Untouchable

Chapter 7: Concession

Chapter Seven: Concession

In my hurry I didn't notice anyone following me.

Then I felt a little hand, cool against my neck, a hand like a child's. I opened my eyes to find Ali's petite face hovering inches from mine. There were crinkles around her eyes, like she was trying to see not just what was in front of her, but beyond.

She squatted at my feet, balancing on the balls of her feet like a dancer ready to spring. I scrunched my eyes closed again. I was an idiot. I ran from the cafeteria. I couldn't handle a simple conversation about weekend plans and I ran! If I wasn't so humiliated, I would have been fuming at myself.

Maybe if I ignored her she would disappear. Maybe if I pretended she wasn't there she would leave me alone to my misery. I had no right to drag her along with me. To soil her innocence with my mistakes.

"Cate?" Her voice was hesitant, laced with concern. "Please talk to me."

I let my eyes open. She took that as an invitation and unceremoniously plopped down on the ground, still in front of me, like we were going to hold hands and pour out our hearts. Think again.

It would be better for her if we weren't friends.

"Look Ali. You're great and all, but you don't want to be friends with me. You should just go." I looked up at the grapefruit tree in the courtyard. It would be better for her. I couldn't convince myself it would be better for me.

At once I had two tiny hands on my face, forcing me to look at her. Her eyes were narrowed, and jaw set. The fairy godmother had been replaced by a vicious amazon warrior.

"Caterina Oliver. Were you just trying to get rid of me?" Her hands still held my face firmly, refusing to let me evade her question.

Holy crap. She was scary.

I didn't know what to say. I didn't expect her to not listen. I shrugged.

"Well hear me right now. I am you friend. You are stuck with me." With that she let go of my face, and leaned back into the grass on her elbows. The scary warrior had left, and was replaced by the more familiar mischievousness pixie.

She returned to her earlier question, the one I had failed to evade. "Talk."

I started pulling the grass out of the ground and shredding it like birthday confetti. Glancing up through my eye lashes, I saw that she sat still, with the patience of a saint.

I sighed. "I have a past."

She rolled her eyes. "And it's not pretty—"

"—Welcome to the human race."

"There was a guy. He used me." Ugh. Poor baby. I need to buck up and grow a pair.

I tried to evade them, but the memories were there. I had tried to lock them away, but for some damn reason they were persistent—always present behind the wall I failed to build. The holes and chinks were many, and the memory misted over me, like a smoke, enveloping my present.

"Caterina!" I turned in the dilapidated hallway of LakebayHigh School to find my oldest friend skipping towards me.

I smiled at her, I couldn't help it. "Bree! What are you doing?"

She caught up to me, and wrapped her arm though mine. "I'm frolicking! What do you think I'm doing?"

I giggled. Bree was the quintessential girly-girl. She always had been. When we were five, she used to drag me into her basement and dress me up in all of her sisters old dance costumes and Halloween costumes. Then in all of our sequined glory she would proceed to drag me out to the playhouse for a tea party, set up by her mom and grandma. We would eat little peanut butter sandwiches cut out like stars, vanilla wafer cookies, and drink cold mint tea out of flower shaped cups.