50 Things I Hate About You

I Hate That Your Never to Blame

I had no desire to drag myself out of bed and to school Monday morning. If the eyesore that was the black eye and bruised bridge of my nose wasn't enough, I knew that Ty would no doubt have rumors of his own-and he'd do anything to make him look like the bigger person. I could picture it now, him blaming Onyx in some way, pinning my injuries and his own on my obnoxious neighbor.

It wasn't until I'd trudged down the stairs and into the dining room that I livened up a little. Mom was standing beside the fridge, scrolling through her phone with one hand and shoving the reminisce of an Everything bagel into her mouth, a small dot of cream cheese just under her bottom lip. Hearing my dramatic, exhausted sigh, she turned her phone off and tucked it into her back pocket.

"How's the eye doing?"

"Meh." I made a gesture with my hand. "My nose hurts more. Especially when I sneeze."

She deflated a little and closed the distance, tucking my hair behind my ear with a sad look. "I told you I'd give the school a call if you wanted to stay home today."

"Mom, I'm not going to let a boy ruin my perfect attendance."

"Honey, you can hardly see."

"Maybe not, but that means my hearing is heightened."

She nodded slowly and squeezed my shoulder, "I spoke with Olivia this morning and we both think it'd be best if Onyx drove you to school until you can open your eye again."

"Mom!" I groaned.

"Honey, stop being dramatic." she waved her hand between us. "He's a good boy."

Pre-Friday night I would have disagreed, but I couldn't find any truly valid reason to hate Onyx right now. Or maybe I was just too tired and lacked the energy to do so.

"I love you. Have a good day."

I lifted my hand up in a wave as I headed for the door, "Love you too."

The minute I stepped outside, I caught sight of Onyx leaning into the passenger side door of his Mustang, eyes on my kitchen window. Within seconds of my front door shutting, his eyes flickered to me and he noticeably winced. It wasn't until I'd approached that he decided to invade my personal space and touch his knuckle to the bruised and swollen bridge of my nose.

"It looks worse today than it did Friday night."

"That's kind of how injuries work, Nyx." I breathed, "Can we please just go?"

He nodded and opened the door for me, stepping aside so I didn't have to duck under his arm to climb in. I gave him a thumbs up in gratitude and he shut the door in my face, walking around to get in himself.

I immediately frowned as I breathed in, wincing just the slightest as my nose started throbbing. I had smelt it upon getting in, but with all doors shut I was sure it wasn't just a figment of my imagination. "It smells like cinnamon in here."

It surely beat stale cigarette smoke.

"Yeah, that'd be my air fresheners." He reached in back and tossed a handful of unopened packs on to my lap. "You were always complaining about the car smelling like smoke, and it got me thinking about Mom. I know she hates the smell too and has probably been miserable every time I drive her but didn't want to say anything."

"Glad I could help." I said with a grin, dangling one of the pine tree cutouts in front of me. "It really does smell great in here, Onyx. I can't even smell the nasty cigarettes in the cup holder."