For the Love of Justice

Chapter Eighteen | One Week

It had been one week. 

One week since last monday. 

One week since the football tryouts on the high school feild. 

One week since Marley had kissed the life out of me on the doorstep of my house that monday afternoon.

And precisly one week, since he last really talked to me. 

Pushing down the overwhelming ball of hurt and confusion as I walked through the crowded morning hallways the monday exactly seven days after the last one, I tried to focus what I had trying to focus on since Marley had made it clear by ignoring me during the six days between this monday and the last; I was reasoning with myself that this shouldn't hurt quite this much, that I shouldn't still, after one full week of pining, be hoping with just that tiny little bit of positive energy that maybe Marley would turn around one day and send me that smile again, that one that seemed like it was just for me.

Him standing on my doorstep, so close to me and so warm, flashed through my mind again as I stared into my locker, trying to remember what books to grab. When I slammed the locker door shut, the image of him vanished, which was the exact effect I had been going for all along.

If only I could get him to vanish out of my mind. 

The thing was, it wasn't as if he'd been busy and had made that clear. He probably was, for all I knew, but it was more the fact that he'd barely uttered one word in my direction, or even looked at me this whole week past. 

It was like he had completely switched off to me and everything else around him. How did I know this?

I was ashamed to admit that I watched him a lot during the day. And when I said a lot, I really meant it. 

It was like the boy was walking around with only the external elements working. Outside, he was a fully functioning, well oiled machine. Inside, he was vacant, his parts not working. 

And I wasn't exactly the only one who had noticed. 

"Managed to get a word out of Marley yet?" Aria's warm voice floated towards me as she appeared to my left, books tucked into her chest as she hugged them with both arms. Naturally, I had filled her in on the whole Marley kissing me senseless after her sister had told her what she'd seen that day. Aria had at first been shocked, then excited, then she couldn't stop blabbering on about how this was not a  normal behavioural trait that Marley had, because quite frankly he hadn't been interested in anything since the accident. 

And now, I was starting to see that it really wasn't anything, because he was ignoring me and if that didn't scream "I'm not interested", then I was either deaf or ignorant to it.

Because I was interested. I'd tried not to be around wednesday, when it sunk in that he really wasn't going to pay me any attention. 

Then thursday came around and I had given up trying to be unaffected. 

"No, and I'm beginning to think I won't, so lets move on." I said quietly but sternly, half hoping Aria would drop it, because I hated the feeling that thinking about Marley gave me. 

But then I only half hoped she did, because I wanted to talk about it, like all teenage girls with dashed hopes yet still hopeful in a way would want to. 

Aria gave me a look which I interpreted as sympathetic yet understanding, so I just sighed and linked my arm with hers, shutting my locker and beginning to walk with her towards the library. We had free period for English because our teacher had called in sick last minute and the school hadn't managed to find a substitute, so the library was where we were sent.