Always

Chapter 7

The next couple of classes crawled by.  I was dreading going to lunch and sitting with my friends, worried they’d have more to say about Harry and how they thought he should be treated.  The last thing I felt like doing was sit there and listen to their ignorant bullshit. 

When the bell announcing lunch rang, I trudged to the cafeteria.  After standing in line alone and getting my food, I reluctantly turned to go sit at my usual table.  Haley and Jack were the first ones there, wrapped up in their own world that included only each other.  Sitting down next to Haley, I silently started eating, still very annoyed about what had happened that morning.  As the rest of the group finally sat down, Colt missing again, no one seemed to notice, or maybe care, that I wasn’t saying much. 

Even though I knew he wasn’t there, I couldn’t help but glance around the room searching for Harry.  I was disappointed nonetheless when I found no sign of him.  All I could think about was him, eating alone in the library in his little book cave.  Thinking about him up there alone while I sat not talking to my friends only made me want to leave the table to go find him.  I didn’t, however.  I wasn’t sure if he’d even want me to, to be honest.  Maybe he chose to sit up there so he could be alone and I would be invading his private space.  I didn’t want to push myself on him.  Soon enough, the bell rang.  The rest of the day passed without event or any sign of Harry.  I tried not to let the disappointment get to me as I made my way out to my car to head home. 

As I sat waiting for traffic to move in the parking lot, I caught sight of his lanky frame passing through parked cars, trying to make his way to his own.  He was walking in front of a line of unmoving, waiting cars when I saw him suddenly jump away from the car he was near, running into the car behind him and dropping his bag on the tar.  He looked startled as he bent to pick up his things.  I knew what must have happened; whoever was driving the car he passed must have lurched at him, trying to scare him, and I knew exactly who would pull such a dangerous and childish stunt. 

I’d seen him do it several times before- I used to laugh with him, finding it hilarious.  Now it made me sick.  Fuming, I slammed my car into park, not caring that it was in the middle of a slowly moving line, and jumped out.  Angrily marching towards where Harry stood, still trying to recover, I saw the black sports car I was looking for. 

Sure enough, Colt sat behind the wheel, reeling with laughter as he nudged the tiny blonde girl in the passenger seat, clearly pleased with himself.  I all but ran up to his window and smacked it as hard as I could, making him jump inside the car.  He turned his grin to me and rolled down the window, still laughing.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?  You could have hurt him!” I shouted.             

“Oh please, I barely did anything,” he scoffed, still not bothering to hide his laughter. 

“God, you’re such an asshole. How anyone stands to be around you is beyond me,” I sneered.  All I wanted to do was take a baseball bat to his precious car and face and do as much damage as humanly possible. “I told you to leave Harry alone and I wasn’t fucking kidding.”

 “Joey the Crusader now, eh? What’s the deal, you promise to blow him in exchange for him doing your homework?  Pathetic, Jo,” he snarled back, cocky grin still plastered on his face.

“Stay away from him, Colt, I mean it,” I threw back, ignoring his insult to me before walking away from the car window.  I hurried towards Harry, who had finally made it out of the way on the side and grabbed his arm.

“Are you okay, Harry?” I asked.

“I’m fine, Joey, he didn’t even touch me,” he replied.  Red tinted his cheeks, embarrassed.  Embarrassed because of Colt, or because I had come to his rescue for the second time that day, I didn’t know.

“I’m sorry he’s such a dick.  I don’t know why he seems to have it out for you,” I was still seething from my interaction with Colt.  I released his arm and stared into his green eyes, seeing my own reflection in his glasses. 

“I’m serious, it’s fine.  It happens all the time.”

“That’s bull, it shouldn’t.”

“But it does.”

I huffed out a breath, upset that he wasn’t more upset.  It was as if he was used to it.  “Well, not if I can help it.”  He just shrugged at me, looking almost indifferent.  “Look, I have to go or I’ll be late for work, but I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay,” he replied, an unreadable expression on his face before turning from me yet again and walking away, leaving me standing on the concrete.