Sweetheart

Caught

My head snapped up and I froze, stock still. Slowly, I shifted my vision over to where Logan's finger was directed, between the now closing door and the marble counter. I immediately recognized the person, holding a newspaper and reading off the menu. Blue suit, familiar wrinkles, close- cropped hair. It was, indeed, Dad. My eyes involuntarily closed shut. Logan's hand gripped around mine.

"Okay, before dad heads here, I'm going to run into the restroom. You take this newspaper," I handed him a sports section lying on a neighboring booth,"Hold it in front of your face so he doesn't see you. Got it?"

He nodded and opened the paper, blocking my vision of him, and ultimately, my dad's. If he were to look at him. I glanced at dad one last time to make sure he wasn't looking our way. Luck was on our side, thankfully. Don't jinx it, Rhea!

He was speaking to Luke- probably ordering food. Then, I mentally calculated the distance from here to the restroom. Close enough. Inhaling, I readied myself, then took off. Luckily, I didn't trip on the carpet. My feet pounded across the short carpet, producing a slapping sound. I slammed into the door of the bathroom, which opened suddenly, due to force. Stumbling inside, I slammed the door shut and with my back against the wood, I sank down to catch my breath. Needless to say, I was not an athlete. After a few moments had passed by, I felt the familiar feeling of stares on me. Ugghh.

Three pairs of eyes were on me. But that wasn't what shocked me. It was the fact that they were boys. "You have got to be kidding me!" I groaned out, knocking my head back against the door. "Oww. That hurt!" My face scrunched up in pain and my fingers clasped the back of it.

The boys smirked at each other, sneaking glances at each other every so often. "Go ahead, laugh. You know you want to."

Slowly rising up as they laughed, I grasped the handle and tried to escape their mocking smiles. Unfortunately, my nose smashed into a wall. Or more accurately, a person. Dad.

His eyes slowly turned to slits while his pale skin turned red with anger, then purple in fury. His jaw clenched in intimidation. I shuffled back, giving Dad a timid smile. "Hey, Dad."

Rhea, seriously? You already jinxed it.

His face then drained of the purple, turning deathly pale. I inhaled sharply. Who knew he could be so scary? Dad moved towards me while I took a step back.

I impulsively yelled, "LOGAN!"

Logan's head snapped up, his eyes swiveling towards my voice. As soon as he noticed my dad, he jumped up and grabbed me, hauling me out into the cold air. I could only follow him, my mind spinning in a frenzy. With one last glance, I noticed dad still frozen in shock at our escape. "Logan! Why did you do that?" I snatched my arm from his grasp, holding it close to me. "Dad's going to kill me! You, of all people, should know that." I stepped into the passenger seat of the car and slammed the door.

"I'm sorry, Rhea. It just felt like the right thing to do at the moment," he sighed, starting up the car, just as Dad burst out of the shop.

"Fine, just hurry! I don't want him to catch me now!"

He pulled out of the narrow space, then turned right onto the deserted main road.

"Let's get back to school. We've got about ten minutes."

Logan's eyebrows furrowed in surprise. "Now? I thought we were ditching?"

"What? We have to get back before second period. I don't wanna miss school!"

He sighed, "Rhea, let's just skip today. I mean, your dad knows you're not at school now. Why not just skip?"

"Do you hear yourself, Logan? If we skip today, how are we supposed to learn? If we don't learn, we'll get bad grades. If we get bad grades, then we'll never graduate, or go to college, or get a job. Or have a happy life!" I threw my hands up in the air for emphasis.

He stared at the road in shock at my outburst. After five whole silent minutes, I pursed my lips. "Okay we'll ditch."

"Are you sure? That was quite a scene," He narrowed his eyes at me in skepticism. "I'm not going to force you to ditch if you don't want to."

I sighed. "Logan, that's sweet, but if we go back now, what about Ms. Grant? She'll report us anyway, so why bother going back now?" I'd just thought about this during the five minutes after my outburst.

"Don't worry, I already took care of that."

"Huh? What did you do? Please tell me you didn't do anything too bad!" I really hoped he hadn't. I think I'm already too involved in his ways, with the ditching and detention!

"I just called the school while you were in the restroom. I posed as my mom and then told them I wouldn't be there. Same with you and your dad," He explained.

"What if Ms. Grant tells them what really happened," I asked. "She'll definitely do that."

He chuckled awkwardly saying, "Uh, I don't think she'll be doing that." Sweat beads formed at the top of his forehead and the nape of his neck. Hmmm.

I raised an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't she?" Really, she had no reason not to tell... or so I thought.

"I uhh, might'veblackmailedherintonottelling," he babbled.

"I'm sorry, could you please repeat that?" I gave him a strange look, my eyebrows furrowed and my eyes widened. He sighed and clenched his hands around the steering wheel.

"I blackmailed her into not telling anyone about our ditching." He paused for a moment before continuing, "I'm sorry, but that was the only way I could think of." The car was deathly silent for a few moments as we turned into the driveway of his brotther's house. I hadn't realized that was where we were going.

Now, I wasn't sure what to make of this. What should I tell him? What did he even blackmail her with, anyway? I decided to ask him this. In a quiet voice, I asked, "What did you use to blackmail her with?"

Logan's lips rolled into his mouth in contemplation. Finally, he pulled in to the driveway and unbuckled his seatbelt, sliding his cellphone out of his pocket. He flicked open the lock screen, and opened up a picture. It was the most recent one taken. I quickly realized which one it was. The one he'd taken after Ms. Grant went down. Oh dear.

Logan tilted the screen towards me, allowing for better vision. It was, indeed, her. She was laying flat on the floor, her limbs everywhere. It was definitely a picture that nobody would want leaked of themselves. Her clothes were rumpled and askew, causing more... skin... to show. "Logan!" I stressed his name in a groan. "Seriously? We'll get in big trouble for this!" I put my head in my hands, covering my forehead and eyebrows.

He snapped the cellphone shut saying, "Not if we get caught!" My heart lurched at this. He said it as if he had not a care in the world!

"Don't you feel even the tiniest bit guilty? I mean, can't we go to jail for blackmailing a school official?" This time, I was panicking when that thought came to mind. My palms were sweaty and my stomach twisted, coiling around like a snake. No, make that a hundred snakes.

"Sweetheart, if we got caught, I'd take full responsibility for it. You have nothing to worry about. And as for the guilty thing... It's only a matter of experience." He slid out of the car after opening the door. Experience? He'd done this before? It gave me the chills realizing how little I knew about him.

Sorry, guys! My laptop broke so I had to update late:( Not sure how many actually waited though! Soo, Logan's mysterious, isn't he? Why do think he is? Thank you so much for reading!<3 U!

PS. Comment what team/ country you're rooting for in the Olympics right now! #TeamUSA!