Walking Away

Like a backpack-less puppy dog

Raven

Guess what? Pep rallies are loud. And crowded. And I honestly am not seeing the point.

And yes, I know, at this point in my life I should definitely have gone to a pep rally, but I never wanted to before. So I thought I could be normal for once, and enjoy a pep rally with my new friends. Well, friend. Mark is my friend. I'm not really sure if Jonathan is my friend or if he's just really, really polite.

The only problem was the word "enjoy". And I'm pretty sure everyone knows it. I'm watching the cheerleaders, but they really aren't that good. Currently, they look like they are about to form a pyramid. I turned towards the stage, where an administrator is currently making a speech. That's when we heard an extremely high-pitched scream.

The speech stops as everyone looks around, quickly realizing that it came from our cheerleaders, who are huddled in a group around two girls. I moved forward to see better, almost landing on the floor as Mark bolts past me. I tumbled off my seat, falling towards the stairs before someone grabbed me, pulling me back.

I sat there, feeling a little in shock. Looking at the stairs, they seem pretty sharp. I wonder how many people have died on those stairs.... oh, god, I almost died. I almost died during a pep rally.

"That's a little dramatic." someone said next to me, and I flinched, turning to look at Johnathan. I must have said that out loud. He smiled, taking his hand off my arm. "Are you alright?"

Slowly, I nodded. "I fell.." He tilted his head.

"Just a little bit. Nothing to worry about." he assured me. He gestured his hand up and down, indicating my head to my feet. "See? Everything is just the same."

I took a breath. "Right." Then logic kicked in and I realized he probably thought I was an idiot. I was fine. However, someone down there was not. I looked up, smiling to let him know my mini-freak out was over.

"Sorry." I offered. "I have this thing about falling.." I blushed, knowing how young that sounded.

Johnathan was still giving me that really nice smile....and I'm not going to lie, it was really nice. "It's okay. It was probably pretty scary." He looked me over. "Are you alright? Mark hit you pretty hard."

I moved around a little bit. My arm was kind of sore but otherwise I felt fine. "Yeah, I think I'm good." I laughed a little bit. "I guess I'm just a little dramatic." He nodded, and I realized that this was the longest conversation we'd ever had.

Johnathan stood up, grabbing his bag. "Do you want to get some air?" He gestured to Mark. "He's going to stay with her for a while, so we have some time to kill."

Realizing that I really didn't want to stay here alone, I nodded and stood up, reaching to grab my backpack. However, as soon as I did I dropped it, pain flaring all the way through my shoulder. I hummed in pain, not opening my mouth to let the words out. Johnathan turned, reaching out to steady me.

"What's wrong?" he asked. I shook my head. 

"Nothing, my shoulder hurts and I wasn't expecting it." His expression of concern didn't falter, so I kept going. "Really, it's fine. More of shock than anything. See?" I picked the backpack up again, making sure I didn't show any signs of pain. He nodded, glancing at my backpack and then heading towards the stairs to go down. I hesitated before stepping onto them, and he held out a hand to help me.

I didn't know people actually did that. Not that I minded, but oh, my goodness. At this rate I would never stop blushing.

At the bottom of the stairs, someone grabbed my backpack, completely removing it as I turned towards the doors. "Hey!" I shouted, turning to see Johnathan holding it, looking innocently surprised.

"Yes?" he asked. I narrowed my eyes. 

"Give it back." He shook his head.

"Nope." And with that, he headed towards the door, with me trailing behind him. What the heck?

I followed him outside, to the parking lot. He went towards a nice blue car, dumped his bag inside, and closed the door, still carrying mine. Then he turned towards me and waited. What was he waiting for?

After maybe three seconds, I started talking. "Where are we going? Are we going somewhere? Oh, can I have my bag back now? Why did you even take it? Who's car is that? Because, you know, if they drive home with your bag in their backseat you are pretty much screwed."

He held up his hand as he answered me, counting off on his fingers. "I'm not sure yet, yes, no, because I know your shoulder is hurting you, and Marks." He waited. "Any more questions?"

Well that was....something. 

I tried to think of another question, just to spite him and the amused look on his face. "No."

He nodded. "Then let's go." And then I was following him again, to god knows where, like a backpack-less puppy dog.