“Thank you both again, you are way too kind to me. I really don’t deserve such a big deal made for my birthday. This is Bren’s graduation party, not mine,” I say as I sit down at the island.
“Really, Kat, I haven’t seen Bren so happy with someone in her life like I have seen her since she met you. You are more like a sister to her, so don’t worry about it. As long as you are both happy today, we are happy,” her dad says to me as he sips his coffee sitting next to me.
Once Bren graces us with her presence again, we head for the door and to her car. Before I know it, we are in front of this small upscale salon, and once again, I feel like it is too much. I have never been spoiled like this by anyone before and leave it to my best friend to do it. What kind of life did I live before I met Bren? She may be a bit crazy, but she sure is a great friend.
“I made my decision, Bren; I am going to keep the baby
“Really? Yay, that is great news. I get to be an auntie. What made you decide what to do?”
“You, my mom, my stubbornness. My mom made me feel like I was worthless and I couldn’t accomplish anything, so I decided I was going to do this even if it killed me. I knew that you would be there to catch me if I fell, because lately it seems as if you are the only one that cares about me.”
“You’re right, I do care about you, but I don’t think I am the only one, Kat. I think you have a guy who owns a coffee shop that has a look in his eye like he cares a whole lot about you. I saw something different in his eye today when he looked in your direction. Maybe today was the day he has been waiting for. Maybe today you are legal and he can actually show you he cares.”
“I think you are crazy, Bren, we are just friends and he gave me a ride home one night; he didn’t even try to flirt with me or kiss me.”
“Kat, if you don’t see it then I think you are the crazy one.”
When she walks into the salon, I stand back with my jaw dropped. I’m crazy? I don’t think so. He doesn’t like me like that, and he sure as hell won’t like me when he sees a growing belly.
I have never been so spoiled. I was scrubbed, buffed, and even waxed—that was an interesting experience. My nails were done in a maroon color to match my dress accents and my toes too. I decided it was time for a change, so I chopped my hair off, like a lot of hair. I am now sporting a lob with some highlights, and I love it. I feel like a whole new person.
As soon as we get back to the house, it’s hard to believe it’s the same place at all. Tables are spread out throughout the backyard and a dance floor is laid with a canopy over the top of it, and when the lights go down, it will be lit with twinkle lights. I have never seen anything like what this place is turning into, and it is all for Bren and me.
Once I pick up my jaw off the ground, we head inside to get dressed for the afternoon and evening. Bren handles our makeup, and when we are happy with the reflection in the mirror, we head to the backyard where people are starting to arrive. The DJ is starting up and the food is starting to be passed around. This day has just flown.
“Let’s go,” Bren says, and she proceeds to pull me into the center of the party. I look around and don’t recognize many people; I assume they are family friends of Bren. I do notice, however, that my mom and new step-dad are missing from the scene. I don’t know why I expected her to show up, but I guess I hoped just a little she would, even with what happened yesterday.
A couple hours later, when it starts to get dark out, our friends from school start to show up. The mood of the party has changed, and it is beginning to seem more like a party. Now the young outweigh the old. It is a BBQ, so even though it is catered, we have burgers and hotdogs, chicken and steak, and some amazing baked beans and potato salad, fruit salad and everything you would want at a BBQ.
It’s when I am sitting with Bren and a few of our friends that I notice my mom talking to Bren’s parents like nothing even happened yesterday. I choose to ignore her and continue to have fun, though I do notice her take a look over in my direction. Kyle is right by her side with a look on his face that says he isn’t happy to be here.
Eventually, she walks over to me and pulls me off to the side. “I need to talk to you, Kat.”
“I think you said enough yesterday when you kicked me out of the house.” I try to pull out of her grip and walk away. “Mom, just leave me alone, I am not doing this today.”
She won’t let go, and I don’t want to make a scene, so I stand there, glaring at her like the child I need to act like I’m not. “Fine. What the hell do you want?”
“We need to talk about yesterday, about what you told me, this plan you have with the money that was supposed to go toward your college. What on Earth is going on with you lately?” she snarls at me.
“I’m not doing this here, Mom.”
I yank my arm out of her grasp and walk away, but as I look up, I see half the party looking at us. So much for not making a scene. I wasn't paying any attention to where I was walking and I end up in the arms of the one person I never wanted to see again. Looking up and seeing his eyes staring at me with a smirk on his face suddenly makes my knees feel like Jell-O. I end up on the ground, not knowing how I got there.
"Kat, are you okay? What was that about?" Bren asks as she rushes over to me.
I shake myself out of the haze and ask, “What just happened?"
“You ran into Trent then you started pounding on his chest and screaming to let you go. He pushed you away, and you fell."
Trent—I now knew his name instead of just a face. It didn't change the way I felt about him; he’s a monster, he stole from me, and he has been watching me. Now I have his child inside me.
"I'm fine, um, I'm going to go inside for a bit."
"If you say so, I'll check on you in a bit," Bren says softly.
I walk away and toward the house, trying to keep the tears away until I get away from the party. I feel like an absolute fool at this point. When I raise my eyes in the shadows, I see James staring at me with concern in his eyes, but I keep walking. I can't deal with this—it was an amazing day until it was ruined. I go straight for Bren's room and collapse on her bed and let the tears fall.
I’m not alone long. I hear the door open slowly, and then I hear his raspy voice. "Kat, are you okay?"
"Go away," I snap at him; I don't want him to see me like this. I already was humiliated between what happened with my mom and apparent black out with Trent. I want to be alone.
He cautiously approaches the side of the bed and sits down. "Kat, hey, what's going on?” he asks quietly as he moves my now short hair away from my face and behind my ear. I didn’t want to look at him, but I can’t help it; his ice-blue eyes have a look of concern in them now, and I don’t like that. Sitting up, I move out of his reach. His fingers brushing the side of my face felt good, but I can’t like it—I am too messed up to deserve any kindness from him.
“I just had a fight with my mom, I will be okay. Give me a few minutes, and I will be all ready to party again,” I try to convince him. I don’t think it worked, and I have no clue really why he cares. By now, I have stopped crying … Well, I’m no longer sobbing—a few tears still manage to sneak down my face. I just need to get myself together and get back out there. I can’t have James learn about everything that is going on.
“Go back outside, I just need to clean up and I will be back out there. I just needed a few before I walked back out there to all the stares for the scene I caused.”
James looks at me again with those eyes that could melt the panties off of anyone, but are full of concern for me. Hesitantly, he stands up.
“Are you sure you are okay? You don’t look like you are okay?”
With a laugh, I say, “Yes, I am good, just let me fix my face, and I will be right back out. I promise.”
“I can wait for you, walk out there together,” he pleads with me.
I still just want to be alone, so once again, I blow him off. He reluctantly walks out the door, looking back over hi
s shoulder before he closes it. I let out a sigh of relief and go into Bren’s bathroom to take a look at the damage I did to my face by bawling like a baby. This is bad, really bad; I don’t think I can fix it on my own. Luckily, right then the door opens with my savior.
“Thank God it’s you, I need you to fix this,” I plead with her.
“I’m glad to see you are feeling a bit better, but before I fix this—” she waves her hand back and forth in front of my face “—you need to explain what happened tonight, and don’t lie to me.”
I let out a sigh and decide I can tell her a little something to appease her for now.
“That was one guy I do not want to see again, like ever. He can’t know about me. I will do this on my own, with no help from him. It was and will stay a one night that was a mistake.”
It’s like a light bulb goes off on top of her head the way her eyes get wide with shock.
“Wait, you mean to tell me that Trent is the one who got you pregnant? This can’t be, when … Where … O. M. G. I can’t believe this.”
“Wait, why are you yelling at me? I don’t understand. You were the one to bring me to that party the first one that was, oh, let’s say about ten weeks ago, actually about eleven weeks ago now. What did I do to piss you off?”
“Trent, h-h-he,” she starts to sob. “He is the one I have been wanting to get with all year, but I never caught his radar. I can’t believe this. You … Fix your own damn face.”
Whoa, I wasn’t expecting that. Should I tell her more once she chills out? What the hell happened tonight? As much as I want to celebrate my birthday, these are all her friends, not mine. I am starting to think I never belonged in this world. I actually know I didn’t belong, so instead of fixing my face and going back out to the party, I wash every ounce of make-up off, grab my purse and one duffle bag with enough for a few days, and leave out the front door.
Worst birthday ever.
James
When I walk around the house to the back where the party is, I stop in my tracks—Kat is on the ground with Bren by her side. I stand there watching her, and when she gets up and starts walking my way, she doesn’t notice me at first because I am hidden in the shadows, and as much as I want to go running over to her, I don’t. When she does finally notice me, she has a look of shock on her face. Kat keeps walking into the house, and I stand there for a few minutes trying to decide if I should follow her or not. Due to this undeniable pull toward her, I follow.
When I find her, she is sobbing on Bren’s bed—it about kills me to see her this way. After her telling me to go away multiple times, I finally listen and get out of the room and head back to the party.
Something is not right here, and once again I am determined to figure it out. If I had shown up a bit earlier I would have had a better clue to what this was all about, so the only other way to get the scoop is to talk to Bren.
“Hey, Bren, what’s going on with Kat? I saw her crying and run into the house,” I ask when I approach her.
With a sigh, she tells me, “She had a fight with her mom but was okay after that, then in her hurry to walk away from her mom she ran right into Trent’s chest and started pounding on him and yelling for him to let go of her. Trent pushed her away and she fell to the ground. I really don’t know what is going on with her. It was like she blacked out. She asked me what happened.”
“Who is this Trent guy?” I ask with my jaw grinding in anger.
Bren points across the lawn to the guy, and the moment I see him, I know I have seen that face before across the street from my shop. What does he want with Kat?
In a matter of seconds, I am right in front of him and restraining myself from grabbing him.
“What do you want with Kat?”
With a smirk on his face, he replies,” I don’t know what you are talking about. I was defending myself from her attack. She is the crazy bitch”
Without thinking, I grab him by his collar and pull him until we’re nose to nose. “Stay away from her. I’ve seen you watch her, and I don’t know what your deal is, but I will find out.”
Bren comes storming out of the house as I walk away from Trent, but Kat is nowhere to be found. I continue to wait, but she never appears again. Twenty minutes later, I seek out Bren again and ask her if she has seen Kat.
“Nope,” she says, popping the “p” before she turns back around, ignoring me. I decide to enter the house again and she is still nowhere to be found. After rushing back outside to tell Bren she is gone, who doesn’t seem to care at all, I jog to my car.
I will find her if it’s the last thing I do.
Katarina
Now what do I do? I didn't think this far in advance, so here I am walking down the street with my stuff and nowhere to go. Then I remember the park near the water not too far from here so that is where I go. When I get there, I find a bench and take a seat. Surprisingly, I have no missed calls or messages on my cell phone.
The darkness in the sky dotted with stars is peaceful. I stand there in a daze looking out to the water, to nothing. I feel like I am nothing—unwanted.
My mom is getting ready to go on her honeymoon then come home and move into her husband’s house.
My best friend is mad at me because I “slept” with the guy she likes.
And I am pregnant, and alone, and unwanted. One step forward, and I would be falling toward the water and the rocks below. One step forward, and I wouldn’t have to worry anymore. One step is all it would take.
I haven't been gone more than an hour before I hear a car engine in the distance getting closer. I start to worry that it’s Trent coming to get me again, or maybe it’s the cops to tell me I can’t be here. I sit on the edge trying to stay out of sight; I don’t want to be found.
I slowly turn toward the voice behind me and start to lose my balance on the ledge. A moment ago, I wanted to walk off this ledge because I was nothing to no one. But when my butt slips off and I start to fall, I panic and grab the edge in time. Suddenly, James is rushing over to me and grabbing my hands to pull me up. He looks right into my eyes making me distracted from what is happening. Pulling me to safety away from the edge, he says, “What are you thinking, Kat? Are you okay?”
I sarcastically reply, “Just peachy.”
“What are you doing here, and so close to the edge?”
“James, don’t be concerned about me, I have nothing to offer anyone or myself for that matter. You should go and leave me to this life I messed up all on my own.”
“Why did you leave the party at Bren’s? Isn't that where you were staying tonight?”
“Yeah, well, not everything works out the way we want it to. No one wants me around. I had nowhere to go so I chose here where I figured I would go unnoticed, forever.”
Leaning forward, slowly approaching me, he lifts my chin with his finger so I will meet his eyes, and at that moment, I feel something I've never felt before and his eyes are different then I've seen them before. Pity, sadness—I'm not sure what it is.
“I know someone who doesn't mind being around you—me. Come with me, I can't have you out here all night by yourself. A swim in those waters wouldn’t be any fun, either. We can go to my place and talk. Tell me what's going on. I'm here for you, I want to be here for you …”
I open my mouth to protest then he grabs my hand to help me down off the wall. When I am safely back on solid ground away from the long drop, he wraps his arms around me for a tight hug and then he kisses my forehead.
“Come on,” he says, grabbing my hand and leading us to his car.
“My bag,” I urge. He lets go long enough to grab the bag by the bench and comes immediately back to me. He puts my bag in the trunk and we both get into his gorgeous car. Once we get closer to the Old Port, he drives to the back of The Java, parks, gets out of the car, then grabs my duffle out of the trunk and leads me inside the building but through a different door than for his shop. He lives here?
James is acting differently than
ever before. I don't know what the change is, but I like it. He has never touched me like this. Maybe Bren was right. He doesn’t know it, but tonight, he saved me in more ways than one.
James
“You want anything to drink, Kat?”
“No, thank you.”
Staring off into space, much like I found her looking into the ocean, I’m once again worried about her and what is in that head of hers. I pull her into me and lie back against the couch; if she won’t talk, I will hold her until she does. After a few minutes, her body starts to vibrate, and I can feel her wet tears on my chest through my shirt.
“You want to talk?”
She curls into me more and starts to sob. I don’t know what to do or what is wrong so I just brush her hair out of her face and behind her ear. I really like her with this shorter haircut. With my index finger, I lift her chin so she is looking at me, and I kiss her on either side of her eyes while wiping the tears from beneath. I want her to know that I am here, and I want her here since she doesn’t seem to feel wanted. She lifts her hand and touches the side of my face with her palm.
“Why are you so nice to me? I haven’t ever done anything to deserve your kindness.”
“Kat, you don’t have to do anything to deserve it, you don’t even know what you do to me. That first day I saw you at the park, you had me with your innocent eyes. I knew I shouldn’t want you—it wasn’t allowed for me to want you—but you have me crazy, always on my mind, in my head. You would drive me insane every time you came into The Java. I’ve been waiting for this day, the day that I am allowed to feel for you the way I do.”
With a shocked look on her face, she pulls away from me, and I all of a sudden feel cold without her heat next to me.
“What are you talking about? We’re friends. You can’t care for me like that I have nothing to offer you. I am nothing but a screw up. I have no friends now, no home to live in, and so much more you have no clue about. I am damaged goods.”
The Night He Saved Me Page 6
