Hide & Seek

Luke

Cathryn looked grateful, but there was a bitterness in her eyes. Without saying another word, she got up and started walking out of the cafeteria.
"Cathryn, wait!" I called and chased after her into the hall. My hand caught her arm and she turned sharply.
"Please, Luke," she begged quietly. "I need to go."
"But-"
"This is why I hide."
And with that she left me standing in the quiet hallway, alone in the dust.

She wasn't in my next few classes, but she was in the last lesson of the day. I tried to grab a seat next to her but they were already taken. I tried to make eye contact with her, but she never looked my way. And when I tried to catch her after school, she ran off quickly and jumped into the car with Reagan. She puzzled me. She wasn't an attention seeker like all the other girls I knew. She didn't know how pretty she was or how sweet her voice was. She understood me even though we'd only met today. If only she'd let me in...

I strolled along the path in the local park, trying to clear my head. I watched two little boys run past me, laughing and poking each other. Then the dad rushed past me and tackled them both to the ground, all a laughing heap on the grass. I remembered when life was that fun and easy. When Dad and I would do everything together while Mum was cooking or baking. Tears started to form but I blinked them away quickly. And that's when I noticed a girl sitting on the bench, holding a book.