Hearts and Rockets | Hutchpoppe

Chapter 3

Caleb's POV

I can't help but feel nervous going back into the school. After getting a lot of laughs from some of the other kids yesterday, I can't help but be nervous about it getting worse. I walk into the school, a smile on my face as I see Maddie towards the end of the hall, and then I almost immediately get pushed up against the lockers closest to me. It's the boy that interrupted me in English class yesterday.

"Took that smile right off your face, didn't I?" The boy laughs.

The two other boys with him laugh, and I have no idea what to do. My heart starts beating fast, and I'm afraid of what he will do to me next. I try not to show how scared I am, thinking it might only make things worse. I'm surprised when I hear a familiar voice.

"Hey! Leave him alone. Stop being such a dick, damn it!"

It's Maddie. Is she really doing this for me?

"Well, look," the boy says, letting go of me and stepping closer to her, "sweet little Maddie. Tell me-"

"You're just a dick to everyone you meet!" She pushes him, "I can't believe I ever loved you, Jake."

He looks at her for a moment, "Well, the feeling is mutual."

She scoffs, "like you ever loved me."

They used to be together?

"Let me tell you-" Jake starts.

"No. You listen to me. You can be a dick as much as you want to me, but don't you dare treat my friend like that," she points to me.

"Oh, so you're friends with the country boy, huh?" Jake laughs.

"I can be friends with whoever the hell I wanna be friends with. Just leave us alone. Come on, Caleb," she turns around.

So I follow her. She called me her friend. Is that really how she thinks of me? It has been hard to tell how she really feels about me, so maybe I got my answer today. Or maybe she is just being nice to me.

"Maddie, thank you," I say, and we finally reach our lockers.

"I'm sorry about him. He's such a dick. God," she gets her English book out.

"It's fine," is all I say.

Her English book slips a little, causing her sleeve to pull down a little as well, and I notice scars on her wrist, and a few new scrapes.

"Let's go," she says.

"Maddie?"

"Yeah?"

"What happened to your arm?"

"Uh," she looks at the floor, and then back up to me, "I just- it was just, my, uh, cat."

"Oh," I say, "it really got you, didn't it?"

"Yeah, I guess," she avoids eye contact, turning around and walking towards Mrs. Baker's classroom.

I am a little nervous to ask, but I would really like to get to know Maddie better. I literally know nothing about her, except for her name. I don't even know her last name. Maybe I will just talk to her after school.

Later in the afternoon, the bell rings and the hallways are flooded with students. I look around, and I see Maddie and Catie, and this time Gabby is with them. After a few minutes, Catie and Gabby walk off, leaving Maddie by herself at her locker. I watch her for a moment, her back turned to me as she faces her locker, then I see her bring her hand to her face. I walk closer to her and hear her sniff, and her hand reaches into her locker. I decide now is not a good time to ask her to tell me more about herself. I was a little too nervous to do so, anyway.

"Hey," I say, when I'm at my locker.

She jumps a little, and doesn't look at me, "hi."

"I didn't mean to scare you," I open my locker.

"You're fine," she puts books into her backpack, and then wipes her eyes again.

"Are you crying?" I ask, concerned.

"Don't worry about it," she puts her backpack over one of her shoulders, and shuts her locker.

"But I am worried about it," I say.

I know that I barely know Maddie, but I already care about her so much. Something has to be going on. I don't want to pressure her to tell me, but I am not going to let her be upset if I can do something to help her.

"I'm fine," she starts to walk away.

"Can I do anything?"

She stops walking, and then turns all the way around. She stares into my eyes, and I stare back, seeing the hurt in her eyes. She looks like she could start crying again any moment.

"No. No one can do anything."