His Deadly Girl

13. Blake's reputation and trouble

“Pew pew, pew pew, what are you doing?” Blake asked, walking towards me.

I laughed at him, “Blake, stop that already,”

He grinned, “Oh come on, not after Stella learnt to say that,”

“I have to admit, that was epic. I think I don’t have to worry about Jackie goo goo killing me now,” I told him, through my bubbling laughter.

After Stella shot her with the toy gun, Jackie goo goo had the decency to be embarrassed. She let out a frustrated scream, displayed some usual antics (which only involved more screaming and making goo goo eyes at Alex) and then left the house.

After that, Stella emerged as the star of the show, of course. I wanted to hold her, hug her and kiss her so badly, but…like I said; I couldn’t afford to get too attached now.

So, I quietly left the table and now I was here, in the backyard, thinking about my next course of action and of how I could really say goodbye to these guys.

But, Blake had to somehow come here and just make it more difficult for me.

“Blake,” I started seriously, “I was not joking when I said that we can’t be friends.”

Blake gasped dramatically, sitting beside me on the bench, “No one has ever rejected our friendship.”

I smiled sadly, “I am sure no one has, because you guys are amazing. Having you all as friends would be a blessing for anyone. I mean, look at what you all have done for me, even when you don’t know me properly. So, I can’t even imagine what you do for someone who really matters.”

“Stop right there,” Blake cut me off, “first of all, you really matter, Kris. In fact, every single person with a good nature matters and secondly, we don’t need to know your background to determine your character. We know a great person, when we meet one.”

My heart swelled with warmth at his words. Who knew I would be having this conversation with Blake, out of all people?

“Boy, you got some big words,” I teased him.

Blake winced, “Oh s**t. This should remain between you and me. I have a reputation to maintain.”

“You got it, captain,” I patted his shoulder.

“So, what now?” he asked, “let’s play pew pew.”

“Oh my God, Blake!” I snorted, “Stop it or else I will die of laughter stroke.”

“Imagine having that written your gravestone. Wouldn’t that be so cool?” he beamed, “by the way, cool reminds me, you are coming with us to the ice rink right?”

That sobered me up and I blew out a breath, “I don’t think so.”

“What?” he whined, “You still hung up on the whole ‘friends’ thing? Well, I will give you an advice. Don’t even try. You are not getting rid of us now.”

I smiled, “No, it’s not that. I have a headache,” I lied, “I don’t think ice skating is a very good idea for me.”

The truth was, I was planning to leave and find some new place to stay after they left. I knew I couldn’t avoid them at school, but something was better than nothing.

***

“Are you sure you don’t want us to stay?” Hailey asked unsurely.

“Yes, we can totally stay back and do something indoors,” Cameron supplied.

I waved my hands at them, “Go! I am serious. I will only sleep all day. It will be nothing but a borefest in here.”

Thank God Alex was not here otherwise he would have seen right through my lie. He had apparently gone to drop his brother for some extra classes at school and would come to the rink directly from there.

Sometimes, I wondered if his brother was imaginary. I mean, I had never even had a glimpse of him. I had no idea of how old he was. But, I didn’t want to ask and pry, so, I let it go.

“I doubt that you are the one to sit quietly, even with a headache,” Ashton said skeptically.

Wow! Alex was not here, but, Ashton was enough to fulfill his role.

Before I could reply, Millie smacked Ashton on the back.

“Ow!” he jumped, “what did I do?”

Millie gave him that smile, the one which I liked to call ‘pissed off’ smile, “Stop making Kris uncomfortable.”

Ashton gave me a sheepish smile, “I am sorry, I was just kidding,” he said sincerely.

Oh man! The level of my guilt was now rising dangerously.

“It’s okay, I don’t mind. Now, guys, leave already!” I said cheerfully, ushering them outside the front door.

Stella raised her tiny hands and waved them at me in the motion of ‘bye’. I let out an ‘aw’ and kissed her one last time.

“If you need anything, just dial any one of us,” Julia turned around.

“Yep, sure,” I quipped and took a deep breath, after closing the door.

I looked around the empty house, feeling a lump forming in my throat. It had only been one frickin’ day with these guys and I was already feeling as if there was a hole in my chest without them.

That’s why it would be better to cut off all ties now.

I composed myself and took a moment to think. Maybe, I could find some other hostel or a hotel as a temporary living solution.

My phone’s ringing interrupted my thoughts. I frowned at the unknown number and accepted the call.

“Miss me, sweetheart?” came the voice from the other end.

All breath was knocked out of me. “I-Isaac?” I stuttered weakly.

Isaac laughed maliciously on the line, sending chills down my spine, “You got that right. Did you really think that you would get rid of me that easily? Good thing though that I got a chance to meet the people who care about you.”

He was surely talking about Alex and Julia, from when they kicked his ass.

“Listen, Isaac-”

“No, you listen to me. Isn’t that baby so cute?”

This time my heart stopped beating for a second. I was glad that Isaac was not in front of me to see me breaking like this.

“What baby?” I asked in a steady voice.

“Oh, wait, do you need a reminder? No problem. Check the picture I just sent you,” he sneered.

My fingers shook as I clicked open the media file on my phone. There she was: Stella, in Hailey’s arms. And, everyone else was in the photo too, completely oblivious to everything. The picture looked like it was taken on the ice rink.

My breath hitched in my throat. This is exactly what I was afraid of. This was the consequence of associating with someone like me.

“Leave them alone. This is between you and me,” I said firmly over the phone, even though I knew what his answer would be.

“If you want that, then, you will have to come to meet me,” he said with another malicious chuckle.

I closed my eyes, “When and where?” I asked without missing a beat.

“Right now, at this ice rink,” he replied and hung up.

***

I didn’t waste any time after that. After pulling on Hailey’s hoodie to conceal my face, I left for the ice rink. There was no way; I was letting Isaac get to them. I just had to make sure that none of them see or recognize me.

I glanced around the place, with my heart on my sleeve, looking for Isaac. I was currently hiding behind a wall, which led to the washrooms.

I had seen all of my friends earlier…well, I mean, not-so-friends (it was better to convince myself about this sooner).

Alex was standing on the sidelines, holding Stella. Blake was showing off his skills on the rink, while Dylan was holding onto the railing, his eyes closed in fear. Julia was trying to get him to release the railing and skate. Ashton was patiently and sweetly teaching Millie, how to skate, while never letting go of her hand. Hailey was recording the whole scene.

And, here I was, thinking, how the hell did I even meet these people? They didn’t deserve someone like me to jeopardize their lives.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. It was time to put an end to this now.

“I am here,” I texted Isaac.

His reply came almost instantly: “Yes, I see you.”

I swallowed and looked up, to find him standing on the far left of the ice rink. After taking, many deep breaths, I pulled the cap of my hoodie, to hide my face even further and made my way towards him.

But, before I had taken two steps, I bumped into a hard chest. I looked up to see electric blue eyes, staring down at me.

“What do you think you are doing?” he asked, balancing Stella properly in his arms.

I peeked behind him and my eyes widened when I saw Isaac aiming a gun at us.