Unexpected

Chapter 11

I turned over in my bed and read the clock. It was 4:47am, and I had a little over an hour before I needed to wake up. This weekend flew by pretty quick. I was able to talk my boss into letting me work extra shifts this weekend to keep me from having to go home.

Sure enough, after Friday's little stunt of not coming home, my dad did not go easy with my 'punishment'. I almost couldn't go to work on Sunday because I didn't think I would be able to hide the marks. Luckily, I was able to sneak home on Saturday while my dad was out, probably at a bar no less, and snatched up as much of my clothes and ran to the laundromat. I cleaned my long sleeve turtleneck, so I wore that on Sunday to work.

With the way I am feeling right now, and the pain I am feeling from last night, I think I will need to skip school today. I'm pretty sure I have a cracked rib, since I am having trouble breathing and can barely shift in bed. I know I have a black eye that no amount of makeup is going to hide. I also believe that I may have fractured my ankle when I fell down the stairs.

I'm going to need to get more first aid care, because I cannot waste any more of my money going to the ER again. My dad refuses to give me any of my personal information, especially after I stole it the last time in order to get my drivers license. So, I can't even get any help when I need it, since I can't provide my insurance or even my social security number to look my information up. With that thought, I decided to head to the pharmacy.

I stepped out of the pharmacy and started towards the park across the way. I wasn't paying attention and stepped off the sidewalk almost being hit by this black, 1967 Camaro with racing stripes down the middle. Yes, I knew my classic cars. The driver stopped just an inch from my legs. I let out a breath that I was holding when the car came to a complete stop.

I couldn't see the driver, but I held my hand out apologizing for being so careless. I hastily made my way across the street as the car finally drove away. I know I've seen that car somewhere before, but I couldn't think of where. I was shocked they didn't start honking and cussing at me. Nothing to dwell on, I needed to fix my injuries, no worry of a car I might know or not.

I made my way through the park to the other side where it reaches into a forest. My special spot is a 5-minute walk into the woods, so I continued on past the tree line. I could hear the trickle of water as I got closer. Finally, there in front of me was this small, quiet pond, that just seems so serene with its small waterfall from a creek.

In all my years since discovering it, I have never seen anyone come here. I don't think anyone likes moving past the trees into the woods. That's fine with me. I like the quiet and seclusion. I sat on this perfectly sculpted rock and took off my shoes and socks, then dipped my feet in the water. The cool water will help with the swelling of my ankle. I bask in the peacefulness before I start to treat my wounds.

After a few minutes, I start rummaging through my bag of supplies I just bought and reach for one of the larger ace bandages. I peer around before taking off my shirt. I cringe with the pain of taking my shirt off as I am severely bruised on my torso and back, not to mention, I still think one of my ribs is cracked. I slowly start to wrap my chest and torso as tight as possible in hopes to not shift my rib any more than I need to.

I pull out the other bandage and start to wrap my ankle. I have been limping all morning, so the cool water of the pond really did help my ankle feel a little better. I add ointment to my busted lip and eyebrow, and as I was cracking one of those instant ice packs and started pulling down my shorts over my hip, I heard a noise near the trees on the other side of the pond. I snapped my head up and was staring into mesmerizing emerald green eyes. Xavier was on the other side looking like he was ready to kill someone.

I didn't know what to do, as I was frozen there watching him. What felt like minutes, he finally started moving. For some reason, he was heading over to me. I tried to move to turn away from him and cover myself as best as possible, but the pain was too much, and I doubled over groaning in pain.

He was by my side in a flash, lifting me up gently. He held me bridle style and started to walk back into the woods. I started to protest, first because I was half naked, but second because I didn't want anyone else to see my injuries. "Relax, my car is just behind those two trees, away from the public."

I instantly calmed into his arms. Something about his words and the way he smelled reminded me of something. He had that sweet, woodsy aftershave smell. It smells like what Jason was wearing that night. I wonder if he and his brother share their cologne. "I left all my supplies back on the rock." I wasn't about to waste any of that since I hated spending money when I didn't have to.

"I'll grab it, just sit in my car and try not to move too much." He ran back to the rock once I was situated in the car. It was the Camaro I saw earlier. It was Xavier I ran in front of. That's how he must've known where I was. He also probably saw my face which is why he followed me here. He came back with my bag and handed it to me. He stood there in the doorway of the car staring at me, examining all my injuries and scars. "I know you're not that clumsy, so who did this?"

"Drunks!" That was the first thing that came to mind. I mean, it wasn't all wrong. My dad was drunk when he did this. He looked at me confused. "I was at the diner last night, when some drunks strolled in and got out of hand." He studied me long and hard. I am assuming he was trying to figure out if I was lying or not. I started to get a little uncomfortable when he was looking over my upper body longer than necessary, so I shifted in my seat.

"Why do you avoid my questions?" he asked with an irritated look.

"I didn't avoid your question. I told you what happened. When was another time you asked me a question?"

"The first time I asked what you were staring at in the halls at school." Is this guy for real? He did not ask me that nice and casual.

"You asked 'what the FUCK I was staring at'? I'm pretty sure no one would answer you with that attitude."

"The next time was at my house during the party." Damn, I was avoiding that one.

"It was no big deal, so I didn't want to dwell on it. Why do you care anyways? Remember, I'm just some 'freak girl'!" his jaw clenched at the mention of my unconventional nickname I was given at school.

"Maybe I was just trying to be nice. After All, it was a party at my house, and I would hate to think someone leaves unhappy." I still didn't see why he concerned himself with one girl out of the hundreds he had inside his home. I was lost in thought when he snapped his fingers in my face. "I asked if you wanted me to take you ho.."

"NO!" He jerked back with my response. I didn't want him to start asking questions about that too. "I'm supposed to be at school right now, and my parents are home, so they would know I ditched. Plus, I have work tonight, so I was planning on hanging out until it was time to go to work."

"Your boss is still making you come into work even after what happened to you while at work?" I didn't think about that one. My boss wasn't that heartless. In fact, he has helped me in more ways than one.

"Well, I need the money because I am saving for college. I'm not that bad. Just a little sore, nothing I can't brush off and move forward." He looked at me skeptically but responded anyway.

"Fine. Since I decided to ditch, we can be stuck together until you have to go to work." Well shit, so much for that.