On The Other Side

Chapter Seven

VIOLET

My phone buzzes in my jean pocket, alerting me that I just received a message. If this were any other instance, I would check it out of habit but I'm already fifteen minutes late for my english class.

It buzzes three times in a row, barely having enough time in between each.

Feeling frustrated and defeated already, I grab it out of my back pocket and continue to the other side of the school. Swiping up, more notifications come in from several different people. Some I have never talked to. Confused as to why I'm getting so many notifications suddenly, I swipe down to go through them all.

10+ messages from Emery !
14+ messages from Unknown
23 missed calls
50+ direct messages

Having a feeling that it's Isabel wanting to be friends again, I place my phone back in my jean pocket and make my way down the English hallway.

Opening the door, over thirty pairs of eyes are on me. Immediately I feel nauseous knowing that everyone's watching me until I take my seat in the back of the room. Taking a deep breath, I walk over the Mr. Gordon's desk and place a late slip on his desk. A scowl covers his face, his forehead full of wrinkles which tells me I'm close to being on his last nerve. Without saying a word to him, I pad across the floor to the back of the classroom.

I slide into my seat, unzipping my bag and taking out my laptop and book. The laptop's bright screen blinds me, having turned the brightness all the way up last night. My blog screen is still open, the writing from the anonymous user still plastered across the screen.

I click the small red 'x' in the top right corner and open a new document instead.

For a couple minutes, I stare at the screen not knowing what I'm meant to write about for my essay. Instead, a notification appears on both my phone and my laptop which snaps me out of the trance I was in.

Switching tabs, I decide I can't ignore the messages forever. My phone buzzes once more before I can log in to check my messages so I instead check my phone.

Emery !: WTF !! Check *link* someone leaked a photo of u in the locker room

Reading that text from Isabel makes my heart sink and my throat begin to close up. Immediately I shut my laptop, shoving it into my bag that sits under my desk before throwing it over my shoulder. Next thing I know, I'm running at full speed down the hallways of Revelstoke Secondary School. The hallways seem endless, the beige brick walls blending together before I suddenly hit something solid.

Before I realize who I've just run into, they immediately cut me off.

"You saw it? You saw it didn't you?" It seems as if those are the only words Elliot Beckett can say right now, as if those are the only words that exist in his vocabulary.

In response though, I slowly nod my head. I feel ashamed that he has seen them, that so many people have already seen them. I continually blame myself for what happened that day, even if I wasn't the one to take the photo. I never believed that she would post them.

Wordlessly, Elliot embraces me into a hug. His hands wrap around the small of my back and gently around the back of my head. Normally, when it comes to hugs I hate them. This time though, the warmth of a body against mine and a scent intoxicating my lungs is the most comforting thing I've felt in a long time.

Slowly, he unwraps his arms from around my and looks at me before gesturing for me to follow him. I hesitate, not knowing where he's going or why he wants to follow me but right now anywhere else is better than in the hallways of this school. I would have no where to go, no one to talk to. For those reasons exactly, I follow Elliot down the hallway and into the foyer.

Minutes later, I was sitting in the passenger seat of Elliot's car while we drove around town. Neither of us said anything, not knowing how to break the silence between us. Ive never liked silence as it was always uncomfortable, fortunately though this was a comfortable silence with almost no tension in the air.

Having nothing else to do, I take out a book from my bag that sits at my feet. The paperback is old and worn, the pages slightly tarnished with a yellow colour to them. Flipping to my page, I begin to read a new chapter.

Suddenly Elliot swerves, nearly driving off of the road and into the ditch. "Fuck.", he mutters over and over again while attempting to pull the car over properly. Eventually he is able to control the car and put it in park. He then looks over at me, remorse in his eyes.

Refusing to look at him, I stare directly out of the windshield at the cars speeding by. I never realized but we were now on a highway, just outside of town.

All of a sudden, Elliot's car feels too small for the both of us even if it's a five seat car. My stomach lurches, making me feel sick. My hand wraps around the car door handle, throwing it open before stumbling out of the car and onto the side of the road. Feeling nauseous, I kneel down before I become sick on the side of the road. Elliot's car door opens and slams in the background and before I even realize, his hand is on my back while the other is holding back my hair. Guilt immediately floods my body, letting him see me like this after not talking for so long.

Turning my body over, I sit back down on the gravel before Elliot does the same. He stares at me, his eyes full of curiosity. Just by looking at him, I can tell that he wants to ask something but decides against it. Instead, he moves closer to me and allows me to lay my head on his shoulder as I slowly drift off. The last words I hear before I enter sleep are from Elliot, broken sentences that only make sense with their key words.

"Glass on the road.. Car slammed on the breaks."

❀

Wiry arms wrap underneath my body before picking me up, my body tilted towards their chest. Feeling the sun shining directly onto my face, I leave my eyes close and act as if I'm still asleep. Heavy steps occur underneath me, my body bouncing against their chest, before I'm placed in the passenger seat of a car.

Opening my eyes, I immediately squint at the sun reflecting off of a truck parked in front of us. The truck immediately registers in my brain as Greyson's, my eyes slowly adjusting before seeing Emery just outside of it. Standing next to her is Greyson himself who is talking to Elliot. He keeps pointing over at Elliot's car, it takes a moment for me to realize that he's pointing to the front tire.

Seconds later, Elliot comes jogging over to the driver side of the car before opening the door and getting it. Turning the key he says, "Tire ended up popping. I called Greyson, he was able to come fix it."

I let out an awkward laugh before asking if he can take me home, noticing the time just above the radio in his car that reads 9:30 P.M. Elliot doesn't say anything, instead he nods and begins the drive back into town.

Arriving into the busiest part of town, Elliot begins to slow down. He impatiently drums his fingers against the leather of the steering wheel. Irritation is apparent on his face so I offer, "If you go down Mable, you can take the side road we used to always take. It's shorter." Even with the simplest sentence, I have managed to make Elliot Beckett smile. At me. I smile back, realizing that maybe he isn't so bad and that I have a new found fondness of Elliot.

Trudging up the driveway, I glance down at the clock on my phone. 9:57 P.M. I breathe a sigh of relief knowing that I still have enough time before my parents begin to question where I've been. My hand meets the coldness of the metal doorknob before a hand meets my shoulder in a rush, turning me around to face them.

Elliot's body is so close to mine that I can hear is breathing, irregular and nervous. I begin to question why he's nervous until my question is answered.

His lips are against mine.

I am kissing Elliot Beckett.

Instantly my breath is taken away, his soft lips against mine before he slowly pulls away. He glances down at me, his green eyes fall to my lips and back up to meet my gaze.

"Goodnight Vi." Elliot smiles brightly before making his way back down my driveway and into his car.