Words Unspoken

Chapter 14 - Memory

Then as if all at once, I remembered what I was supposed to do and I dropped the book on the booth and slid out of it, moving over to her side. My arms wrapped her like a blanket and she stiffened before melting into my arms. Her hair tickled my arm as it slid over my arm, and I could feel wet smudges of her tears on me. And I cringed, because I knew it was my fault. It was always my fault.

There was silence between us, even though the people around us were still talking, until Natalie sniffled and said, "You've been cheating on me, Will?" She turned her head slightly to look up at me. I stared at her in shock in reply. Cheating?

"Natalie?" I said slowly, removing my arms from her. "She's just-"

She scooted a little away from me and looked up at me with her blue eyes. "You like her." she said simply. I bit down hard on my lip and tried hard not to feel and taste the metallic taste that was slowly pouring into my mouth.

"No I don't."

"You're lying."

"How would you even know?"

She pushed me and I slid out of the booth to let her out. She made a move towards the doors that were just swinging because someone new had just entered, but I stayed close by the booth with my hip leaning against it slightly. I felt that if I had nothing to keep me steady, I would fall over on my own just perfectly and just as easily.

"Will, there's a lot of things I know about you that even you don't know about yourself." She turned on her heel again to leave, but I stopped her with my words.

"Please, Natalie," I stared at the ground, "don't bring her into this."

"What's her name?"

"Natalie..." I warned. She narrowed her eyes at me and I whispered, "She means nothing to me. Please, Natalie," I sounded desperate for some reason. I glanced over at the counter and found Louis watching the both of us with a hard stare, and Chance was beside him being the cashier, busy with a customer since he said he was bored and wanted to do something.

"Kaylee." she said plainly. "That's her name, isn't it?" She smirked when I winced at the sound of her name. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Louis making his way over to us now. Chance began to move after him, too, but stopped short when another customer approached him. But he still watched us as he rang up the cash register for the couple in front of him.

Louis was by my side now, and he glared hard at Natalie silently, while I said, "Natalie, please, she didn't do anything wrong. It's my fault. Please Natalie..."

"I just wanted to see your expression when I said her name." Natalie grinned and turned her back on me, this time making all the way to the front of the door with her hand on the door, too, when I began to move after her to reason with her some more. There was no way I could risk losing Kaylee to Natalie like this, just like what happened to her.

"How did you know the password to my phone?" I finally asked, weakly. My head was spinning now with questions I knew she would never answer for me.

She stopped, but didn't turn around. "Her name." And I could just imagine the smirk on her face as she exited the café.

"Natalie!" I called and walked forward a step to chase after her when a hand settled on my wrist, pulling me back from going after Natalie. I turned around furiously to see who would do this now, but all I saw was a worried Louis.

"Will," he said, "what did she say this time?"

I didn't say anything. My eyes were still watching the retreating back of Natalie's cross the street and head back in the direction of my house.