The Files of Hennat

James

"So, are we going to his house then?"

Natalie nodded.

They drove for a few more minutes in silence, at Natalie stared out the window, the wind on her face.

"Listen, Natalie."

"Yeah?"

"I hope you make things right with Henry," he said genuinely.

She faced him again, and rolled up the windows. "Me too. Turn here."

They turned into a neighborhood, and she directed him on where to go. Eventually, Natalie told him to stop. There weren't any houses nearby.

"Um..."

"Don't ask if Henry's real!" Natalie snapped.

"I wasn't going to." James said, and Natalie felt bad.

"Look, we just have to walk to Henry's house. Okay?"

James shrugged, and followed Natalie's lead as she began walking down the street.

Finally, they reached a house where Natalie paused for a long minute.

"Is this it?"

She nodded, looking suddenly very stricken.

James put his hand on her shoulder.

"Natalie, are you okay?"

"I don't know." The car ride was sobering, but now she felt as incompetent as she was crying in that bathroom.

"It's just-" James waited for her to go on. "He used to pick me up from all these clubs, and I was awful to him. I mean, every time. And I just don't know why he'd give me another chance at this point. But he will, because he's Henry."

"Isn't that good, then?" James asked.

Natalie ignored him and walked to the side of the house. She looked up.

"That's his window."

"Okay."

"I'm gonna throw something at it."

"Wait-"

But Natalie did not wait. She picked up a rock, then threw it- softly, she thought, then screamed when the window shattered.

"What did you think was going to-"

She shushed him as a disgruntled Henry appeared at the window.

"What the hell, Natalie? You're lucky my parents aren't home, or they'd kill you. And then me!"

She froze, clearly nervous. "Hi."

"What are you doing here?" He asked.

"Um. I was at this club-"

"Of course you were," Henry muttered.

"And I was high and I was crying, and I realized..." She stepped closer, so she was looking up at him. "I realized we had a good thing, and I screwed it up."

Henry seemed to be struck silent.

"Also I didn't want to go home, so I made this guy drive me to your house."

Henry looked at James for the first time then.

"Why'd you drive her here?" He asked suspiciously.

"I, uh, I kind of gave her drugs. At the club," he answered.

Henry's eyes went wide in a way that was almost funny, but angry in a way that wasn't.

"You what? How could you, I mean, why would you... look at her! Does she look like she can handle drugs?" Henry ranted.