Teacher's Pet (16 page)

I shook my head. "I can't do that."

"Why not? I'll go with you if you want."

I thought about it. Why couldn't I visit him in jail?

I smiled. "You know what? That's a good idea. Can we go after school?"

"Sure, sweetie," He replied. He grabbed my hand and walked me to English. Knowing that I was going to see David after school made me nervous. But I hoped that after I saw him I would feel some kind of closure.

In English, I talked to Amber, who had also been called to testify, about what had happened. She wasn't as upset as me. She was more grateful that it was over with. Although he had tried to kill her, he just smashed her over the head and dragged her body away. He didn't torture her like he did with me. She was nervous about them cross examining her ulterior motives for going to David's house that day. I told her about my plans to see David after school.

"Are you sure you want to do that? Why don't you just let it go? He's in jail."

I sighed in frustration. I was so sick of people telling me to 'let it go.' They had no idea what I had been through or what I was going through.

"I can't just "let it go,' Amber. He may be in jail, but it doesn't change the fact that he's still controlling my life. I need this to be able to move on. I need to look him in the eye and tell him that I'm not afraid of him anymore."

She shrugged. "If it will make you feel better, go for it. Give him a giant middle finger from me while you're at it." I almost laughed.

The ride to the prison was somehow both the longest and the shortest ride of my life. I was looking forward to seeing David and getting some closure. I was also scared that my visit would backfire and make me feel worse. The thought of looking into David's eyes again was terrifying. I hoped I could do it.

Alex pulled into the visitor parking area and we sat for a minute. "I can go with you, you know," he said.

I shook my head. "No. I have to do this by myself. Besides, he might not even want to see me. And if you're with me he definitely won't want to see me."

He pursed his lips. "I'm worried, Jadia. That this will do more harm than good.

"Alex, I have to do this. If I want to have any chance at not feeling like a victim anymore, I need to do this. I'll be fine." I pulled him in for a kiss. "I'll be back soon. I love you."

"Love you too," he sighed. I got out of the car before I could change my mind and walked to the door.

Being inside the prison was pretty uncomfortable. Knowing that this was the home of murderers and rapists made me uneasy. I walked to the counter.

"Name?" The lady snapped at me.

"Jadia Galvin."

"Who are you here to see?"

"David Hayes."

If she knew anything about my situation from the news, she didn't care. She took my ID and I had to walk through a metal detector and have a pat down. I felt like a criminal myself. I sat down in a chair, waiting. I wished that Alex had at least come with me for this part. I was starting to lose my nerve.

"Jadia Galvin!"

I stood up quickly and sat at the window where the guard directed me. I took a deep breath and willed myself not to have a panic attack when I came face to face with David again.

David came around the corner, almost stopping in surprise when he saw me. A slow smile spread across his face. He sat down at the window and picked up the phone.

"Hi, princess."

I closed my eyes and reminded myself that he couldn't touch me. I had the upper hand now, and I was here for me, not for him. I opened my eyes.

"Hello, David," I said coolly. "You look fucking terrible."

It was true. His few months in prison had taken a toll on him. He had lost weight, giving his face a gaunt look. His stubble had grey in it. He looked hardened already.

"You've only been here for a few months. I'd hate to see you in a few years. Or 35."

He smirked at me. "I know you didn't come here to rip on my looks. What do you want? You miss me?"

I laughed out loud. "No, not quite. But I did want to see you one last time. I have a few things to say to you."

He sat back, looking bored. "Go for it."

I forced myself to look him in the eyes. The eyes that he made me stare into as he raped me. As he told me that I was his whore and his property. The eyes of a murderer. I took a deep breath.

"I'm not afraid of you anymore, David. You can't and won't ever touch me again. You will sit in jail, rotting for the rest of your pathetic life. I hope that when you inevitably kill yourself in here, you'll think of me. And know that it will be the happiest day of my life."

He stared at me for a minute, then pretended to yawn. "Anything else?"

I narrowed my eyes at him, almost shaking with anger.

He leaned forward. "Let me tell YOU something, Jadia. You belong to me. Forever. You're still my fiancée, even if you stupidly lost the ring. I'll be out of here when I'm 61. And when I'm free, the first thing I'm going to do is find you. And…"

"I fucked Alex," I interrupted him.

The smile slowly fell from his face. "What the fuck did you just say to me?"

"I fucked Alex," I responded casually. "A lot. You know, Alex, my boyfriend? It was pretty great. I didn't know how good sex could be when it's, you know, consensual. Oh! And the best part is that he fucked me in the hot pink lingerie that you liked so much. Thanks for buying that for me. It was a little uncomfortable at first, because his dick is so huge."

He stared at me, furious.

"But really, who am I to tell you about huge dicks? I'm sure you're learning a whole lot about them in here. You could probably teach me a thing or two."

He jumped up and pounded on the glass. "You whore!" He screamed. "You stupid fucking whore!"

I dropped the phone and jumped back. He pounded on the glass, screaming at me until two guards came and took him away. I smiled and waved goodbye to him.

I got into Alex's car, grabbed him and gave him a huge kiss.

I pulled away and he raised his eyebrows at me. "What was that for?"

"For being my hero. And because I love you. Let's go home."

Carly and I laid outside by my parents' garden, soaking up the sun. "I can't believe we just graduated college," I said. "I never thought I'd see the day when I was done with school forever."

Carly snorted. "Yeah, for you maybe. You know I’m going to grad school."

Carly and I had just come home from our college graduation ceremony. She had gotten her degree in political science and I had gotten mine in elementary education. It didn't surprise me that she was going to grad school. She still loved school.

"I'm looking forward to an entire summer of nothingness," she said, stretching out and rolling over.

I smiled. "Yeah, I know. I have to start looking for a job. I'll give it a few weeks. I want to at least enjoy summer for a little bit."

"Mmm," Carly responded lazily. "Where's Alex?

I shrugged. "He said he'd meet us here."

Carly, Alex and I had all gone to UCLA together. A few months after David had been sentenced, the hype around what happened to me fizzled out. I was grateful to get out of this small town and go to a college where nobody knew me.

Just then my phone beeped. It was Alex.

Meet me out front.

"Oh, he's here. I guess we're going out. You coming?"

She shook her head, sitting up. "Nah, I have to get home. My parents are waiting for me. Grandma and Grandpa are visiting tonight."

I stood up and gave her a hug, jogging to Alex's car.

"Hey, beautiful," he said, smiling at me.

"Hi Alex," I said, leaning into his car and kissing him. "What's going on?"

"We're going out to celebrate. Get in."

Alex and I were still dating. We had been through so much together and every obstacle we hit just seemed to bring us closer together. For the first year after David was arrested, my nightmares were horrible. I woke up crying at least once a week. Alex was always there to calm me down, even if most of it was by phone. The nightmares slowly faded away, and now I almost never had them anymore. I still saw Dr. Schor, though less regularly than I used to. She helped me realize that the death of Kate Lawson wasn't my fault, even though it was a long time before I could let go of my guilt.

David Hayes was still rotting away in jail. I still hold on to hope that one day he'll kill himself or be killed. He'll be in there for a long time, but he will get out in my lifetime. And that's a scary thought. But I realize that I can't live the rest of my life worrying about the distant future. When the time comes, I'll deal with it. In the meantime, I'm just trying to make the most out of what I can.

Alex pulled into the tiny plaza. "Ooh, you're taking me to Basta!" I squealed. We hadn't been here since I had caught David staring at me through the window.

Alex chuckled. "Sort of. It's not Basta anymore. They closed last year. Now it's Lucianno's."

"Well at least it's still Italian. I hope their lasagna is as good as Basta's.”

We walked inside and were seated in a corner booth. The restaurant had been repainted in red and gold. It made the atmosphere seem warm and cozy. The waiter came by to take our order. I got the lasagna and Alex got the manicotti.

"This might be better than Basta," I said, shoveling the lasagna into my mouth. Alex watched me, amused. "What?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Nothing. I just like watching you eat."

I laughed. I had managed to keep off the weight that I lost, and usually ate pretty healthy, but I made special exceptions for special occasions. Alex ate a little bit of his manicotti. "What's wrong?" I asked. "Is your food ok?"

He smiled at me. "Yeah, it's good. I'm just distracted."

"By what?"

"By you."

I blushed.

"I like that after almost five years together I still make you blush."

"Yeah, well, I warned you that I'd never be good at taking compliments," I replied, grinning at him.

"Remember our first date?"

I laughed. "Of course. We came here."

"We sat in this same spot. I couldn't stop staring at you. You literally took my breath away."

I smiled shyly. I was still awful at taking compliments. "I couldn't believe you even noticed me, let alone asked me out. I had been in love with you for years."

"I can't believe I didn't notice you before that. Every time I look at you, you still take my breath away." He stared at me seriously. "I love you, Jadia."

I smiled at him. "I love you too, Alex."

He grabbed my hand. "No, I mean, I REALLY love you, Jadia."

Two waiters with violins started making their way to our table.

"Alex!" I gasped. My heart started pounding.

Alex stood up and walked to my side of the booth.

"Jadia, you are beautiful, inside and out. You are the strongest person I know. Everything you have been through, every obstacle that has been thrown at you, you've somehow come out a more beautiful and better person. You inspire me to be a better person. Those two weeks that you were taken from me were the worst of my life. You are the love of my life. And I never want to be without you again."

The waiters reached our table and started playing. My eyes filled with tears.

"Jadia Marie Galvin," Alex said, getting down on one knee. He pulled out a small velvet box. I had a sense of deja vu. But this time, it was beautiful.

Alex opened the box and I gasped. Inside was the most beautiful white gold ring that I had ever seen.

"Will you marry me?"

My hands were shaking. I looked into Alex's eyes. The eyes that were so kind and loving. The eyes of the man that had seen me at my worst and loved me unconditionally. The eyes of the man that I was going to spend the rest of my life with.

"Yes, Alex. Oh God, yes!" I sobbed. His face broke out into a smile and he slid the ring onto my finger. "It's perfect," I whispered. He reached up and pulled me down for a kiss. "Just like you."

I sniffed and wiped away tears. I didn't know exactly what my future held. But with Alex by my side forever, I couldn't wait to find out.

Thank you all for reading my first book! Find more information on my other books and Jadia and Alex’s next chapter at facebook.com/CelistarProductions