LIKE RAIN (10 page)

Chapter
Twenty-One

It was 11 o'clock when Jasmine and I left the hospital. I didn't want to go back to school, but I didn't want to go home with Jasmine either.

"So where am I taking you?" she asked.

"I don't know," I said.

"You probably don't want to go home, do you?" she asked.

I shook my head. "No, not really."

"Well, I can take you to wherever it is you've been staying," she offered.

"Would you mind just dropping me off at the mall?" I asked. I didn't want her to know where Nathan's apartment was. I was afraid she might come there and try to make me come home.

"If that's what you want," she said. "But will you be able to get to your boyfriend's place from there?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I'll be fine." I took a piece of paper from my backpack and wrote down the number to Nathan's apartment. When we got to the mall I gave it to her. "Here, take this. If you ever want some company at the hospital just call me."

She smiled and I stepped out of the car. I waited until her car was no longer in sight and started to walk towards Nathan's apartment. When I got there he was sitting on the couch watching TV.

He looked up when I walked in the door. "Hey!" he said, looking surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"My dad's in a coma," I said blankly.

He stood up. "He's what? What happened?"

He came towards me and pulled me into a hug. "He was in a car accident last night," I said.

"Is he going to be okay?"

"I don't know," I said quietly.

"Come on," he said taking my hand. He sat down on the couch and pulled me onto his lap. For a minute he just held me and then he began to kiss me. He laid me down on the couch and ran his hands up my shirt. I felt his hands move to the zipper of my pants.

I grabbed hold of his shoulders and pushed him so hard that he fell off the couch and onto the floor. "What the hell!" he yelled.

I got up off the couch and stood over him as he lay on the floor. "No, don't you 'what the hell' me! What is your problem? My dad's in a coma and you decide this is a good time to try to get what you want out of me!" I screamed. "God how stupid do you think I am? Forget it Nathan! I'm not living with you anymore. Jesus, I'm not safe for 2 minutes around you!"

"Wait!" he said as I turned to walk away.

"What?"

"I'm sorry," he said. "I just love you so much. Just give me one more chance. I'll be better."

"I don't think I can trust you anymore," I said.

He stood up and took my hand. "This time you can trust me.
I promise."

"Mr. Kelly, could I switch seats please? I'm afraid I'm going to be too distracted where I'm sitting right now," I told my Physics teacher the next morning. I glanced at Cael out of the corner of my eye. He almost looked hurt.

"Sure Nevaeh, if you think you would be more focused somewhere else," Mr. Kelly replied. I nodded. He moved me to a table in the back of the room next to Halley.

She smiled. "Hey, I guess we're partners now," she said.

"Yep," I replied.

"So how come you haven't been over to my house lately?" she asked.

"Well actually, I left my house."

She raised her eyebrows. "What do you mean, you left?"

"I moved in with my boyfriend," I said. She looked shocked.

"Oh. How come?" she asked.

"I just couldn't take living with my dad and Jasmine anymore."

"Well, how long are you going to stay with him?" she asked.

I shook my head. "I have no idea. I don't know what to do anymore."

"Well you could always stay with us," she offered. "My mother would be happy to have you."

I smiled. "Thanks, but I'll be okay. I'll figure something out."

"Okay, but if you're ever desperate for some place to go you are always welcome at my house," she said.

After school I walked outside and saw Nathan waiting for me in his car. I was surprised to see him. The only other time he'd picked me up from school was on the first day. I thought he might be trying to make it up to me.

"Nevaeh!" I heard someone call from behind me. I turned around. It was Cael. "Nevaeh wait!" I ignored him and kept walking. He caught up to me and grabbed my hand to stop me.

"What do you want?" I asked impatiently.

"I wanted to apologize for yesterday," he said. "I went too far."

"It doesn't matter," I said. "Forget about it."

"It does matter. It's like you can't even stand me anymore. What's going on? What happened to our friendship?"

I sighed. "I don't know. I guess it just wasn't meant to be." I heard Nathan honk his horn. "I have to go." I turned and left without another word. I was leaving everything I wanted behind.

"Hey," I said when I got into Nathan's car.

"Is there something going on between you two?" he asked, looking at Cael suspiciously.

I shook my head. "No," I said. "We're not really even friends anymore."

He glared at me. "I saw the way he looked at you."

"What way?"

"Don't play dumb with me," he said, growing angry. "Don't you dare lie to me."

"I'm not lying," I pleaded. "I swear."

"I don't believe you," he shouted.

"I'm telling you the truth! There's nothing going on between us!" I watched his hand rise and fall hard across my face. I didn't even have time to react. I put my hand to my cheek, unable to believe what he had just done. It hurt, like a pain I never knew.

I looked at him with wide eyes. A look of hatred was painted on his face. I glanced out the window and saw Cael standing there, staring at me, his jaw dropped. Tears began to form in my eyes.

"We're going home," Nathan said sternly, starting the car. The passenger door opened and I turned to see Cael standing there.

"She's not going anywhere with you," he said holding his hand out to me. "Come on."

I looked back at Nathan, anger still in his eyes. "Don't you dare step out that door," he said, grabbing my arm firmly. I pulled it away and took Cael's hand.

Nathan looked dumbfounded. "You're not going to hurt me anymore," I said, slamming the door behind me.

"You were such a waste of time!" he screamed before speeding away.

I burst into tears and fell into Cael's arms. "I was so stupid!" I screamed. "What's wrong with me!" Cael held his arms tight around me.

"It's okay baby," he said softly. "It's okay."

I looked up at him. "You called me baby."

He smiled and put his hand to my cheek. "I'm so sorry," he said.

"Don't be," I said through my tears. "You didn't do anything."

He leaned forward and lightly kissed the bruise on my cheek. "Nevaeh," he said, looking straight into my eyes.

"Yeah?"

He stared at me for what seemed like forever. I waited silently for him to speak. He continued to stare at me, and I could see he had words forming on his lips but couldn't to speak them. But suddenly his gaze fell to the ground, and just like always, he couldn't seem to look at me. "Do you want me to take you home?" he said finally.

My heart dropped. For a moment I had thought that there was something there. But whatever flicker of hope I had seen was gone. I shook my head. "No, take me to the hospital."

Chapter
Twenty-Two

"The hospital?" he asked, looking confused.

"Yeah, my dad's there. He's in a coma," I said.

His eyes widened. "What? What happened?"

"He got in a car accident," I said. "Come on. Let's just go."

Cael and I got into his car and drove to the hospital. When we got there Cael followed me to my dad's room. Jasmine was there too.

"Hi," she said, smiling weakly when she saw us. "Oh my God, what happened to your face?"

I put my hand to my cheek. "It's nothing. I just fell. Any change?" I asked, trying to change the subject. Cael looked at me. I ignored him.

She shook her head. "Nope. They still don't know anything." I sat down on the floor beside her.

"What are we going to do if…you know, if he doesn't come out of the coma?" I asked.

She looked at me. "We?"

"Yeah, you and me," I replied.

"Nevaeh, there is no 'you and me.' Your father and I aren't married yet. You're not my child. I have no right to custody," she said solemnly.

"Well, where am I going to go?" I asked.

"You seem to be doing just fine wherever you're at."

I shook my head. "Nathan and I are over."

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said.

"Don't be," I replied. "I'm not."

"Well, you can come home, but I won't be able to stay there forever. It's not my house."

"So what's going to happen to me and the house?" I asked with fear in my voice.

"I don't know," she said, shaking her head. "Let's not think about that right now. Let's just pray your father's okay."

"So what kind of condition is he in?" Cael asked.

"He has some serious damage to his spinal chord," Jasmine said. "If he wakes up it's possible he could be paralyzed."

Cael looked sick, and I sensed that he was uncomfortable. "Come on, let's go," I said to him.

"Where are you going?" Jasmine asked.

"Actually, I have to work. After that, I'm not sure," I said.

"You're working?" she asked.

"Yeah, at Abercrombie in the mall," I told her. "I'll see you later." She waved good bye before we left the room.

"I could tell you didn't really like it in there," I said to Cael once we got in his car.

"I've never liked hospitals," he replied. "And it's scary thinking you might have no place to go."

"Well it's not your problem, is it? It's mine."

"You're my best friend," he said. "Your problem
is
my problem." There was that word again, friend. "So you just want me to take you to the mall?"

I nodded. "Yeah."

"Well, where are you going after that?"

"I'm not really sure. I have to go back to Nathan's to grab my stuff," I said.

"What?" he yelled. "You can't go back there! What if he tries to hurt you?"

"Relax, he'll be at work then."

"Call me, and I'll go with you," he offered.

"That's okay," I said. "I'll be fine. He won't even be there. I'll be in and out in five minutes."

"Where are you going to go after that?"

"I have no idea."

"Just let me take you to Nathan's place. I'll wait for you in the car and then I'll take you wherever you need to go. You can come to my house if you want."

I shook my head. "I'll just go to Halley's." I didn't know why I was turning down Cael's offer. I would've loved to stay with him. But I knew nothing could happen between us, and being there with him would've just made me feel worse.

"Halley's?" he questioned. "Are you sure you want to go there?" I nodded. "Well how are you going to get there?"

"I'll find a way," I said. "Don't worry about me."

"Of course I'm going to worry about you. Just call me and I'll take you there."

I had a feeling he wouldn't let me go if I didn't tell him I'd call him, so I told him I would even thought I didn't plan to. When I was finished with work for the night I walked the mile to Nathan's apartment. I still had the key with me, where it always remained in my back pack. I went into the guest room where I'd stayed so I could pack my bag. I almost expected everything to be destroyed or thrown around the room, but it was exactly as I'd left it. I opened my suitcase and began to toss my clothes into it.

"What are you doing?" I jumped at the voice behind me. It was Nathan. I sat there in silence, now wishing that Cael had come with me. "I said, what are you doing?"

He voice was angry, and I could see the same look in his eyes that was there earlier in his car. "I was just getting my stuff," I said quietly.

"You can't just come in here whenever you want," he said, his voice growing louder. "You're not welcome here anymore."

"I know, I'm sorry. I just-"

"You're sorry?" he yelled, cutting me off. "You're sorry? You should be for just leaving me like that, making me look like an idiot! You have no idea what you just gave up! And you're definitely going to be sorry you came back here!"

I started to stand up but he pushed me back, making me fall and hit my head against the dresser. I wanted to cry, but I didn't. I laid down on the floor. I couldn't see straight because of the searing pain in my head.

"Get up!" he screamed. "Get up!" He began to kick me everywhere; my legs, my ribs, my arms, my head, my face. Every inch of my body was aching, but I would not get up. I would not give in to him. He pulled me up by my arm so hard that I felt it tear out of its socket. I made no noise, nothing to reveal that he had hurt me. I still did not cry.

I could hardly stand up on my own. He held me by the shoulders to keep me from falling. "You're disgusting!" he spat. He picked up my suitcase and thrust it into me, causing me to stumble backwards. "Get out!"

It took all the strength I had to get out the door and down the street to the mall where there was a pay phone. I dug some change from my pocket and dialed the first number that came to mind.

"Hello?"

"Cael!" I screamed.

"Nevaeh? Is that you? What's wrong?"

I was now sobbing uncontrollably. "Help! I need you! Could you please come get me?" I could hardly breathe. It was an effort just to speak.

"Where are you?" he asked.

"I'm at the payphone in front of the mall," I said shakily.

"Nevaeh, are you alright?"

My breath was slowing and I was getting dizzy. "Just hurry," I panted and hung up the phone. My head hurt so much I couldn't think. It was becoming harder and harder to stay standing. My vision was blurred and my head would not stop pounding. I kept searching for air, but all I found was the hard pavement of the side walk.