Bring Me To Life (Book One Complete!)

Harriet

I decide not to say a thing. I just scowl at her and start walking away. I don't need to get into another fight, especially now. And if she pushes me, I know that I won't be able to hold back.

"Wait," she calls after me and puts her hand on my shoulder to stop me. "It..." she starts, but she never finishes. Her words just turn into sniffles, and she let's my shoulder go.

I walk away without looking at her, but halfway to the North Lawn, I have to stop. I feel guilty enough about Rex without having to feel guilty about leaving Harriet like that. When I turn back, I see her still in the same spot, sitting on the ground with her arms wrapped around her legs.

Even though I'm all out of tears right now, I know how she must be feeling. She was with him for two years. I just started my relationship with Rex, and we were already kind of on a break. And I was just as bad when I found him. As much as I hate her, she might be the only person who knows how I'm feeling right now.

I start to walk back to her, but every step I take towards Harriet feels like a different emotion, each one stronger than the last. At first it's sympathy for her. Then it's sadness over missing Rex like I've never felt before. Then it's anger at her for ruining the little time I did have with him. Then it's sadness that he's gone again. All of it takes a turn in me. My head pounds, and my hands feel clammy. I go through at least a hundred changes before I reach her.

She looks up at me when I do, wiping her eyes with the long sleeves of her blue tunic. Her bag is in on the floor next to her with her extremely neat notes hanging out of it like she couldn't care less what happened to them. I pick up the bag, and make sure nothing falls out, and she finally gets up and moves to a bench nearby.

I follow her, and sit sideways, bringing my feet up to hug them like she was doing before, but we don't say anything for a while. I can only see half her face behind her blonde strands because of the way she hangs her head, and my own dark locks blow into my face in the slight breeze.

Eventually Harriet breaks the silence, "I knew it was him. I just felt it." Her voice sounds tired. It comes out in a quiver that makes it obvious how hard she's trying not to cry. Hearing it makes my own throat feel like it's being pulled from the inside, but I don't feel any tears in my eyes.

I take the time to tie my hair back instead of responding to her.

"Did you..." she starts again before pausing.

I can tell she doesn't know what she wants to ask. She just wants answers to questions she can't seem to find.

"Did you ever notice anything from him?" she finally manages to get out, "Like anything that..." Her voice cracks, and she sighs before wiping another tear from her eye.

I shake my head almost on instinct. I can't think of anything other than his blowout at the party, but she isn't looking at me so I croak out a no in a voice that's a lot more hoarse than I expected. I know Notre said he wasn't hanging out with anyone, but I was doing the same thing by avoiding him and not telling Murie and Akuma everything. It wasn't that weird after a sudden breakup like we had. But were we even broken up? I wonder. Or were we ever together to begin with?

"No," I repeat after clearing my throat.

Harriet looks at me with wide eyes like she's surprised by my answer. I can't tell if she's happy with it or devastated, though. One side of her lips look like they might be smiling ever so slightly, but the other side looks like it's going the other way. Or maybe I just imagine it because her mouth shows no emotion at all.

Her eyes are completely different, though. They're wide open and her eyebrows are arched up like she's begging me for something more, threatening me not to hold back. She looks desperate and it throws me off. So I give in.