#THE HASHTAG

15 | Don't Charge Me For The Crime

I'm sorry for the crime 

That I involved you in this time

You're the only friend I got 

dedication goes to salmasey for making me that awesome cover to the side. 

✝ Chapter Fifteen | Don't Charge Me For The Crime ✝

      Throughout the rest of the day, I couldn’t focus my mind kept drifting to the fight. I wanted to know what started the fight and if Jack was okay. Before Stephanie broke up the fight, he was getting his face punched into a pulp.

      So when the last bell of the day rang, I bolted out of my seat and paraded the hallways in search of the blond haired boy. The thought of ditching Adam crossed my mind, but I didn’t care. I needed to make sure Jack was alright.

      It took me some time to process that I actually cared about someone’s well-being. That was a definite first and I secretly hoped it would be the last. The last thing I needed was for some boy to soften me up.

      After roaming the hallways for a couple minutes, I realized that I didn’t exactly know where to look for Jack. I had no idea where his locker was or what his last class of the day was. The only thing that came to mind was the parking space where I bumped into him and kneed him in his precious jewels.

      Deciding to give it a shot, I breezed through the parking lot and sure enough, I saw him walking to the familiar red pickup truck. My feet picked up their pace until I was practically trailing behind him. “Jack!” I called out.

     He whipped around instantly, a weak smile stretching onto his bruised face. Dark patches circled around his straight nose – which looked slightly broken now. Some of the bruises arced along his jawline and a hint of red stained the corner of his lip. But despite all the obvious pain he must have been in, he still managed to smile and his clear eyes continued to resonate with amusement.

        “Wow,” I said before I could stop myself. “He sure did a number on you.”

        Jack gave me a knowing look. “You think?”

        “I’m sorry. Are you okay?”

       He raked a hand through his tousled hair. “I’m all right.” His gaze dropped to the pavement as a wave of awkward silence engulfed us. He thumbed a loose string on his jeans and as he did so, I noticed something. Jack had this aura of confidence about him, like nothing can ever get him down. But as I stood there staring at him, I noticed he was lacking that confidence. He looked almost vulnerable.

      I didn’t notice how long the silence was until Jack finally spoke up. “Do you want a ride or something?”

      “Oh, no. I’m going to catch a ride with Adam.”

        His head dipped in a slight nod. “Ah, cool.”

       The silence continued. I couldn’t believe neither of us had anything to say. Obviously, I wouldn’t be getting answers that way. “I’m surprised you didn’t get in trouble with the principal or something.”

       “Stephanie let me off the hook.”

      “Why?” I questioned, twisting my face in confusion. “Stephanie hates everyone. Why would she just let you slide?”

       He shrugged his shoulder in the most nonchalant way possible. It was so careless that it was almost suspicious. “Look, I don’t know and I don’t really care. As long as I’m free, I’m not really stressing the issue.” The confidence that usually radiated from him was slowly coming back again.