Obsession

Chapter 15

After I've barfed what little contents my stomach held onto the sidewalk, in front of God and everybody, I keep my head down, unwilling to meet the eyes of my concerned friends.

"Jesus, Mara! Are you okay?" Rue asks, hesitantly coming closer.

I hold up my hand to stop her without looking up. "No, I'm obviously not okay. I just..." Before I can complete my sentence, another round of vomit spills out of my mouth.

My body is a heaving, trembling mess and I'm powerless to stop it. Most everyone is just walking by, turning their nose up in disgust, but for some reason, my friends stay rooted in place, silently watching me, not sure what to do.

I lean over, resting my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath. My eyes sting with tears. My mouth and throat are on fire and I'm pretty sure there's a clear stream of snot hanging from my nose.

I feel a warm arm wrap around my shoulder and when I blink the tears in my eyes away, I'm surprised to see Leo's black sneakers.

"I'm taking you home," he says in a warm, comforting, almost motherly voice.

"It's okay," I wheeze, standing upright and wiping my nose on my shirt. "I'm okay."

Anna grimaces. "Oh sweetie, no. No, you're not."

Her and Rue are still standing in the same spot a few feet away, as if my vomit is a pit of flesh eating acid that's keeping them from getting to me.

Leo opens a bottle of water and hands it to me. I look down at the water and back up at him. His eyes are steady and determined. He's unaffected by my disgusting bodily fluids, unlike my friends. My shaky hand reaches out and takes the water from him. I bring it to my lips and greedily gulp it down.

The vomit has left a terrible taste in my mouth; one that the water can't wash away. I smack my tongue to the roof of my mouth a couple of times and my face contorts in disgust. "I need to brush my teeth."

I feel Leo laughing against my back. I didn't realize he was so close to me. If there were anything left in my stomach, it would surely come up.

"Let Leo take you home," Anna says. "We'll tell Kai what happened."

My eyes suddenly fill with panic. Kai doesn't want me around Leo. If he takes me home, that will only fill Kai's mind with more worry and doubt. We've already gotten off on such a bad foot, I can't afford to make things any worse.

"No," I say a little louder than I mean to.

"No?" Rue repeats, raising a brow and crossing her arms over her chest. "Mara, you're obviously sick. You need to go home, and unless you want me to go drag Kai out of class to take you home, Leo is-"

"Yes!" I interrupt, pulling out of Leo's grasp. "Yes, go get Kai."

I didn't expect the inquisitive eyes that bore into me when the words leave my mouth. I couldn't have made it anymore obvious that I don't want Leo to take me home. And while Rue and Anna may not know why, Leo certainly does.

"She's right. Kai should be the one to take her home," Leo says.

I can tell by the tone of his voice that I've hurt his feelings, but if he only knew that he's the reason behind my sudden illness...

"I hope you feel better soon," he says quietly, walking away with his head down.

Anna and Rue stare at me, dumbfounded. I think they both know what just happened, but they're looking to me to confirm it.

"Okay," Rue sighs. "I'm going to get your boyfriend."

After she walks away, Anna carefully makes her way around the puddle of vomit and nearly pushes me backwards into the car. She takes my face into her hands and stares at me with big, dumb, green eyes.