Her Absent Memory

Chapter Nine

I emerge from my heavily steamed bathroom and am instantly covered in goosebumps. I shiver and plop down on my bed, trying to find motivation to put on clothes. I lie there for a moment and contemplate my options, but I just don't care enough to get dressed. Instead, I turn my TV on and browse the channels for a movie to watch. I settle for some old beach movie and begin to catch myself drifting off about ten minutes in. Before I know it, I'm out cold.

It doesn't last long, though, as I'm awoken by the sound of knocking on the little window above my bed. I stand up on my bed and look out, coming face to face with Riley. I yell out in surprise and fall back down on my bed. My hands fumble for my towel and I wrap myself up frantically. Riley squeaks the tiny window open and pushes herself through. She falls face first onto my bed and begins laughing as she sits up.

"Hiya," She pinches my cheek.

"Riley! What are you doing?" I whisper-scream.

"I got bored. And I missed you a little. So I came here." She shrugs.

I can't stay mad at her. I curl up against her, still clutching my towel in one hand. She begins brushing my damp strands of hair behind my ear.

"I'm sorry about earlier."

"Hey, no worries. I know how girls like that can be," Riley says quietly.

"She's a lot worse than I thought." I sigh.

"Figures. Word at school is that her parents are splitting up. That really messes a kid up. Messed me up for sure," She explains.

"Your parents are separated?" I lift my eyebrows.

"Yeah. The lady who lives with us is his girlfriend. She's almost as much of a deadbeat as my old man. My mom left him because he was beating her. I was an accident that happened when the two of them were in high school. Junior year came along and so did I. Mom didn't want her life to go to waste, so one night she left the house and never came back." Riley mumbles.

"Riley..." I say softly.

"That's why I figure that I can live care-free. I feel like if I'm a mistake, I can do whatever I want. I feel guilty about her leaving every day, like it was my fault... It's just stupid... Life, I mean." She continues with tears forming in her eyes, "I act like nothing bothers me but I'm dying. I'm scared and I feel helpless and I'm surrounded by so many people but I still feel lonely. I do all of this stupid shit to distract myself, but it only works for a while. I've never even told anybody this, so I'm not sure why I'm telling you... Sorry to dump this on you..."

I pull her into a tight hug and rub her back. She buries her face into my shoulder and tries to collect herself. I just wait it out and hold her tight. After a while, she pulls back and wipes at her eyes. She looks at me and takes a quick breath.

"I just want to tell you that I like you. I know you're confused right now and this is probably such a bad time to tell you, but I like you, Sutton. I haven't known you long, but there's just something about you..." Riley laughs nervously, "It's scary as fuck."

"I... I..." I try to find words, but I'm at such a loss.

"And I understand if you don't like me back. It's just that I really needed to get that off of my ch-" I throw my arms around her neck and push her onto her back, closing the space between our lips.

Sparks strike me right in the chest as Riley kisses me back, her hands finding my waist. It feels like an eternity has passed by the time we pull apart. She smiles at the ceiling, still lying on her back. I roll over beside her and look down at her. She's so adorable, she almost seems unreal.

"That went better than expected..." She finally says, "But, uh, what does that mean?"

"It means I want to try." I respond.

"Try what?" Riley asks.

"I want to try being with you," I say quietly, "But-But not like right now... After a few dates and stuff."

"Oh, of course, absolutely! Anything for you." Riley says excitedly, "Also... I can see your boobs."

My face turns bright red and I snatch the blankets and pull them over me, "Get out!" I squeak.

"Only if I can see you tomorrow," She says defiantly.

"Yes, you can. Now get your butt out of here!" I point at the window.

She climbs out and then pokes her head in, "Goodnight, Sutton."

"Goodnight, Riley." I smile.