Unpredictable

Chapter 9

"Park." I basically growled. "Hey you ran into me! No need to be snarky!" I sighed. "You're right. I'm sorry." I responded. "Ha!" He laughed, quick and sharp, all in one breath. "Never thought I'd hear those words come out of your mouth." He tried to stand up, but the way we fell kept him entangled with me, and he hit the ground again, also causing me to hit my head. "Ow!" I cried. Strangely, he had cried out too, so I looked at him. He had a small cut on his right temple, but when you cut your head it bleeds a lot no matter how deep it's cut. Blood started to run down his so-called perfect face. "You're cut." These words didn't come out of my mouth. They came out of his. "Where?" I asked, always calm in medical situations. "Your left temple." I groaned. "Great, now we'll have matching scars." We were both laying on the ground, facing each other. He looked confused. "You're cut on your right temple." I explained. There was no one around us, his friends had deserted us and class must've started.

"Okay, we can get out of this. I've always been good at knots." I said. He rolled his eyes. "Great, if only we had some string for you to tie knots with." His deep voice drooled sarcasm. I narrowed my eyes. "You know if my hands were free I'd slap you across the face. No you idiot, we're in a big jumble of arms and legs, I'll be able to get us out of here. Plus, we need it. Your cut is still bleeding and mine probably is too." He complied, but he didn't look happy about it.

"Your left leg is entangled with my right one, and your foot is caught under my waist. I'm going to try to lift my body, then get your foot out from under me and pull your leg free." I instructed. We did it, and eventually got free after 2 minutes. "Oh thank the Lord!" I exclaimed. I felt my temple. Slightly scabbed over, still bleeding a bit. I guessed his was doing the same. "Here, I have something." I took an old tank top out of my backpack that had fallen off of me when I ran into him. "Rip this shirt from here, to here." I made a line with my finger down the middle of the shirt. "Um, why?" I rolled my eyes. "We're both still bleeding a little. Just do it!" I commanded. He scoffed. "Whatever Nike." I glared at him as he ripped the shirt in one swift movement of his arms. I barely caught the muscles in his arms contracting.

"Thank you sir!" I said, snatching up the two pieces. I pressed one to my temple. I gave one to him and instructed him to do the same. He held it to the wrong part of his face, and there was still a blood stream on his cheek. "No, just... Ugh let me do it." He seemed to know he was doing it wrong, and trusted me enough to at least clean up his precious face. He sat criss-cross, and I folded my legs underneath me, sitting on his right side. I put my own half of the shirt down and took his. I began to dry his wound.

"Who would've thought we would have been fine after the fall, but cut our heads on the sidewalk after we were on the ground?" He laughed, and for the first time it sounded like a real laugh. Not like the ones he fakes to girls in the halls, not like the ones he did with his mom and I, not like any of the fake ones he has done. It was a real, true, hearty laugh. And, in that moment, I wanted with all my heart to make him laugh like that again. He didn't answer my question, so I continued. "I mean, it's obvious I would've done this, but you?" He quirked an eyebrow. "Why is it so obvious for you?" I was still cleaning his face when I answered. "Have you not seen me? I'm the clumsiest person in the world! I trip on the flat tile in the school all the time." A real laugh again. I smiled this time, a real smile to go with his real laugh. He stopped laughing when he saw my smile, so I stopped smiling. I cleared my throat and stood. "Let's go to the nurse. You may possibly need stitches." I held my hand out, which at first he ignored. "You do too." I rolled my eyes. "I'm more worried about you. Come on." It was the first real conversation we had, it even showed the slightest bit of emotion. He finally took my hand, and I put my weight into helping him up. He got on his feet, and we let go and walked to the nurses.

No stitches. Just band aids. Also kind of weird we had the same cut, just different temples, but oh well. We walked out of the nurses at the same time, surprisingly just as Rowan was walking by. She saw our bandages and looked mad. "How dare you!" And with that, she kicked him in the shin. He fell to the ground. Hey Rowan rode horses, legs of steel. But this time, this one time, Park didn't do anything. I covered my mouth, both from shock and trying not to laugh. "Rowan he didn't do this! This was my fault!" I said all this with a big grin on his face. She got a look of guilt. "Oh. Whoops?" She shrugged and helped him up by the elbow. "I thought you were the only crazy one. But no, your friends are crazy too." Her guilt vanished, and she got in his face. "I will break your leg." I grabbed her elbows and dragged her back. "I'm sorry for running into you Park. Look over your shoulder for me next time hmm?" He rolled his eyes, but he was hiding a smile.