled his eyes, listening to Eva. "No. You won't," He told her,"He's a big boy. He can take care of himself. I don't see why you care so much anyways.."


Jace figured that if Atticus could hit as hard as he did and speak as harsh as he did, he would be able to take care of himself with Eva.


He locked the doors though, just in case she did try something stupid.


Atticus sighed to himself and looked up from his intense stare at the table. It was fine. Everything was fine. She just didn't want them to fight, that was all. He pulled his Coke closer to himself and took a sip before leaning back again. Even if Eva still wanted to be with him, he'd still have to cope with her being with Jace until she got the nerve to break it off with him. That was going to be the hardest part.

 

[kailey]

"Fuck Jace, just take me back to him. You don't control my life!" Eva shouted, narrowing her eyes over at him. She had never in their relationship raised her voice before.


She regretted it as soon as she said it. She knew that there would be retaliation, and she knew he had a temper. She just wanted to go help Atticus. Why couldn't he just let her?


Quickly, Eva grabbed her phone and dialed her best friends number. "Atticus, are you okay?"

 

[PrincessKaty]

Jace looked at Eva in surprise when she not only yelled at him, but cussed. Never had she'd done that. She'd always been the pleasing type, which was part of why he liked her. She never questioned what he asked for her to do. This was exactly what he didn't want. One who retaliated against him.


"Eva, I swear to God if you call him.. Knock it off! He's just some druggie! I'm more important, aren't I? Don't you love me, Evangel? Don't you want me to be happy?" He basically yelled at her, trying to some-what keep his cool as he drove. He wasn't looking to crash.


Atticus looked down at his phone and when he saw that it was Eva, he answered, thinking maybe something had happened if she had the nerve to call him around Jace. "Eva?" He answered, almost panicked,"I'm fine. What's wrong? What happened?" He could hear Jace in the background, yelling about whatever he was yelling about and felt himself tense up slightly.

 

[kailey]

"Turn the damn car around Jace, right this second!" Eva shouted as she put the phone down slightly, but still close enough so that Atticus could hear.





"Atticus, I need you to come get me, it doesn't look like he's turning around." She said into the phone, glaring over at her boyfriend.





"You happy? Love you? What about me, Jace? You always only think of yourself, I changed for you! Yes, I love you, but I dunno what to do anymore!" She called out, tears streaming down her face as she said so. She hated yelling, especially at him.

 

[PrincessKaty]

Atticus was more than surprised to hear Evangel yelling back at Jace. He'd never heard her raise her voice so seriously at anyone. It was obvious that he'd really pissed her off.


"I'm leaving right now, alright Eva?" He told her even though she was yelling at Jace on the other side. He stood up from the table and bailed. He knew that skipping out on a tab was really bad but he hadn't even gotten his food and he had like one drink. They'd live. He headed towards her car, listening to her yell at Jace.


Jace looked over at Eva in bewilderment. "What do you mean you don't know what to do? Hang up that damn phone! We're going to talk about this. He's not coming to get you," He told Eva as he came to a halt in front of her house. "What in the hell did I do you to make you be like this, Eva? Was it last night? I'm sorry! It was the alcohol, you know that!" When he parked, the car had unlocked so when he saw her getting out, he got out too.

 

[kailey]

"It wasn't just last night, Jace! And that's not the first time you've acted like that while drunk!" Eva called out as she slid out of his car. She glanced to her driveway and noticed that her parents had left to go somewhere. Good.





"You never seem satisfied with me! You always want me to be more social or less school oriented or more intimate with you or more intoxicated, like last night. I'm sorry I'm not enough for the school's beloved quarterback!"





Her tears had continued to run down her delicate features, her face turning red. She was losing her will to fight back. She hoped Atticus arrived soon, she didn't want anything worse to happen.

 

[PrincessKaty]

Jace walked around to the otherside of the car to face Eva. He listened to Eva and watched her yell and the more he watched her cry, the worse he began to feel.


"Eva," He started, far more quieter than he had been,"You're more than enough for me. You've always been more than enough and you always will be. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me. I love you with all my heart. I'm sorry that I'm not always the best boyfriend. I know that my status gets in the way. It's a lot to up hold and I know it gets in the way but that doesn't change out I feel about you. You're the one things keeping my down to earth.." You could tell he meant ever word, too. He wasn't a bad guy. He just was caught up in a label. It was hard trying to be "perfect". His reputation sucked more than not. He took a step closer to her and wiped her cheek, putting his hand on the crook of her neck. "I'm sorry, Eva.."

 

[kailey]

Evangel kept crying as Jace apolgized, explaining everything to her. He sounded genuine... But was it just another game? She couldn't tell. She wanted to believe him but... She wasn't sure her heart was with him a anymore.





"Jace, I..." She began, but was cut short as her white Volkswagen pulled up to her house, Atticus behind the steering wheel. She turned to him, her eyes wide and red from crying.





"Why isn't any of this easy?" She asked herself as she looked between the two. God she was a horrible person, Eva thought bitterly to herself. Why did she have to put herself in this situation?

 

[PrincessKaty]

Jace furrowed his eyebrows, listening to Eva. She looked.. Confused? He looked up when he heard another car and sighed, seeing none other than Atticus getting out of the car. This damn kid. He moved his hand from Eva's face when she turned.


Atticus came pulling up to Eva's house probably a little bit too quickly but Jace sounded pretty pissed so he wanted to get there as quickly as he could. Once he was there, he got out of the car and met the two of them on the sidewalk, standing on the other side of Eva who looked miserable. "Eva.." He said softly, going to reach for her almost out of instinct but he snapped out of it when he heard Jace's voice.


"Easy? What's make any of this hard. I'm trying to apologize Eva," Jace told her before looking over at Atticus and then back to his girlfriend. And that's when all the puzzle pieces seemed to come together for him. "Oh my God. Eva, you like him?" He asked, his voice full of disgust.

 

[kailey]

Eva's eyes snapped to Jace as he made his accusation. Which was entirely true. "Jace, you just don't understand... I know you apologized. I forgive you, but..."





She looked up at him, tears dotting her eyes yet again. "I dunno if this is going to work out right now. I love you, please... Don't..." She didn't know what she didn't want him to do, she just had a feeling he would go after Atticus or something.


She turned to Atticus, the tears beginning to flow. She needed to be with him, and she loved him more than she did Jace. She felt so damn horrible about Jace. Despite his behavior, she has betrayed his trust.

 

[PrincessKaty]

Jace felt his heart completely drop and break simultaneously when she told him that he didn't understand, and that she didn't know if it was going to work out but that she loved him. His mind was whirling.. Was she.. Breaking up with him right now?


"Evangel.." He said softly, reaching out for her but she turned to Atticus instead,"Don't do this.." She didn't listen to him though and he could feel himself first well up with tears and then get angry. This damn druggie was stealing his girl.


Atticus felt almost a relief when Eva turned to him instead of Jace but also felt terrible because he knew that it was hard for her. He looked down at her and frowned, pulling her into a hug despite the fact that Jace was there, one hand behind her head and the other around her shoulders.


Jace swallowed hard, watching them. "Eva. We can talk about this. Come on," He pleaded with her, thinking maybe he could fix it or something.

 

[kailey]

Evangel turned away from Atticus after he hugged her a moment. She walked over to Jace and looked up at him, tears in her eyes. He had to see how difficult this was for her. "Please... Don't be angry at him okay? This isn't a matter of picking one over the other. This is me trying to figure some things out okay? I do love you, though." Eva's voice was shaky and her big eyes sad. She leaned up and gently kissed his cheek and squeezed his hand.


After a moment, she turned to Atticus and went to get in the passenger seat of her car. The last few days had been extremely emotionally and mentally exhausting and she just wanted a nap. She received a text from her parents informing her that they're staying with her aunt for a few days. They left quite a bit, so it was no surprise.


She couldn't bring herself to look at either of the two boys still outside. Everything hurt right now. And everything seemed so surreal. Surely within hours, rumors would be spreading about the break up and she would go back to being a nobody.

 

[PrincessKaty]

Atticus let Eva go and bit the inside of his cheek as he watched her walk back over to Jace.


Jace narrowed his eyes slightly, watching as she came back to say that she had to figure things out but that she loved him. He swallowed when she kissed his cheek. "If you loved me then there wouldn't be any if's in the matter.." He told her lowly, looking down at her. He wasn't sure what else to say. His fight wasn't over, that was for sure, but it wouldn't be between the two of them. It would be between Atticus and him for Atticus corrupting her sweet little mind.


When she walked away to leave with Atticus, his eyes snapped over to the druggie. "You're dead, Porter. You hear me? Dead," He threatened. He could feel his eyes burning with tears but he was determined to hold off until they were gone.


Atticus ignored Jace for the time being, for Eva's sake, and walked back to her car. He got into the driver's seat and without saying a word, just started to drive. He didn't say anything for a few minutes either. He didn't know if she wanted to talk to him or just be alone or what. He was happy that she was with him though.. At least in the moments.


"Where do you want me to take you?" He asked her quietly.

 

[kailey]

Evangel sat in silence as Atticus drove randomly around. It wasn't that she didn't want to speak to him, she was just trying to process everything. By the look in Jace's eyes, she could tell that he wasn't just going to forget about this. Eva sighed.





"Can we please go back to your house? I need to lie down. My parents are out of town, and so no ones there to worry." She replied quietly, glancing over at her best friend. Besides, she wanted some alone time with him to talk.





"Do you think your parents... Would notice if I maybe... Just... Stayed with you tonight?" Her voice was barely above a whisper as she put the proposition out there. The thought of sleeping in an empty house just wasn't appealing to her at the moment. She also felt safer around Atticus anyways, and would rest easier if she wasn't constantly worrying if Jace would show up at her doorstep.

 

[PrincessKaty]

Atticus nodded when Eva suggested his house. "Sure," He told her, glancing in her direction with a small, sad grin. He knew that this is what he wanted.. For her to be siding with him but he didn't want her to be sad about it or feel guilty.. This was just a shit situation..


"Of course you can stay," He told her, moving his hand over to rest on her knee as he drove. His parents barely knew whether he was there or not, other than if his car was in the driveway or gone.


The drive back to his side of town was painfully quiet but he was pretty sure that they were both too wrapped up in thoughts to even recognize it. He knew that Jace wasn't going to let Eva go that easily and that was one of the main things that sucked. Atticus wasn't afraid of Jace, no way. He was afraid of the whole football team coming after him, for sure. He knew that he could be a real sarcastic asshole but he could only take so much. He got enough shit from his parents, he didn't need it at school too.. And he didn't need people being mean to Eva either. God, just thinking about it made him all anxious.


Once he was there, he parked by the curb of his house and then got out and waited for her.

 

[kailey]

Evangel slid out of the car and walked over to Atticus, offering a small smile to try and ease some of the tension. The pair walked over to his window and slid inside once more.


Eva immediately fell down on top of his bed and cried. They were silent tears of frustration, but there were lots. She rolled up in a sort of ball and hugged her knees.


What had she done? Surely now all of Jace's friends would be after the two of them, determined to get revenge. After a few more moments of letting her emotions out, Evangel sat up in his bed and faced Atticus, out stretching her arms as a symbol for him to come join her on the bed. She needed to hide from reality and try and make him feel better as well. "Can we cuddle or something?"

 

[PrincessKaty]

Atticus walked along with Eva back to his window and he helped her in before climbing in himself. He locked it behind him and then ran a hand through his hair as he looked over at Eva, who completely broke down crying. He didn't know what she wanted so instead of going over to her, he walked over to all of clothes and starting to look for something to sleep in. He found a pair of sweats for himself and a t-shirt for Eva. He changed into the sweats, deciding not to wear a shirt, and left the t-shirt for Eva on his nightstand. He looked over at her when she sat up and grinned slightly.


He moved over to the bed and nodded. "Sure thing," He told her. He moved the covers out of the way before laying down on his back and stretching out his arms, giving Eva free range when it came back picking where she wanted to lay. After she'd gotten comfortable, he moved the covers over them and closed his eyes for a moment. Usually he could think of something to say to her to try and make her feel better but at the moment, he had absolutely no idea.

 

[kailey]

Evangel had changed into his shirt quickly before lying down on Atticus's bare chest. She turned into him so that she could close her eyes and forget everything about the world but the two of them.


The silence between them wasn't awkward, just what you would expect two people to act like after what just happened. Eva murmured softly, "I'm really sorry for whatever happens at school now... I guess it's just hard to be with me." She sighed and wrapped an arm around his chest.


Some wonderful and not so wonderful things had happened to her that day, and she didn't want it to be ruined because Jace. "I love you most." She whispered very quietly. Yes, she loved Jace, but not in the same way as before. Most of all of that affection and love was now for Atticus.

 

[PrincessKaty]

Atticus put his arm around Eva and shook his head slightly. "I couldn't give a shit about what people say at school.. I'd do anything for you. I'm afraid of some egotistical jocks," He told her. Okay, so might have been a little uneasy about getting jumped by all of them but he'd live. He just wanted Eva to be happy and if that meant being with him, then he'd take whatever shit storm it brought along with her.


A smile came to his lips when she said that she loved him most. That meant a lot. He was sure that Jace meant something to her too but she loved him most. "I love you more," He responded softly to her. He'd never felt the way that he felt about Eva with anyone else before. He just wished he would've realized it sooner.. Before he'd totally fucked up her currently relationship and her reputation. He felt like she cared about those two things more than he did but he still felt bad about it.

 

[kailey]

Evangel got closer to Atticus, shivering a little. She was glad he didn't care about what people said. They were usually wrong anyways. She cared to an extent. It would be a big thing that she broke up with him, and she wasn't prepared for the insults that came with it, but she'd be okay.





"I just want you to stay safe. It's probably going to be a bit rough for a while and I doubt Jace is going to just ignore me." Eva muttered with a sigh.


She tilted her head as he said he loved her more. Eva grinned up at him and leaned up to kiss his lips gently. She sat there a moment, looking into his eyes.

 

[PrincessKaty]

"We should just run away," Atticus remarked with a little bit of a grin. It'd get both of them out of shitty situations. He'd get away from his parents and she'd get away from whatever was about to come her way at school from all the 'popular kids'.. They were only popular because they had money and they could throw all those stupid, extravagant boat parties and shit. He knew that they couldn't really run away though. They both needed to graduate.. Unfortunately.


He looked down at Eva when he felt her move her head and grinned back before leaning down and kissing her back. He moved onto his side so that he could really look at her. He didn't want her to be upset or scared about whatever was going to happen.

 

[kailey]

Evangel nodded in response. Running away would be nice. You could just get away from everything and everyone who was causing you trouble. Yet, her rational mind argued with her thoughts.


She smiled as Atticus turned on his side to look at her. She found her legs getting all tangled up with his. The shirt she was wearing was riding up a bit, but she didn't mind. It's not like he hasn't seen everything anyways.





"Here's an idea. Let's just forget about everything for now, and act like we're the only two people on earth." She whispered, her eyes widening in a pleading way.

 

[PrincessKaty]

Atticus grinned as he gazed at her. "I think that is a wonderful idea," He agreed. He didn't want to think about what was going to happen tomorrow at school or next week or next year. He was finally getting what he'd wanted. Not that Eva was an object or anything. She finally wanted him too; maybe that was a better way to put it. Either way, he was really happy that she was here in bed with him and not Jace.


"So, Miss Eva. What do the only two people on earth usually do?" He asked her playfully, moving his hand up and down on her back. He knew that she said she just wanted to lay around and if that was true, then he was totally down for it.