Is it so wrong for a girl to want a happy life with the guy she fell in love with?
Love … what a waste that I gave it away.
Just like that.
In my room, I sit and stare out the window, listening to music on my headphones while trying not to think about Thomas, which is obviously not working. I’m trying to decide whether it’s even worth it to go on with my semester. I’m failing all my classes, and the whole school recognizes me as ‘that girl’ or worse … some even whisper ‘whore’ behind my back.
It hurts, but not as much as him not being here to apologize does.
I haven’t seen him since I last saw him in his apartment with Natalie.
His office is empty, completely stripped of anything that would remind me of him. It’s as if he’s completely vanished off the face of the earth. And I’m still here … alone, miserable.
I sigh, pick up my pillow, and shove it in my own face, growling.
“C’mon, Hailey. Move the fuck on. He’s not worth it.”
If only Lesley were here so we could binge watch Sex and The City, but unlike me, she actually goes to her classes. Like right now.
Out of nowhere, my phone starts buzzing, and I jump out of bed to fish it off the table. My excitement quickly dies out when I notice the number isn’t one I recognize.
“Hello?” I say as I pick up.
“Hi, is this Hailey Walters?”
“Yeah, that’s me.” I don’t recognize the voice.
“All right. This is Saint Lucas’s Hospital. Your mother’s been admitted.”
My heart stops beating. “What’s going on? What happened?”
“She’s had significant bruising and a fractured rib. We don’t know the cause yet, but it’s imperative that you come here as soon as possible. She gave your number as a contact.”
“Oh, my god. Yes, I’m on my way right now!” I grab my stuff as quickly as possible and run out the door, not giving a shit about the fact that I have classes in a few hours. My mom comes first.
***
When I get to the hospital, I immediately ask for her room number and make my way upstairs. My heart is racing, and sweat is running down my back as I hurry through the hallways to my mom’s room. When I finally find her, she’s lying in bed with her eyes closed, and I fear the worst.
“Mom!” With tears in my eyes, I run to her bedside and hug her tight, but she’s not responding.
“Hi, I see you’ve arrived.” A nurse comes in.
“Hi,” I say, rubbing my hair out of my wet face. “Why isn’t she awake?”
“She’s still asleep from the anesthetics. She’s been given a lot of morphine to deal with the pain.
“Oh … What happened?” I ask as I sit down on the chair beside her.
The nurse hangs a new bag of antibiotics on her line and checks my mom’s stats. “Well, we don’t really know exactly, as she seemed to have been quite confused about it. She uttered some words to the paramedics about stairs. We think she may have fallen down. It’s amazing she even managed to call us.”
I look at the bruises on her face and say, “I don’t think those were caused by falling down the stairs.”
She raises her brows. “It’s possible. We don’t know. She didn’t say much other than to call you.”
“Okay.” I purse my lips. “What about my mom’s boyfriend?”
“Ahhh … Yes, we called him too. He hasn’t said a lot other than to say she fell down the stairs.”
“Right.” I frown.
“I think he’s getting some coffee. If you want some too, you can get it down the hall on the left.” She smiles.
“No thanks,” I say. “I just wanna stay with my mom for a second. If that’s okay.”
“Of course. I’ll leave you two to it. Oh, she might wake up soon. The morphine dosage has been reduced, so she won’t feel so drowsy all the time.”
“Thank you,” I say as she leaves the room.
I take a deep breath and then caress my mom’s cheek. “Oh, Mom … what did he do to you?”
Her mouth twitches and a soft moan leaves her throat. I smile, blinking away the tears. “Shh… don’t talk yet.”
“Oh, so you’re here too. Couldn’t get here sooner?”
The moment I hear his ugly voice, I turn around and growl, “This is all your fault.”
“What? You not being here?” He snorts. “That’s all on you, girl.”
“Don’t talk to me. You’ve said enough,” I say. “I don’t want you anywhere near my mom or me.”
“Well, tough luck, kid, because this is my woman.”
“She is not yours. She’s not an object you own. She’s a human being, and I know she didn’t just fall down the stairs either.”
He makes a face. “What? You’re not suggesting I did it? Bullshit.”
My mom suddenly squints her eyes, and I immediately focus on her again. “Mom!” I grab her hand and squeeze. “I’m here.”
“Hailey?” Her hand lifts and she wipes her forehead. “God, I’m glad you’re here.” She’s still slurring, but I can understand her just fine.
“And I’m not going anywhere either,” I say, squeezing her hand tighter.
“I had such a bad dream. And I feel so sleepy. Like I’ve been asleep for days.”
“That’s the drugs,” I say, chuckling a little.
“Yeah, and because she’s a lazy twat.”
“Shut up!” I say, turning around. “Just shut up.”
Infuriated, he slams his coffee cup down on the table and says, “How dare you speak to me like that?”
“Stop …” my mom mutters.
“No, you need to learn how to behave.”
“And you need to learn to keep your hands off my mom,” I growl.
“What did you say?” His brows are on six o’clock, and his fists are balled.
“You heard me; I know this was your doing.”
“If she weren't such a clumsy woman, she wouldn’t trip down the stairs all the time. Don’t you blame this on me, kid; you weren’t even there for her. You were too busy screwing other boys at that stupid college of yours where you’re not learning one damn thing.”
“Please … don’t fight …” my mom utters.
Tears well in my eyes. “You know nothing about me. Or my mom. I don’t give a damn what you say—I know you hit her. Those bruises on her face didn’t happen because she ‘fell down the stairs.’” I make quotation marks with my fingers.
“Hailey …” my mom says.
“No, Mom, I’m done faking it. I’m done lying. You should be too. Look at what he did to you.”
I direct my attention back to him. “You’re the only reason our whole world went to shit. You ruined everything. Me. My mom. You’re a bastard.”
“That’s it!”
He lifts his fist and makes a threatening move.
Right then, a nurse enters the room, and he quickly lowers his arm and pretends he was stretching and yawning. Then he leaves the room again, eyeballing the nurse with some kind of non-verbal threat. The nurse just stands there and furrows her brows at him, turning her head to look at him as he stomps off.
“Quite a piece of work,” she says. “Excuse me.”
“I know, right?” I say.
“Hailey …” My mom coughs.
“I hate him.” I grab her hand and look her deep in the eyes. “Mom, please …”
“I’m sorry, Hailey,” she says, her eyes turning watery.
I rub my lips together, trying to prevent the tears on my side. “I know.”
“No, you don’t. I’m really sorry I put you in this position again.”
“I’m okay, Mom, really. I am. Worry about yourself.”
She leans in to brush her thumb across my cheeks. “Such a beautiful, smart girl. You’ve got your father’s genes, not mine.”
I smile. “And your caring and forgiving nature,” I say.
“Hailey …” She pauses. “I lied.”
I close my eyes and squeeze her hand again. “I know, Mom. It’s okay.”
I know exactly what she lied about.
Not just these bruises, but all her other bruises and broken bones too.
All of it.
It was all a lie.
She starts to cry. “I’m sorry … When he pushed me, he left me there. He just left me for dead. I managed to crawl to the phone and call for help.”
“You’re lucky he left. He could’ve done more damage,” I say.
She sniffs. “But now, he’s gone … and I don’t think he’s coming back.”
“Good,” I say. She rests her head on my shoulder, and I kiss her on the back of the head. “Promise me you’ll tell him you two are over for good. End it. Once you’re out of the hospital.”
She nods softly. “I know you must hate me.”
“I don’t. I’ll never hate you.” I give her another peck. “I hate him.”
“After your dad died, I needed someone so badly.” Her breathing staggers.
“Don’t talk about the past,” I say. “Just tell me you’ll never let him touch you again. No more bruises. No more broken bones. No more lies.”
She nods as the tears roll down her cheeks, and I can’t help but cry a little myself too.
Who in the world could make it through without crying when seeing their own mother in shambles?
I know I can’t.
“I love you, Mom,” I say. “I know you need love, but isn’t my love enough?”
“It is.” She hugs me even tighter. “It is, Hailey.”
Chapter 25
Thomas
When I’ve finally mustered up the courage to speak to her, I go to her dorm.
Only to find out she isn’t even there.
I’ve knocked like fifteen times and gotten no response.
It’s making me so anxious; I want to smash the fucking door in, but that wouldn’t be appropriate. I’ve even asked if Lesley was there, but she isn’t answering either. The only option I have left is calling her cell.
It takes me about fifteen minutes of staring at the screen before I finally press that button.
I know she probably won’t want to hear from me and will most likely hang up the phone the moment I say a few words. Understandable. She’s completely right too, considering what she heard.
But I don’t want to let her go with half of the truth.
I know I should, but I can’t.
I just can’t get it over my heart to smash hers like that. Even if it’s the right decision, like Natalie said.
When I do finally press that call button, the seconds that pass feel like hours, but nothing happens, and I can feel my courage drift.
“Fuck …” I whisper when I realize it’s no use.
Where could she be?
I decide to take a different route. I look through her Facebook posts until I find Lesley, and I click her profile to check for a phone number. Luckily, she let it be visible to friends of friends, so I quickly copy it and call the number.
“Hello?”
“Hi, this is Thomas. Sorry to call, but could you tell me where Hailey is?”
“Oh … it’s you …”
“Look, I know you must be angry with me, and for the right reasons, but please let me talk to Hailey. If you know where she is, please tell me.”
“Why?” she growls.
“Because I want to make things right.”
“You already blew that chance, don’t you see? You used her …” she says. “You should’ve stayed away when you had the chance.”
“I know, and I’m sorry, really, I am. I never wanted to break her heart. I … I …” I don’t want to say these words over the phone, and I don’t want to say them to her.
I want to say them to Hailey.
I want to say them when I can see her. Face to face.
“What are you gonna do then, huh? What’s left to say?”
“Anything. But I have to explain it to her. Please … she would want me to. You know that.”
She grumbles but doesn’t go against me. “Fine. If you have to know, she’s at Saint Lucas’s Hospital.”
My jaw drops. “What? Has something happened to her?”
“Not her, her mom.”
Oh, god.
This couldn’t have come at a worse possible time.
“I’m not there yet, but I will be once I’ve finished my test. You’d better get there before I do because I can’t allow you to hurt her anymore.”
“I understand,” I say. “Thank you.”
She hangs up, and I tuck my phone into my pocket and rush downstairs, back into my car, and race off.
***
30 minutes later
When I finally get there, I immediately go to the service desk and ask for the correct room number. I thank the nurse and rush upstairs and through the corridors until I finally reach the room. As I enter, everything grows quiet, and the moment she sees me, her face turns white.
“Hi,” I say, tentatively stepping inside.
“Hello. Who are you?” her mom asks.
She looks drowsy, weak, and definitely bruised. I wonder what happened. She looks like she had quite a rough time.
“I’m Thomas Hard. I’m your daughter’s teacher.” I frown. “Or at least, I was.”
“What are you doing here?” Hailey asks, the look on her face murderous.
“Um … I just came because … Well, I don’t really know why. I just want to be here for you.” I clear my throat when neither of them responds. “Are you okay, ma’am?”
“Well, as fine as can be when you’re in the hospital,” she muses, chuckling a bit, immediately coughing after.
“What happened?” I ask.
Her mom opens her mouth. “Oh, I fell—”
Hailey throws her mother a look. “Her boyfriend did this.”
My jaw drops. “What? Where is he now?” I growl.
Fuck. I never thought it’d go this far, but it does make sense considering what she told me.
“He’s gone,” her mom says. “He hasn’t come back since he tried to hit … Hailey.” She looks down at her blanket. “I think he’s trying to get away now that a nurse saw him do it.”
“So he’s on the run. Dammit …” I almost want to go after him, but I need to take care of my business here first. “Is there anything I can do for you ladies now that I’m here?” I ask.
“We don’t need you here.” Hailey’s sharp voice cuts through anything.
“I just want to help,” I say, smiling, but she won’t return my smile.
“And I don’t want your help,” she snaps.
I frown and rub my lips together looking at the floor. “Please …”
“Oh, Hailey, c’mon, he’s such a nice gentleman,” her mom says.
“Mom, no. You don’t know him.”
“You’re right. I don’t deserve to be here, and I don’t deserve you. I just wanted to talk, that’s all. Maybe there’s something I can do to make it easier.”
“Yeah, you can … by leaving.” Her words cut straight into my soul.
Fuck, I really hurt her badly.
“Hailey …” I sigh. “I’m sorry.”
“No,” she interjects. “Don’t. Not here.”
I nod slowly, grinding my teeth. “Please, let me explain—”
“Get out,” she hisses, getting up from her seat. “Just get out.”
I lift my hands. “Okay … okay …”
“Get out!” she yells.
“So you won’t give me a chance to explain?” I stare at her for a few seconds, but her lips are sealed shut.
I take a deep breath and nod.
I blew it.
I completely blew it.
Without even getting a chance to fix what I’d broken, I blew it all.
With slumped shoulders, I turn around and leave the room, but the struggle inside isn’t over yet. Not by a long shot. Even though I was defeated, I won’t give up.
I need
to make things right.
So the minute I get outside, I take out my phone and start searching through her photos on Facebook until I find a picture of her mom and a tag. I click on her mom’s profile and scroll down her timeline until I find what I’m looking for. A picture of the boyfriend. His hand is on her neck, like she’s more of a dog than a human being, and behind them is a blue car with a scratched license plate, but I can still make out the numbers.
Gotcha.
Irrational thoughts float through my head as I make my way to the parking lot and search each and every car for the matching numbers. I don’t give a damn that it looks suspicious and that people might think I’m nuts. They can stare all they want; I’m not stopping until I find the son of a bitch who dared to hurt the mother of the girl I love.
Yes.
Love.
Because that’s what it fucking is, even if I’m afraid to tell her.
Damn, I’m even afraid to admit it to myself, but I’ll be damned if I let this slip. I didn’t know it until it was too late, but I love her, and I’m not going to let her go.
Just like I’m not going to let that motherfucker get away.
I don’t care if it takes me hours or days to find him, but I will find him.
After strolling around the parking lot for a good half hour, I finally come across a license plate that matches the exact numbers on the picture. I grin as I have a closer look and inspect his car, peering through the window. No one is inside, but I see some trash—particularly, a few bags and papers from a fast food restaurant and some french fries on the passenger seat.
Right as I turn around, a man’s right up in my face.
“What the fuck are you doing near my car?”
It’s him. I recognize him from the pictures. “Well, hello …”
“Do I know you?”
“Yes. Wait. No, we haven’t actually met, but …”
“But what? What are you doing here?” he growls, a despicable look on his face.
“Looking for you.” I grin as I look around and notice a few bystanders watching us. “You should’ve run when you had the chance.”
“What?” He makes a face, confused. “Get outta my fucking face.”
Bad Teacher Page 19
