All We Know Is Falling: Fall With Me: Volume One (12 page)

I shut my eyes. “Yes.”

He moved back and I opened my eyes. “Alright. We don’t have to call it a date if you don’t want to. Though it is a date. But no matter. Things will change soon enough.”

I shook my head and rolled my eyes. “So confident.”

“I am.”

I turned back in my chair and class started. I didn’t need to give Hale the attention he wanted. Even though I was starting to want to give it to him. How that boy entertained me was mystifying.

To distract myself, I went back to figuring out my plan with Brooks. Now that I had a name and a face, it shouldn’t be too hard. I might not need to resort to violence. Doesn’t mean I won’t…just that I don’t have to.

Sure, the Brooks kid thought that Hale did something wrong. Maybe in his head he was justified. But what he did was cause permanent damage that will follow Hale for the rest of the year. He couldn’t escape it.

And for that, I might get violent. And I might enjoy it.

I thought about being civil with the boy first. Maybe he’s stupid enough to just hand over the file. If not, I break all of his fingers then threaten him some more ‘til he gives up the location.

“My goodness,” I heard from beside me. I looked over to see a wide-eyed Hale. “You have the sexiest evil glint in your eyes. Are you thinking up an evil plan?”

The corner of my mouth went up and Hale said, “Four.”

I ignored him. “I am coming up with a plan. One that might make me want to take a bath in bleach. But at least it has a shot at working.”

He looked concerned. “And what might that plan be, Lamb?”

I was a little worried to tell him. “Well, he’s a boy. And, no offence,” I held a hand up and he gestured for me to continue. “Boys can be really stupid, as my research would lead me to believe. So, if I were to—”

“I already don’t like this.”

“—flirt a little with him. Maybe—”

“No,” he said like it wasn’t an option.

“Why?”

A half light half dark eyebrow went up and he shot me a look that suggested the answer was clear. But he explained anyway. “I don’t want you flirting with him. Or anyone.”

“A bit much don’t you think?”

“No. I think it’s fine.”

I tapped my fingers on the table. “What the Hell are you trying to do here, Hale? Cuz I truly don’t know.”

“I don’t understand what you mean,” I could see the lie right on his face.

“Since the day you walked in this room, you’ve been following me, stealing my clothes—”

“I only did that once.”

“—Going out of your way to talk to me. Trying to set up a play date. Bringing me home. Almost kissing me… Then leaving,” my cheeks turned bright red, I was sure of that. “I just don’t understand what you’re trying to get out of this.”

He smiled at me and I had to look away. “I’m sorry, I thought that my intentions were clear.”

“No.”

“Ah. Well, I’m trying to make you fall in love with me.”

I stared up at him stupidly. And said something even stupider. “Why would you want to do that?”

He looked at me in a way that confirmed my stupidity. “Why do I want you to love me?” he seemed confused by my confusion.

“Yeah. Seems like a bad idea.”

“Not at all.” I stayed quiet and then he said, “I understand that that might have been a lot to hear.”

“Yeah…”

“Don’t worry. Once you accept our fates then everything will be much better. I promise.”

I stared blankly at him. Was he trying to mess with me? Pull some kind of trick for his own entertainment? I wasn’t sure. I couldn’t believe that he actually wanted me like that. I had too many issues to be seen that way.

“I told you I didn’t want a friend,” I started. “What makes you think I’d want more than that?”

“You will,” he assured me. “Soon, I’m sure. I just need to try a little harder.”

I scoffed. “That suggests that the constant attention isn’t as all consuming as it is.”

“Oh, it can be worse. And it will be,” he beamed with self pride.

I rolled my eyes. “You’ve known me for two weeks. Why did you pick me?”

He looked a little upset. Angry even. “What kind of question is that?”

“Answer it.”

His features softened. “Two weeks is more than enough time to decide something like this.”

I rubbed my face. “And you said I was the insane one here.”

“Maybe we’re both a little insane. But that changes nothing. I like you. Very much so.”

“And you need me to love you?” I asked doubtfully.

“Well yes. That’s the goal.”

I just shook my head and went back to my homework. He wasn’t thinking clearly. He’d get over this soon. Especially if he spent much more time with me.

When the bell rang I got up to leave and Hale followed me out. I turned and he stopped short of bumping into me. “Can I help you?”

“No. Is there something wrong with me wanting to walk my girl to lunch?”

That earned another eye roll. “You’re going today?”

He shrugged and we started walking. I’d need to try and get him to cut out that my girl thing. I didn’t need that being said.

We got in line and he was right behind me the whole time. I got my food and tried not being hyperaware that he was so close. I paid for my lunch and started walking to my table, not waiting for him.

I sat down and glanced up. Hale was just finishing up with the cashier and heading over. His eyes went to the table of girls he sat with his first day and a few after. They all recoiled when he walked by, like he was poison. The look on his face devastated me. He then looked to an empty table far from the girls and headed over to it.

“Hale?” I called out to him. He paused and looked over at me. I pulled the chair next to me out. “Sit with me.”

He sat beside me and stayed quiet. I couldn’t stand him being so upset over something like those moronic girls. I tapped on Hale’s shoulder and he looked at me. Then I pulled him to me and put my arms around his neck so I could hold him to me until I knew he felt alright.

Hale tried pulling back. “I don’t want people seeing you hugging The Psycho. I don’t want them torturing you for it.”

I held him tighter. “Let ‘em do their worst.” I kissed him on the cheek and held him for a few more seconds before we parted. I looked him in the eye. “You are not a psycho.”

He tried smiling. “You’ve heard what they’ve been saying about me.”

“I don’t believe any of it.”

His face was dead serious, “Maybe you should.”

“I don’t care about who you used to be. Or if any of that stuff is true. People can change.” Most people can change. Unlike me, he didn’t have evil in his DNA. He could escape it. As long as he escaped me.

“You claim not to be a lamb, yet the trust you have in me shows the depths of your innocence. It’s dangerous.” He set his milk in front of me. “And I hate that you trust me as much as you do. I don’t deserve it. But I want it.” He stared at the carton so he didn’t need to look at me. “It makes me feel worse, like I’m taking advantage of you.”

I shook my head even though he wasn’t looking. “You’re not the liar here. And you’re not the one taking advantage,” the words came out quietly.

His eyes went up. “What are you lying about?”

Everything. “Things that I can’t be truthful about,” I sat forward and started eating so he wouldn’t press the issue. He never did.

This was getting to be too much. Going farther than I should have let it. And I was paying for it. I couldn’t kick him to the curb. I didn’t know what it would do to him but I knew it wouldn’t be good. Especially now, when everyone was terrified to be near him. I was the only friend he had. I just needed to be careful. I needed to keep it at this. Just be his friend.

Shouldn’t be too hard.

“Aurora?” I heard my name squeaked and I looked up.

I barely kept my mouth from dropping at the sight of the girl before me. I knew instantly who she was, though I hadn’t seen her in nearly two years. She’d grown a couple inches, setting her at around five-nine. She’d chopped her curly blonde hair to her shoulders.

“Hi, Dottie,” I said, trying to keep the guilt and fear out of my voice. “It’s…been a while.”

“Yup,” she rocked up on the balls of her feet. “I just wanted to say hi. I’m back now. Dad wanted me to finish up senior year with my friends.”

“Ah,” I nodded my head. “How are you doing?”

She beamed. “Better. I’m better now.”

“Good. Good…”

“Okay,” she said, still smiling wide. “Well I should go. I don’t start up again ‘til Monday but I need to go meet my teachers. See you around.” She walked around the table and hugged me. Out of nowhere. She lingered before she took off into a pile of waiting friends.

I stared blankly after her and I went over the interaction in my head. That couldn’t have been real. The last time I saw her she wanted to kill me. She hated me. And she should.

“Rory,” Hale said like he’d been calling to me for a while. I blinked and looked at him. His face was expectant. “Well?”

“What?”

“Who is she? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

I rubbed my eyes. “Maybe I did.” At least Hale confirmed for me that the girl had been real. “I used to know her.”

“Clearly. Peppy but a little rude. She didn’t even introduce herself to me.”

I groaned. “Jesus…Oh,” I realized that he spoke. “Don’t worry about that. She has more than enough reasons to only see me when she was here.”

“Why’s that?”

I looked up at him as I prepared to let him in on just one of the things that made me a monster. “I got her mom killed.”

His face turned to stone and I though he might get up and leave. He had plenty of reasons to. “You what?”

I swallowed. “When we were fifteen. Her mom died in a car accident, and it was my fault.” He waited for me to say more. I took a moment before I launched into the story.

“Dottie and I were never really friends. But at least she didn’t hate me.”

“Didn’t seem like she hated you just now.”

I looked back at the girl as she walked outside. “She should. I got her in trouble. It wasn’t her fault. She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I was being stupid. The teacher took my phone in class and locked it in her desk. I broke into the room after school to get it. Then I broke into her desk.” It was before I had a good grasp on my powers. I couldn’t make myself go unseen for longer than a minute or two. “Dottie found me. She tried making me leave, but I wouldn’t ‘til I got my phone. But before I could, the teacher caught us. She assumes Dottie was helping me. So she gave us both detention.”

Hale lifted his hand from the table. “That doesn’t explain her mothers death. Or your involvement.”

I took a deep breath. “Story’s not over yet.”

“Sorry.”

“So, we couldn’t drive. Our mothers had to pick us up from school.” Well, Dottie. I teleported. But our mothers had to check us out since we got detention. Part of the punishment, so there was no chance of our parents wouldn’t find out. “And they did. We got in our cars and started going home. We were stopped at a red light just outside of the school. Her car was right next to ours. Then it wasn’t.”

“What happened?” he looked scared for me despite the fact that I was right next to him and okay.

“A car came out of nowhere. Drunk driver, so says the police. He slammed his truck into their car. The car smashed into ours and then rolled. The man died. Her mother died. And she was hurt.”

“Were you?” he said immediately. As if his concern laid with me instead of the dead people.

“Yeah. Just cuts and bruised. Mom and I were fine. Dottie had a few broken bones and her skull cracked open.”

The girl was a demon. So was her mother. Typically it took a lot to kill a demon, but an accident like that could lay out any supernatural creature. As antichrists, Mom and I hardly got a mark on us. The police and the paramedics were baffled. Dottie’s car slammed into us so hard that Mom should have been crushed. But she was okay.

“She left,” I said. “She was in the hospital for a long time. Then she went to a different kind of hospital. She…she didn’t take her mother’s death very well. But who would?”

Hale would know. His mother was dead.

I looked down at my lap as I waited for him to decide I was awful and he was done with me. But he took my hand. “That wasn’t your fault, Rory. That was an accident. Just because she stumbled on you while you were in that room doesn’t mean any of this was your fault.”

I wish that I could believe that.