Mistrust (47 page)

“That’s how I feel now. I want to lock myself away in my safe haven, and never come back out again.”

“That’s normal, Dakota. I see my aunt and how she is. She’s old and she still has days where she struggles. There are days she can barely get out of bed, she’ll call my Mom all weepy and crying, and Mom goes to her. But at the same time, she knows she may have those days, but she manages to work through them and the next day she’s okay.”

“You think one day I’ll be okay? Maybe even normal?”

Reece chuckles and flicks me on the leg. “You’ve never been normal, Dakota. No need to try to be normal now.” His cheeky smile makes me happy.

“I just want to feel like I did before prom,” I whisper.

“Unfortunately I don’t think that’ll ever happen. But it doesn’t mean you can never feel good and strong. It just means you’ll have down days every now and again. You’ll have to learn the signs and prepare for them.”

“Oh God, why does this have to be so difficult?” I sigh.

“Dakota, you have so much support and love all around you. We’ll all help you through it.” He reaffirms his words by squeezing my knee. “I’m going to push you.” He hops off the swing, and starts pushing me. Leaning back, I close my eyes and tilt my head up toward the darkened sky. The wind gliding through my hair makes me feel alive. His warm hands on my back spark a longing inside me. I want to be better, mentally.

We hear a car drive by the park slowly and when I open my eyes, we’re hit with an incredibly bright spot light. “What’s going on?” I question. Suddenly red and blue lights start flashing lights on top of the car. Reece stops pushing me, and heads over toward the car.

I jump off the swing, and go with Reece. “It’s late. What are you two doing here?” A female police officer asks, shining the bright light in our direction.

Both Reece and I hold our hand up over our eyes, shielding us from the powerful spotlight. “We were talking, and swinging.”

She dims the light and gets out of her car. She looks us up and down, then shines her flashlight over toward where we were sitting. “You drinking?” she asks.

“No, Ma’am,” Reece replies. “Just talking.”

“On your way home.” She flicks her head sideways, gets back in her car and turns it around. She follows us slowly all the way until we get home.

When we get inside, Mom and Dad are in the family room. “Did you have a good time?” Dad asks.

It’s then I finally realize what’s happened. It was a small intervention. A way to get me out of the house so I could take a step toward feeling like my old self again. “It was good, until the police showed up,” I answer.

Both Mom and Dad’s faces drop in shock. “Police?”

“Yeah, I think they thought we were drinking, so they made us leave,” Reece chuckles. “It was good while it lasted. Anyway, I’ve got to get home. Walk me out?” he asks me.

“Sure.”

We stand on the porch, holding hands and reliving the police situation. But really it makes me feel better knowing they’re patrolling around here. It’s comforting to know they’re close by. “I don’t think I’ll be able to see you on the weekend. There are lots of things happening at home and with Miles away, I have to help out more.”

“That’s okay. I get it.”

“I can’t believe the summer is almost over. Back to school on Monday.”

“Yeah, seniors too.” I widen my eyes and purse my lips together. “I don’t want to go. I can’t imagine how I’ll react if anything gets mentioned.”

“You’ll have me, Dakota. There’s nothing to be scared of.”

I nod, but I’m really freaking out. I don’t want him to know how I’m feeling, so I bottle it away and keep it a secret.
I’m good at doing that.

Nervously I pace in the family room. Sam’s still getting ready and Mom’s impatiently yelling at her. “Hurry up, Samantha, we’re going to be late.”

I keep pacing, chewing my fingernails trying to distract myself.

“I’ll only be another minute,” Sam hollers back.

Mom goes to the door, and keeps an eye on me. “How are you doing, Dakota?” she asks. But she knows. I’ve been telling her since they found out what happened how petrified I am of going back to school. “You okay?”

I shake my head, and start on my next nail. “I don’t know if I can do this.”

“If you don’t go now, it’ll only get harder to go tomorrow. You have to face it. Your father said the social media group has been taken down and there haven’t been any more pictures.”

“It’s social media, Mom. The moment it’s on the web, that’s it. It’ll never be truly gone.”

“I know. But I’m holding on to the hope not many people from your school saw it. And even if they did, you have nothing to be ashamed of. Don’t let them affect you.”

“What if they’re horrible? Or I end up crying all day?”

“Call me, and I’ll come pick you up right away.” She walks over and rubs her hands up and down my arms. “You’ll be okay. You can do this.”

“Alright,” I reply, though I have a feeling I’m going to be the furthest thing from okay.

Sophie, Reece and I are sitting in the cafeteria eating our lunch. Well, they’re eating while I’m pushing my food around, distracted by my anxiety.

“You okay, doll?” Reece asks as he leans over to give me a peck on the cheek.

“Doll? You’ve never called me that before.”

“You’re cute, and little. And cute.”

“You already said cute.”

“I’ll say it again, you’re cute.” He bumps my shoulder with his and gives me a beautiful smile. Aw, he makes my heart flutter.

Sophie laughs and then chokes. “You two are cute,” she manages to spit out between coughs. “So cute you’re making me choke.”

Lindsey walks past us, and snidely says, “Wow, look who’s sitting at the loser table.” She makes an L with her hand and lifts it to her forehead.

“How old are you, Lindsey? Even the freshmen don’t do that,” I angrily spit at her.

“Whatever, loser.” She happily walks away.

“Skank,” I yell back.

“Calm down, Rocky.” Reece reaches over and gently massages my shoulder. “I thought I was going to have to step in and referee for a second. Feisty.”

“I’m sick of her bullshit. She was one of my best friends, and the minute Levi and I break up, she not only goes straight to him, she becomes a raving bitch.”

“I hate to tell you, Dakota, she’s always been a raving bitch,” Sophie says as she picks up a piece of lettuce and munches away.

“Sophie’s right, Dakota. She always has been,” Reece agrees.

“Ugh,” I moan loudly. How have I never seen this side of her before?

“That’s her, the girl in those pictures,” I hear someone whisper from behind me.

Reece’s spine stiffens, as he turns to look at whoever whispered. “Have you got a problem?” he asks, standing from his seat and extending to his full, six-foot height. “You want to ask a question, come here and ask.” He takes a menacing step forward, his chest puffed out and his hands balled into fists.

The air around us crackles as Reece moves into the space of the guy who whispered. He’s another senior, someone I’ve never had anything to do with in the past.

“Nah man, not saying anything.” He backs away, his hands held chest high, palms out as if conceding to Reece’s anger.

“You gonna beat up everyone who says your little girlfriend is a slut and whore?” Levi appears and chest bumps Reece. It’s a challenge, a dare to see who’s toughest.

Reece’s neck muscles tense, while he stands his ground, and pushes Levi. “You want another broken nose? I have no fucking problem busting it again.” Reece steps forward, and Levi steps back.

“Hey,” I jump up and get between the two before a fight breaks out. I put my palm to Reece’s chest, and give him a pleading gaze. “Please, don’t. He’s not worth it,” I whisper so only he can hear me. Reece’s eyes are glaring at Levi, I can feel the anger rolling off him as he considers my plea. “Please, I need you,” I beg. If he’s suspended or thrown out for fighting, I won’t have my support group around me.

“Listen to the whore. You don’t want me messing up that pretty-boy face of yours.” Levi’s voice changes into a baby tone when he says ‘pretty boy face’; it’s a taunt to make Reece lose it so he throws the first punch.

And this pisses me right off.

I swiftly turn on my heel, and slap him so hard his head jerks to the side. “You’re a fucking pig!” I yell.

Levi stands stock still, his hand rubbing his cheek and his mouth wide open. He wasn’t expecting that from me,
nor was I.
He straightens his shoulders, arches a brow and smirks at me.

Levi moves closer, threateningly, toward me, and Reece grabs my arm and pushes me behind him, as he takes my place so they’re toe to toe. “You’ll get your own, whore,” he spits at me from around Reece.

“Fuck off, before I lay you out on your ass,” Reece says through a clenched jaw. His arm is behind him, smashing me to his body protectively.

“Watch your back, Hendricks,” Levi warns Reece.

“Bring it,” Reece quickly replies, his chest puffed out.

Levi backs away, taking a few steps backwards while he continues to watch us. When he’s halfway across the cafeteria he yells, “Me and you, Hendricks. Me and you.” Pointing a finger at Reece.

Reece’s protective stance doesn’t let up. He keeps a watchful eye on Levi even as his arm is wrapped around me, shielding me from any danger.

“Reece,” I whisper trying to step away from him. But his arm tightens and he doesn’t let me move. “Reece.”

His shoulders are visibly shaking from the effort it’s taking to control his anger, and the muscles in his arms are flexed, making the sleeve of his t-shirt cling to his arms. “You okay?” he asks as he turns to cup my face, making sure I’m not hurt or frightened.

“I’m okay,” I answer staring into his wide brown eyes.

He grabs my hand and almost drags me over to our seats. Sophie’s smiling at us, and she looks like she’s got a secret she’s busting to tell us. “You alright, Sophie?” Reece asks.

“I am. Wanna know what I heard?”

“What?” I ask, pushing my food away because now I’ve lost the little interest I did have. I fold my arms in front of me, waiting for Sophie to speak. “Well?”

“Lindsey was standing close to me, and when Levi walked away, I heard her say, ‘it’s so cute how Reece is so protective of Dakota.’ He told her to shut up and stop being a bitch. Then he walked away. She ran behind him saying how sorry she was.”

“I’ve come to the conclusion that Lindsey is not the smartest of people,” Reece says joining his hands and steepling his fingers to tap on his lips. “Not smart at all.”

“She’s still a nasty piece of work,” Sophie pipes up and says. “Real nasty.”

The bell sounds for the end of lunch and we all head to the last few classes of the day.

Mrs. Walker’s English class is the last of the day. As I head there, Aaron and Jordan cross paths with me in the hallway. I decide to be the bigger person here and say hello to Jordan. “Hi,” I say as I pass her. She looks me up and down, and she ignores me. “I’m well, thanks,” I sarcastically add while she’s beside me.

“I didn’t ask,” she snaps bitchily.

“I was talking to someone who actually has a heart, clearly that isn’t you.” I flip my hair and walk away from her. I wouldn’t normally be horrible like this, but she deserves it.

I head into Mrs. Walker’s class, and Reece is sitting at the back, with a spare seat beside him. He smiles at me the moment he sees me, and he winks.

And my heart jumps.