Entry #516360, added on 06-20-07 @ 6:27 pm EDT
Entry Access Restriction: None.
| Chapter Fifteen | Entry #516360 |
I open my eyes and find myself once again looking into a blinding light. "Wren?"
His face is above mine suddenly, smiling down at me. "Hey, Beth. How are you?"
"Ouch," I answer, trying to no avail, not to smile. "What happened?"
"You struck yourself with lightening." He grins and my heart flip-flops.
"Oops."
His smile fades. "You scared me when you went out there."
I look at his eye and cock my head as much as I can while lying down. "I scared myself a little. Where am I?" I haven't really taken the time to look around.
"Hospital."
My eyes get wide. "The hospital? But what about the doctors?"
He shakes his head. "I don't know. I mean, we couldn't just not bring you here. We have to assume there are some good ones. I haven't left you alone since we got here."
I don't smile. There's only one thing I want to know. "Is it over? I ask him. "I followed my instincts. I went out there because I got tired of running. Did it even do any good?"
"I don't know. How can I? You've been out cold since it happened."
I drop my head back on the pillow. "I'm too exhausted to conjure up some kind of emotion to try to determine it."
"I have an idea."
I look up at Wren. He'd been facing the window, but as he says this, he spins around to look at me and his expression seems almost full of embarassment.
"What?" I ask, thrown by his bashfullness.
"It's just that..." He comes to stand by my bed. "I could..." His eye shifts back and forth between mine. "I could..."
"What?" I giggle.
The laugh gets caught in my throat when his mouth lands on mine. My eyes threaten to roll back in my head, it feels so good. Then, as abruptly as it started, it's over.
Wren only looks as me for a second before going to the window and pulling up the blinds.
I grin when I see the rainy sky, the clouds so dark they're almost black.
"Um..." Wren faces the window and runs a hand through his short blonde hair. "So, what am I looking for?"
"It's over," I breathe. "It's really over."
Wren shakes his head. "What do you mean? How can you tell?"
He turns to face me and look him in the eye. "If I was still controlling what went on out there-"
I don't get to finish what I'm saying because just then my mother walk into the room, Dr. Dawson on her heels.
"Bethany!" she shrieks.
"Hey, mom." I'm looking at Wren, not her. He glances at my mother, then gives me a nod before leaving the room.
"Mom, I-"
"Oh, sweetie!" She says over me. Her eyes are misty and she puts her hands on my face. "I'm so sorry. Wren told me it was Eric who did this to you."
"He did?" I ask, shocked.
"Of course he did. But it's okay, Beth. Eric didn't survive. It's over now."
I try not to get angry that she's said this. It's not her fault she didn't know the big picture behind all this. But to think that this thing with Eric was the most terrifying bit of it...
But if that's what my mom needs to think in order to be happy the way she is now, then that's fine.
"Honey, I'm sorry I yelled at you eariler and that I've been such a wreck, I just wasn't very good at handling this."
"It's fine, mom." I don't want to have this conversation right now. As far as I'm concerned, there are more important things to worry about. "So what's the verdict?" I ask the doctor. "What's wrong with me?"
"Nothing. Actually, you hit the nerve in your brain a second time, reversing whatever effects it may have had on you."
"Oh, good. So you can tell whoever's working for you to leave me alone?"
Dr. Dawson pauses while reading the machine next to my bed. He looks up and meets my eyes, but he doesn't say anything. He knows I'm right. How would have any other doctor or any scientist know about my condition if he hadn't told them to begin with?
"What do you mean, honey?" My mom asks.
I hold Dr. Dawson's gaze for a minute before turning to my mother. "Nothing," I tell her and she shrugs it off.
I don't care because Dr. Dawson just confirmed what I thought before. It's over, and if it hadn't been, when Wren kissed me, the sun would have been so bright, it would have blinded us to look at it.
Would you stop making such a fuss? It's just Wren. Just Wren, It's no big deal.
I'm pacing in my room, trying to gather the courage to walk to Wren's. I just got back from the hospital. He didn't come to see me again while I was in there and all I wanted was to see him again. That whole thing at the hospital was just a reflex, right? He only kissed me to see if it would have any effect on the climate.
But what reaction was he expecting? Wind? Rain clouds? Bright sunshine?
It doesn't matter.
I headed for the front door, ready to face the guy that constantly saved my life.
"Bethany!"
"Crap," I mutter under my breath. "Yes, mom?"
"Where are you going?" she calls from the kitchen where she's making dinner.
"I'm going to talk to Wren, I'll be back in a little bit."
"Invite him for dinner!"
I chuckle then open the door and begin the short walk to the house diagonal to mine. I pause on his front step the way I did the first time I knocked on his door.
This time I ring the doorbell.
Wren opens the door and I notice the difference immediately.
"You cut your hair!" I step inside the house and he closes the door behind me. When he turns to face me, I hold his face in my hands. He cut his bangs so that both of his eyes are visible, and they're beautiful.
"Yeah." And just like that, the nervous tension returns, and my stomach is in knots again.
"Hi," I say, pulling my hands away from his face.
"Hey," he breathes.
"I, um, I just came by to thank you." I can't meet his eyes anymore, yet I don't want to drag them away. I focus on the picture frame behind his head. It's a picture of his aunt and mother.
"Thank me?" he asks. "For what?"
"For everything."
I look at him. He looks confused, almost.
"Wren-"
"Beth-"
We both start at the same time. The next few sentences are a jumble of words said over eachother, a few things mumbled incoherently.
Then Miss Caroline calls from the other room.
He turns for a second, then looks back at me. "I should go."
"Right. Okay. I'll see you at school." I turn to the door, ready to walk away, but spin around before opening it. I thrust my hand out in front of me, asking for a handshake. "Friends?"
He blinks and looks down at my hand. He slowly slips his hand in to mine, but says, "I don't think that'll work." I can feel the hurt rising in my chest before he squeezes my hand and pulls me against him. "I can't be friends with you," he mutters before covering my mouth with his. My legs turn to jell-o and threaten to fold under me. We put out arms around eachother.
"Wren!"
He bites my lip when he hears his aunt call him.
"Have dinner with me and my mom?" I ask while trying to catch my breath.
He smiles, his arms still around my waist. "Love to, but can't. My aunt is teaching me how to make spaghetti."
I grin. "You're cute."
Wren grimaces. "Don't say that."
"Sorry." I untangle my hands from behind his neck. "You're very rugged and manly."
"Thank you."
I give him one last peck on the cheek before leaving him to his cooking lessons.
"How long?" I ask.
He stares off into the distance, subtly rubbing his thumb back and forth along mine under the table. "I'm pretty sure it was the first time I saw you two years ago. I've had my eye on you since then, though I must say, I never thought I'd land you."
"Well, you have." I smile up at him and he leans in as we hear footsteps approach our lunch table. We both pause to look at the person who dares interrupt us and see Morgan, a tray full of food in her hands, watching us.
"Hi." she says.
My eyes shift to Wren who looks at me before slouching back in his chair.
"Hey," I say to Morgan.
"I owe you an apology," she tell me. Her auburn hair is ruffled and there are bags under her tired eyes. She's obviously practiced this speech in front of her mirror.
"Not me," I tell her casually. "You owe Wren an apology."
She blinks at me, then turns her gaze to Wren, and I can see her tray shaking slightly as she takes in his new hair and unique eyes. "She's right. I owe you an apology. She tried to tell me you were a good person, and I didn't listen because I chose to believe rumors. But the truth is, I trust Beth, and I know that if she thinks you're okay, then you are. So, I'm sorry, Wren, for misjudging you."
A smile spreads across his face, and I must say, I'm very proud of her. "Apology accepted," Wren answers.
"Can I eat with you guys?" she asks.
"Getting tired of Sean's posse, are you?" I ask with a friendly grin.
"I deserved that," she says, smiling as well.
I look at Wren and search out his fingers again. "May she eat with us?"
His eyes search my face and decide that I approve. "I don't own the table or anything, but sure." He turns to Morgan. "Have a seat."
She takes in a deep breath before sliding into a chair across from us at the round table, and I know it's going to take her time to get used to hanging out with a guy that she's always been afraid of.
"I'm gonna go get some ketchup." Wren kisses my cheek then hops up from the table and strides to the nearest line.
"We're still friends, right?" Morgan's question pulls my attention away from Wren. Her eyes are desperate, and her lips appear to be trembling.
"Of course," I tell her. "Of course, we're still friends."
She lets out a breath, then follows my gaze to where Wren is trying to reach around one of the Science Club geeks to get to the ketchup, without success.
"You really like him, don't you?" she asks, just like she would have if it had been six months earlier and we were talking about someone else.
"Yeah, I do. He's great. You'll see."
She nods. "So, you guys are a couple now?"
I smile at him as he rolls his eyes. The Science Club geek has been replaced by our overweight Government teacher. "Yeah," I breath. I look at her.
She's inspecting me closely. "Are you ever going to tell me what secret thing was going on between you two?"
"No," I tell her as Wren returns to his place beside me with a grunt. "I hadn't planned on it." I laugh as she rolls her eyes. |
© Copyright 2007 GryffindorGurl (UN: magicfreak11 at Writing.Com). All rights reserved.
GryffindorGurl has granted Writing.Com, its affiliates and its syndicates non-exclusive rights to display this work.
|
Log In To Leave Feedback
Static Items
Books
Forums
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
