eccedentesiast (n.)
someone who hides pain behind a smile
* * *
"SO, what'd you want to talk about? Or is this an excuse to get me alone?" I laughed, trying to ease the dark grey cloud of tension lingering above us.
"Cut the shit, Charlotte." He crossed his arms and hopped up onto a desk. I sank farther in my seat, feeling like a disobedient student about to receive a scolding. "Why'd you run away?"
"I had class?"
He looked down at me, an inferno blazing in his usually placid eyes. "The real reason."
"I was scared, okay? Scared that you'd get mad at me. Scared of hurting your feelings and disappointing you. Scared of ruining this." I motioned between us. "I didn't want you to get mad at me."
"Well, I am mad. How do you think I felt when my girlfriend dropped a massive bomb and fucking ditched me?"
I winced. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you."
"It's kinda late for that," he scoffed bitterly.
"What do you want me to do? Travel back in time and fix it? Lemme go get my time machine... Oh, wait, I don't have one!"
His jaw clenched like he was holding back a sarcastic retort. "No shit, Sherlock... I want you to explain everything. Start with why you aren't going to Revere with me."
"I dunno... I guess I sorta, kinda, maybe don't want to," I squeaked.
"What about everything we've talked about? Everything we've planned? Why didn't you say something?"
I shrugged. "I dunno. A large part of me thought I wouldn't get in, so why start a fight over something that might not happen?"
"I don't believe that excuse for one second." He squeezed his eyes shut and sighed. "Does it have anything to do with me? Did I do something to scare you off?"
"No, definitely not," I said quickly.
He gave me a sharp look.
"It's just... Revere's your dream, not mine. Yeah, it's a great school, but it's not the best fit for me. I'm sorry for hurting your feelings, but the journalism programs at Copley and SGSU are better—way better. And I'd like nothing more than staying close to you, but I also want to consider my dreams. Revere won't open the doors to them. I need to go somewhere that will... Does that make sense?"
He nodded and forced a smile, looking pained to do so. "Mhmm. I wish you coulda led with that in Environmental."
I bit my lip, the metallic taste of blood seeping onto my tongue. "So... You're not mad?"
His slight grin faded into impassivity. "No, I'm still mad."
"What? What could you possibly be mad about?"
"Seriously, Charlotte?"
"Yes, seriously. Why would I ask if I knew the answer? What else did I do to piss you off?"
YOU ARE READING
Because of Haven Beach
Teen Fiction"The moon's really beautiful, if you think about it," I blurted. "Yeah?" he asked, mild amusement and curiosity mingling in his voice. "Yeah," I confirmed. "It's just- there's something about the moon that's ethereal. I don't really know how to desc...
