Saving Peyton

Who Said Charity Events Were Boring?

Chapter Eight

I stay rooted to my spot. What was he doing here? Avoiding his question, I shoot him a question back, hoping that he would drop his question. "Harrison, what are you doing here?" I force a smile, granted I had no clue why I was forcing a smile.

He steps toward me, concern and irritation evident in his facial expression. "Well seeing as I got a call from your parents saying you just took off without telling anybody where you were going, you had me worried sick. So I came here to wait for you and make sure you're okay."

Oh, that's why. "I'm sorry to cause everyone such worry, I just needed space after that shocking revelation," I bite the last words out and shoot a pointed look at my parents. My mother looks away, but my father continues to just look at me.

"Now if y'all excuse me, there is a charity event today, and I need to get ready," I push past all of them and head up the stairs. My heart nagged at the feeling of being so rude to Harrison, but right now I was upset that he never answered his phone when I needed him most, and then he just shows up, like the loving, caring boyfriend he is, but I needed that last night. Not now. Now it's too late.

Peeling Mac's clothes off of me, I toss them on my beige colored couch in my room. I walk into my bathroom and turn on the shower and step in. Letting the warm water cascade over my tense muscle, I let my mind wander back to the events of last night and earlier this morning.

Did Mac have a girlfriend? Was that her? Do they still hookup?

Instantly, I scold myself for the last thought. Why should it matter if they hookup or not? He's not my boyfriend, therefor it's none of my concern.

When the water starts to turn cold, I turn off the shower, step out and wrap a towel around me. Throwing my wet hair into a messy bun, I clean my face. Drying my body off, I put on a pair of white lace underwear and a matching bra, curtesy of Victoria Secret. I don't bother to put on my bathrobe as I blow dry my hair. After finishing blow drying, I take my curling iron out and put some soft waves into my hair, giving my hair a more vintage look. Next, I apply my makeup, making sure that's it's not too thick.

Studying my reflection in the mirror, I give myself the nod of approval before heading off to my closet to find a suitable dress for the charity event. After a good 30 minutes of contemplating, I settle for a pencil dress that was a soft shade of pink on the sides and white on the front and back, with a little bit of black separating the pink from the white. Pairing that with my gold Jack Roger shoes and a pink chunky necklace, I decide I look good enough to present myself to the people downstairs. I couldn't even call them my family as of right now.

Walking down the stairs, I hear voices drifting upwards. In a hushed tone I hear my 'mother's' voice, "Darling, you're going to leave me with her? Alone? She probably hates me right now."

"That's preposterous, Peyton doesn't hate you, or me for that matter. She's just upset with us right now, and she has every right to be." my 'father' tries to reassure her. My 'mother' just sniffles in response.

Then, I hear Harrison's voice come in, "What do you want me to do? How can I help her?"

My father answers, "Just be there for her. And I promise, she was just at her aunt's house last night. Those were her cousin's old clothes."

Harrison just grumbles in response. I clear my throat as I take the last few steps, everyone turns to look at me. A tense silence fills the air. "The limo is waiting, we should go," my 'mother' speaks, not looking at me at all. Harrison says nothing, but offers me his arm. Hesitantly, I take it. My 'father' waves goodbye as we walk to the awaiting limo. Something told me that this was going to be far from another boring charity event.