The Teenage Guide To Loneliness [Book 2 in the Teenage Guide Series]

Chapter 26: All Good Things

In the aftermath of tragedy, you are left with a million pieces of a reality you thought you knew. You try to pick each piece up, and try to make it whole again, but the pieces might not fit anymore. For Kiran Jones, one piece would always belong to Carter. Even if she didn't fit in a particular moment, he would never think of giving up.

When he was released from the hospital, his doctor had recommended that he admit himself to a rehabilitation centre. It was one of those centres that did allow visitors on certain weekends, but he didn't want Carter seeing him in such a state. Though it was voluntary, he knew it was necessary, or he would sink further and further down the dark rabbit hole.

Five days had passed since he had left the hospital, and he was supposed to let the school know that he would be gone for a month. Unfortunately that involved more than just leaving a message on the school's number. He had to clear out his locker and see the guidance councillor for a schedule of how he would catch up once he returned. He couldn't fail the whole semester. He couldn't repeat the year. Whatever it took to pass, he'd make sure to do it.

But as he stepped through the front doors of Newton High, he was hit in the face with a wave of panic, depression, anxiety, fear, anger, of everything that he had numbed out for the last few months. His chest felt tight, like the hand of a stranger was squeezing it, daring him to breathe. Thankfully it was during classes, so there wasn't anyone roaming the halls. There wasn't anyone to see him like this.

He found a railing, placed his hands on it, and closed his eyes. He tried to picture Carter's face. Her eyes. Her smile. He took several deep breaths, and slowly the tightness began to let itself go.

"Kiran! You're here!" Was she really there, or had he been thinking of her so vividly that he could hear her voice clearly in his head? Though before he could decide on his own, she was hugging him. "I saw you walking in from the window of my class. Are you back for good?"

"I'll be back in a month."

"A month? Why? Where are you going?"

"Just... away. Staying with some family up north," he lied. He didn't like lying to her, but he had decided he wasn't going to tell her about rehab. "I need to clear my head, so my parents thought it might help."

The grip she had around him tightened. "Oh... I'm... I'm really gonna miss you."

Were her words broken? Did she really sound like she was about to start crying? He put his arms around her and pulled her even closer, so that if she did cry, she could cry on his shoulder. "Carter, you know I love you, right?"

"Yeah, I know. I love you too." It was the first time she had ever said it to him, directly, no faltering or guessing. She had spoken the words, and even if the effect of it was only for a moment, it lifted him. When he moved back, she kissed him, and he become lost in that kiss. He knew that if they stopped kissing, he would feel like a part of his soul would rip apart.

***

Tala's mother had always told her that the most important thing a woman can carry is her confidence. But what happens when that confidence is tearing itself apart? How had she gone from the proud, determined, overachieving person she was lost year, to this sad excuse of a nobody? Yesterday she had even received a B-minus on an English paper. B-minus. It may as well have been an F, because that's what she felt like. A pathetic failure.

The guidance counsellor, a serious lady who wore nothing but pant suits and always had her brown hair in a tight ponytail, was glancing over the nightmarish B-minus paper. "Well, Miss Ansari I'm afraid I have some slightly bad news; it looks like your GPA has slipped to second in the class. You need an A-plus on your next four assignments or the other student will remain first."