C H A P T E R S E V E N T E E N
Kelsey's P.O.V.
"What's with you and Zach holding hands all of a sudden?" Ryan asked, eyeing underneath the table. Sure enough, our fingers were still intertwined.
"Because we can," I replied, giving Ryan a sincere smile.
"I wasn't meaning to sound rude," he noted in between two bites of his turkey sandwich. "It's cute."
"That's what I said," Luke cut in from across the table. "But Zach got all hostile on me," he added, sticking out his lower lip in a fake pout.
"I did not!" retorted Zach.
"Did too!"
"Nope!"
"Yeah you did!"
"You two act like a couple of six year olds fighting over a Happy Meal toy or something," Marco stated jokingly from next to Luke. "It's entertaining."
I couldn't help but laugh at his comment, They did act like a couple of six year olds at times.
"Why are you laughing?" asked Zach with a playful tone, turning towards my laughing. "I thought you agreed with me."
"I do," I replied, stiffling my laughter. "That was just funny because it's true."
"Hey!" he retorted a bit loudly, and I could tell by his facial expressions that he was trying not to laugh.
I couldn't hold back my giggles anymore and I burst into a laughing fit. I could feel my face become hot as I quickly realized how awkward I was being, so I stopped, brushing some long strands of my hair away from my eyes.
Suddenly, I felt Zach's hand let go of mine and his arm went around me gently. I looked up at him with widened eyes, a bit surprised by his gesture.
"What are you doing?" I asked. I probably seemed a bit dumb.
"What does it look like?" he responded with a smile. "I'm putting my arm around you."
Then, he paused, his gaze sinking quite a bit as he then added, "Please don't tell me I put my arm around Ryan."
Ryan, who was sitting next to Zach, started laughing uncontrollably, almost choking on his turkey sandwich. His laughter caused the entire table to start laughing as well, including me.
"Thankfully not," Ryan answered between hyperventilations. "If you did, you'd never hear the end of it."
This time, Zach started laughing, and I couldn't help but smile. Honestly, his laugh is one of the cutest things I've ever heard, but I would never admit it to anyone. I was laughing so hard that my chest was hurting. After a moment, I heard a familiar voice that made it all go away.
"What's with all the noise over here?" Jonathan scoffed while walking over to Zach.
"Oh, I don't know," Luke replied, his gaze quickly becoming tense as he stared Jonathan in the eyes. "We're all having a good time without you?"
"Luke, stop it," I hissed underneath my breath.
"What do you want, Jonathan?" Zach sighed as his voice became quiet.
"Nothing."
Just then, he shoved Zach out of his chair, almost taking me with him, but I clung onto the table. Luke sprung out of his seat and yanked Jonathan towards him, giving him a death glare.
"You don't get to mess with him, you punk," Luke threatened in his ear.
"Try me," replied Jonathan, a smirk plastered on his face.
None of us expected Luke to throw a hard punch at Jonathan's face, knocking him backwards. I don't think Jonathan was expecting it either because the look on his face was a mix of surprise and rage.
After stepping back a bit, Jonathan lunged forward, aiming a punch to Luke's chest, which he barely avoided by stepping to the side at the last moment. Luke then stepped forward, pushing Jonathan against the wall and he delivered several kicks to his chest.
Everyone in the cafeteria was staring at Luke and Jonathan, and most of their stares were in horror. I stayed behind with Zach, neither of us wanting to get involved. I spotted Amelia in the crowd of people, and she had a look of shock and anger. She returned my gaze and rolled her eyes, storming out of the lunchroom. I looked back at the fight and I saw Ryan running towards the two.
"Break it up!" he shouted, grabbing Luke and pulling him away from Jonathan.
"Stop it, Ryan!" retorted Luke loudly, then he completely froze.
I never knew Luke as a fighter, and he didn't know it either. The look on his face revealed complete terror, in disbelief on what he had just did. Jonathan was struggling to get off of the ground, and honestly, I didn't feel bad for him. For the many times he beat Zach up, he deserved this.
Jonathan's nose was bleeding, and his eyes looked quite a bit blackened from the impact of Luke's punches. Luke sat back down at the table, refusing to make eye contact with anyone.
"Luke, you okay?" I inquired, not knowing what else to say.
"Yeah..," he replied, still not lifting his gaze. "I'm fine.."
"What happened with you and Jonathan that makes you hate him so much?"
The words popped out of my mouth before I knew it, and I instantly regretted saying them. Luke flinched at my question and then reluctantly answered, finally lifting his field of vision.
"We used to be best friends for years, probably since we were around eight or nine. He was one of the nicest people I knew.."
"Jonathan" and "nice" shouldn't be in the same topic of conversation.
"Little did I know that he was bullying everyone behind my back. People wanted to let me know, I could tell, but they were too scared to. They thought Jonathan would beat them up.."
He paused a little bit before continuing, "When he shoved Zach into the pool that one time, I realized what his true colors were, and I didn't want to be a part of it."
"I'm sorry, Luke," Zach symphasized, giving him a compassionate look with his blind eyes. He genuinely looked upset, probably feeling like some of it was his fault.
"It's okay," Luke replied with a small smile. "I have you guys, and that's what matters."
Zach's P.O.V.
"You sure you're okay, Luke?" I asked after the bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch period. The cafeteria was a huge mess this entire lunch period.
"I'm good," he responded as he walked alongside me. "Don't worry about it."
"You sure?"
"Positive," he replied, giving me a gentle pat on the back.
I nodded slightly as we exited the cafeteria. I could hear Kelsey's footsteps approach as she caught up to Luke and I. Feeling her presence beside me, I gently grabbed her hand as we made our way down the hallway. She didn't hesitate or try to move away, so I didn't let go, yet I kept my grip light.
"That's cute," antagonized Luke while elbowing me in the shoulder playfully.
I let out a sigh as I heard Kelsey's sweet laugh alongside me. No matter what I did with Kelsey, Luke would think it was "cute." I've learned to just laugh along with him. I put a genuine, yet embarrassed smile on my face, ignoring the stares from my peers as well as I could.
"Oh look, it's the Three Musketeers!" I heard the familiar voice in which Amelia possessed exclaim.
I heard Kelsey groan a bit loudly in disgust, and I was about to say something in her defense before she replied.
"If I throw a stick, will you go away?" she countered, still not letting go of my hand.
I held back a smile. Kelsey calling Amelia an animal is absolutely hilarious, but I didn't want to ruin the moment.
"I have to admit, that's a good one," Amelia stated. I could tell she was getting closer to Kelsey. "For a moron."
"Why can't you just leave her alone?" I asked cooly, stepping in front of her.
"Nice try, Romeo," she replied bluntly, faux politeness dripping from her lips. "But I'd rather not."
"You'd better leave us alone," Luke warned her confidently. I almost forgot he was standing next to me since he was extremely quiet until now. "Your 'boyfriend' will regret it if you don't."
"It's not like you already beat him up in the lunchroom," Amelia snarled with hostility. "I can tell the principal about that one," she threatened coldly.
"You wouldn't dare," he replied with an angered tone.
"Yeah I would." Amelia seemed almost unfazed.
"Enough, Luke," Kelsey cut in suddenly, not wanting the argument to go even further. "This is my problem, not yours."
I heard Amelia's footsteps quickly fade away as she had stormed off without another word. I scratched the back of my neck, which is something I do when I'm nervous. Kelsey doesn't deserve to deal with this mess. Nobody does.
"You okay, Kelsey?" I asked, putting my sightless gaze onto her.
"Yeah, I'm just over it," she replied, letting out an aggravated sigh. "Amelia drives me crazy."
"She's a jerk, don't listen to her," Luke advised, and I nodded in agreement.
"I try not to," admitted Kelsey while slightly tightening her grip on my hand. "But it's extremely difficult..."
"Then I'll try and help in any way I can," I responded, gently squeezing her hand to let her know that I meant it. "I promise."
"You'd do that?"
"In a heartbeat," I committed genuinely. "Nobody deserves to be treated like that, especially you."
I could practically feel her widening smile.
~•~•~
"Zach!" my mom called from downstairs. "Your father's on the phone and he wants to talk to you."
Carefully, I put my guitar down, pondering why my 'father' could possibly be calling. He almost never does since he's extremely busy. I ran my fingers through my hair, getting a bit confused.
"Coming!" I yelled in response as I stood up, walking out of my room. I would've ran if I didn't feel like I would bump into something.
I made my way down the stairs, keeping my hand firmly on the railing beside me. I walked into the kitchen, and she put the phone in my hands. Reluctantly, I put it against my ear.
"Hello?"
"Hey Zach!" the voice on the other phone exclaimed cheerfully. "How've you been?"
"Fine," I replied, which was partly true. "What's up?"
"Your mom and I have been talking," he stated, excitement rising in his deep voice. "It turns out there's an opening for the surgery a week early."
It felt like my heart was about to leap out of my chest. That meant a week from this Friday, I'd be on a plane heading towards Florida. The anxiety I felt throughout the past few days suddenly returned, and it hit me like a ton of bricks.
Too soon...
Way too soon....
"Really?" I inquired, unaware of how much my voice was wavering.
"I know all of this is extremely overwhelming for you," he countered gently, probably noticing how nervous I sounded. "We can wait an extra week if you want."
"No," I replied not even a second later. "I'm fine."
The longer I wait, the more nervous I would become. It would be better to get the whole thing over with than to procrastinate on it.
"You sure?"
"A hundred percent," I replied, my hands shaking with the effect that my anxiety had on me.
"Okay then," my father replied with a comforting tone. "As long as you're okay with it.."
"Miss you," I stated without even thinking about my words. I truly missed my father a lot, but I almost never told him that when I did talk to him.
"I miss you too, buddy," he responded, his voice cracking a little bit.
I hesitated for a moment before asking, "So, should I talk to you later?"
"Sure, Zach," he replied before he hung up, not saying anything else.
I handed my mom's phone back to her, and her voice held a concerned ring to it.
"Are you sure that you're okay?" she inquired, putting a hand on my shoulder. "I don't blame you for being so nervous.."
It seemed like my heart stopped at her statement as flashbacks suddenly revolved around my mind. The feeling of falling gripped my chest once again, and I put my hand to my forehead, snapping out of it quicker than I thought I would.
"I'm okay, Mom," I replied with fake determination. "I'm fine.."
~~~
Woohoo, an eventful chapter!
Did you expect Luke and Jonathan to be former best friends like that? What did you think?
Anyways, I hope you liked this chapter! I put a lot of effort into my writing! :)
~Eclipsityy <3