September of 2004, in the aftermath of a school shooting, new student Connie Turner avoids the young man who saved her younger brother's life, while battling with a shameful awareness that she is not the same as before the event.
Meanwhile, Max Nat...
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Chelsea met her at the door when Connie arrived. Her home was close to the school in one of the more affluent neighborhoods in Cleargate. Chelsea waggled her eyebrows and clandestinely pointed behind her.
"Yeah, dad! It's just my friend Connie!" She called out.
Connie gave her a questioning glance.
"He got off his shift early, but he's heading out for a training event in Concord till Sunday," she said, under her breath. "Just be cool. He doesn't know about tonight."
As Connie came around the corner towards the kitchen, she realized why Chelsea wanted to keep their party plans mum.
It was Officer Holmes, the policeman who had carried her bleeding brother to the emergency vehicles in the student lot. She hadn't seen him since that awful day, though her mom said that he had visited Brandon in the hospital when Connie was out.
She had never made the connection between Officer Holmes and Chelsea. He recognized her immediately and gave a friendly smile, pushing his aviators up onto his balding head. Connie smiled back, a polite reflex. Her muscles tensed and she was overcome with the need to sprint away.
"Well, hey! I didn't know you girls were friends!" He said, hitching his backpack onto his shoulder. "Connie, right? How's your brother doing?"
"Good!" She squeaked, clenching her fists and nodding a tad too vigorously. "He's great."
"Still on crutches?"
"Only for a couple more weeks."
"Great kid. I bet that doesn't hold him back."
"Of course not," she replied with a breathless laugh. "He stresses my mom out."
"I don't doubt it." He nodded towards Chelsea and pulled her in for a hug, kissing the top of her head. "See you in a couple days, sweetheart. Be safe tonight, you two. I know you're just hopping over to the movie theater, but you're both new drivers. Don't distract each other."
"Oh dad, you know we'll be good," Chelsea replied, waving a hand with a sneaky glance in Connie's direction. "We're just excited to see that new Josh Hartnett movie, he's such a cutie. Right, Connie?"
Connie gave another enthusiastic nod, but didn't answer. Her pulse was going wild.
"See you girls later then! Tell your brother hello for me!"
The front door shut behind him. Chelsea giggled, pretending to wipe her forehead. Connie gave a forced laugh, clenching and relaxing her fists.
During the shooting, Officer Holmes had helped other wounded students as well. His uniform was bloodstained before he'd even hitched Brandon over his shoulder and ran them both towards the relative safety of the emergency vehicles. Following close behind, Connie tripped over the edge of the sidewalk and did a front flip onto the grass, quickly regaining her footing. She had totally forgotten about the incident until later in the shower when she'd noticed the massive bruise on her thigh.
