If Love Can Fade

Chapter 5

"Are you really not going to tell me what happened?" Payson pouts from across the table, eating another spoonful of her salad. "Everyone's already talking about it, so it's not like you can deny it."

"There is nothing to tell, because absolutely nothing happened." The first 4 periods of the day were super slow and agonizing, however the students were all hype about the supposed fight this morning in the parking lot. "It's petty drama. Garrett gave me a ride to school and Samantha saw me getting out of his car. She came over to claim her property. That's it, there were no fists or hair pulling involved." Honestly, rumors get blown way out of proportion these days. The average teenage life is so boring that they have to involve themselves in others. Samantha and I barely spoke twenty words to each other and everyone is acting like it was an all out brawl between the two of us.

"Wait, rewind." Payson chirps, sitting a little higher in her seat. "Did you just say that Garrett gave you a ride to school. I thought you didn't like him?"

"I don't. We ran into each other this morning and he offered. I didn't want to be rude," Which isn't entirely a lie, I'd just rather not talk about the fact that he lent a shoulder to a hopelessly pathetic girl.

"You didn't have a problem with that in the hallway yesterday," She smiles. "Are you two going to turn this into a habit? You know, running into each other and then hitching a ride to school?"

"Absolutely not," I reply a little too quickly causing her to laugh.

"If you say so."

After lunch, the rest of the day seems to speed by in a blur. Payson had to constantly repeat herself due to the multiple times I zoned out. She tried super hard to catch my attention, but my mind just seems to be elsewhere. Towards the end of class, she gave up finally realizing it was a futile attempt. When the bell finally rings, I walk out of class alone.

Instead of going straight home, I decide to explore a little. I haven't seen much of the town besides my street and the school. There's not much to check out, but walking helps me clear my mind. I know when I get home I'll have to sit and talk with my mom until we find common ground, but I don't have the patience for a conversation we've had plenty of times before. We both know how it's going to turn out, but instead of facing it we're just delaying the inevitable.

The town is simple and quiet, which is beginning to grow on me. The city was always comfortable for me, it's what I grew up to know. But this town is peaceful. It's not filled with giant, twinkling lights or the sound of traffic. Instead you can hear the crickets in the distance and feel a faint breeze in the air.

I wait until the sun starts to go down before I turn on heel and decide to head home. I want to deal with this sooner rather than later, so we can put this behind us and move on. The walk home doesn't take to long, but it gives me time to prepare what I am going to say.

When I step inside the house, all the lights are off indicating that mom probably decided to go off to bed already. However, as I pass the living room I notice a figure lying on the couch.

"Mom?" I whisper with a cautious step forward.

"You're home," she smiles as she sits up right. "Did you have fun at the park?"

I take a few more steps forward, preparing to correct her, when I smell the liquor radiating off of her. "Have you been drinking?" To say I'm shocked would be an understatement. After last time, I didn't think she would result turn back to this.

"Of course not, Sweetie." She slurs, reaching for my hand. She looks up at me with tired eyes, "Why do you hate me?"

"I don't hate you."