Always

Chapter 78

Harry’s hand gripped mine firmly as we darted through the darkness, dodging fleeing partiers and trees alike as we tried to maneuver through the backyards.  The flashing lights behind us grew dimmer and dimmer as we ran, Harry constantly looking over his shoulder as he pulled me along to make sure I was keeping up.  He stopped suddenly and I crashed into his back before regaining my balance and looking up at him to see his head swiveling frantically back in forth.

A majority of the people were running to the right, a pack mentality taking over as no one dared diverge from the rest of the crew.  He glanced to the left, where almost no one had gone, and pulled me in that direction, deciding to break away from everyone else. 

I was glad he had taken charge, because I probably would have gone with the group, which was surely the wrong decision.  Cops were going to follow the large group, not the two scampering off into the darkness, if they even saw us at all. 

The yards were dark as we jogged through silently and I managed to stay on my feet despite tripping a few times over uneven ground.  So much had just happened that I was having a difficult time focusing on keeping up with Harry, not falling, and trying to process that I had just been an actual fist fight.  The thought of the fight seemed to remind me of the throbbing wound on my cheek, which was surely swelling now from when Katie had punched me. 

I couldn’t imagine what her face felt like if mine hurt this bad from just one blow- I had landed a lot more than she had, and they had been pretty solid hits at that.  As awful as it was, I couldn’t help but feel proud of myself for taking action and holding my own against that her.  Anger flooded through me again as the image of her trying to force herself on Harry flashed in front of my eyes again, distracting me from my focus and causing me to trip on the grass.

Harry caught me just before I hit the ground and pulled me back up, stopping and turning to me instead of making us carry on in the dark.  I guess he figured we’d gone far enough to be safe and not have to run anymore.  He squinted at me in the darkness, green eyes narrowing as he examined my face.  His thumb rose gingerly to run across my cheek, making me wince when he came into contact with where she’d hit me.

“We should get ice on that,” he said quietly, whispering in the darkness.  A surge of anger toward Harry flared up, surprising me.  I hadn’t realized until now, but I was upset with him, too, for agreeing to go off with her in the first place.  I stepped out of his reach and kept walking in the darkness, away from him. 

“Hey,” he said, sounding confused as he rushed after me and put his body in front of me, forcing me to stop walking.  “What’s wrong?”

“Seriously, Harry?” I huffed, forcing my voice to remain a low whisper, the threat of cops still fresh in my mind.  He looked confused as what little lighting there was cast sharp shadows across his face.

“Are you mad?” he asked in bewilderment.  I stared at him, not saying anything but clearly letting him know he was right.  “Why are you mad?” he restated, frowning down at me.

“Why did you go off with her?” I demanded.  Confusion flashed across his face, clearly not realizing that that was something that would upset me until right now.

“She said she had to talk to me,” he said simply, eyes flitting back and forth between my own. 

“About what?” I crossed my arms over my chest, trying to look tough but really just needing the comfort.  I was angry, but I was also upset.  Even though he hadn’t done anything, the image of him with another girl was haunting me and tearing away at my insides. 

“She said she wanted to apologize,” he admitted.  “For what happened, you know?”

I stared at him skeptically.  “I don’t think that’s what she had in mind.”