The Girl With the Cross

Chapter 24: Sarah

  I wake up peacefully before Dad comes in my room. After the beach with Tyler last night, he brought me home and I collapsed onto my fluffy blue bed, absolutely exhausted. We raced along the sand, letting the waves barely tickle our feet-- my was it wonderful. I slowly begin to drift off again, thinking about the wonderful experience. I snap awake though when Dad opens my door and calls my name in a relatively soft voice. 

  "Morning sweetie," He says nicely, "let's get ready for school."

  I jump up with a bit of glee and get dressed in my loose Mickey Mouse T-shirt and skinny jeans, then brush my hair. I absolutely love it when my hair does what I want it to and actually behaves. I untangle my cross necklace and put it on right around my small neck, like always. It hits me again how much I want him to be called mine . . . how I want to be called his . . . two more days until it can be official. I can already feel his warmth seep into my body when I think of him . . . just two more days.

  "Snap out of it Mrs. James." My dad jokes, lightly pushing me to move down the stairs. I laugh, enjoying that last name, although it's not mine.

  As I sit in the car waiting to leave, I can see Tyler talking to someone and I bet that it's his father because of the unsteadiness in his motions and his similar hair color. I can hear that they're yelling at each other but then his dad must say something that shuts Tyler up. I suddenly feel a desperate need to run out to him and hold him, but it wouldn't make anything much better so I take a deep breath and sit still. I watch him aggressively wipe a tear from his face, then he looks up to see me so I quickly turn away and my dad walks out the front door just in time. 

  "Hey, honey. Sorry I took so long: I was . . ." He rants on about something but I really can't pay attention and I can't move. All I can think about and all I can see is Tyler--the pain on his face.

  "Okay, let's get to school." He takes a sip from his coffee cup and backs out of the driveway.

    My heart plummets as Tyler watches our car drive to school as if he's pleading that I take him with me, away from his dad.

  "Sarah, I really want you to learn that boys like Tyler are players, and I don't want you to learn the hard way. They pretend to love you more than anything, they twist up your mind and then all of the sudden, you turn the corner and they're with another girl. He's not really in love with you Sarah." He says, sounding as genuine as anyone can while saying something like that.
  "Maybe I don't want you to save me, Dad. If he didn't love me then he would've dumped me by now. I really don't care what you think." I say, confidently. He stays silent for a moment but finally speaks.
  "You shouldn't speak to me in that manner." 

  The car ride is dead silent until I get to school.