Turbulent Skies
Part Fourteen- Painting
By Jess
© Fast as Lightning Productions

Jess sat back, posted in front of the television, her eyes in a dead stare towards it. She held a small tub of her favorite food in her hands- vanilla frosting with rainbow chips- and a bag of barbeque potato chips sat stationed at her side.

She had been sitting in this exact spot for almost 11 hours straight, only moving to lift a hand to her mouth or wipe the tears that occasionally fell from her eyes. Strangely, she wasn’t tired although it was 5 am in the morning, her breakup with JC a mere 13 hours before.

"What the hell are you doing up?" Roxy asked as she grabbed the remote and flipped off the TV, sitting down across from Jess and taking the tub of icing from her hands.

Jess said nothing and scowled, pointing to the TV like a little child.

"Jess! Come on…this isn’t you."

"Having fun fucking Justin?" Jess asked softly, her eyes raising to meet Roxy’s. There was nothing scornful about her stare, just a waiting feeling, something in her eyes begging to be told the truth.

"I’m not fucking him…" Roxy said, a sly grin tracing over her flushed lips.

Jess laughed for the first time in what felt like years, "Yeah Rox, he’s just sleeping ass-naked in your bed…he hasn’t had sex since the blonde whore, and you haven’t had sex in God knows how long…but you didn’t fuck him…"

Roxy smiled. "I didn’t," she replied, batting her eyelashes, "It was more than just a fuck," she said dreamily, grinning again.

Jess rolled her eyes, "Please spare me the details…What happened to you hating his ass and wishing he would die?"

Roxy shrugged as she watched Jess, an uncomfortable silence passing between them. "You mad?" she asked, truly concerned. Her hazel eyes awaited Jess’ response eagerly, her fingers nervously twisting her caramel-colored curls around her finger.

"Nope."

Roxy heaved a sigh. "Good."


"So does my best friend in the entire world want to come to my exciting Celebrity release party?" Justin asked as he crouched in front of Jess who was sitting at an easel, painting.

"No. JC will be there. Did I tell you how much I hate you right now? I am so close to poisoning your food it’s not even funny," she replied calmly, her long fingers gently running the brush over mostly blank canvas.

"Since when do you paint?" Justin asked inquisitively, raising an eyebrow.

"Since when did I need YOUR permission to do something?" she asked, returning his eyebrow raise, before shaking her head. "You obviously didn’t need to ask my permission before ruining my life, so…"

"Jess! I’ve told you how incredibly sorry I am! And you forgave me right?" he asked softly, watching her as she stared straight into her painting, her eyes unblinking.

"I forgave you but that doesn’t mean that I’m not going to make you feel bad about it because I am in a bad mood and I hate you…you are like no longer my best friend or something…"

Roxy bounded into the room, and jumped onto Justin’s back, giggling. "Whatcha painting?"

"Nothing. Go away."

Roxy ignored her last comment and shrugged, letting Justin pull her arms around his neck. She giggled again, before kissing his cheek from behind. He grinned happily, his face practically glowing with happiness.

Jess looked at them in disgust before turning to her painting again. "Will you two go lock yourselves in a room and go screw each other to death or something? Go away."

Roxy jumped off Justin’s back and crossed her arms. "You need to get back together with JC. You’re being a fucking pain in the ass."

"Yeah because JC cheating on me was so my idea…" she retorted, rolling her eyes and glaring towards Justin again.

She rolled her eyes again as Justin and Roxy paused the conversation to share a kiss, that all-too-familiar look in Justin’s eyes causing Jess to suppress herself from killing the both of them.

Jess scowled and turned, her black hair waving behind her as she stomped across the apartment to her room, leaving her unfinished painting behind.


"I don’t wanna go!!" Jess whined as she stood in front of Roxy in a knee-length sheer violet slip dress. Her long ebony hair was loosely curled, her lips perfectly painted, those dark eyes of hers accentuated in every aspect they could be.

She stomped her heel on the hard wood floor scowling and melodramatically dropping to the floor, her arms crossing over her chest.

"You’re how old?" Roxy asked her eyebrow raising.

"Old enough to know that this is going to suck," Jess replied, sticking out her tongue.

"Nice Jess."

"I know." She sat wallowing in self-pity, her eyes narrowed towards Roxy who was applying another layer of mascara to her already thick lashes. The last thing she wanted was to be around JC while he was around dozens of Hollywood’s finest. There was no telling how he would act, hell, how she would act, in the situation.

"Jess, stop acting like a two-year-old," Roxy exclaimed, as Jess stuck out her bottom lip and continued to scowl.

"I have every right to act like a two-year-old. Shut the hell up," she replied rolling over onto her stomach and lazily pulling herself from the ground.

She stomped into her room, slamming the door for the third time that day.

Roxy sighed, rubbing her hand over her forehead. "Wow. This is gonna be a LONG night."

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