Lisa and Henry kept insisting for me to talk to Jackson. I'm guessing Jackson had spilled to them of how our conversation ended at the party because suddenly I became the person who was 'wrong' and 'stubborn'. Lisa had told me to be the better person and hear Jackson out, but what was there to hear? We're over. We've been over. If Jackson is finding it hard to move on, that's obviously his problem. Although I do miss him, I promised myself from that shameful morning that I would cut all contacts with that man. I don't want to be stuck in the middle of a push-and-pull game.

"Lisa where are you at? It's past 6." Lisa was late to this talk-over-coffee that she arranged. Over the phone, she sounded as if she was in bed watching television.

"Wait. Look at the door right...about...now..." Lisa, chewing on what sounds like chips demanded me to shift my gaze. Right as she said so, the door of the restaurant opened as the doorbells jingled.

"Lisa. I. Can't. Believe. You." With that I hung up not even caring to hear what she had to say.

I didn't care if my face looked unattractive. I pouted with a glare and looked out the window right after catching eye with Jackson who's walking my way.

"Hey, may I sit here?" I could see nervousness in him as he asked for the seat across from me.

I rolled my eyes at him. "Even if I say no, would you listen and go sit somewhere else?"

"No?" He lifted his cap while answering with honesty.

"Go." I shot him a fierce look. He didn't budge. "Fine. I'll go."

"Wait, please. Please, just stay." His calmness and desperation was making me feel like the culprit of his brokenness.

"If you want to continue the talk from the other day, I don't have time. Where we left off is where we ended the topic."

"No, I don't want to talk about that." Somehow I felt it was a lie to cover the truth. "Can we just catch up, this time? Like friends?"

I scooted back into my chair and I saw a small smile that lingered from the corner of his lips after giving it a little bite. We had received our lemon water and I stirred the straw around for distraction.

"How's school?"

"Stressful."

"What did you declare as your major?"

"Psychology with a minor in English."

Jackson nodded at my short responses. He got tired of my boringness. "Can you at least sound interesting?"

My tongue poked the side of my inner cheek as I debated if I should tell him who I met. Without clear thinking, I announced, "I met your mother last week."

"You...you met my mom?!" He gawked.

"That's interesting enough, right?" I shrugged off with a smirk.

"What? How? You've never even met her?!"

Seeing now how interested he was with questions flying out faster than my answers, I regret telling him. "Don't worry, I told her I didn't know you and that I only heard of you."

"Rose, tell me everything!" He begged.

I ended up telling him the whole scenario and left out my feelings of course. I went into detail how I met his mother and our brief conversation about him.

After our talk over food and water, Jackson pleaded for us to go on a stroll around the street stores. From time to time he'd say 'sorry' when his hand swung into mine. Our dating life flashed in my mind and I felt the urge to just stop in my tracks and tell him I have to leave just to depart from him.

"Remember that time we came here and got some rice cakes here?" He pointed at the mini pastry shop.

The point was I didn't want to remember it. It seems he caught his words after mentioning the past. Everything we walked by, I felt my heart dip and it was suffocatingly irritating.

"Jackson. This is wrong. We shouldn't meet at all."

"But we're friends." Jackson used his witless reason.

We halted in the middle of the pathway of cherry blossom trees. It was only us. The moment would've been magical if out problems never occurred.

"Answer me." I figured that I hadn't replied to his 'we're friends' comment.

I looked at him and away into the distance behind him. "We can't even be friends, Jackson. Don't you understand? Where we ended doesn't make us friends."

His next words really fractured my already weakened heart. "The only way you can't see me as normal is because you still feel the same way about me." He was so serious that I couldn't bare to face him.

There was a break in our conversation. Words wouldn't make him understand so I hoped silence did.

"Rose, we need to stop avoiding each other."

"We aren't. We are here together, aren't we?" I tried being logical.

"It's much deeper than that." He took a quick pause, "Though we are physically here, our hearts are avoiding our feelings and thoughts. That's what makes us distant from one another."

It seems that seed brain of his has grown into something more after all the years away from one another. I stood up from my seat, angered not at him but at how right he was.

"Jackson, you're not worth it. I can't believe I even allow myself to see or talk with you. Don't ever bother me again!"

"Whys that?! Give me a good damn reason why?! Why, Rose?!" His voice volumes instantly after mine.

"You. You took everything from me! I trusted you with everything! My heart and my...my...every part! My whole being!"

His words came piercing at me, "Who told you to be so weak and vulnerable to my every action! Did you think love was something sweet and simple?!"

I lowered my shoulders as if I've finally relaxed, "That night....you said you loved me...you know how much that meant to me?" Finally, one of us announced the true reason that kept us distant from one another. It was because we had shared something so intimate that left a scar.

"You think I really wanted to wake up early in the morning to leave you alone?! I thought you were more understanding than that!"

I suddenly felt regretfully guilty. "I'm sorry. It's not your fault. It's none of ours. It's just, I think it's better for us to not talk to each other until we're ready....or at least until I'm ready. Even if I still have the smallest or biggest feelings for you, we both know it won't work. We're just too different now. We were young back then and we just thought love took the best if us."

"But Rose—" I heard him take a sigh and bother came after my name.

My feet pounded their way in the opposite direction. He didn't chase after me. I didn't want him to. I wanted to just erase him permanently. This time I wanted to be the one walking out of his life just like how he did to me that early morning.

----

The second I entered my bedroom, I bawled my entire life on my bed. Why was I being so difficult? Why was I letting myself being such a mess for such a stupid reason? I banged my head into my pillow.

----

Jackson didn't comprehend why Rose was being the way she was. What was so wrong about being friends? He still admired and wanted Rose, but she was just being over dramatic. His hope was nearing its end and giving up this time felt more realistic than ever now.

Jackson called Henry once he finished dinner with his parents. He had to unload all the pain and confusion inside of him and Henry was the perfect friend to do so. Placing in some good advice, Henry did his job, but when it really comes down to it, it was Jackson's decision that mattered.

----

Lisa texted me bright and early notifying me that she had something to meet me for. I investigated her just incase she was setting me up again. I really didn't want to falsely be set up with Jackson again. We just never ends things off well and I didn't want to try to fake a talk again but end up broken over the issue all over.

Lisa came over and we sat on my bed flipping through magazines. "Rose, I'm currently seeing someone right now and I really don't want you to be upset. Promise me, okay?"

"Yeah, sure. Who's the lucky guy?" 

"It's Jackson's......."

"Jackson?" My eyes flew from the magazine up to my best friend. She was seeing Jackson? I mean, knowing about my situation with him, how could she possibly have something already blooming with him?

Lisa's eyes fell over her sockets and flung her arms up as if to stop me from speaking. "No, no, no! That's not it at all! I'm talking to his best friend." She buried her face into her magazine at the mention.

"Henry?" Somehow I felt the weight on my heart be lifted, relieved that it wasn't Jackson. I was being inwardly selfish over him although he's not even mine.

"Y—yeah and we have a date tomorrow night....but there's a problem." I gave her a questioning look for her to further discuss what the problem is. "My mom...she won't let me go if I don't bring you along. She doesn't want me to be alone with him. So.....will you come along with me?"

"Oh, how sweet is this! You and Henry! Who would've thought!" I cheered.

"Hold up." She lifted her index finger at me to halt my excitement. "I didn't want you to feel left out so.......he......I mean we.....agreed to bring Jackson along too...." Lisa but her corner lip as now it was my turn to stare at her with big eyes.

Author's Note: It's not a special update, but it's an update to notify that I haven't forgotten this story or any of you readers. ^__^ Thanks for being patient with me. I will be updating something better in the future so please wait for me. Love you all!

Special shoutout to @loel19 ! Thank you for showing support and subscribing! This update is dedicated to you! <3