One More Thing

Chapter Twenty Eight: Sparks Fly

I never thought that my first kiss would be with Jude Shepherd.

I can't believe it.

It was everything I hoped it would be and more. His breath tasted like bubblegum, his lips were soft and, well, his tongue...

As I stand there, breathless, Jude pulls me in for a second kiss. I wrap my arms around his neck and bring him in closer, relishing in the warmth of his body against mine.

"Wow," I say, after we both pull away.

Jude laughs, placing both of his hands gently against my face.

"I've wanted to do that for such a long time," he says, running his fingers through a loose strand of my hair.

"Me too," I confess.

"I'm sorry about last week," he says, the joy in his face dwindling. "When we were on that walk, I really wanted to kiss you but... it was the day after the break up and I just couldn't. It felt wrong, you know?"

"Don't apologise! That's perfectly fine. It would have been too soon."

"And a week's not too soon?" he asks with an impish grin.

I swat his arm playfully.

"Anyway, what I wanted to apologise for wasn't really that," he says. "It was about... afterwards. I felt bad about leaving you at the park. It was an overreaction, and I should have given you a proper explanation."

"Jude," I say. "You weren't overreacting. I was the one who acted badly. I made everything about me and I shouldn't have. It was incredibly selfish and I really am sorry."

"We all make mistakes," shrugs Jude. "But I can't blame you for thinking that Sydney and me broke up because of you. From the outside, there was no other explanation. You know, from the way she treated you and everything."

"I suppose so."

"Yeah. Well, I wanted to tell you the truth about why we broke up."

I nod, wrapping my fingers around his. We make our way over to the log - the one that we sat on last week - and it takes all of my concentration not to think about that horrible day.

The park is quiet, aside from birds twittering and branches rustling above our heads. The winter sun beams down through the branches, casting shadows across Jude's face.

"You know my cousin?" he asks, stroking my hand with his fingers.

"You mean the cousin you were with earlier?" I say, wishing we could just forget about the painfully awkward cousin episode.

"Yeah, Ella. She's only a year younger than us, you know."

I nod, wondering what relevance this could possibly have to Sydney and Jude's relationship.

"She used to go to your school," says Jude, gazing into the woods. "She was bullied. Really badly."

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that."

"She was bullied so badly that she had to move schools. She goes to my school now, and she's doing better. But the damage is still there, and it's not just going to go away."

I look at Jude. His brow is furrowed and his jaw is tense. I've never seen him look this angry before.

"The girls who bullied her used to do really shitty things. When they found out she was gay, they wrote homophobic slurs in her locker. Hid her clothes in the PE changing rooms. Took photos of her and posted them on social media with nasty captions. And even worse."

"That's awful. Didn't they get in trouble for what they did?" I ask.

"They got 'disciplined', apparently. But not enough. Not nearly enough. My cousin is going to carry all this with her for the rest of her life, and..."