Two Negatives Make A Positive (ON HOLD)

Chapter Eight - Secrets

Chapter Eight

{Mason's POV}

Mason spent all night thinking about that almost kiss he had not exchanged with Terra. Honestly, he didn't know what gave him the courage to pull her against him. Even less, try and kiss her. She'd looked so surprised and shocked that Mason would have pushed her away, had she not put her hands on his shoulders. He could never understand this girl's mood swings.

First, she hates him and picks on him. Then, she gets all sexy-like and tries to seduce him into going to a party on Friday. Next, she's the nice, kind, cute girl that he'd always wanted. All in just one day. Forget whatever he said about dinner dates. This night was a date. And he'd went on a date with the most nagging, adorable, popular girl in school.

Who knew his middle name.

How could Terra possibly keep up with this love-hate relationship they had going on? Mason was sure now that he wouldn't ever be able to stop blushing in the midst of Terra Miller. Let alone get the adoration in his eyes to stop sparkling every time they looked at each other. Frenemies just wasn't working out for Mason. All in half a week, he'd gotten his very first crush; whom he couldn't understand anything about.

Truth was, he very much liked Terra Miller. The one she actually was, and not the fake one at school. He'd always dreamed of the perfect girl that would get his mind away from his studies to focus on something else other than school. And that girl, was Terra Miller.

Then again, Mason couldn't help but think that maybe she was just doing a dare of some sort. A lot of people liked to pick on him. Just because he liked school, and he liked to read and write. What they didn't know is why.

His little sister developed cancer when she was just six years old. She's been in the hospital for three years, waiting for a sign that she can ever go out again. His mother worked at the hospital full-time, always on call, to bring in the money that her family desperately needed. Mason worked part-time at the hospital, on call as well. They both worked there for more than one thing: to help the injured, and to be at their relative's side if something went wrong.

His father left when he was three, saying he couldn't live with them anymore. Mason never knew the real reason, or if that was the real reason, he left them. Once his mother found out she was pregnant with a third child, she called his father. But he never came back.

Once Mason grew up, with the thought of his sister in mind, he decided to take up two part-time jobs. Mark gave some of his income monthly to them, but even he had his own bills to pay. Mason felt that it was his need to be the man of the house. His mother was gone almost everyday, and there wasn't any work getting done around the house. They all went to their work and school. But Mason constantly worried about his sister, even though there was a babysitter taking care of her late into the night.

His worries became true one day when the babysitter called, crying her eyes out. Her voice was urgent over the noise in the background. She said his sister woke up, screaming. She said that she couldn't get a hold of his mother, or Mark. Once he got there, he made it just when the ambulance was pulling away.

Driving to the hospital was the worst pain Mason could be in. He never knew what was going on with his sister. Plus he was only fifteen, so he was breaking the law by driving without a parent. He tried to get a hold of Mark and his mom, but they didn't answer, as per before.

"What's going on?" Mason said as he followed the stretcher inside.

"Sir, I need you to step back." One of the EMT's responded with no help whatsoever.

"Please, I'm her brother!" He pleaded urgently, tears stinging his eyes. Even then, she was hidden from his view. "What happened?" He pushed groggily through the crowd, walking to the front desk. No way was he going to get permission to see her. Though he was a hospital tenant, he didn't ever get to do big roles such as this one. But someone could...

"Where's my mom?" He asked the front desk. Mason knew this lady.

"Sandra is currently in surgery. You are going to have to wait, Mason."

"No!" He tugged on his hair, wanting more than ever to be doing something useful. The lady seemed shocked by his outburst. "I need her now! Is there any way you can send her a message?"

"Why? Mason are you feeling all right? Do you need to lie down?"

"No! It's my sister. Something happened, but I don't know. She's here, but I don't know where. Please..."

"I'll try my best. Just sit down and call any other relatives." That's exactly what he did. He called his grandparents and his aunt. They were the only people to respond, and were on their way. Mark called back after the longest time, and Mason had a fury attack.

"Why the hell aren't you answering your phone?"

"Calm down, Mason. I was doing something."

"You mean someone." He heard the growl on the other end, which mean it was an affirmative.

"What do you want?"

"It's Iris. I'm at the hospital. If you're not here in ten minutes, you're gonna regret it." Hanging up at that moment felt like the right thing to do. Even if it wasn't.

***

"Who was that, Mason?" Sandra said, waving at Terra as she pulled away. Mason stalked into the house. He wanted nothing more than to sleep it off.

"She told you. Terra Miller." He said passively. His mother had more things to worry about than if he had a girlfriend or not. Besides, it wasn't her business.

"No, I meant who is she to you? I saw you. All cuddly." Sandra closed the door, pushing her son into the living room and onto the couch. He sighed outwardly. Of course she would want an explanation.

"A friend. All we did was go out to eat after work. We were hungry. Then she dropped me off." All of the truth, but with few details. Sandra played with his hair, like she used to do when he was a kid. He gave her the evil eye. This was her way of getting information out of her. He liked to be babied, but only by his mother. It was a good way to iron out the stress. But right now, it was just making him irritated.

"You were kissing. I saw you."

"You saw wrong. You interrupted before we could-"

"So you did try to kiss her?" Sandra sat back, obviously pleased, a smile on her face.

"Yes mother. I like her, okay?" His mother grappled him into one of the tightest hugs he'd ever recieved. Mason felt like he couldn't breathe, he was being squished.

"This is more than okay!" Sandra jumped up quickly and started to dance quirkily and awkwardly. "My Mason's got a crush! My Mason's got a crush!" She started chanting. This was a big thing to his mother. He'd never had a crush, much less a girlfriend.

"Okay! I get it! Now can I go to sleep so I can see my crush tomorrow?" There; a bribe. Sandra stopped dancing, the biggest smile planted on her face.

"Oh, go on. You're starting to get bags anyway." Mason's hand moved to his eye. "Now get out of here." With a sigh of relief, he got out of their while he still had all of his hearing. And part of his dignity.

Walking around the corner, he opened the door to his room, and shut it. He didn't even bother with the light. He just stripped down to nothing but his boxers, and went to the bathroom. He stared at himself in the mirror.

His brown hair had grown shaggier over the last few days, making him look more boyish. If he wasn't equipped with his height and muscles, you would think he was fifteen, still trying to fit in at high school. His mint green eyes seemed darker, more wild. He was getting confident with Terra, and stepping out of his Mason Zone. Sandra was right; he was starting to get purple lines under his eyes. He needed a major stress reliever.

Sighing with himself, he left the bathroom, turning off the light. Then he ran at his bed and plopped into it, drawing the covers over him. That reminded him of Terra. Of the shower incident that they had not too long ago.

Then again, everything reminded him of Terra Miller. The hot pink haired beauty.