"Where's Hannah?" I asked Dad as I come out for dinner. "I thought it was her night to cook dinner?"
"She left with Justin a little while ago." He didn't turn to look at me as he did the dishes.
"Oh." I leaned against the counter. "So what's for dinner?"
"Meatloaf." He pointed towards the oven before going back to the dishes.
"Okay." I bit my lip as I thought about say to do next. "I'm sorry about Mom's car."
"It's fine." It wasn't fine. "You two are fine and that's all that matters."
I bowed my head knowing it was my fault the car went into the ditch not Hannah's.
"Am I too hard on you girls?" He asked a few moments later.
"Only when we're in a relationship or rumored to be in one." I tried to keep the bitterness out of my voice but by the way his shoulders hunched forward, I failed. "But you just want us to be safe, and you're under the impression every boy just wants to put their dick, if they have one, in everything."
"That's because-"
"You're overprotective because we're closer to being grown women than you would like and terrified of losing us to someone else." I ignore his shocked expression in the window and continued talking. "But, Dad, we're gonna be turning eighteen this month and out of the house in less than a year if we get accepted to colleges that offer room and board. Wouldn't you rather us be stupid now with you under the same roof, or when we're possibly on the other end of the country?"
"I rather you never be stupid." He turned to look at me.
"Dad-" I tried to reason with him, but he just shook his head.
"Hailey, I didn't raise either of you to be dumb girls who threw everything away because some boy entered your life." He stated.
"Just say it." I was done with him.
"Say what?" He asked.
"You don't want us to be like you and Mom." I galnced at the oven when it beeped. "Go ahead and eat. I'm not hungry anymore."
*****
"Sorry I didn't tell you I left." Hannah apologizes in Dad's class.
"It's fine." I told her as I unlocked my phone.
"What's going on?" Hannah moved down a row and sat in Mason's usual spot.
"Nothing, just checking something." I looked over at the Gym doors to make sure Dad wasn't entering.
"Checking what?" Hannah flipped her hair over her shoulder. "Seeing if you have a text from your boyfriend?"
"I don't have a boyfriend." I muttered as I clicked on the basketball schedule.
"Where's the arm candy?" Sophia sat on my other side and tried to see what I was looking at.
"Who?" I moved my phone closer to my body.
"Mason." Sophia and Hannah said together.
"Maybe you two are twins." I groaned internally when I saw that there was a game on the eighteenth. "Goddamnit."
"What?" Hannah asked as Sophia jabbed my side.
"Nothing." I turned my phone off and dropped it in my bag as Dad came in.
"Come on." Han whispered.
"Shh." I pushed her away while Dad took attendance. "I don't want to get yelled at."
"Anyone know where Mason is?" Dad asked.
"Out sick." I told him.
He just nodded and didn't look up. "Today we'll be going over-"
"Seriously, what were you looking at?" Hannah's whispering cut me off from hearing whatever Dad was saying.
"The basketball schedule. Shh." I swatted her away.
"Why?" She smacked my hand down.
"Wanted to see if there was a game on our birthday." I shrugged and pretended to care about what Dad was saying.
"And?" She just doesn't stop.
"Shh." I didn't look at her.
"Hailey." I rolled my eyes and turned towards her slightly. "Is there a game?"
"There is and thankfully it's a Home game." I whispered quickly. "Now shut up."
"And you're-"
"Going? Yes." I bit my lip to keep myself from laughing. "I've gone to about every game since sixth grade."
"But you don't like basketball or him." Sophia teased me, and I groaned internally again.
Why did Mason decide to get sick today?
*****
"I'm stopping by Mason's." I told Hannah when I found her at her locker after school. "Promised I would bring him his homework."
"And help him with the hands on part of Human Anatomy?" Hannah grinned and winked.
"There isn't any hands on stuff." I felt like I was missing something here.
"Oh my God, Hail." Hannah shook her head and sighed. "Honestly, how are you ever gonna get laid-"
"La la la." I slammed my hands over my ears. "I'm going now."
"You're such a child!" Hannah shouted after me.
"And proud of it!" I shouted back.
It didn't take me long to get to Mason's, but his Mom's car was in the driveway. Shit.
"The one day she's home." I tossed my hands up in frustration as I rounded the house and picked a couple of pebbles up to toss at Mason's window.
This isn't the first time I've done this.
His window opened after the third pebble. "Didn't know I was the girl in a romance movie."
"Let me in." I waved my fist full of pebbles. "I have some hand-eye coordination."
"Back door." He rolled his eyes, but I saw the grin on his face.
I dumped the pebbles on the ground and made my way to the back door to wait for him. He appeared on the other side a few moments later, and let me in.
"Sh." He grabbed my wrist and dragged me up to his room.
"I would've brought you chicken noodle soup, but school literally just got out." I dropped my bag by his desk chair before sitting on it.
"So what did I miss?" Mason rummaged through my bag for his work.
"Not much." I shrugged. "Notes and presentations mostly."
"You could've just texted me then." He zipped my bag back up and leaned against his desk.
"I wanted to see you." I tucked some hair behind my ear.
"Aw, you're so sweet, Romeo." He teased me.
"Shut up, Juliet." I kicked his shin.
"So about yesterday-"
"I'm fine." I reassured him. "I cashed the car into a ditch, and Hannah and I are fine."
"You've never been one to lose control." He tugged on my arm. "Come on."
I followed him to his bed and laid beside him. "I'm fine, I swear."
"You were shaking." I looked over at him when I heard his voice quiver. "Just like when she left."
"It was nothing Hannah said." I stared at him as I spoke. "A song came on the radio."
"What song?" Mason turned his head to look at me.
"It's stupid, I shouldn't be so affected by a dumb song." I avoided his gaze until he grabbed my chin and made me look at him.
"Hailey Amber Jacobs." He said my name slowly and my heart skipped a beat. "What song and why."
"A Kelly Clarkson song." I swallowed heavily. "I don't know which one, but it was an old one. Mom and I would sing, badly, all the time because she loved it and I don't know. I guess I went back to the day she left, how I was stuck at school waiting to be picked up because she had to sign me out, and she never came. I..."
"I don't remember her last words to me." I didn't realize I was crying until Mason wiped a tear away.
"Have a good day." Mason said. "Those were her last words to you."
"How do you know?" I turned fully onto my side.
"Because she dropped us both off that day." He gave me a small smile before sneezing.
"Mason!" I squeezed my eyes shut and started laughing.
"I'm sorry!"
***AN***
Okay, please tell me I'm not the only one that just wants them to kiss already? Well, not when he's sick. . . but you get the point.
Let us know what you guys thought, we'd love to hear it!
~ChasingMadness24 & BriannaVore