My Brother's Best Friend (Shay Mooney)

Chapter 11

Dan and I arrive at school in the middle of third period. We sit in his car and listen to the radio until the beginning of break.

We enter the cafeteria and immediately separate, joining our individual groups of friends. I sit down next to Jason at our smally populated table. "Hey babe," he says, kissing my cheek.

"Hi," I respond, leaning my head on his chest. I take a sip of my coffee Dan and I had gotten to go from the breakfast diner.

"Where were you earlier?" Bryan asks.

"Dan and I kind of ditched to go get breakfast," I say. My friends laugh and proceed to have a conversation about who knows what as I sneak glances at Shay across the room. He catches my eye and motions for me to come to him. He then points to the door of the cafeteria.

I understand immediately and exit the building. I'm joined seconds later by Shay Mooney. "Emily, what's going on with Dan?" Shay asks me. "He looks really upset. He's barely talking and he won't say anything about what happened even though I've asked him. What's going on?"

"He and my parents got in a fight this morning about him following some dream of his versus going to college."

"Oh my God."

I notice a large bruise on Shay's left cheek underneath his eye. "What happened?" I ask, stroking his cheek. He winces in pain.

"Nothing," he says, his face falling. He won't allow his eyes to meet mine.

I take his opposite cheek in my hand, forcing his eyes to meet mine. "Shay, what happened?" I ask again in a quiet voice.

"I don't want to talk about it," Shay responds. "I can't talk about it."

Without thinking, I press my lips to Shay's injured cheek. His hands find my waist as I'm embraced in his warmth. His soapy-cologne scent fills my nose. I pull my lips away from his face and wrap my arms around his neck. I bury my face in his neck as he pulls me closer to him.

We stay in our embrace for several long minutes before pulling away. I sweep a loose strand of hair out of Shay's face and run my fingers through his hair. "Did someone do this to you?" I ask.

"It's nothing. It's fine," Shay lies. "Is Dan okay?" he asks in a whisper.

"I don't know. I don't know what's going on with him so I don't know if he's okay or not. I'm sure he'll be fine though. Just please talk to him. He needs support more than anything right now."

The bell rings, symbolizing the end of break. Shay and I quickly let go of each other and back away as students pour out of the building. I meet up with my friend Ashley as Shay finds Dan.

Shay had given me another thing to think about today: what happened to his cheek. How did he get that bruise? And what's going on with my brother?

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A/N: hey guys! This was a short chapter but it's really important...comment what you think of it and what your theories are!