Silenced by the Night

Played a Song for Forgiveness

Melody was sitting with us in the cafeteria. Caylah and Paige were laughing at the geeks sitting behind all of us. Melody was talking about how she didn’t like the menu today and the disgusting look of the Mac-and-Cheese. They were all great company but I miss Nathan chattering about the latest news that he just did in Gym Class and what he did to the coach whilst they were playing Dodge Ball.

The cafeteria was again quiet until the group of boys, Nathan was always with, came in the cafeteria laughing and murmuring about something. Melody continued scanning all of them and then made a puzzled look.

“Aren’t those boys supposed to be in detention right now?”

“Nathan? Going to Detention? He was never there, not once”

“Well he’s always there, now; I can see him throwing crumpled pieces of paper on the teacher and when he’s caught. Detention”

Nathan completely changed. He wasn’t the usual Nathan Sykes we were always with.

“Can we just get our things in our lockers and go home?”

We all nodded at Caylah’s suggestion.

Caylah stood up and went out the cafeteria. The boys were laughing whilst we were walking out to the hallway.

“Nathan’s ditching you now huh?”

I nodded as I unlocked my locker door. We opened our locker doors and red paint poured down all over us. My hair was dripping with paint. Nathan’s group went by laughing and looking at all of us.

My blood was boiling from what Nathan did to me, what he did to the four of us. 

“Ellie, you’re supposed to be buying the groceries by now!”

Caroline yelled from downstairs. I went downstairs and grabbed my jacket.

“Here and please hurry up”

“I will”

My voice was trembling as I said those two words. I couldn’t believe what Nathan did to us. Caylah and Paige didn’t even want to go to school anymore. Someone bumped into me whilst I was walking out the door.

“Ellie”

The familiar voice rang from behind me. Should I forgive him? Or should I talk to him? I didn’t listen to anything he might say again. I just turned around and walked away from him. He grabbed my wrist and spun me around. The rain poured down on both of us. My eyes were tearing up; it didn’t show anything about me crying because of the rain.

“El, look I know you wouldn’t forgive me but if you just listen to what I say it’s enough for me”

His glare went back in my head. The smile pasted on his face. We were both just in a different point of view. We didn’t know what we were both thinking. Was he just there apologizing so he can know where we were going and crash that place? No. There was an apologetic look on his face.

“I love you OK. You remember what happened back when we were in Tahiti. Melody dared me to kiss someone I fancy and it was you. I wanted to stop the feeling; it was making my body ache. It didn’t want to go away and I have to find a way to do it”

“Why didn’t you tell me? I shouldn’t have just ignored you”

“I couldn’t”

Nathan? Couldn’t do a simple thing? This was the simplest thing I could even think of doing when you’re in love. Tell someone you love him or her. Well, for me it’s also a hard thing. Even though he ditched me or maybe even embarrassed the four of us, I was still falling for him. The anger was evaporating.

More of me was thinking that it wasn’t time for him to be forgiven. He needs to learn and understand what he did to the four of us. Ditching and making fun of us. If Paige and Caylah were here, they would reckon that he does need to learn and understand about what he did.

“Not yet, Nate; not until you learn and understand what you did to us, I don’t want to realize this anymore”

“OK, that’s what you want I can’t change it”

“He wants our forgiveness?!?”

They all asked in unison. Echoes filled the room of the girls’ question about Nathan wanting our forgiveness.

“But did you forgive him?”

“Not yet Paige, not yet; Not until he understands how we felt when he made fun of us”

“Good one”

“I feel weird for not forgiving him”

“It suits him”

It’s been weeks since I last talked to Nathan. He didn’t appear in school. Not even in the neighborhood. Guess he never understood the feeling of being poured by paint and being seen by half the student body. Someone knocked on the door whilst I was washing the dishes. 

“Ellie”

His voice rang from the other side of the door. I was nervous whilst I was twisting the doorknob.

“Hey Nate”

“Look El, put on some new clothes. And meet me at our house in thirty minutes”

“OK what for? Ask me for forgiveness. Do you even understand what we felt?”

“Just meet me there”

I walked to my room and saw a piece of paper stuck on the door. A short note written on it saying…

‘Hello El, if Nate ever comes over and tells you to him at their house. Wear some of my clothes. 

-Caylah xoxo

P.S. Black matches with everything’

Black matches with everything huh? Oh, Typical Caylah.

Jessica was waiting outside, her hair was curled. It was unlike before, what have those boys done to Jessica and Nathan?

“Hi Ellie, Nathan’s inside”

“Hi Jessie, I miss you so much”

She gave me a small smile before pushing me inside. The furniture was placed in a different spot in the house.

“He’s in the music room”

Nathan in the music room, what is he doing there? 

“Just get in to find out”

He was sitting by the piano quietly looking at the keys all on his own. I sat down beside him and looked at his hands. The tone of ‘Look After You’ played softly as he started playing. Act of forgiveness was coming to me; my mind was saying I needed to forgive him. 

The song ended, I never knew he had an amazing voice. Seriously he hadn’t sung in front of me before. But it was so beautiful. That song was both our favorite. ‘Jason Reeves’ was both our favorite and since this was released I loved it.

I cried too many tears and I’m hiding them in the rain. Should I forgive him?