Foolin'

Part 16

All day and into the evening, Eddie had been trying to figure out what made Kat hightail it away from school the moment her eyes met his. He tried to mindlessly watch TV, but his focus kept straying. He couldn't stop fiddling with his rings, his bouncing leg could never stay still. He ended up pacing around his trailer. Wayne made sure to warn him not to wear a path in his living room as he left for work.

The worst that could happen if he just showed up at her front door was she would slam it in his face. Did he have enough time to make her a mixed tape? At this point he didn't even know where to begin with that. Was she okay? Was she crying? Did she think he hated her? Did she think he was running away from her? So many thoughts were racing through his mind.

He pulled back on the cigarette he was smoking as he paced. "I could just go to her house. Just tell her I wanna see if she's okay. I could just drive by her house? No. Then I'm a stalker. Would I be a stalker if I went to her bedroom window? I think I could make it up there... No, that's just weird as shit. Fuck!" He said to himself as he put his head in the hand opposite the one holding his cigarette. Plopping down on the couch again, he let out a heavy sigh. He drummed his fingers on his restless leg, not able to contain an ounce of his energy. Taking one last deep pull from his cigarette and putting it out, he got on his feet and grabbed his keys. "Fuck it, I'm just gonna go."

He flung open the door and almost collided with Kat who was standing there with her fist poised to start knocking. Catching him off guard, he let out a little yelp.

"Uh, sorry? Um, is this a bad time? I can–" Kat's words were cut off as one arm wrapped around her waist, while he placed his other hand on the back of her head, pulling her close to him. Following suit, she wrapped her arms around his waist and nuzzled her head into his neck. The still lingering smell of his last cigarette clung to him as Kat took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry, Kat. I never wanted...They shouldn't attack you, because of me. I don't know why...I just– I'm so sorry," he whispered to her, stroking her hair. Having her cling to him made his heart break for her. It took all his strength to keep his composure.

Kat shook her head as she pulled back a little, so she could look up at him. "No, it's not your fault. It's not your fault, I'm more of a freak than you are," she softly laughed.

"Nope. That is impossible."

She shook her head again. "Nothing is impossible, Eddie. You don't– You weren't..." Kat didn't even know where to begin. Her bottom lip began to quiver. Tears started pooling in her eyes, threatening to fall down her cheeks. "I just...I had a really bad day," she said, her voice breaking as she looked up at him with her glassy, tear-laced eyes. He pulled her close to him again. Their embrace lasted only for a brief moment, before he grabbed her hand to bring her inside. She wiped the few escaped tears with the sleeve of her other arm.

They plopped down on the couch. Kat's eyes darted around the room as if she was searching for the words on where to even begin, chewing on the inside of her lip as she did so in an attempt to collect herself. "So, after everything at school... My aunt and I got into a pretty bad fight," she began.

"About?"

Guilt and shame took over Kat's face. "You..." She said timidly.

Eddie let out a soft chortle. "Sweetheart, you live on Loch Nora. We come from two different worlds. I'd be more surprised if your aunt wasn't, at least, skeptical about me."

"No, you don't understand. That's not... That's not even the worst part about the fight. It was... I don't know if you noticed, but I... I'm different. I'm not like other people. I can... When I get upset things happen and I– I can't control it. I mean it when I say I am a freak."