Soft Spot

T E N

As a kid I would dress up in all of my moms fancy dresses. I loved wearing her jewelry and trying on her heels. It made me feel like her, and that made me happy. My father always said that it was the cutest thing in the world, me trying to be like my mother. As I stood in front of my mirror, with one of my many elegant dresses on, I couldn't help but think of my father. I knew if he was here he'd be telling me how beautiful I looked and how I looked just like my mother.

"Kat, are you ready?" My aunt Gina asked as she walked over to me. She smiled, laying her hands on my shoulders "You look lovely Katherine." She whispered, before walking away. I bit my lip and took one last look before turning around and following her. Tonight is my birthday dinner, my mom, Gina, the girls, Kevin and Lucas are all coming. They're going to meet us at the restaurant. On the way there, my mom and Gina were talking about my father and how he wished he could make it but couldn't. I know he's still mad at me for disobeying him, and for yelling at him. I hadn't apologized because what he did was wrong, he should be the one apologizing. He can't go around telling me who I can and can't hang out with. That's for me to decide, and only me. I was relieved when we finally pulled up to the restaurant. I didn't have to hear my mother feeding my aunt Gina lies anymore. I walked in and immediately the girls hugged me, wishing me a happy birthday.

"Did Kat tell you she got accepted into our schools ballet class? It's one of the best in New York." Angel said proudly, giving me a wink. I rolled my eyes and smiled.

"Oh my god honey that's great! Why didn't you tell me?" My mom asked, looking at me happily.

"I just didn't want you to get your hopes up in case I didn't get in. It's no big deal." I shrugged

"Are you kidding? Kat you're like one of the best dancers ever." Gina scolded me, "after all you did learn from the best."

"I'm a ballerina not a dancer, Gina. There's a difference." I muttered, sipping my glass of water. Gina always talks like she's the one who taught me to dance, when really all she did was take me to my first ballet practice. She wouldn't know the difference between hip-hop and ballet. "I think I'm going to step outside for a bit, get some fresh air." I excused myself before getting up and walking out. I hated celebrating my birthday. It was the most dreadful time of the year. Every year I try to convince my mom not to take me out but she insists, and if it makes her happy I go along with it.

"What are you doing out here?" A voice said. I turned around and saw Jason sitting on a bench against the wall. I shrugged and sat beside him, sighing loudly. He chuckled and looked away from me. "What's wrong poke-a-dot?"

"Poke-a-dot?" I raised my eyebrow staring at him as if he just grew another head.

"What Nathan's the only one that can call you by a nickname?" He defended. I rolled my eyes and looked away, leaning my head on his shoulder.

"It's been a long day Jason, I don't want to talk about Nathan or nicknames." I was so tired, I could fall asleep right on his shoulder. This day took a turn for the worst. My birthday always wears me out, all I want to do is sleep. I also drank a bit of Ginas drink, which wasn't just "punch".  I know that me and Jason are nowhere near close enough for me to be this close to him, but at this moment I didn't care. I was so tired I just needed a break from my aunt and my birthday.

"Do you want me to take you home?" He asked lightly, and I nodded silently, but didn't move. I felt him grab my body, and pick me up carrying me to his car.

"Wait but what were you even doing here?"

"It doesn't matter." He shrugged, setting me in the passenger seat. I could feel my eyes closing and it was getting harder for me to keep them open. I grabbed my phone and sent Natalie a message to tell her to just meet me back at my house. After that I let my eyes close, and fell asleep.

"Penguin, penguin wake up." I could feel my body being shaken, but that's not what woke me up. What woke me up was the name being used to try and wake me. 'Penguin', only one person called me that.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I snapped as I sat up, looking at Nathan.

"You texted me to meet you." He scoffed, moving my feet so he could sit beside me on my couch. I just realized that I was laying on my couch, and not in Jason's car. I frowned and looked at Nathan like he was crazy. I didn't ask him to meet me here, nor would I ever.

"No I didn't."

"Yes you did"

"No, I didnt."

"Yes, you did." He grabbed his phone and showed me the message that I texted him.

From Penguin: meet me at my house Nat

"Oh my god, that was for Natalie." I muttered, grabbing my phone to see that I had 5 missed calls from my mom, 2 from Gina and a bunch of texts from the girls. I texted them that I was at home and I was just going to go to bed. "I'm sorry I didnt mean to make you come all this way." I said, standing up. I suddenly felt super weak and fell back down. Nathan grabbed me quickly, asking if I was okay.

"I'm fine, honestly. I just stood up to fast." I muttered, moving away from him. Being close to Nathan made me want to gag. It wasn't anything personal, he just stunk. He put his hand on my head and scoffed.

"You're not fine, you're sick. You need to lay down and get some rest." He told me, grabbing the blanket on my couch and covering me up. I'm no idiot, the red eyes and the bad smell, I knew he was high. The only time Nathan Black is ever nice to me is when he's high.

"Nathan please just go, I'll be fine." I mumbled, rolling over to face the opposite direction. I wasn't going to be the girl he goes to when he's high. I'm not a toy to use when he's feeling playful. He sighed before I heard footsteps, and the door opening and closing. I closed my eyes, falling fast asleep.

I woke up to someone knocking on my door, well more like banging. My head was killing me, it felt like someone was banging on it from the inside. I groaned and stood up slowly, balancing myself as I walked to the door. I opened it to see Nathan standing there, glaring at me. He smelt like cinnamon and his eyes were his normal color. Great, he isn't high.

"What Nathan?" I groaned, rolling my eyes. He brushed past me and walked into my kitchen. "Sure, you can come in." I mumbled, shutting the door behind him.

"I saw you with Jason yesterday." He snapped, glaring at me. I stood by the wall, holding the counter for support. I felt incredibly light headed and my chest felt like it was throbbing.

"Yeah, so?"

"You know he's just playing with you, right? He'd never like a girl like you." He sneered, taking a few steps closer to me.

"Aw, are you jealous?" I tried joking, but my words came out slurred. The room felt like it was starting to spin. My face was getting hot, and my headache worse.

"Of course not, what's there to be jealous about?" He chuckled humorlessly, rolling his eyes at me. I opened my mouth to say something back, but closed it quickly when I felt like I was going to be sick. I put my hand over my mouth, my eyes watering.

"Uh, Katherine?" Nathan frowned, watching me as I attempted to walk to the sink. I couldn't walk straight, I felt like the ground was splitting into two. The next thing I knew I was on the floor, with Nathan leaning over me. My head was banging, and I felt the need to sleep more than ever. So that's what I did, I closed my eyes and fell asleep.