My Forever (The Infinite Love Series, Book Two) - Published; Sample Only.

(5) Stuck in a Drama of My Own Creation

Madalynne

They say grief gets easier with time. They say the pain lessens until one day you don’t even notice you are whole again. They were wrong.

It’s like I had that day playing on repeat in my head. April 23rd, 2013. The day I found out I was an only child. The day I lost one of my best friends.

I swear I had developed a case of unpredictability. It’s like nothing satisfied me anymore. One day I would spend wrapped up in Parker, envisioning the rest of our lives together and the next I couldn’t stand being anywhere near him. I wasn’t only being unfair to Parker—I was being unfair to myself.

Something was different. As much as I wanted to believe it was Parker, I knew deep down something was different inside of me. I was the cause to all of our current problems. I was pushing him away without much of a reason. But then again I wasn’t really worried about reasoning.

My junior year was going to be over in less than a week and I was going to be faced with a lot of free time and my thoughts. Getting a part time job was becoming more appealing by the day. Especially if…

It was too hard to say. The reality of it could kill me.

I was skipping my math class again, which had unfortunately become my routine the past few weeks. I was sprawled out underneath the weeping willow behind our school’s baseball court. It was our schools notorious location for all things illegal…but lately had become my hang out. A place to clear my mind for a bit.

My eyes were closed and I was enjoyed the warm breeze tickling my cheeks and nose.

“Hey,” I heard a deep, unfamiliar voice say.

I opened my eyes to see the same guy from the bathroom and the barn party. “Oh hey.”

“You don’t remember me do you?” He laughed awkwardly and then took a seat beside me on the grass.

“Oh no, I remember you. I may not remember your name though,” I scrunched up my face apologetically.

He chuckled. “You were pretty sloshed…” He extended out his hand for me to shake. “Darren.”

“Madalynne. You can call me Maddy.”

He nodded and then reached his hand into a pocket on the front of his shirt, pulling out the familiar carton of cigarettes he had loaned me one from the first time we met.

Turkish silvers.

He lit one up for himself and took a puff off of it. I found myself fixated on his lips as he inhaled and then exhaled the smoke.

“Want one?” He offered up the package.

No. Yes. Not really. Maybe.

“Just take one,” he shook the package in my face, tempting me even more.

I reached for one out of the package, taking one out. After putting the cigarette in my mouth, I looked expectantly at Darren.

He handed me the lighter but was curiously laughing while he did.

“What?” I asked, frustrated.

“I’ll give you the lighter when you have the correct side in your mouth.”

My jaw dropped open, my eyes growing wide with the accusation only making him laugh harder. I quickly grabbed the stick out of my mouth spitting out tiny bits of tobacco that had fallen on my tongue upon the removal.

After lighting it and inhaling my first thought was that it wasn’t as grand as it looked. The taste was actually making me feel kind of sick but I continued the motions not wanting to waste it.