Taming Demi's Mom (ONGOING)

Chapter 21

{JACKSON}

I WOKE up feeling like my head was about to explode from the pain. I sat up from where I lay on the soft bed, clutching both sides of my head with my eyes tightly closed.

What happened? Why does my head hurt this much? I can also smell alcohol in my body.

I opened my eyes. I surveyed the surroundings of the room where I currently was. I feel like my heart's about to leap out of my chest as I glance ahead. There were various kinds of blades displayed on the blue wall in this room. There was also a table in front of it, and on top of it lay a gun.

Now I remember whose room this is. I also recall what happened last night. After Enzo and I finished the alcohol I bought, I order him to order another case from delivery hub, which he immediately arranged.

I leaned against the bed's headrest, squinting tightly again because I couldn't bear the pain in my head. I drank way too much alcohol. It's frustrating! How can I make this headache go away? I don't want to feel like this. I keep tapping my temples, sometimes massaging them, hoping it might help ease the pain, but it seems to have no effect.

Where could Enzo be? What time is it now? That guy is really annoying. He just left me here in his room. He didn't even put a cold compress or a glass of water beside me.

Enzo is my cousin on my mother's side. Of all my cousins on my mother's side, he's the only one who pays attention to me, but in a way that always leads to us arguing. My grandparents disliked me, and my cousins did too because that's what our grandparents taught them— not to associate with me and accept me as part of the family.

We both attend the same school. I used to envy him a lot because he was the favorite among all my mom's siblings' grandchildren. But not anymore. I realized that Enzo had a hard time because my mom's parents were too controlling over his entire life. They had extremely high standards.

Enzo and I always argue, but I feel comfortable around him. It's confusing, right? He's the first one that I approach whenever I have a problem or just for a casual chat when I feel bored. And despite picking fights with me, he always listens to all my life rants and pointless stories.

After a while, I heard the door of Enzo's room open, so I immediately opened my eyes.

"Good thing you're awake. You've been sleeping for a day because of your extreme drinking," he remarked as he approached me.

He came closer and handed me a glass of water and a headache medicine.

"If you hadn't woken up now, I would have forcefully woken you up," he added.

I just took the water and medicine from him and drank it. Then, I placed the glass on the drawer next to the bed.

"Why don't you look like you're drunk?" I wondered, noticing how he seemed to recover more easily than I did.

He shook his head. "I only had about five bottles, you kept snatching the one I was about to drink. Plus, I don't have a heartbreak," he said seriously.

Heartbreak? How did he know about that? I suddenly remembered. It was because of the heartbreak I got from Victoria that led me to drink so much. But did I not tell Enzo about it? Or did I? I couldn't recall anything that happened when I was heavily intoxicated.

"Tell me everything you know," I asked Enzo with a furrowed brow.

"From the beginning to the end. Don't you remember that when we were already at the alcohol stash that I ordered, you started narrating everything about you and Victoria up until before you left the ball?" he directly told me.

I slapped my forehead. Shouldn't I have refrained from drinking? I blurted out things I shouldn't have said.

"You don't know how to pick the right woman," Enzo said, sounding disappointed, and I glanced at him.

He looked at me seriously. "I can't tell you there are plenty of other women out there. But you should move on from her. I know you know deep down that what she did to you was not right. Don't try to find a good reason to accept what happened. You should try to find a way to move on instead. Love yourself more," he advised me at length. It was the first time I heard him talk like that.

I smiled at him and nodded. He didn't say anything else. He gently patted my shoulder before finally leaving his room, carrying the glass I had used earlier.

Alone in the room, I placed my hand over my heart. How is it that the pain I feel here is even worse than the ache in my head? When will this emotional pain end? I closed my eyes tightly.

"Tell me, Victoria. How can I move on from you? How can I forget you? I forgot to ask you these questions before I left. Maybe you know the answers. After all, you're the reason I'm asking all this."

Tears started streaming down my face again. "Why not me? Why did you have to go back to him? We were happy, right? Why make me feel like you loved me and then the next day, make me feel like you never really did?"

"You should stop questioning the air!" Enzo shouted loudly from outside the door.

I stopped crying. I grabbed a nearby pillow and threw it towards the door. Annoying, he was actually listening to my drama.

"Get out of there, or I'll punch you in the face to make you ugly!" I shouted back at him.

I'M on Enzo's house veranda, seated on a single-seat sofa. I'm the only person here. It's my third day here. Enzo's was on his duty today.

In front of me is a small table where my cellphone is placed. I've been staring at it for a while now. It's been 3 days, and I haven't received any calls or texts from Victoria. There's nothing on my social media accounts either.

Should I call her? Should I make the first move? Perhaps she's waiting for me to be the one to reach out. But why should I do that? She openly showed me that she loves Liam, not me. If she loved me, she wouldn't have embraced that man. She wouldn't let me get hurt and she would chase me when I try to leave them alone at the ball.

I picked up my cellphone and found myself dialing her number. I can't bear this anymore. I miss her so much. I wanted to hear her voice. I wanted her to come back to me. Perhaps, if we talked, she might change her mind and realize that she truly loves me and not Liam.

But her phone rang several times, and she still didn't answer until the call ended. I tried again and again until I found myself sobbing in extreme frustration.

I held my cellphone tightly, my grip firm. I stood up. Without hesitation, I flung my phone, hitting the veranda's railing. As it crashed to the ground, my phone died, its LCD screen slightly cracked. Damn it! Why won't that useless thing just break into damn pieces!

Lifelessly, I sat back down. I don't know what to do with my life. Just a while ago, I was encouraging myself that I could handle this. She's just a woman. That I need to move on. But it turns out I can't. It's so hard. This is how it feels to be hurt by the person you love the most.

Loving a woman who isn't meant for you and won't ever be yours is so painful. I don't know what I've done wrong in my whole life to deserve this kind of pain. What I'm feeling right now is worse than if she had just killed me.

After a few moments of intense crying, I weakly reached for my cellphone to call Victoria again. I winced in pain as I stepped on a small shard of glass, probably from the broken case of my phone. I glanced at my foot, seeing a trickle of blood, but I didn't mind it. I needed to talk to Victoria, so I struggled to revive my phone. Luckily, it still worked, but after countless attempts to call her, she didn't answer once.

"Victoria, please, I need you now. Please don't leave me just like this. I could be a better father to Demi. I could be a better husband to you," I spoke into my cellphone, staring at their beautiful picture together.

They've been a huge part of my life, and now that I've lost them, a huge part of me is gone. I really don't know how I'll be able to go on without them by my side. I can't love another woman if it isn't Victoria, again. I just can't.