Diamond in the Rough (19 page)

Gemma ignored him, though he quickly caught up to her. 

“Bee.  Let me get you a car,” he said with stern exasperation.

“I’m fine walking,” Gemma hiccupped.  Crying was never a good look on her.  “My brother’s cabin isn’t far.  Just let me go, Tyler, and we won’t have to see each other ever again, okay?” It wasn’t something she wanted, but she couldn’t see any other option at that moment.  She looked into Tyler’s eyes, which still bore an expression of fiery anger.  She had never seen him look that way, and it filled her body with regret for ever having met him. 

He stood staring at her for what felt like an eternity.  “Fine.  Bye.”

~

Just five minutes from Tyler’s cabin, Gemma realized her mistake of not accepting a ride.  It was freezing out and she was hardly dressed for trudging through the snow.  Her tears were icy, stinging her face as she wondered how on earth she had gotten to this point.

Suddenly cutting through the pitch black of night were two headlights on high beam.  Gemma felt nervous as the car rolled to a stop beside her and the driver’s side window came down.

“Miss Bee?” The same driver that had driven her to Tyler’s house poked his head out the window.  “Please get in.  Tyler wanted me to take you where you need to go.”  Shivering from the cold, Gemma jumped into the car without another thought.  She cried as silently as she could, thankful that the driver had chosen not to question why.  The image of Tyler’s anger still shook her and was only made worse with his relentlessly kind gesture of sending someone to find her.

Gavin’s cabin was still completely empty by the time she reached it.  She was grateful for that despite her worry about him snowboarding in the dark of the night.  All she wanted to do was go to sleep and then go home the next morning.  She would just have to convince Gavin to let her take his car despite the fact that she had yet to drive since receiving her license. 

After ripping off her wig and stuffing it into her bag, Gemma searched the bedrooms for the one with Gavin’s luggage.  When she found it, she collapsed numbly into a chair in the room, her legs tired and her head lost in a foggy cloud of gloom.  She brought her knees to her chin and leaned to the side, falling quickly asleep.

She awoke the next morning to a particularly loud snore by Gavin, who was passed out in bed.  Just as she figured that he hadn’t been fazed by her surprise visit, she noticed a messily scribbled note sitting on the ottoman in front of her.  She read it. 
WTF are you doing here? You scared the shit out of me when I got back. You should’ve at least texted and given me a heads up.  I thought you were a psycho intruder and was THIS close to smacking you in the head with my board.  My heart is still beating crazy fast.  Wake me up when you wake up.

Gemma blinked at the note.  Under normal circumstances, she would have laughed, but she was still in a hazy state of sorrow.  Even if she had found the note funny, she suspected her laughter would express itself in the form of tears, since she had felt constantly on the brink of them since leaving Tyler’s cabin.  Gemma had pushed the incident to the back of her head, and she knew that the moment she let herself think about it, she would be a mess of hiccups and tears again.

“Gavin,” she croaked from her chair, her throat dry and scratchy.  “Gavin.”  When he still didn’t wake, Gemma reluctantly stood up and poked him in the shoulder.  “Gavin, I’m waking you up like you said.”  It finally took a hard punch in the arm for him to wake up.

“Huh?” he somehow managed to snore the word.  When his groggy eyes finally focused, he knit his brows immediately.  “Gemma, why are you here? Did you see my note? You scared the shit out of me.  Why are you here? Is everything okay?” he asked all in one breath.

“I’m fine,” Gemma lied.  “But I need to go home now so can I borrow your car and maybe you can hitch a ride back with one of your friends?”

Gavin’s eyes dulled.  “Uh-huh.  You’re not fine.”

“I promise I am.  Can I take your car or not? I need to get home,” Gemma pleaded.

“What did Zoe do? Was it Harper? What happened?” Gavin asked angrily, getting out of bed and hastily pulling on his jacket.  “Was it both of them? What’d they do?”

“Calm down!” Gemma scolded.  “You’re acting like you’re about to go beat them up.  Just relax, okay? They didn’t do anything.”

Gavin stopped and sighed.  “I wasn’t going to beat them up, I was going to give them a stern talking to.  Or something.”

“It wasn’t them, so just calm yourself.”

“What do you mean it wasn’t them? Who was it then?” Gavin questioned, arms crossed sternly.  However when he saw the tears forming in Gemma’s eyes, he softened.  “Alright, get your stuff,” he mumbled.  “I’ll drive you home.”

Gemma’s shoulders slumped in frustrated guilt.  “You don’t have to do that for me, just give me your car.”

“Whatever, Gemma.  Let’s just go.”

“Gavin,” she whined.  “I feel bad.”

“How about this then? I just don’t want you to wreck the BMW,” Gavin said.  “Would you feel okay if that were my reasoning? Come on, let’s go before everyone wakes up to go boarding and I change my mind.”

The drive would have been silent again were it not for Gavin’s constant questioning.  He had already concluded that an argument had taken place, but he was determined on learning the details.

“At least tell me who was involved, or what it was about,” he said.  “Did you like, steal one of Zoe’s… hair scrunchies or… hair curlers?” 

Gemma just stared at Gavin blankly, but it only encouraged him.

“Or was like, one of them dating Lucas or something?” he asked.  Gemma glared.  “That was a Madison joke,” he explained.

“I know.”

“Too soon?”

“Just stupid.”

“Hey, I’m cutting my trip short to drive you home, at least tell me why I’m doing this.  Because that snow was perfect for boarding and I already miss it.”

Gemma ignored him, still thinking about his Lucas joke.  It, of course, made her think about Tyler.  She tried desperately to hold back the tears, but just as her watery eyes had promised all morning, they eventually came out.  They ran silently down her cheeks for a few seconds before Gavin noticed.

“Uh oh,” he said, interchanging looks between her tear-streaked face and the snowy road.  “Why are you crying? Is it about the fight with Zoe?”

A big, unexpected sob escaped Gemma’s lips.  “It wasn’t Zoe,” she groaned.  “It was Tyler.”

“
What
?” Gavin took some time to process.  “Over the phone or…?”

Gemma’s heart sank.  She had hoped that he would get it himself and spare her the explanation of her own lies.  “No.  In person,” she mumbled.  “Zoe and Harper aren’t even in Vermont, they’re back in L.A.  I was meeting Tyler this whole time.”  She cringed as she braced herself for Gavin to yell.  He was a loyal friend of Lucas’s and never one to coddle Gemma.

Despite that, his voice remained calm.  “Just keep explaining, Gemma,” he said. 

She did just that, explaining how she had gotten in contact with Tyler and how she had lied to pretty much everyone involved in her plan.  She even confessed to her feelings for Tyler, though not without disgust for herself.  “I can’t even explain myself,” she said, shaking her head.  “I really can’t.”

Gavin only nodded for a few silent moments.  “I understand, Gem,” he finally said.  “I mean… I’ve been attracted to other girls since dating Leah.”

“Don’t tell me that,” Gemma groaned, covering her face.  “You cheated on Leah?”

“No.  Never,” Gavin said.  “I’ve been attracted to other girls though.  And I’ve had temptations.  You know Syracuse has hot cheerleaders right?”

Gemma shook her head.

“Well.  We do.  And they flirt with me, and I flirt back.  And I seriously wasn’t sure how well I was gonna do the first week I was there.  But I thought about how good Leah is to me and what a weirdo she is and how much I love her for that.  So if I’m ever in a situation where a girl really tempts me,” Gavin shrugged.  “I just control my urges and then buy Leah a train ticket to campus so we can have sex ASAP.”

“Ew, ew, ew, ew, ew!” Gemma covered her ears.  “That started out really sweet too.”

Gavin laughed at her reaction.  “That was my PG version of it too.”

Gemma sighed.  “So… are you not mad at me?”

“For cheating on Lucas? How could I not be, Gemma?” he laughed.  “I’m just controlling it because you’re already bummed enough.  I think I’m more disappointed than anything, really.”

“But I didn’t cheat on him,” Gemma protested.  “It’s not like I had sex with Tyler.”

“Well, thank God, and obviously not, considering what a cranky virgin you still are,” Gavin said, bopping Gemma on the head.  “I forget what it’s called, but the fact that you let yourself like Tyler is cheating.  Like, emotionally.  Emotional cheating, I think it’s called.”

“An emotional affair,” Gemma muttered.

Gavin snapped his fingers.  “That’s it! I think those are actually even worse,” he said, trailing off once he realized the sadness of his remark.  He glanced at Gemma with guilt.  “I mean, not necessarily worse but like –”

“It’s okay, Gavin.”  She had to agree with him.  It wasn’t as if her moments with Tyler were driven entirely by hormones.  She genuinely liked Tyler.  She still did.

“So what do I do now?” she asked pathetically.

“Honestly? Ditch Tyler, Gem.  He’s not part of your real world,” Gavin said.  “You’ve got a good dude in Lucas.  Like, if you weren’t dating him, Gem… I would.”

“Stop with that crap,” Gemma laughed, though she had truly missed Gavin and the homoerotic way he revered Lucas.  It had been a running joke last year for Gavin to flirt with Lucas just to make him uncomfortable.  The memory flashed Gemma back to first meeting Lucas.  It put a sad smile on her lips.

“
You
stop with your crap,” Gavin countered.  “I mean, are you going to put this all behind or what? Lucas deserves better than what you’re giving him.”

Gemma nodded.  She had sworn off seeing any more of Tyler anyway, though she knew that that shouldn’t have been her only reasoning.  She told herself that it wasn’t – that she loved Lucas, and that Gavin was right.  He was her boyfriend, and he deserved better from her.  

And on that note, she realized that he wasn’t the only one who deserved better from her.

- Chapter 12 -

It was a small gesture, but it was the only thing that Gemma could think of considering she couldn’t buy anything for Mira that she didn’t already have.  Upon returning from Vermont with Gavin, Gemma organized Mira’s home office.   It was normally spotless, with everything placed neatly in its correct place.  However since Queen Bee’s tabloid headlines, Mira had grown stressed and irritable.  The tidiness of her workspace had begun to match her mood.  Gemma hoped that there was something symbolic about organizing the office, especially since she had finally resolved to change her recent ways.

It was already Christmas Eve.  In the spirit of the holidays, Gemma teamed up with Grandma Audrey to brighten up the house.  Normally, Mira would handle Christmas decorations and create a festive atmosphere in her home for Gavin and Gemma.  But this year, Mira appeared tired.  Gemma had no doubt she was a part of the reason why.

Since her grandmother wasn’t able to do much physical work, Gemma assumed responsibility for everything from picking and carrying the tree to stringing lights outside the house.  Grandma Audrey acted as moral support by her side.  Gavin was busy catching up with Leah and old classmates while Mira and her parents were thankfully out attending their last social obligations of the season.

“How’s it look?” Gemma asked, cocking her head as she finished decorating the tree.

Grandma Audrey stuck her head out of the kitchen, wiping cookie batter onto her apron. “Beautiful,” she answered with pride.  “Delightful!”

That night when Mira’s car pulled into the driveway, Gemma peeked through the windows as her grandmother turned on all the lights outside.

“Ha!” Gemma guffawed upon seeing Mira jump at the sudden sight of the Christmas lights wrapped around the railings and bushes.  She watched as Mira walked slowly and suspiciously towards the front door.  When she opened it, both Gemma and her grandmother shouted, “Surprise!”

Mira stood in the doorway, blinking at the sight of stockings hung above the fireplace.  Her eyes then traveled to the antique Christmas decorations perched on the tables and windowsills, then finally, to the grand Christmas tree glowing in warm light.

“My God,” she breathed.  “Why does it suddenly feel like Christmas?”

“Because it is,” Gemma and Grandma Audrey answered.

“No kidding!” Mira laughed, clasping her hands to her heart.  “Did you crazy gals do all this?”

“I did it all, of course,” Grandma Audrey joked from the tufted leather chair by the fireplace.  “All from this chair.”

Mira laughed and then turned to Gemma, her gloved hands squeezing her cheeks.  “You did this, sweetheart?”

“Merry Christmas?” Gemma smiled.

Mira gave her a kiss on the forehead.  “Merry Christmas, my love.” 

After retrieving a fresh batch of peanut brittle from the kitchen, Gemma joined her aunt and grandmother by the fire.  They exchanged and opened gifts, ate peanut brittle and drank hot chocolate.  Gemma beamed, feeling the relieving familiarity of being with her family and home for the holidays.

~

Christmas Day was so festive that it felt as if the family hadn’t missed a single beat of pre-holiday cheer.  Gemma wrote heartfelt cards for her parents and presented Gavin with an itinerary detailing the four-day ski trip in Aspen that she had booked for him – a thank you for cutting his last outing short.  While she certainly hadn’t earned all of the trust back from Mira and her parents, Gemma had a feeling she was making meaningful strides.  To start, Mira had finally returned her keys to the BMW.

She spent the day after Christmas with Lucas, insisting on accompanying him to Home Depot rather than meeting him later when he was done with his work.  Her afternoon was spent handing him tools as she watched him build in his garage.  He grew fond of hammering while looking at the ceiling, just to hear Gemma whine and shriek with fear that he might clobber a finger.