Kylie and Keith survived their... eventful week together.
And, now they're living their life like each other's yin and yang. Balancing each other out, and reigning each other in.
Until, news is heard.
Good news.
Keith gets selected to tour Europe wi...
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(Kylie's POV)
I stared at the screen, trying to hit the call button by sheer will power.
It didn't work.
So, after another 5 whole minutes of debates and pros and cons and finally fabricating a convincing cover story, I hit the call button.
Nerve-racking aeons ticked by until finally Keith picked up.
"Kylie." His tired face filled the screen, and his tired voice sent bolt of warm familiarity into my chest.
"Hey, Keith."
"You had better have an amazing explanation for your absence. You've worried everybody."
I was tempted to hang up the phone there and then, but I took a deep breath and met Keith's eyes through the phone.
"Yeah, I was busy. Some school work." I added a bored look at the end of it to try and convince Keith.
And I thought it had worked, until...
"Hmm. Yeah, so that's exactly why even your parents don't know where you are, am I right?"
My thumb edged closer to the hang-up button.
But, then Keith sighed.
"I'm too tired for this. Forget it."
He looked like he was going to hang up.
"Keith, wait."
"What?"
"I'm sorry."
"Yeah, I'm sorry too."
"How are you?"
"Worried, nervous, anxious, excited... I can go on."
I ignored the first three and jumped straight to the fourth.
"Excited? What's going on?" I asked.
"We're playing our last English game tomorrow. If we win, we'll be at the top of the table."
That was tomorrow?
A pit opened at the bottom of my stomach, reminding me what a bad girlfriend I had actually been.
"I forgot. I'm so sorry, Keith."
"I know you did. But... That's okay." Keith was a very bad liar, and I could tell from the hurt on his face that I had really messed up.
"I really am sorry. I've just... So much has been going on that I..."
"But, that's just it, isn't it? You've not had anything going on! Your school work is falling behind, your friends haven't heard from you, you're coming home later and later every evening- are you even home right now? Nevermind, actually. It's like you've dropped off the face of the earth. And yes, your parents have told me. Everything, Kylie. What is up with you? What's going on? Most importantly, why won't you let anyone in?"
"It's complicated, Keith."
He paused like he was waiting for me to finish, but when I didn't, he didn't look surprised.
"That's it? Okay, fine then. Goodnight, Kylie."
"Good night, Keith." I mumbled, not even sure if he'd heard me.
The call blinked off, and it left me there in the darkness outside the bar.
I wanted to cry. And hit something. And then cry some more. But, I settled with calling a cab so I could head home.
~~~~~~
The whole way home I braced myself for my parents yelling.
Up until today, the latest I'd come home was 11. It had been a semi-easy fix, and my parents didn't get too mad.
But today, I'd gotten extremely, extremely careless.
I slid my key into the lock and turned it. I knew my parents would be up, and so I didn't bother to be quiet about it.
As soon as I walked in, all the eyes in the room were on me.
Keith's mum, my mum, my dad, my brother and my grandmother.
Keith's mum had a look of worry on her face, my dad was torn between anger and worry, my brother was confused and scared, my grandmum looked frantic, and my mum...
She just sat there, staring blankly at me.
"Where have you been?" My father asked quietly.
The quiet before a storm.
"Out." I replied.
That's all it took for my dad to snap. In a second he was a foot away from me, rage burning darkly in his eyes.
"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?! IT'S 4 IN THE GOD-DAMN MORNING!"
I took a deep breath.
"I have been out."
My father's hand dropped down in a slap.
My father only ever hit me when he was really, really angry. And he'd never go so far as to call it abuse. Just a single slap, or maybe in extreme conditions two. But, that was where he'd draw the line. They were just 'You've done something horribly wrong and you need to repent' kind of slap, and both Alex and I understood that.
A gasp sounded around the room when my father's hand never touched me.
In the blink of an eye, my father found himself against the wall, some space away from me.
"Don't touch me." I said, and scanned the room one more time before putting my keys down and stalking towards my room, where I shut the door gently.
