Exposing Kitty Langley (5 page)

“Kitty, do you have a death wish or
something? A person can only take so much.”

“I know how much I can take,” I
snapped.

He seemed to be getting frustrated.
“Why are you doing this?”

“Why do you care?” I knew I was
being harsh, but he needed to stay away from me. If being mean to him meant
keeping him safe then so be it.

“Because you’re letting yourself be
abused, that’s why.”

“Honestly, Reed, it’s none of your
business. I need you to leave me alone, okay? Just stay away from me.” With
that, I left him standing there alone.

Reed

I stood there in disbelief as she
walked away from me. What was going on with her? I’d been hearing the rumors
circling the campus. She’d been taking nonstop beatings for two straight days,
and it wasn’t likely to stop any time soon. I felt helpless. She looked like a
shell of a person, like her soul was wasting away. And seeing that bruise on
her face stirred an anger inside that surprised me. I remembered the night of
the dance and the brief moments she was carefree, sticking out of my sunroof, happy
because she felt free for the first time in a long time. It was a fleeting
moment but one I wouldn’t soon forget. Had it only been a few days since then?
So much had changed in that short time—once her reality set in. I felt like I
had to do something—but what?

For the rest of the week I continued
to hear stories of Kitty’s abuse. It was a source of entertainment among the
students at lunch, especially Haley. She loved that Kitty was getting payback,
as did most. Kitty was staying away from the cafeteria during lunch. Who knows
where she was eating—if she was eating at all. Was I the only one who thought she’d
suffered enough? The more days that passed, the angrier I became. She wouldn’t
let me help her. Every time I tried to talk to her she walked off, telling me I
didn’t need to be seen with her. But when I heard that someone had taken a
picture of her bruised body in the locker room and posted it on Facebook,
that’s what did it for me. I knew I had to help her even if it killed me. And
it just might. I couldn’t sit back any longer and watch this girl be abused. A
plan was forming. 

After school I was at her car
waiting for her.

She looked like she was about to
crumble, but once she spotted me she straightened, putting on a brave face. She
wasn’t fooling me.

“What do you want, Reed?”

“I need to talk to you.”

“I don’t have anything to say to
you. I already told you how I feel about talking to you.”

“I know, you think it’s not good for
me to be seen talking to you, but I don’t care what people think.”

“Go away, Reed. Okay? Just go away.”

I could hear the pain in her voice.
She was on the verge of tears. She unlocked her car and got in—and so did I.

“Reed, please go. I can’t do this
right now.” And with that, she began to cry. She rested her head against the
steering wheel and cried hard, her small body convulsing with each breath.

I hesitated before resting my hand
on her shoulder. It was breaking my heart seeing her cry. I resisted the urge
to pull her small frame into my arms and comfort her. “Let me help you, Kitty.”

She was hiccupping through her tears
as she spoke. “You can’t help me. Nobody can.”

“I can, and I won’t take no for an
answer. I have a plan. I’m gonna act as your boyfriend starting Monday morning.
Of course it’ll just be an act, so don’t worry. I’ll meet you in the parking
lot first thing, and I’ll walk you to every one of your classes, you’ll eat
lunch with me, and then I’ll see you safely to your car at the end of the day.”

She peered up at me then, her face
red and stained with tears. It melted my heart instantly.

“I can’t ask you to do that for me.”

“First of all, you didn’t ask me.
And second, I’m not doing it for you. If I have to keep looking at that pitiful
face day after day I’m gonna hurt someone, starting with myself. Besides, I
want to do this.”

She looked genuinely puzzled by my
comment. “But why?”

“Because I believe you’ve suffered
enough, and I like the idea of playing the hero.” I smiled then.

Suddenly—she smiled back, her face
brightening. “That might just work.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. It was
settled then. Starting Monday I’d become her pretend boyfriend/bodyguard. And I
couldn’t wait.

Kitty

I pulled out of the school parking
lot with renewed hope. Reed had offered to help me. I had to be honest, I loved
the idea, but at the same time, I felt guilty. What if he got hurt because of
me? He seemed to be such a nice guy. The idea of someone hurting him
surprisingly upset me. But, if I had learned anything about him in the last
week and a half it was that he would not be deterred. Also, I wasn’t sure how
much longer my strength would hold out. I really didn’t think I had much choice
anymore.

I spent the weekend taking it easy,
trying to recover from my injuries and studying. I made sure to stay away from
the Internet, knowing full well I wouldn’t like what I saw. My parents had
grown suspicious after my encounter with the elbow. Also, hiding my swollen
fingers, a result of Carla stepping on them when I was knocked down in the hall
yet again, was almost impossible. The endless drilling from them had lessened
at least, and I was able to concentrate solely on the week ahead. It was exams
week, and I was trying so hard to bring my grades up. And since I no longer had
a social life I had more time for studying. I had to make good grades on my
exams. That alone had become my primary focus. Well that—and staying alive.

So my weekend consisted of studying
and soaking, studying and soaking—then soaking some more. By Sunday evening,
not only was I very clean, but I felt I was indeed ready for my exams, along
with the other tests that awaited me. Only now I didn’t have to face them
alone.

When I arrived at school Monday
morning, I smiled as I immediately spotted Reed, just as he promised, standing
by the parking lot waiting on me. I don’t know why I was surprised. I guess I
thought maybe he would’ve had the weekend to think about it and therefore time
to wise up. But I was happy he hadn’t. He looked incredibly handsome, with a
white button up shirt with sleeves rolled up to his elbows, nice looking jeans
that fit him perfectly, dark sunglasses, and a brilliant smile that made my heart
do odd things. I knew I should keep my distance from him, but I was no longer
able to do that. I needed him, plain and simple.

He met me at the car and opened the
door for me. “Hello, Kitty.” He smiled. I had heard that for years, but it
sounded more endearing coming from him. Actually, everything did. What did that
mean?

I smiled back, something I haven’t been
doing much of lately. “Hey, Reed. I kind of thought you might change your mind
about this.”

“And why would I do that?”

“Because this is insane. Because you
could get hurt.”

“And do you care if I get hurt?” He
smiled, pulling his sunglasses to the tip of his nose and peering down at me.

“Of course I care if you get hurt.
Why have I insisted on you leaving me alone?”

“I just thought it was because you
didn’t want to be my friend.”

“And is that what we are—friends?”

He took off his sunglasses then. His
amazingly blue eyes smoldered as they stared down into mine. “I think you could
use a friend right now, and I think I’d be a good one for you.”

“We’ll see.”

He shrugged. “Well, I guess we
should go.”

My face fell. I took a deep breath,
preparing myself. “I guess so. Last chance to change your mind.”

He laughed. “I don’t think so.” He
started to take my hand but then hesitated and instead put his arm around my
shoulder, pulling me against his side.

The gesture surprised me. I’m not
sure why. I mean, after all he was pretending to be my boyfriend.

He must’ve sensed my unease. “Is
this okay?” he whispered.

“Oh—sure. It’s fine.” I couldn’t
tell him it was more than fine—that I felt better already and that my unease
was from the thrill of his simple touch. Oh well. I wrapped my arm around his
waist as we made our way toward the school.

The first person that greeted us
with hostility was Haley. “No way!       Please tell me this is a joke! Reed!”

He grimaced. “Not now, Haley.”

We passed her and she followed. “How
could you hook up with her? Are you crazy?”

“I’m warning you, Haley. Just leave
it alone.” I could tell he was getting angry but his voice remained calm.

“I thought we were friends. How
could you keep this from me? Are you two—you know—together?” She could barely
get the words out.

“Yes we are. I didn’t tell you
because of how you’re acting right now. And you’ll have to accept it if you
want to stay friends.”

She stopped then, looking very hurt.

I turned to study her with concern.
“Reed, should you have been that way with her. She really likes you.”

He sighed, pulling me close again
and whispered. “Yeah, I know, but I don’t think of her like that. She thinks
she rules my life. I can’t let her mess up our plan. The only way this will
work is if everyone thinks we’re together and that I’ll do anything to keep you
safe. That way they’ll be more inclined to think twice before messing with
you.”

We had just entered the building and
people had already stopped dead in their tracks and were staring. “I guess that
makes since. So how are we gonna convince them?” He didn’t answer, and I
glanced up at him. “Reed?”

“Like this.” He stopped and spun me
to face him. His lips came down on mine without warning—hard and eager. Before
I knew what I was doing, my hands were in his hair, pulling him closer. I was
lost in the sensation, no longer aware of the audience that had gathered,
watching and whispering.

Just as the heat began to build, Haley
jerked us apart. “Reed, I need to talk to you right now!” she demanded, pulling
him away. He was still stunned by the kiss and didn’t struggle.

I was left standing there alone and
breathless while everyone snickered at me. Filled with instant unease, I bolted
down the stairs toward my locker. “Kitty!” I heard Reed call after me, but I
didn’t stop until I was finally standing in front of my locker.

I had just slammed my locker shut
when someone pushed me from behind causing me to drop my books. I looked up in
time to see a fist coming toward my face. I somehow ducked just in time, barely
missing the impact. I recognized Marcia, the girl’s picture that I helped
spread on the Internet.

“You humiliated me and now that you
no longer have your friends to protect you, I’m gonna break your nose!”

She was angry and my eyes widened as
she came at me in a rush, slamming me into the lockers. I was somehow able to
keep my footing, though just barely. I wasn’t fast enough to avoid the next
blow—straight to my stomach. I doubled over and fell to my knees.

“Kitty!” Reed yelled, running down
the hall toward us.

Marcia turned, and spotting him,
took off out the door and disappeared.

“Kitty! Are you okay?” He took my
arms and helped me to my feet.

“I-I think I’m okay,” I managed to
say through my pain.

“I’m so sorry. I let Haley distract
me. It won’t happen again.”

I winced as the pain shot through
me. “It’s not your fault.”

“What was that about? Why did she
hit you?”

“I did something really bad to her
once. I deserved worse.”

“You’ve been punished enough.”

“My punishment is just beginning.”

 He seemed angered by this as he
bent down, picking up my books and helping me get them in my backpack. The bell
rang, and he put his arm around my waist and helped me to my first class.

Reed

I’d never met anyone as resilient as
Kitty before. Maybe it was just me, but it was like she wanted to be punished
or something, but that was absurd. No one wants to feel pain—do they? The more
time that went by the more I respected her. She might have been a bad person
once, but I had started to believe she had really changed. Actually, I didn’t
really think she was bad then. I think that somehow she got suckered into that
crazy bunch of girls. They had something to offer her, but that time had passed
and now she was alone. It was my first day acting as her boyfriend, and I let
her down. I let Haley distract me. Dang that Haley! Her jealousy had gone too
far. I knew I had to talk to her about it. I really didn’t want to do that, but
I didn’t see any other choice. I couldn’t have her causing Kitty trouble.
Acting as her boyfriend was my plan, and I had to make it work.