Prepsworth Academy

Chapter 26 - "There's something you need to see."

Elle

I sat in the familiar room, perched on a stool, a Jane Austen novel nestled in my lap.

"Yes, of course we can help. Our poor daughter Adelaide has the same thing." I tuned out of the conversation and tried to focus on my book, but I couldn't help peeking up at the boy. I rarely noticed boys, at least, not in the way some of my classmates did. But this one seemed interesting. Dark and messy hair with sapphire blue eyes and a mischievous smile. He seemed like the kind of person that had a story behind him, something filled with mystery and intrigue.I tried to remember his name but couldn't. To my immense embarrassment the boy looked up, and, to my immense annoyance, I blushed when he smiled at me. I glared at him and tried to focus on the pages of my book but the words kept blurring together.

"Mr Adams, Elle, why don't you go help yourselves to some freshly made brownies in the kitchen." My dad smiled and ushered us off. I scowled, sliding off the stool and walking ahead of him. I had no inclination to spend the afternoon with a boy who,

1. Didn't want to spend time with me either,

2. made me blush and

3. Was clearly just incredibly annoying.

I didn't let myself consider the other reason why I didn't want to spend time with him. Because, above all else, who knew how broken I'd be. Because what had happened to his sister had happened to mine. Because what happened to Adelaide was a secret and he had violated that, just by being there. Just by knowing, and because of that, maybe he knew that one day that could happen to me. Dylan Adams – he knew the truth and I hated him fiercely for it. I was civil, polite but inwardly screaming. The odd thing was, he felt as I did. So we sat there, in the big, modern kitchen of my father's clinic, sitting on opposite stools, needing no words. Our eyes met and that was all we needed t fell the others' pain. Then we closed up and turned away.

It was five months after the accident. That was what my parents called it; The Accident. It was ironic when it was anything but. I was just twelve, halfway through Year Six but I had the world resting on my shoulders. Maybe that's why I was oddly drawn to him. We had both known sorrow, had loved someone broken. It had changed us, changed our lives and we had learnt to cope in different ways. We had both loved something broken and, in return had become as such. We had watched the small fissures creep up on us, turning into deep cracks until we were vulnerable and weak, fractured and desperately trying to hide our broken bodies, shielding ourselves. It was useless. Eventually you break and the more you fight it the more you shatter.

I felt a tugging at my arms and opened my eyes before inhaling, craving fresh air. Instead, all I got was a lung full of water. I panicked trying to inhale air but my lungs filled quicker. I twisted and turned, trying to find which way was up and which was down, trying to break free from an iron-clad grip. Darkness swirled around me, my surroundings masked through murky water and I panicked further, breathing in lungful after lungful of salty water that did nothing to stop the pain in my throat. Suddenly I was being pulled somewhere. Too tired to fight it I let my body go limp, no longer gasping for air. Until my head broke the surface of the water.

The indoor pool was ominously dark and oddly silent yet comforting and serene. The soft darkness and slight chill seemed to compel you to stay there forever and a blanket of heavy silence had settled over darkness. The cavernous room seemed almost magical, the roof carved out from rock and condensation having settled over everything. I was shaking uncontrollably, like you do when you've woken up from a horrible nightmare. Rocking back and forth, with my knees tucked up to my chin, still in my wet clothes, I felt small and vulnerable.

"What is it sweetie, what happened?" I heard a soft voice asking me. I ignored it and hugged my knees tighter.

"Elle?' asked a melodic voice, the sound of it like music dancing through the room. I looked up to see Amy holding Rose's diary and my brow crinkled in confusion

"Elle?" Amy said again, her face grim and set with purpose.

"There's something you need to see."

Emma

I was upset, shaking in my chair, tears staining my face. How could I have been so stupid as to let this happen?. My whole body ached as I stretched out. Everything had gone so horribly wrong. My mind flashed through pictures of Harry, his smile and I could almost swear I heard his light-hearted laugh. He was always so happy, always smiling. I just wished that I could've held his hand, just once or danced with him. Dreams of the future, now impossible ran through my mind. Tears were now freely streaming down my face. I stuffed up – I did like Harry but I just didn't know it. I took it for granted. A kind of bitter shock ran through me and I realised the irony in the situation. I wouldn't take him for granted any more. But I would give anything just to see his face one more time. So I held on tight to my impossible dreams of the future and closed my eyes.

Lukas

I wanted to tell Rose my plan, sure that she would be impressed. I knew that it was childish, and I was desperately hoping to gain her favour, but I needed to, and no other option came to my mind. We hadn't officially gotten back together but I knew she would come back to me – as soon as I came crawling back to her. I had plenty of practice with getting back into Rose's good graces, and I knew I could wait for Rose to come crawling back to me, but the plan solved all of my problems. It was genius, and savage and cruel all at once. In other worse, it was perfect. I broke apart from her but always came back. She did the same. For some reason, there was a connection between us. Like to broken pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, that fit with no other piece. Sure, it messes up the whole puzzle but when they stand together amidst the scattered pieces, something feels right. You can try to fit them with every other piece but they don't fit, no matter how hard you force it. That was the thing about Rose and I's love, sure we drove each other crazy but we work together, and understand each other and each other's pain. Yeah it was warped and twisted but, so were we. And what we'd both been through – that was more than enough to tie us together.