Burned

Chapter Twenty-Eight

The tray in my hand felt heavier than usual, but that was the last thing on my mind. I shuffled forward. The line for food was extremely long today or maybe I hadn't ever noticed before. My eyes scanned the room for Daniel. After last night, I didn't know what to expect. Never did I think my date with Daniel would be interrupted by a near-death experience where Sage and Erik would end up saving me. It was, however, something I had feared would happen. 

After Erik and I talked about whether or not we should tell Daniel about what happened, I had been scared of something happening. Of course, I never thought it would involve a broken rib cutting through my lung. Although, by now I should expect the unexpected. Again, the line moved forward and I was finally able to grab some food. I used the tongs to pile the salad on my plate.

"It's good to see you, C," a familiar voice said. I turned and looked up, already knowing it was Erik. He had an empty tray and stood to my right, cutting me and everyone behind me. No one said anything and I hadn't figured they would. I might know Erik as the poetry-writing sensitive guy I found visiting his parents in the cemetery, but people at Salem HIgh knew him as the rugged tough guy you didn't want to mess with. Either way, no one was going to tell him to go to the end of the line. 

It was a relief to see some things didn't change.

"You know, not dying in the movie theatre parking lot and such." He smirked down at me. 

"Glad to see we're joking about last night," I commented, focussing back on my salad. I grabbed some shredded carrots and tossed them on top. Erik frowned.

"I take it, Daniel isn't joking about it?" I met his gaze and tried to keep my face casual as my mind snapped to last night.

I was driving, keeping my hands at ten and two. It was Daniel's car, so I wasn't used to the way it drove. The car was utterly silent, another thing to add to the list of things I didn't like about Prius'. It was unnerving, not knowing what Daniel was thinking. Had he heard everything? Had he put it together that something had happened between me and Erik? These thoughts swirled in my mind, creating a horrible cocktail of worst-case scenarios. 

"Should I stop and get some food?" I finally asked him as we neared his house. If I kept going, we would pass all the food options. My stomach growled. Next, to me, Daniel stayed perfectly still. From my angle, I couldn't see if his fangs were retracted. I did see his eyes had a faint red glow to them. 

Finally, Daniel moved. It was a quick action that to me looked like a blur. He reached towards me and with one fell swoop ripped off my cardigan. Then, he rolled the window down and disposed of the cardigan. I tried to conceal my true reaction, but a whimper escaped through my trembling lips. It was the first time in a long time that I was truly afraid of him. I relaxed slightly when I realized it was just my cardigan he had tossed and not my jugular. 

"Chinese is fine," was all he said, then reverted back to a stillness that only statures had. I exhaled and turned on Proctor Ave. The rest of the drive, it took everything in me to keep my composure. I ordered our food while Daniel stayed in the car. As I waited, I went to the bathroom. My steps were precise and I kept my face neutral as I locked the door behind me. Then, I collapsed on the toilet seat and cried. 

"Are you okay?" Erik snapped me out of my flashback.

"Yes, sorry. What did you say?" I asked him, hoping he wasn't going to press the issue.

"I asked you about Daniel?" This time, the sarcastic tone was gone. It was replaced by pure worry. It was something I had been trying to avoid with Erik. I still didn't know where Daniel was and if he saw me and Erik talking it would only fuel his questions.