Chapter two:The Warning
976 Words
Tasha told me everything on a Friday afternoon.
We had just left school, and I could tell from her face that something was wrong.
“What happened?” I asked.
“Nothing.”
“You’re making that face.”
“What face?”
“The face you make when you’re about to tell me something I won’t like.”
She sighed.
“It’s about Daniel.”
My stomach tightened.
“What about him?”
She stopped walking.
“My brother doesn’t want you getting close to him.”
I frowned.
“Why?”
“He thinks it’s a bad idea.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“I know.”
“Then tell me the actual reason.”
Tasha looked at me.
“Daniel has been through a lot.”
I waited.
“His parents separated a few years ago. His dad lives in another city. He moved schools because things got difficult at his old one.”
“So?”
“So he’s not exactly in the best place emotionally.”
I didn’t like the way she said it.
“What does that have to do with me?”
“My brother thinks Daniel gets too attached to people.”
I crossed my arms.
“That’s not a crime.”
“I know.”
“And he’s not a bad person.”
“I didn’t say he was.”
“Then why are you warning me?”
“Because I don’t want you getting hurt.”
I looked away.
“I’m not dating him.”
“Not yet.”
I rolled my eyes.
“Tasha.”
“I’m serious.”
“So am I.”
She sighed.
“Just be careful.”
I told myself I would.
Actually, I tried.
The next week, I started keeping my distance from Daniel.
I stopped waiting for him after class.
I stopped staying behind to work on assignments with him.
When he talked to me, I answered, but I didn’t stay around to continue the conversation.
At first, he didn’t say anything.
Then he noticed.
One afternoon, he caught up with me outside the school gate.
“Did I do something?”
I stopped.
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Because you’ve been avoiding me.”
“I’ve just been busy.”
“With what?”
“School.”
He stared at me.
“You’ve always been busy with school.”
I didn’t know what to say.
He looked hurt.
“Did someone tell you something?”
“No.”
“Amara.”
I looked at him.
“I just think we should focus on school.”
He nodded slowly.
“Okay.”
His voice sounded different.
“Sure.”
Then he walked away.
I watched him disappear into the crowd.
I hated how bad I felt.
That night, I couldn’t concentrate.
I opened my mathematics book and stared at the same question for ten minutes.
My phone was beside me.
I kept checking it.
Nothing.
I told myself I was being ridiculous.
I didn’t need him to text me.
I didn’t need to know whether he was okay.
I didn’t need anything.
Then my phone buzzed.
It was Tasha.
Are you okay?
I typed:
Yes.
She replied almost immediately.
You’re lying.
I didn’t answer.
The next morning, Daniel didn’t sit beside me.
He chose a seat across the classroom.
For some reason, seeing the empty chair beside me made me feel worse.
Tasha noticed.
“You’re miserable.”
“I’m fine.”
“No, you’re not.”
I looked at her.
“What do you want me to do?”
“Be honest.”
“About what?”
“You like him.”
I sighed.
“Yes.”
She smiled slightly.
“Then why are you pretending you don’t?”
“Because I’m scared.”
“Of him?”
“No.”
“Then what?”
I looked toward the other side of the classroom.
“Of getting hurt.”
Tasha was quiet.
Then she said something I never forgot.
“Amara, caring about someone always comes with a chance of getting hurt.”
I didn’t know if I agreed.
But I knew I couldn’t keep avoiding Daniel.
A few days later, I found him sitting behind the school library.
He was alone.
I almost walked past him.
Instead, I stopped.
“Hi.”
He looked up.
“Hi.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah.”
“You don’t look okay.”
He smiled.
“Neither do you.”
I sat beside him.
For a while, we said nothing.
Then I finally spoke.
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“For avoiding you.”
He looked at me.
“Why did you?”
I hesitated.
“Because I was scared.”
“Of me?”
“No.”
“Then what?”
“Of what might happen.”
He looked down at his hands.
“People keep deciding things about me.”
“What do you mean?”
“My dad thinks I’m going to mess everything up. People at my old school thought I was difficult. Even here, everyone thinks I’m confident because I joke around.”
He laughed quietly.
“But sometimes I’m just trying to figure things out.”
I looked at him.
“I don’t think you’re perfect.”
He laughed.
“That’s nice.”
“But I don’t think you’re a bad person either.”
He smiled.
“That means more than you think.”
We sat there until the bell rang.
When we stood up, he held out his hand.
“Friends?”
I smiled.
“Friends.”
I shook his hand.
It should have been simple.
But it wasn’t.
Because I knew I liked him.
And somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew he liked me too.
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD