Free Falling (14 page)

I still wasn’t ready to talk to him at all, but I couldn’t
exactly say no with him looking like that. I nodded, swallowing the sadness
that seemed to make my throat swell up. I closed my locker and leant against
it, waiting for him to speak, unsure what he was going to say.

He swallowed loudly and kicked his toes at the floor
absentmindedly. “I just wanted to apologise for what happened in the lunchroom.
I was totally out of order doing that, and I’m sorry if I embarrassed you even
more than I already did. I’m such a prick, and I’m so sorry,” he said quietly,
not looking at me.

“You are a prick,” I confirmed. He grinned at me then and
nodded, looking a little amused, like he was trying not to laugh. “What’s
funny?” I asked.

His smile grew bigger. “I just still find it funny when you
cuss. It’s just so random that a bad word would come out of a pretty mouth like
yours, it just shocks me still,” he said, laughing quietly and shoving his
hands into his pockets, rocking on his heels.

I laughed weakly. Luke had always found me cussing strange,
he liked it a lot. “I forgot about that,” I muttered, rolling my eyes at him.

His smile slowly faded. “So, am I forgiven?” he asked,
looking at me hopefully.

I frowned. “For starting a fight, yes. For cheating, no.”

He frowned too, but he didn’t look shocked. Maybe he
expected me to say something along those lines. “Okay, that’s fair enough. Can
I just ask one thing?” he whispered, looking at me curiously. I nodded, giving
him the go ahead. “You didn’t really sleep with that guy, did you?” he asked,
his voice breaking slightly as his eyes burned into mine, a pleading, almost
begging expression on his face.

“Do I really have to answer that?” I asked incredulously.
Does
he really think that little of me that I would cheat on him the same as he did
to me?
I pushed away from the lockers and glared at him, my anger flaring
up again.
How dare he ask me that! Stupid jerk!
“I’m done. This
conversation is over,” I stated confidently as I started marching down the
hallway towards the exit, deciding that I would actually skip my last class
after all.

“Maisie, I’m sorry!” he called. “Wait, where are you going?”
he asked, jogging to catch me up.

“Home. I’ve had enough for today.”

He grabbed my hand, making me stop. “Home? You want a ride?
I could drive you so you don’t have to walk.”

I sighed and closed my eyes at his sweet offer. That was
Luke all over, and one of the reasons why I fell deeply in love with the guy.
“Luke, please just let me have some time. Please? I just can’t be around you
right now,” I whispered, begging him with my eyes to just drop it and leave.

Suddenly someone shouted something that sounded like ‘catch
it’ and then people were laughing, running towards us down the hallway, coming
from the direction of the science lab. I looked up at them, confused, until I
spotted a frog hopping down the hallway with about four people chasing after
it, laughing, trying to catch it. Bile rose in my throat as my heart seemed to
stop and then take off in overdrive. I had a terrible phobia of frogs. I knew
it was irrational, but when I was younger Alex had found a dead toad and rubbed
it on my face before he pushed it down the back of my top. I was a little
scarred from that experience.

I squealed and threw myself at Luke, literally climbing up
his body until I was wrapped around him like a baby monkey. I could hear
screaming but quickly realised that it was me, so I bit my tongue and buried my
face into the side of his neck, squeezing my eyes shut. I didn’t even care that
I was probably embarrassing myself in front of people, or that I was behaving
like a child right now. I just needed Luke. He was like a safety blanket, and
it was a natural response for me to throw myself on him.

“Baby, it’s fine. Shh, it’s fine,” Luke cooed, rubbing my
back softly, one arm hooked under my ass, supporting my weight. “It’s okay. I
won’t let it over here. Loosen the fingers a little, can you?”

I gulped and suddenly realised I was digging my fingers into
his back, my nails probably hurting him, but I couldn’t move my hands an inch.
“I want to go!” I practically shouted.

“Okay, I’ll take you outside,” he suggested. I could feel
that we were moving, but I couldn’t think about anything else other than the
irregular beating of my heart and the squirming horror that was building in my
stomach. I squeezed myself to Luke tighter, clamping my body to his and
pressing my face harder into the side of his neck. He patted my behind lightly
and I risked pulling my face away so I could take a quick glance around. We
were in the parking lot, safely out of the school, no frogs in sight.

“Thank you,” I mumbled, finally loosening the death grip
that I had on his back and shoulders. He seemed to breathe a sigh of relief
when I did that so I knew I’d been hurting him.

“No problem. Though one day I think you need to see someone
about this fear, baby, it’s getting a little out of hand,” he joked, laughing
quietly. “Not that I’m complaining about having you wrap yourself around me
like that, of course,” he added.

I pulled back slightly to see he was smirking at me. I
laughed and rolled my eyes at him. “Of course you wouldn’t.”

He smiled and set me down on my feet, stepping closer to me,
pressing his body to mine, and cupping the side of my face. “See, Maisie, you
do need me, we both know it,” he whispered, his brown eyes locked onto mine as
if he could see down into my soul.

I gulped noisily. I knew that statement was true but I
didn’t want to admit it to him. “You were just the unlucky one that was closest
to me in my moment of panic,” I lied, shaking my head.

He laughed and kissed my forehead. “If that’s what you want
to be believe, then sure.”

I smiled and rolled my eyes. “Get out of here, you’re
supposed to be in class,” I ordered jokingly, nodding my head in the direction
of the field where he had his next period.

His smile faded, to be replaced by a serious expression. He
brushed his hand down the side of my face. “I love you,” he said, his voice
full of promise and emotion. He kissed my forehead again making me close my
eyes at the soft feel of it, and then he was gone. I opened my eyes to see him
jogging away towards the field, not looking over his shoulder at me at all.

I couldn’t make sense of my feelings. What was I supposed to
do when I couldn’t even figure out what was going on in my own head? Sighing, I
pulled out my cell phone, sending a quick text to Alex that I was skipping
class and going home early so I didn’t need a ride today.

The wind whipped around me, so I hugged myself against the
cool air and trudged out of the school gate, not once looking back. My mind was
a mess, I just wanted to switch it all off and stop thinking and feeling.
Everything was so overwhelming that my eyes prickled with tears again. My
thoughts flicked to Luke and what had just happened. The reality of events hit
me with a huge wave of humiliation. I’d just screamed over a frog, then been
carried out of the school like a baby.
Wow, that’s so impressive, Maisie.
My face flamed with embarrassment because people had probably seen what
happened, Luke, of course, wouldn’t care in the slightest, but other students
would have heard me scream and seen me throw myself at him like a small child.
They were probably going to be talking about me even more tomorrow.

My feet seemed to be moving of their own accord; I wasn’t
thinking about where I was walking, I was lost in thought and on autopilot, so
when I looked up my surroundings surprised me. I was at the children’s play
park not far from my house. Luke and I hung out here a lot before he got his
car and could drive us places. My eyes settled on the roundabout where we would
sit and talk for hours on end. This place held bittersweet memories for me. I
chewed on my lip as I looked around, thinking of all the fun and smiles that
I’d shared here with Luke. My heart ached. I missed him.

I headed over to the roundabout and sat down, using my foot
to push it gently around while I closed my eyes and enjoyed the sensation. My
stomach fluttered as a memory washed over me - the first time Luke kissed me.
We’d been sat right here, it was our third date and he’d said that there was
something he needed to do because he just couldn’t stop thinking about it. When
I’d asked him what it was, he’d smiled that beautiful cheeky smile and leant
in, pressing his lips against mine just for a second before he pulled back and
beamed over at me.

I smiled to myself, tracing my lip with my fingertip; I
could almost still feel his mouth against mine. But then another thought hit
me. Luke with her. A whimper left my lips as I laid back against the cold
plastic and gave the roundabout another push with my foot. I stared up at the
clouds, my mind running rampant as I thought about that night and what I’d
witnessed. My concerns from earlier were haunting me again. He’d said that
someone put something in his drink - would she do that? And if she did, was he
trying to tell me that he was raped? He looked like he was in control, but what
if he wasn’t? What if she put something in his drink for the sole purpose of
seducing him? I knew I needed to speak to Luke about this possibility. If he
felt like he’d been taken advantage of then I had no right to be shutting him
out like I was. If he felt like he had been attacked then I should be
supporting him wholeheartedly, not pushing him away from me. If the situation
were reversed and someone had put something in my drink then I would need him
to support me, not break up with me.

My phone beeping in my pocket caught my attention. Shifting
awkwardly so I could shove my hand into my pocket, I pulled it out. I had a new
message from Alex.

‘Where R U? Why R U
not home if U left early?’

I frowned and looked at the time. It was after half past
four. My eyes widened in shock. Had I really been laying here, just thinking,
for that long? I jumped up, sending a text that I was on my way and then headed
home quickly.

When I got to my house I spotted a motorbike in the drive,
parked behind Alex’s car. I frowned at it wondering who it belonged to. As I
pushed open my front door the smell of food wafted out, making my mouth water
and my tummy rumble because I hadn’t really eaten all day - my lunch had been
scattered across the floor when Luke and Zach had been fighting.

“Maisie, that you sweetheart?” my mom called from the
kitchen.

“Yep,” I confirmed. As I walked up the hall, I was almost
bowled over by my dog, Chester. He was a little black cocker spaniel and he was
adorable. But he was getting on in years now; he was almost twelve years old.
“Hey, boy.” I bent and scratched behind his ears while he wagged his tail like
crazy at me. He followed behind me as I walked to the kitchen where I could
hear my mom cooking. “Hi,” I greeted, seeing both of my parents standing there.

My dad smiled, cocking his head to the side quizzically. His
green eyes regarded me with concern, so I forced a smile. “Hey. How come you’re
so late?” he asked.

I sighed, knowing they would hound the answer out of me
later anyway, so I might as well just tell them now. “I had a little run in
with Luke at school, I was just walking and thinking, that’s all. I didn’t
realise the time.”

I saw my dad’s fist clench at the mention of Luke’s name. He
was doing well restraining himself actually; I was surprised that my dad didn’t
punch Luke when he first found out.

“What did that little punk do now?” he growled.

I sighed. “Nothing. Can we just…” I trailed off, wincing; I
really didn’t want to talk about anything today.

My dad sighed too. “I heard your brother got detention for
fighting at school today. Care to elaborate on that? He wouldn’t,” he said,
raising one eyebrow in question.

A wave of love washed over me for my twin. He hadn’t
explained anything about the whole lunchroom scene to my parents, I was extremely
grateful to him.
Yet another thing I owe him for.

“Seriously? You can’t figure out what happened all by
yourself?” I asked sarcastically.

My dad grinned. “I can actually; I just wanted someone to
give me a play by play of Alex smashing Luke’s face in. I’m sorry I missed it,”
he answered, shrugging casually.

“Clay,” my mom hissed, her tone warning. I smiled gratefully
at her. Movement behind me made me turn, and in walked my brother.

He smiled sadly at me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders
and pulling me into a hug. “You okay there, Maze-daze? Hard day?” he asked,
looking at me worriedly.

I sighed and relaxed into his embrace. “I’m fine. Thanks,
Alex, I owe you,” I admitted, smiling weakly.

He shrugged. “Let me tap your friend’s ass and we’ll call it
quits.”

“Alex!” my mom scolded, throwing a dishcloth at him.

“Charlotte wouldn’t even go there anyway,” I dismissed,
shaking my head confidently. I heard Alex grumbling something under his breath,
but I didn’t even try to understand what he said because at that moment, the
toilet flushed in the downstairs bathroom. I looked around the kitchen, a
little confused.
We’re all here, so who on earth is in the bathroom?

When the toilet flushing perpetrator stepped into the
kitchen, I groaned. How had I not put two and two together when I saw the bike
out the front? Zach didn’t look at me though as he went to stand next to my
brother, crossing his arms over his chest defensively.

I smiled weakly.
Is he still annoyed with me for walking
off and leaving him after gym class?
“Hey there, Zachary. How’s the face?
You look like shit,” I teased, smirking at him, using the words that he’d said
to me this morning.

A smile twitched at the corners of his mouth but he was
obviously fighting it. “Still getting better with the bitchy comments, if we
keep going you’ll be able to hold your own in an argument by the time you
graduate,” he replied, his voice cool and aloof. He didn’t even bother looking
at me.