Sin

27 | The Twenty Seventh Chapter

The Twenty Seventh Chapter - Not Again.

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I pulled up at the school and took a deep breath before getting out and going for the front entrance. I could hardly remember what lesson I was meant to be in; I figured it would just be simpler if I went straight to the gym and spoke with Coach Palmers. From there, I could figure out if I wanted to come in at all or not.

I gently pushed open the door to the gym, hearing the coach's loud voice speaking to a group of students. I stepped inside, pausing at the door. I didn't want to move any further inside; questions would be asked that I didn't want to answer, and people were here that I didn't want to see.

Many heads turned to the door as I stood there quietly, trying not to make eye contact with anyone but Coach Palmers. Seeing I wanted to talk with him, he excused himself from the group and made his way over.

"River, how are you?" he asked as he came to stand beside me, looking a little concerned. "What happened?"

"Had a fall over the weekend," I replied quietly. "Hit my head pretty bad. Look, I hate to be a pain, but I don't think I'm gonna be able to play the game this weekend."

"Don't be silly," he said. "Just rest up, okay? I won't expect you to come back this week either. Your mum did call the other day to say you wouldn't be in, but I appreciate you coming in to have a word. Do you think you would still be keen to come to the game, just for the team? I'm sure everyone would miss having you around, even just for the weekend. It is the first game, after all."

I smiled tightly. "I'm sure I can manage," I replied with a nod.

"Are you sure? Don't let me pressure you into it. If you're not feeling up for it, we'll all understand."

"No, I'll come. I'd just be sitting around at home hating myself for not being able to play anyway, so it'll be nice to support the team."

"Okay, well, we'll love to have you there. Rest up, alright? And don't beat yourself up too much. It's the first game of the season; there'll be plenty more for you to play when you get better."

I smile again, this one a little less forced than the one before. "Thank you. I appreciate it."

Coach nodded and turned back around, returning to the group he was teaching. My eyes wandered as I stood for a moment too long, and I spotted Tyler coming towards me. I stiffened, and turned around quickly to make my exit. Panic bubbled inside my throat as I recalled flashes of my time with his father earlier in the week, and my instincts wanted me as far away from him as quickly as possible.

"River, wait," he called as I was halfway down the corridor outside the gym. I stiffened, almost stumbling to a halt in the middle of the walkway. It was quiet; everyone was in a lesson.

I turned slowly as I heard him running, slowing to a stop in front of me. I shuffled backwards ever so slightly, my eyebrows twitching in a nervous fit.

"What happened to you?" he asked softly, almost worried as he reached a hand up to my face. I flinched away from him, more out of instinct than anything, but he retracted his arm immediately, as if we had burned one other without having to even come in contact.

"Nothing, I'm okay," I murmured back. My shaky voice was betraying me. I bit my lip to keep it from trembling.

"When did we get like this?" he asked quietly, his voice tired and pained. I risked a glance at him; his pale eyes looking defeated. I swallowed what I really wanted to say to him and tried standing a little straighter.

"Who was she?" I asked instead. I was met with a frown.

"Who was who?"

"The girl. At the party. What was her name?"

At my words, Tyler's frown disappeared, to be replaced with a look of complete shock. I had surprised him. He didn't speak.

"I can't trust you," I continued, my voice starting to break. "Not long ago, I might have wanted to tell you why I was in the hospital all week. But now... Tyler, I just can't do it. You have to leave me alone." Tears threatened to spill down my cheeks, but I held them in as best I could, staring into Tyler's stormy eyes to pick a reaction. He was quiet for a moment, but I knew he wanted to say something. So I waited. Whether it took five seconds or five minutes, I had no idea; time seemed to stop for us while he ordered his words in his head.

"I don't know her name," he said to me, not breaking our gaze, not even with a blink. "It was a clumsy choice, but at the time it was better than facing the truth. I just couldn't tell you. I needed you to hate me. And then Noah showed up, and I... I saw red. Seeing you hurt because of me tore me apart, but you hated me."

"You made me hate you."

"I know."

I paused for a moment.

"Klaus was my boyfriend," I murmured quietly after a while, looking down at my bare finger. "He was going to ask me to marry him. I didn't know. He said... he said he would never leave me. That I would always have him. Then, he told me about the cancer. I stayed with him until the day he died."

Tyler was quiet. I looked up at him, trying not to cry.

"I'm in trouble, Tyler," I whispered.

"Talk to me," he whispered back, leaning down to meet my eyes with his. "Please, just talk to me. You can trust me, River. I won't leave you. I promise."

"I can't," I argued, tears bubbling to life in my eyes. "Not again. I need you to just leave me alone, okay? I can't trust you, and you can't expect me to just open up to you because you tell me you care about me! I need to believe it; you need to prove it! So, until you can do that, I need you to stay away from me. I can't be hurt again. Not again."

With nothing more for me to say, I wiped the tears from under my eyes and turned my back on Tyler Slater, leaving the school without glancing back.

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Another late update, many apologies! It's NaNoWriMo time and I've been busy writing something else! But I thought I'd give a quick sneaky chapter in the meantime, so I can buckle down with the big one.

What do you think of their confessions to each other?? Will it change anything??

Keep reading! x