“How long do we have to stay?” I asked, looking at the school with a growing sense of dread.
“Just an hour,” responded Milo. “I need to send my parents a picture of me in there every 15 minutes, and then we can go.”
I blew out a breath. “I should have asked for more than 25 percent,” I muttered.
We watched people stream into the school for a while longer until there were only a few people lingering outside.
“Let’s get this over with,” I grumbled.
We got out of his car and I did my best to straighten my wrinkled dress shirt. It had been difficult for me to find anything presentable to wear to the dance, but I had finally unearthed one of my dad’s old shirts from a box in my mom’s room. It was way too big for me, but after tucking it into my pants I looked halfway decent. Plus, it seemed like the green soap from the other day had managed to clear up some of my acne. My mom had left for her last minute business trip that morning, telling me to call her if anything fishy happened. I didn’t have time to ask her what she meant by fishy.
We walked quickly inside, passed a few people that snickered at us, then went to the least crowded corner of the gym and sat down. I took a picture of Milo with his phone and then tried to make myself invisible. Surprisingly, it seemed to work. Every once in a while people would look over at us, but for the most part, they stayed focused on dancing with their dates or in their groups.
The gym was decorated with thousands of little white lights, and there were renderings of several different city skylines along the walls. The music was pretty good, and I was almost tempted to get up and dance, but I knew that would probably draw too much unwanted attention.
I was actually starting to have a good time and then I saw them. Kayla and Wyatt were in the middle of the gym and were dancing extremely close to one another. Kayla was wearing a beautiful silver dress and her hair was all done up. I didn’t think it was possible for anyone to look that beautiful. It was almost criminal. While I watched, Wyatt dipped his head down and kissed her neck. Every muscle in my body tensed and I had to hold on to the sides of my chair to keep myself from charging him. I wanted to look away, but I couldn’t. It was torture.
“This isn’t so bad,” Milo commented cheerfully. “I think I’m going to go get some food.”
He stood and headed to the refreshment tables, while I sat there wishing I could be anywhere else. I just wanted this night to end.
Chapter Fifteen
Kayla
I didn’t want this night to end. The last couple weeks had been so busy with homecoming preparations and debate and school work and volleyball and fighting with Miranda, and I hadn’t realized how stressed I was. But spending the evening with Wyatt and being close to him felt so good, and I welcomed the way he made me feel relaxed and excited at the same time.
He had taken me to dinner at a wonderful Italian restaurant, and the food had been incredible. We had talked mostly about his family and football and his plans for the future. He told me all about how he wanted to be a pediatrician. I carefully steered the conversation away from my family, only briefly talking about the fact that my dad had died. Then we had taken a long drive around town, and finally we had arrived at the dance. I had spent most of the morning decorating the gym, so I was glad to see that all my hard work had paid off. It looked great. Dancing all night with Wyatt had been a dream, and when he kissed my neck, I felt warmth spread through my entire body. I started fantasizing about all the years we were going to spend together, what our future was going to be like, and how at some point I’d have to tell him the truth about my dad. But my dreaming was interrupted by an announcement from James Huckston.
“It’s time for the homecoming royalty dance!” He exclaimed. “Will all members of the homecoming court please come to the front?”
Wyatt pulled away from me. “Sorry, Kayla, I’ve got to go dance with some princess,” he said with a sly grin. “Oh wait, that’s you!”
I laughed. “How convenient.”
He escorted me up to the platform where we all lined up and received our fake crowns and tiaras. Then a slow song started up and the royalty lead out in the dancing. I noticed Miranda in the crowd, glaring at me with her arms folded across her chest. We hadn’t spoken since the game, but I wasn’t going to let her ruin my night. Instead, I focused back on Wyatt, taking in his strong build and his intense blue eyes.
The song finished and Wyatt lead me to the edge of the gym.
“Do you want to go for a walk?” He asked.
I raised my eyebrows. “A walk? Where?”
“Just around the school.”
I smiled. At that moment, being alone with Wyatt sounded great. “Sure.”
He took my hand and we wandered through the halls, making random comments about the displays or the teachers. Finally, we ended up in one of the math classrooms.
“Kayla, have I told you how stunning you look tonight?” Wyatt asked, turning to face me.
“Once or twice,” I replied, attempting to sound nonchalant. “You look pretty fantastic yourself.”
“Oh yeah?” He said, stepping closer. “I spent all day perfecting this look.”
I tried to laugh, but I couldn’t. He was too close and I was filled with anticipation. He slipped his hand around my back and pulled me to him, then pressed his lips to mine. I kissed him back, enjoying his nearness and the feel of his lips. He kissed me more passionately and began running his hands down to my butt and back up again, which was a bit more alarming than it was arousing. When he started to unzip my dress, I pushed him back.
“What are you doing?”
He smiled. “Giving you what you want, clearly.”
His tone put me on edge. “No, I think we should go back to the dance.”
He pulled me back. “Come on, Kayla. It’s been such a great night, don’t ruin it now.”
Panic started to creep in. “Wyatt, please stop. This is too much right now. Let’s just go back to the gym.”
He didn’t let go. “Kayla, I spent all this money on you. Don’t you think I deserve a little something in return?”
Anger coursed through me. “I’m leaving,” I announced, turning around. I headed toward the door, but he grabbed my arm and pulled me back, pinning me against the wall. He shoved his tongue in my mouth and I shook my head violently, trying to break free.
“Stop! Stop!” I screamed.
His hands grasped at the back of my dress and he was unzipping it when suddenly someone burst through the door. A pair of hands grabbed Wyatt off of me, and in a blur of movement Wyatt was being flipped over and thrown on the ground. I took a deep breath. As my head cleared, I was able to focus on the situation. Frog was there standing over Wyatt, looking down at him with fire in his eyes.
Chapter Sixteen
Frog
“Looks like you need to pay more attention in English class so you can learn the definition of stop!” I yelled. It was a lame thing to say, but I didn’t care. I was full of rage and adrenaline. I had practiced that move a dozen times in the karate classes I took as a kid, but I was surprised how well it had worked on Wyatt. Kayla was against the wall, looking stunned, and Wyatt was moaning on the floor. For a couple seconds, no one did anything, but then Kayla marched over to me and grabbed my hand.
“Come with me,” she commanded.
She dragged me out of the classroom and down the hall. She seemed upset, and I started to regret what I had done, wondering if I had misread the situation. She pulled me into the economics classroom then turned around and stared at me, her expression unreadable.
I put my hands in my pockets. “Look, Kayla, I’m sorry if I overstepped my bounds.” She didn’t say anything, so I continued. “I wasn’t following you guys, by the way, I was just on my way to the bathroom and I heard you shouting.” That was a lie. I had definitely followed them. “Anyway, I was just trying to help, and I apologize if I messed things up for you.”
At that moment, Kayla rushed towar
d me. I braced myself for something unpleasant, but was surprised when she wrapped her arms around me and buried her face in my chest.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “Thank you so much, Frog.”
And then she started crying. I tentatively returned her embrace, not wanting to do anything to make it seem like I was taking advantage of the situation. She was sobbing into my shirt, and I really didn’t know how to feel. I mean, it was nice to be holding her so close, but this was clearly not a romantic moment. Plus, I was a little self conscious about her face being pressed against my bony chest. I lightly patted her back in a way that I hoped was soothing and just let her tears soak into my shirt. After a few minutes she pulled back and sat on a nearby desk.
“Thank you, Frog,” she repeated. “I don’t know what would have happened if you didn’t show up when you did.”
I shuddered. The image of Wyatt forcing himself on her flashed through my head again and I wanted to go back and pummel the jerk into the ground. But that probably wouldn’t have been very productive, and I didn’t want to leave Kayla.
I shrugged. “Sooner or later you probably would have head butted him or kicked him in the junk or something.”
Kayla frowned. “I should have. I wasn’t thinking very clearly.” She covered her face with her hands. “I can’t believe I was so stupid, so blind. How could I have let myself get into that situation?”
“Whoa, whoa, this is not your fault,” I said, looking into her gorgeous brown eyes. “Wyatt was very deceptive. Even I thought he was pretty decent until, you know, a few minutes ago.”
Kayla nodded slowly. “It never even crossed my mind that he would be like that. I just... I’m always in control. I hate not being in control.”
I walked over and sat on the desk next to her. “Emotion is sometimes a hard thing to see through,” I said, hating myself for sounding like my mom. “Sometimes the people we admire most turn out to be really disappointing. Take my dad, for example. I thought he was the most amazing man in the world, and then one day he left us and never came back.”
Kayla looked at me with concern in her eyes. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know that.” She stared down at the floor. “Looks like we have more in common than I thought.”
I nodded. We both had fathers who had let us down. We sat there in silence for a minute, and then Kayla stood up and smoothed down her dress.
“Can I ask you one more favor?” She said quietly.
I almost laughed. I’d do anything for this girl. “Of course.”
“Could I get a ride home?”
I winced. I’d completely forgotten that I’d left Milo back in the gym. It’d been longer than an hour. Hopefully he hadn’t already left.
“Yes,” I responded, “but I actually came with Milo. It’s a long story.”
“That’s fine,” she replied. “I’ll, um, meet you in the parking lot.”
I nodded. I could understand why she didn’t want to go back into the dance, but it hurt a little to think that she didn’t want to be seen leaving with me. We walked out of the classroom and she headed outside while I walked back into the gym to find Milo.
*****
It was a little awkward with the three of us riding in Milo’s car. I was in the backseat with Kayla because I didn’t want her to feel alone, which made Milo seem like a taxi driver or a chaperone. He looked at me in the rearview mirror.
“So, did you guys kiss?”
“Milo,” I growled in warning.
He clearly didn’t get the hint. “There’s so much tension between you two that you must have.”
I buried my face in my hands, but when I peeked over at Kayla, there was a small smile on her face. Milo talked on and on about some guy that had to be kicked out for inappropriate dancing and how he had gotten it all on video, and after what seemed like hours we finally pulled up in front of Kayla’s house.
She turned to me. “Thank you again, Frog. You’re a great friend.” She took my hand and squeezed it briefly, then got out of the car. I watched her walk into her garage, a thousand conflicting emotions screaming inside my head.
“She likes you,” Milo stated, interrupting my thoughts.
“No, she doesn’t,” I responded. “In case you didn’t notice, she just dropped the big ol’ f-word just now.”
“What, friend? Nah, friends don’t look at each other the way she just looked at you.”
I shook my head. “You’re delusional. She’s just really vulnerable right now.”
“Vulnerable? Then this is the perfect time to make a move!”
“Shut up.”
Milo stuck his lip out, pretending to be offended. “You keep saying things like that and you’ll lose your cut of the money.”
I shrugged. “You can keep it. I’m actually glad I went.” And I was.
I moved into the front seat and we went back and forth about Kayla and her supposed feelings for me all the way back to my house.
Chapter Seventeen
Kayla
“Kayla, you’re home early,” my mom said as she got out of her chair at the kitchen counter.
I took a shaky breath. “Yeah.”
I immediately saw the worry come into my mom’s eyes. “What happened?”
I steeled my senses. I had cried enough. “Wyatt didn’t turn out to be as great as I thought he was.”
Her mouth went into a tight line. “What did he do to you? Do I need to call his parents?”
I made an attempt to smile. “No, mom. Someone else actually did a pretty good job of putting him in his place.”
“Who?”
“Frog.”
“Oh, you mean Frederick? Really?”
“Yeah. It was pretty impressive.”
My mom folded her arms. “I’m not surprised. He was always so protective of you when you were kids.”
I frowned. This was something that had been bothering me. “Mom, I don’t remember being friends with him.”
She raised her eyebrows. “Oh, yes. You two were always playing together. We used to live right down the street from the Vonnegans.”
Again, I tried to call up any memory of Frog back then, but there was nothing there. It was almost as if my life began when I was seven.
“Of course, that was right before your father was arrested,” my mom added. “Traumatic events can do a number on your brain.” She started to tear up. “I’m so sorry, Kayla.”
“Mom,” I interjected, “it’s not your fault.”
“I know. But if I just had better judgment, things could have been so different.”
I inclined my head. “Looks like I need to work on my judgement as well.”
My mom came over and hugged me tight. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“Not right now. I think I’m just going to go to bed.”
“Okay. Let me know when you’re ready.”
She kissed my forehead and I headed to my room. I was still a little shaken, maybe one day I’d talk to my mom or a counselor about what had happened, but right now I didn’t want to think about it. What I did want to think about was Frog. There was something that was so interesting about him. For a moment there in that classroom, he had seemed like someone else entirely.
I opened my closet and pulled out a box of old stuff that I had generally avoided because I didn’t want to be reminded of my dad. I smiled as I rifled through volleyball trophies and programs from viola recitals. I found a small photo album and started to flip through it. The first picture I saw was one of me and my parents at Christmas. I felt sick as I looked at my Father, the carefree smile on his face only making me more angry. If only we had known the kind of man he really was. I turned to another picture and gasped. It was a photo of my family and Frog’s family together in someone’s backyard. I could really only recognize Frog by his eyes and his mouth, but that was where the similarities ended. Puberty had clearly not been very nice to him, because as a young kid, he had really been quite nice-looking. I studied his father. He was a very at
tractive man, and looking at his kind expression, I would never expect him to be the type to leave his family.
I put the photo album back and rummaged through a few more trinkets at the bottom of the box. Among a bunch of painted rocks was a charm bracelet. I pulled it out and suddenly, I remembered. The memory so was clear that I could even recall the smell of the lilacs at the park. Frog and I had been playing tag, and then he had gotten all nervous. He pulled out a little pouch and gave me the charm bracelet. He said he had saved up for all the pieces and had spent two days putting it together. I ran my fingers over all the charms. There was a cupcake, a flower, a music note, a snowflake, and a crown. I remembered being so excited about the gift, and then I had heard the sirens. The police cars had pulled up to my house and the officers had taken my father away. I remembered running after the police car until my mom came and grabbed me out of the street.
I took a deep breath. I was glad that I had remembered Frog, but I was frustrated that it came at the expense of so many other horrible memories. I was emotionally exhausted and I just wanted to go to sleep. I put the charm bracelet on my wrist, not sure what it even meant that I was wearing it, and climbed in bed. Dozens of thoughts ran through my head, but the last image that lingered in my subconscious before I drifted off to sleep was one of a young Frog smiling at me.
Chapter Eighteen
Frog
The movie we were watching in chemistry lab was extremely boring, but I felt so on edge. My eyes were glued to Kayla Morrison, sitting alone at her table in front of me. I had spent the rest of the weekend wondering if I should text her to see if she was okay, but then I’d always end up rationalizing that I should give her space. Wyatt was now sitting on the other side of the room with his hands all over Kayla’s friend Miranda, and her constant giggling was really annoying.
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