(Complete)
After a terrible encounter at a party, one year later, Hailey Fonte is ready to return to her hometown. With everyone against her because of last year's events and horrible rumors, Hailey must overcome many hurdles, which includes coming...
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I stand outside the cafeteria doors, waiting for Daniel. My entire weekend was used to think of what I am going to say at this exact moment—Monday, the day Daniel gets back. Jana even pitched in a few lines. Tell him that you love how dangerous he is, but he can't fight Harrison without warning you first, she said. Obviously, I am not going to say that.
First, I need to know why. Why did you do it after I asked you not to?
Then I'm going to ask him if it was worth it. What punching Harrison really worth getting suspended over?
Finally, I want to know Harrison's reaction. Did he fight back? What did he say?
I cannot think about it too hard, or I might just change my mind for the thousandth time. Waiting here isn't helping either, it is giving me too much time to regret confronting him in the first place and before I know it, I'll be running back to the table before Daniel can tell that I was waiting for him.
I cross my arms as the last wave of students rush through the doors. Daniel is usually one of the last people in the cafeteria, so it could happen any second now. I'll catch a glimpse of him turning the corner, he'll make eye contact with me, then I'll pummel him with questions in a volume much louder than normal—just how I had planned.
A minute goes by without Daniel, and I begin to worry. Then a second, then a third. During the fourth, I begin to pace in the hallway, looking like I am waiting for news if my husband has made it through his surgery. When five minutes pass, I realize where he is, so I grab my backpack and head for the track.
It is a rainy day, hardly sprinkling now, but puddles from earlier litter the pavement. Grey clouds drift above me, letting past no sunlight whatsoever, and I spot Daniel in the distance, rummaging through his track bag. Hurrying over to him, I walk past the chain-linked gate, catching his attention. When he sees me, he stands up straight, knowing what is coming.
"What the hell, Daniel," I shout as I finally reach him. "I told you not to—"
Then, out of nowhere, he kisses me.
No warning. Completely surprising me. He brings his lips down to mine and kisses me like he has the right to. Daniel got a search warrant for my lips, causing me to panic, not giving me enough time to flush the evidence.
Overwhelmed by the fact that Daniel is physically touching me in such a way, and by the fact that I am kissing someone in general, my body struggles to react. The last time someone kissed me, I began to cry, and Mr. Russ never took my crying well. Am I going to now—am I going to cry? Am I going to feel violated and anxious? It's been too long, I can hardly remember how to react. How does a damaged seventeen-year-old girl react in such a fragile situation?
