Chasing Daylight

Skai, October 21, 2014 and onward...

  I LOOK BACK UP AT FELIX. He’s still staring into space, never blinking, never moving, never looking as if he’s even breathing. I’d asked him this morning if he was alright but he didn’t answer me. He just smiled and planted a soft kiss to my cheek before opening the door of his Audi for me when he came to pick me up for school.

  I let go of it when he gave me that smile. He’d given it to me before. The night he told me he loved me, when I pushed and pushed for him to come clean when he was clearly having trouble to do so. I haven’t seen Tyler or any of the other Sanestarros.

  But questions are burning up inside me until I relent to my curiosity. I twist in my seat and scrawl untidily on a strip of paper I silently tore from my book and hand it to Felix. His eyes flicker to mine, to the front (Mr. Walker is concentrating on the geography on the board) and to the piece of paper with a sigh.

What’s really wrong? Don’t tell me it’s nothing.

  He rolls his eyes, glancing at me again before pressing the fountain pen to the piece of paper. It takes him a sixteenth of the time it took me.

It  isnothing. Really, for your own safety, you’ll let it go, please.

 

  I huff in clear frustration and turn the paper over to a clean side.

 

I don’t need to know this then?

No, really you don’t. Please, sweetheart. Don’t worry.

 

  He slides the note back to me along with a swift smile. I can’t help but return one and it lasts a bit longer than it should have when Mr. Walker calls me.

  “Miss Ventierros. Mr. Sanestarro. I really hope we aren’t interrupting anything.” He says. We both look at him, but Felix is smiling. Why, I don’t know.

  “Something you find humorous, Sanestarro?”

  “No, sir.” He replies, the smile growing a little more. Mr. Walker turns to me.

  “Ventierros?”

  “No, sir.” I answer unsurely, my eyes sliding quickly to Felix’s face and back.

  My relationship with Felix started to become a normal thing to viewers on the school campus; the first two weeks were horrendous.

  Every which way, there would be stalking eyes, glares and gasps over our shoulders as Felix walked us down the corridors, my hand in his. Felix tried not to think anything of it at first, but it finally became too much for him when he would pick me up earlier for school so we would get there before anyone else and this saved us a lot of publicity. After the first month, things started settling down slightly and we were able to walk in the cafeteria without any gasps, but there were little remarks and comments as we walked passed tables like, “Oh my god, Felix Sanestarro?” and “Thought the Sanestarros never dated.” And the worst was “That’s a tabloid pickup.”

  All these were from the girls who gave off jealous vibes as they shot bitchy looks at me. And every time this happened, Felix would notice straight away and make those girls feel worse by pulling me into his arms and pressing his lips to mine. I loved this. Not the justice. Just him.