BENEATH THE CREST: A CHARTERHOUSE NOVEL

When the final bell shrieked, signaling the end of the school day, Louisa made up her mind. Despite the swirling doubts and her friends' reservations, she needed to give Jayden a direct answer.

She told Ellie and Scarlett her decision, and after a moment of tense silence, they reluctantly agreed to accompany her to the gates. They would give Jayden a chance, but they would be right there with her.

As they walked towards the school entrance, Louisa spotted Jayden near his usual parking spot. He was with Ashtray, their heads bent together in a hushed, intense conversation.

Even from a distance, Louisa could sense a raw anger radiating from Jayden. His posture was rigid, and his gestures were sharp.

Louisa raised her hand to wave, hoping to catch his attention. But Jayden didn't see her. Or if he did, he didn't acknowledge it.

He abruptly turned, got into his sleek Mercedes Exelero, and with a screech of tires, sped off, leaving a bewildered Ashtray standing alone.

Just then, Jason jogged up to Ashtray.

"What's the problem, man?" he asked, but Louisa couldn't hear Ashtray's reply as she and her friends continued towards the bus stop.

As they rode the familiar bus to their neighborhood, a heavy feeling settled in Louisa's stomach. The earlier flicker of hope had been extinguished by Jayden's abrupt and angry departure.

Had Scarlett been right all along? Was she just a game to him?

"Hey," Scarlett said softly, noticing Louisa's troubled expression, "don't worry too much about it. He just showed his true colors, right? Probably just saw you as some kind of… entertainment. Next time we see any of them, we just steer clear." She gently rubbed Louisa's back in a gesture of comfort.

Louisa managed a weak smile and a nod, but inside, the knot of unease remained.

Scarlett's stop came first. She hugged Louisa and Ellie goodbye, promising to catch up later, before transferring to the bus that would take her to Harlem.

Louisa and Ellie continued their ride to the Lower East Side, the silence between them filled with unspoken questions and a shared sense of disappointment.

When Louisa finally stepped into her small, quiet apartment, the silence felt heavy. Her mother was still at her evening shift at the laundromat.

Alone with her thoughts, the events of the week crashed down on her. The dress, Cassia's anger, Jayden's bizarre interest, his sudden coldness… it was a confusing whirlwind that left her feeling more lost and vulnerable than ever.

Was she foolish to have even considered giving him a chance? Had she misread everything? The pit in her stomach deepened, and a sense of foreboding settled over her.

.....

The weekends blurred into a haze of unwanted memories. Despite her efforts to push him away, Jayden haunted Louisa's thoughts.

It was the beach, the unexpected intimacy, the ghost of his touch that lingered most vividly. But her nights were the worst. Sleep offered no escape, instead plunging her into vivid, unsettling dreams.

She would find herself back on the sand, the air thick with unspoken tension. But in her dreams, Jayden's gaze was different, predatory. She could feel the phantom warmth of his breath on her skin as his face dipped lower, his tongue tracing an invisible line down her cheek, her neck. A strange heat would pool in her lower belly, a sensation both terrifying and confusing.

Sometimes, the dream would intensify. She would feel the imagined press of his lips against her stomach, the slow, deliberate slide of his tongue tracing a path downwards, lower still, between her thighs.

A throbbing ache would build, her legs clenching involuntarily, the sheets damp with sweat as she fought her way back to consciousness, her heart pounding a frantic rhythm against her ribs. The shame and the unwelcome stirring of her body left her shaken and disgusted.

By Monday morning, a restless energy had taken root within her. She couldn't shake the feeling of being indebted, not just financially, but emotionally, to Jayden.

The thought of him seeing her as some charity case gnawed at her pride. She needed to take control, to find a way to repay him and reclaim her independence.

Driven by this resolve, she called Scarlett. "Hey," she began, her voice a little strained, "do you know if there are any part-time jobs going around? Somewhere that pays… decently?"

Scarlett's voice perked up immediately. "Louisa! You won't believe it! The diner where I work? They're actually looking for more waitresses. And the pay is really good – it's in Hudson Yards, so the tips can be insane!"

A wave of relief washed over Louisa. Hudson Yards. It was a world away from her usual haunts, but the location meant potential for good money. "Seriously? Scarlett, that's amazing! Can I… can I apply?"

"Of course! Come down whenever you can. I'll let my manager know you're coming. You'd be perfect, Lou!" Scarlett's enthusiasm was infectious.

Louisa hung up the phone with a newfound sense of purpose. A diner job in Hudson Yards wouldn't be glamorous, but it would give her the means to earn her own money. She would work hard, save every penny, and pay Jayden back.

She wouldn't owe him anything. She wouldn't be indebted to his strange whims or his confusing gestures. This was her way of taking back control.

******

The Monday morning air at Charterhouse felt thick with unspoken tension. Louisa walked through the familiar hallways with Ellie and Scarlett, a knot of anxiety tightening in her stomach. The memory of Jayden's furious departure on Friday still lingered, casting a shadow over her resolve to find a job.

As they rounded a corner near the library, they saw him.

There he was, leaning against the wall by the library, looking all broody. No posse, just him. He looked up as they walked by, and his blue eyes locked on Louisa. It was intense, like he was trying to burn a hole through her with his stare. She couldn't even read what he was thinking.

He didn't say anything, just kept staring. Then he just, like, turned and walked off, totally ignoring Ellie and Scarlett.

Upstairs, near their usual hangout, Cassia and Anya witnessed the brief, intense exchange. "Well," Cassia drawled, a hint of a smirk playing on her lips, "looks like that little fling ended before it even began."

Anya nodded in agreement, a curious frown on her face. Mateo, leaning against a nearby pillar, simply watched with a knowing glint in his eyes.

Back with Louisa, Scarlett squeezed her arm. "See? What did I tell you? He's just playing games." Ellie nodded in agreement, her expression worried.

But Louisa was still stuck on that stare. It wasn't just him being a jerk. There was something else in his eyes, something… weird.

As they headed to class, Louisa was even more determined to get that job. Forget Jayden and his mixed signals. She was gonna make her own money and not owe him anything. That date was probably a no-go, but that intense stare? She couldn't shake it off.

The date might be off, but the memory of his intense gaze, and the unresolved questions it held, continued to linger in the back of her mind.