Also fun fact, this band is a local band from where I am from. I got to support local!
Happy Friday! I think summer has finally come here to my home town and I'm in love!
I hope you are enjoying the weather where ever you may be in the world.
DarlaH
I opened the door and smiled at Miles. "Come in."
He stepped into the house and rubbed his red hands together to warm them. His red nose was to match, which made it look like he was outside forever. "Goodness, it's cold," he said as he took out the ponytail from his hair, letting it hang loose around his face.
I chuckled as I closed the door behind him, preventing the cold from entering the warm house. Of course, it was cold out. It was December. If only he knew it would get colder in January. "It's not LA here." I kissed him, allowing it to ignite my soul. "So, ready for the basketball game?"
He nodded as he slipped on his standard gray beanie. He hid behind that worn-out thing like Superman hid behind his glasses. "No one will notice me with this."
"Miles! It's so great to see you!" Mom said with a smile as she came down the stairs, putting on some gold hoops that I hadn't seen her wear in a while. Her dressy appearance reminding me I hadn't seen her dress up in far too long.
My point proven; she recognized him. "No one, huh?" I smirked.
"She doesn't count, she knew I was coming."
"Yeah, ok. Remember, this isn't like that party you went to a few months back. People will not be drunk. You have to be careful if you want to stay hidden," I warned him as I pulled on a pair of white leather sneakers.
"I know. Goodness, with the way you talk about it, you would think that you're the famous person," he chuckled.
I laughed as Everly walked down the stairs proudly in her cheer outfit.
"I'm so glad you're here!" she said to Miles with a large smile before turning to Mom. "Let's go already! I'm going to be late!"
"Wouldn't miss it for the world," he said as he high fived her.
I smiled at their relationship as I slipped on my brown peacoat.
He blended into my family as if he belonged here all this time. I never saw this happen with any of the boys I brought home before. It was another confirmation that Miles belonged with this family.
"Let's get going then," Mom said as she got her keys then we followed her to the SUV in the garage.
The ride to the school was long as Everly chattered about how she was the best cheerleader on the team. We all listened politely but as we drove into the school parking lot, I was excited that the conversation would come to an end.
"I'll see you in there." And with that, she let us find a parking spot in silence.
"Thank the stars," I muttered as Everly closed the door behind her.
"Isla, be nice," Mom threatened me.
I tucked a strand of blonde hair behind my ear as I looked at Miles to help. "She was talking way too much, right Miles?"
"Don't throw me into this," Miles said as he held up his hands, showing his red and scabbing wrists.
I frowned at the sight. I hadn't seen Miles wear short sleeves for a while now and recently he had been so careful about keeping his arms covered. I thought it was because of the cold, but as I looked at his wrists showing fingernail marks, concern flooded through me. I wondered how long he had been doing this and why I hadn't noticed before.
His smile slipped from his face as we made eye contact. Quickly, he pulled down his sleeves.
"You kids go ahead, I have to make a phone call before I get in there," Mom said, breaking the moment.
In silence, we walked to the school, but all I could think about was his wrists. All this time we had been together and I never noticed. Self-disappointment flooded through me, making a lump form in my throat. If I was a good girlfriend, I should have seen this.
"Please spit it out, Isla," Miles said as we walked towards the school.
"You did that to your wrists," I stated.
He clenched his jaw as if I insulted him. "I'm ok," he finally said.
I shook my head as I grabbed his hand, pushing back his sleeves to look at his wrists in detail. The nail cuts were scabbing, and the bruising was yellow. "This doesn't look ok."
Miles pulled back his hand as if I burnt him. "I'm just under a bit of stress. I'm handling it."
We walked into the school and suddenly, the privacy of the snowy parking lot vanished. The rest of this conversation would be had another time.
As we entered the gym, we found seats in lively atmosphere. It was buzzing with excitement as the crowd waited for the action to start. A pop song played over the speakers and within a minute, I realized it was one of Miles' songs.
My gaze shifted towards him, who stared at the gym floor. His eyes were distant. It was clear there was a lot on his mind.
I shouldn't have pushed him to talk about it so close to the school. I should have waited.
"Do you find it weird to hear your voice on the radio?" I asked.
He nodded as he pulled his beanie down to hide his dark blonde hair, concerned someone would notice. "I'm trying to get used to it," he said as Mom came and sat down next to us just as the music stopped, replaced by the voice of an announcer.
"Here's the cheer team!" the announcer said with excitement.
Instantly, Everly and her team came running into the gym.
She made eye contact with us with a large grin, which I returned.
Everly did a back handspring on the polished wooden gym floor, making the crowd roar with applause.
Within seconds, another song started and Everly led the team in a dance as the basketball players came out onto the floor.
The game started and Miles leaned forward in his seat as he watched the game play out. All signs of his distance vanished. It looked as if he enjoyed cheering for the team like a local.
"You like basketball?" I asked him as the game played onward.
He shook his head. "I don't know a thing about basketball, but I'm enjoying the moment," he said as our team scored a few points.
As the final buzzer rang, Mom stood up from her chair, pulling her phone out of her pocket again. "I'll meet you guys in the car. I have to take this. Why don't you meet Everly in the hall?"
I nodded as she left. "Should we wait then?" I asked Miles as others followed my mother's lead out of the gym.
"Let's." He stood up from his seat but quickly stumbled back into it. He glared at the ground as he hit his leg. "I'm fine," he muttered.
I knew it bothered him more than he would share. I also knew this wasn't the place to address it. Instead, I offered my hand which he took.
"Thanks."
I nodded. "Any time."
We followed the crowd as my mind spun with worry. There was so much I wanted to talk to Miles about and staying silent only forced my thoughts to fly around my mind, looking for a way out. I glanced a few times over at Miles as we waited in the hall, but he kept his eyes away from mine.
Minutes passed and Miles pulled me into him. With a small smile, I melted into him. I kissed him and for a moment; I forgot about his wrists and his MS flare up.
"I'm going to miss you when you leave," I said. In just a few days, he would be across the country with his family. Selfishly, I wanted him here instead.
His grip around me tightened. "I'll be back in no time."
Breaking us from our moment was Isaac. "So who's this? Your fake Kit Keen boyfriend?" Isaac asked.
I glared at him as we pulled out of our embrace. Why did he have to ruin every moment?
Isaac chuckled as he poked Miles. "I do admit, he's a good fake."
"Leave us alone," I said as I pushed him back.
Isaac stumbled back then shook his head. "You're so pathetic, Isla. No wonder your father didn't want you in the room when he died. No wonder your soccer team hates you. No wonder you only have one friend."
A lump formed in my throat as tears pricked my eyes. His words ripped into my skin like a whip. Those were all deep secrets I hid from Miles, and he split them like simple facts. I couldn't breathe. It felt like I was sucking through a straw.
I looked at Miles, who stared at me in silence, no doubt judging me.
Breathe.
Dad's voice rang in my mind. I took a breath in and felt something snap in me. Finding courage, I took a step forward and slapped him across the face hard enough that it stung my hand on impact.
He looked at me dazed as his cheek turned red.
Silence filled the hall, and I felt eyes on us.
I kept my eyes trained on him as my heart raced.
"Dannnggg, Isaac, did Isla Maas slap you?" some guy asked with a chuckle.
And that was enough motivation for Isaac. He closed the gap between us then pushed me against the lockers, ramming his arm against my neck, blocking my airway. "Do that again and I'll..."
Air wouldn't come as I squirmed under his weight. With fear, I saw the crowd we drew. "Do what, Isaac?" I spat out.
In anger, Isaac pushed against my neck harder until Miles pushed him off me, knocking him to the ground.
"Dude, what is your problem?" Miles asked then looked at me with concern. "Are you ok?"
I coughed as I rubbed my neck. I was fine. "Yup, I'm fine," I said as Isaac tackled Miles to the ground, pulling off his hat in the process.
"Oh my goodness! Is that Kit Keen?" some middle school girl screamed.
My blood ran cold. And just like that, they killed our moment of privacy. So much for waiting. We couldn't be caught here any longer unless Miles wanted to make it to the front page of some gossip magazine. I pushed Isaac off Miles and helped Miles off the ground.
"You're done, Isaac," I said to him, then with Miles, ran out the door.
As we walked out of school, I shot Everly a text about meeting us in the car.
"When you said you had a nasty ex, I thought, sure, everyone has one of those. But Isaac, he's something else," Miles said as he looked at his bloodied lip through the camera on his phone.
"I didn't want to be overdramatic."
"You won't be dramatic if you said 'look, my ex is a spawn from Satan'."
"But would you have believed me?"
He stopped in mid-walk as silence overwhelmed the conversation.
See. No one would believe someone could be that evil.
"I'm sorry."
By the time we got into the car, Everly followed shortly afterwards. She talked the entire way home about the game, allowing us to be silent.
Finally, Mom pulled up into the driveway and turned off the car. "I made dessert. Want to stay?"
I raised my eyebrows in shock. She hadn't made dessert in what felt like forever. She used to bake all the time, and I missed her sweets.
"I would love to stay," Miles said with a smile as we got out of the car.
She beamed at him. "Great."
We followed mom into the kitchen where brownies were waiting for us on the fake granite countertop. Mom got out the plate and scooped a piece on each plate, handing the first one to Miles with a smile.
He took it with excitement and bit into it. "This brownie is literal heaven," Miles said, as he chewed.
Mom beamed. I had never seen her swoon over anyone that we had brought home. But then again, it was hard to beat Miles. He was kind, polite, generous, and made you feel like you were the most important person on earth. "Thank you, Miles."
Just as he was about to eat another bite, Miles pulled out his phone and made a face at it. "I have to get this," he whispered, placing the plate on the counter then walked out of the kitchen.
"So what did you think about my split jump?" Everly asked, quickly changing the topic.
"I think it was amazing," I said, although my mind thought back to Miles. There were things I failed to see until now and that twisted my stomach into knots.
"Yeah, I can tell you have been working on it," Mom said as Everly dove into details about her practice schedule.
The two continued to have a conversation but as minutes ticked by, I knew I couldn't wait for him any longer. I needed to check on him.
Silently, I stood up from the folding chair and said, "The brownies were amazing. I'm going to check on Miles. I'll be back." With that, I went up the stairs to find him, guessing he went to my room for privacy.
I stood at the entryway of my closed bedroom and listened quietly to see if he was still on the call. He did not say anything, but I heard him crying.
I was sure he didn't want me to hear it, but I couldn't walk away. Hesitantly, I opened the door to see Miles on the ground, his face blotchy from crying.
He quickly wiped the tears from his face, but they continued to fall down his cheeks.
My heart ached to see him like this. Questions about what happened, but instead, I walked up to him and wiped his tears. "Shhh," I hushed him I pulled him into me noticing.
With shaking hands, Miles hung unto me like a leaf hangs onto a branch in the middle of fall. "No one cares about me. I'm suffering but they don't care, nor will they know."
I pulled him closer and rested my chin on his head as he held back a sob.
"I feel so alone," he whispered.
I pulled out of the hug and shook my head. "You're not alone." I was right beside him and I wasn't going anywhere.
"They're stifling. I don't feel like myself anymore."
I don't think I had ever seen Miles so broken. Miles was strong in so many ways, but he was also alone, frustrated, and hurting. But no one would see that except me. Miles was not alone, nor would he ever be, because he was with me and I was not leaving.
"Well, let's find yourself again," I stated softly.
"How do we do that?"
I shrugged. I wasn't sure, but I could at least try. "Let's start with the things you love most and reconnect with them."
He sniffled with a nod. "I can do that."