I'm Only Human (Justin Bieber Fanfic)

Ch. 25 - Not Broken

 ~ Chapter 25: Not Broken  ~

[ Justin’s POV: ]

I blinked a couple of times, letting myself process the light for a bit. I rubbed my eyes as an attempt to shake off how absolutely tired I felt. I then quickly stretched my arms and looked up to see Alfredo positioned on the other love seat across from me. I knew it was night by now, considering how dark it seemed outside.

“You’re awake,” he murmured without even looking up. I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing came out. I sniffed the fresh air around me, the faint smell of marijuana trickling up my nose and my eyes widened.

I looked back up at Fredo, who was focused on the screen in his laptop and I sighed lightly.

“I’m sorry,” I said quietly, not really knowing what to say. All I know is that Alfredo must’ve figured out what I had done at the party. You know… not including the bimbo.

Alfredo merely scoffed, not a single word coming from his lips. Was he… ignoring me?

“Alfredo, I’m sorry,” I repeated. “I should’ve stayed here with you. I shouldn’t have gone with Twist, I–”

I paused, embracing the silence around us. I sat upright and bit my lip, awkwardly playing with my thumbs as the air seemed to suffocate me. I glanced from Fredo to my hands, then to Fredo and back to my hands, repeating the process more times than I can count.

“You have every right to be upset with me,” I muttered. “I keep screwing up with the people I love,” I chuckled bitterly, “Just the people I love. No one else, really.”

Fredo began typing on his keyboard, his gaze locked on the screen. I sighed again, wishing he’d at least look at me.

“Alfredo, please,” I whispered. “Talk to me…”

I watched as he abruptly stopped typing and looked into my eyes. He cleared his throat and six words came out of his mouth, “Can I ask you a question?”

I blinked twice, taken aback by how calm he seemed by all this.

“Yeah, of course,” I prompted.

He slowly lowered the screen on his laptop and stared at the floor. “Why do you always get slightly irritated when I mention Jackie? You vaguely answer my questions and then quickly change the subject, but… Why do you do it?”

There was silence in the room. I thought about different ways to go about answering his question, but I couldn’t quite decide on one so I said the first thing that came to my head. “I don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know?”

“I’m well aware that you know I like her, but I’m not quite sure why I brush it off when people mention her to me. I’m pretty open to you knowing I like her—or at least I try to be—but, for some reason, I don’t see the big idea. You act like you want us together. You act like you want me and Jackie to be a thing. I know that the only reason you want that is because you think she’d provide the love I feel I need for myself. And for me to give out the love I can provide for her. But, Fredo, I’ve answered this question a long time ago. The answer is… As much as the truth hurts, I still don’t want to fall in love again.”