You Again (Completed) ✔️

21.

When I got home, I saw Cole in the kitchen with my mother and best friend. He was laughing at something somebody had said. He looked up as I entered the kitchen. "Are you okay, Julia?"

"I'm fine," I say, placing the letter on the table. "Dad gave this to me before leaving me to read the letter at the park."

"Okay," he rolls the pin back and forth over the dough. "Do you want to talk about it?"

I shake my head. "Not right now, Cole. I need time to process everything I read. You won't believe who I ran into at the park."

He stops rolling the dough and looks at me. "Who was there?"

"Georgie,"

Veronica stops what she's doing as well. "The girl that ditched you because of him?"

"Yeah, the one and only. Georgie still believes that she's better than everyone. She called me a snake. Can you believe that?"

Veronica laughs. "I can't wait to meet that girl and show her how you treat your best friend. Why don't we get matching tattoos or something?"

Cole looks between us. "Are you serious? Matching tattoos? You don't need to prove to that girl or anyone else that..." he forms fists his hands and hits the table. "This is all my fault. The people here have mistreated you because of me."

Mom places her hand on his shoulder. "What matters now is that you're making things right with my daughter. If you continue to lead the way, the rest of the town will follow you by being nice to my daughter. Remember, you're a leader amongst everyone, and they're your followers. Just remember you couldn't make my daughter follow you, which is another reason you fell for her. She's not like everyone in town. She's her person and has been truthful since the beginning."

A smile spreads across Cole's face as he looks at my mother. "She has been." Turning towards me, he adds. "I'm glad you haven't changed, Julia."

My phone vibrates in my back pocket, and I pull it out. Looking at the caller ID, I see Darcy's name on the screen. "Excuse me, I have to take this call, " I say, putting the phone up to my ear.

Me: Hey, Darcy. Are you still calling me behind your parent's back?

Darcy: Yes, I want to talk to you. I miss seeing you every day, Miss Harrison.

Me: I miss you too. So, tell me, how is school going?

Darcy: Good. The school just got a new basketball court, which has a shelter for us.

Me: When you go back to school, take a picture for me and send it to me.

Darcy: I will.

"Darcy, Who are you on the phone with now?"

"Julia," the phone is handed to somebody, and I hear a female voice.

Darcy's Mom: I'm sorry she keeps calling you without my husband, and I know about it.

Me: I really don't mind her calling me, but I'm not happy that she keeps doing it behind your back.

Darcy's Mom: Will you talk to her for us? We know she'll listen if you tell her to ask us before calling someone.

Me: I will.

Darcy's Mom: Thanks, I'll give you back to Darcy.

Darcy: I'm back.

Me: Darcy, please listen to what I'm about to say.

Darcy: Okay,

Me: When you want to call me, go to your parents and ask them if it's okay. You never know who will answer the phone, and if it's not me, I don't want someone else to talk to you. It's not good to talk to strangers, even over the phone. You can give away too much information, and someone can track you down.

Darcy: Okay, I'll ask permission to call you when I want to talk to you again.

Me: Bye, Darcy.

Darcy: Bye, Julia.

I hang up the phone and walk to the kitchen, where my family is seated around the table.

Veronica looks up from adding the topping to her pizza. "Was that Darcy?"

"Yeah," I smile. "Darcy keeps calling me without her parents knowing, and her mother asked me to stop her from doing it again."

"How's she doing?"

"Miserable," I say, looking at Veronica. "She hates that I'm not there, and every time we're on the phone, she makes it clear how much she misses me." I take a seat on the stool. "I miss her too, but her attachment to me is because I saved her life."

Mom moves over to the chair across from me. "Are you going to tell us where you were when the tsunami hit?"

I don't answer Mom's question. Instead, I ask one of my own. "Aren't you going to put the pizzas in the oven? They can't cook themselves by staying on the bench."

Antwon jumps onto the bench. "We want to know what happened to you on the Island. If we put it in now, we'll forget about it because we're busy listening to you."

"Veronica, can you please put dinner in the oven? Then I'll tell you what happened. It's about time I tell those close to me what happened."

Veronica puts the pizza in the oven before walking to the kitchen table and sitting next to Liam.

I look at my hands as I begin my story on the Island. "When the tsunami hit, I was at the beach."

Mom covers her mouth with her hands. "Oh, god." She pulls me into her arms and hugs me. "What happened next?"

"There was another teacher at the beach with her kids as well. We heard some noises that sounded like a plane, and I looked up to see a wave heading to the beach. One of my students, Darcy, was close to the water, and the other teacher told me to leave her. I couldn't do that. So, I grabbed her hand and we ran. We didn't get too far before we were swept up in the wave and dragged across the water. I got hurt, but Darcy was fine. When I came through, I was in the hospital without Darcy, and I started to panic because she wasn't with me. Eventually, a nurse entered my room and reassured me that Darcy was alright and with her Mom and Dad. I look at the oven. "Sometimes, I get nightmares about my experience, and it scares me."

Mom stands up from her seat and wraps her arms around me. "I'm glad you're here with us now, Julia. When you want to talk, we'll be here to listen."

Dad walks into the kitchen and looks around at everyone. "What did I miss?"

Antwon stands up from the table and walks over to me. "Thanks for telling us what happened."

Looking at Dad, I say. "I told everyone what happened to me on the Island. How about you and I go out for ice cream in a couple of days, and I can tell you my story."

He nods. "That's a date, pumpkin."

So, I made a new trailer for this story. Let me know what you think of it.