"Please . . . don't cry. You had to have known I'd do this at some point."
***
Parker Sims is the class clown but that doesn't mean he's easy to fool. And that's just what Nola B. is good at - fooling people. She's got the whole school believing th...
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Chapter Thirty-Six:
"Whoa, shots fired!" Caesar said after a moment of silence. He tried to lighten the mood but everyone was on edge after Parker and Claudine took the game to a whole new personal level.
"Come on, Parker," Claudine said, ignoring Caesar's outburst. "We can't continue the game if we have liars among us."
Parker tried to collect his thoughts and control the anger that was coursing through him. He never thought Claudine could stoop that low, but then again Parker knew that he had struck a nerve with her at his turn. But, all reason escaped Parker when he reminded himself that everyone was waiting to see what he would do or say.
"Claudine, I think," Parker began to say but stopped when Nola stood up. He looked at her with confusion in her sudden action, "Nola-"
"I'm gonna get another drink," She quickly said after bending over and grabbing her glass. "Continue the game without me." Nola rushed out the room, not wanting to be in there any longer. To her, the tension was suffocating and it was hard to bear watching Parker scramble for what to say.
Nola knew, before getting up and leaving the dining room, that Claudine wasn't meaning any harm to her by what she had said in her turn. And if Caesar had just gone one with his turn, Nola knew she wouldn't be feeling so ... She didn't even know how to describe how she felt. But, as soon as everyone had not muttered a word and all shifted their sights to Parker, Nola began to feel the as if she couldn't breath.
Entering the kitchen, Nola went over to the sink. She placed her empty drink on the counter and considered what had just happened.
Shaking her head, Nola was sure that Parker didn't have feelings for her.
She was too broken, too damaged.
And, if there ever was a part of Parker that was okay with her being that way ... it wouldn't matter because Nola felt as if she was not ready for a relationship. She couldn't see herself being ready for one until ... The until part caught Nola, she wondered what would be her turning point in which she would be all right with dating someone.
Honestly, Nola didn't know the answer. But, she feared that it would be longer than Parker would be willing to wait because while she might think she's too broken or damaged it didn't discredit the fact that Nola was growing feeling towards Parker. And, if she could see herself with anyone in the future it would be Parker.
He made her feel safe and he was changing her - for the better. As of the moment, Nola knew that was all she needed and wanted...
***
"I'll go talk to her," Claudine said as she got out of her chair.
"I think you have done enough," Parker remarked as he got up, too.
