Love, Lies and a Flash of the Past

Chapter 22

---------- Chapter 22 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On the first day of high school, before I became a cheerleader and all that, I didn’t know a single person. I was so afraid of ending up alone that I skipped school.

I ended up walking up a little hill just opposite the school and I just sat under a huge, shady tree. And ever since then, this tree has been my spot. When things are just too complicated or I just need some space, I come here.

And after that whole stupid incident in the cafeteria, I just couldn’t bare the thought of accidentally bumping into Dixon or Michael or any of my friends in the corridors between classes, so here I am.

The final bell rings and I watch as my schoolmates exit the school building, chatting happily amongst themselves.

            “So you bunked off school, huh?” Haden’s velvet voice asks, surprising me.

I whirl around, and there he is, leaning against my tree, watching me.

            “How’d you get here so fast?” I ask, ignoring his question.

            “I had a free period. I was looking for you…I thought you could use a friend,” he offers, sitting down beside me.

            “I’m fine,” I lie, shrugging.

            “Always with the lies,” he smirks, leaning back against the tree. “So…the whole cafeteria thing…”

            “Can we please not talk about it?” I beg.

            “Okay. Sure,” he agrees, pulling out his phone. He stares at the screen intently, a small crease forming between his eyebrows. I catch myself staring, unable to pry my eyes away from his face. “Hasn’t your momma ever told you that it’s rude to stare?” he teases softly, eyes still not leaving his screen.

            “How’d you know I was staring?” I ask softly.

            “Silly girl,” he chuckles, smiling at me. “I can feel your stare. It’s instinct, you always know when someone is watching you.”

I nod my head absent-mindedly, playing with a blade of grass.

            “So…what happened after I left?” I ask in spite of myself.

Haden glances up before stuffing his phone back into his pocket. He strokes his chin thoughtfully as if trying to figure out how to phrase things. “Sort of more of the same?” he finally tries, shrugging.

            “How do you mean?” I demand, my heart hammering in my chest.

Did he find out? Did Haden tell him about the pool?

            “Well…he kind of just stood there for a long time. It was like that never happened to him before and he didn’t know how to react. I take it you guys don’t fight much?” Haden probes.

            “Barely ever. There’s nothing to fight about. He respects me and I respect him…we usually just agree to disagree. Today was the first time he actually raised his voice at me or slapped my hand,” I confess, chewing on my bottom lip.

            “I figured. Your emotions were all over the place. You looked on the verge of crying,” Haden admits gently.

            “I did cry…once I got here,” I mumble, dropping my gaze.