Cheap Shots

00:15

added a few things into chapter 00:14 that answer some questions, if you havent read the updated version yet! 

UNEDITED

15.

Monday.  The more dreaded day of the week now that my release from the hospital was scheduled earlier so I got out late Sunday night.  You should’ve faked sick better, my asshole of a subconscious reminded me.

            I wasn’t going to physically go to school, claiming that my alarm clock was broken and my phone died halfway through the night, but my mother gave me strict instructions that if I missed school I would also miss every field hockey game after that.  So here I was, walking into the modern day prison slash Satan’s home, John Jay High School.

            Immediately upon arrival, I tugged the black field hockey cap further onto my forehead and pushed over my hair in a frantic attempt at hiding the horribly stitched gash on my face, not fully comfortable with it yet.  I wanted to stay out of the drama pool as much as I could.

            I had found out yesterday at the hospital that Catherine was fine, only receiving a broken arm and a pretty heavy concussion for basically throwing her former best friend underneath the bus.  I personally thought she got off pretty easy, I wouldn’t have minded if she received a black eye or two.

            My fractured foot was stuck in a stuffy black boot that laced up with Velcro to my knee, and it was a struggle walking up stairs with it, but I sucked it up and pushed through the pain, dreading the meeting I had with my coach later to tell her the good news.

            “Hey,” Lauren said softly when she saw me, her blue eyes filled with sympathy and pity.  “I’m so-“

            “Don’t.”  I stopped her immediately, not wanting to hear the words ‘I’m sorry’ coming out of anyone’s mouth again. 

            She nodded, understanding where I was coming from as Sean approached us, wrapping an arm around his girlfriend awkwardly.  He kissed her on the cheek, “Hey, guys.  How’re you feeling Orion?”          

            I shrugged.  “Fine.  They’ve got me on some pretty heavy pain meds.”

            Lauren shook her head at me, laughing.  It looked like she wanted to say something but didn’t, as Jacque and Charlie walked up the growing group.

            “Hey!”  Jacque said cheerily.  “I’m so glad you two are okay, it scared the shit out of me when I found out, we were all at the hospital but they told us someone was already visiting you and it was only one at a time.  Who was it, anyway, because the doctor said you two were sleeping?”

            Beckett.  “My cousin, we’re pretty close.”

            She nodded, believing my lie easily.  Sean looked like he wanted to object but I shot him a look and a subtle shake of my head.  “Where is Catherine?”  Lauren asked, directing the question at me.          

            “How the hell should I know?”  I snapped, tension becoming evident in the air faster than you could say so.  Jacque’s eyes widened and she coughed, trying to divert the subject to avoid another Georgia-like situation.  “We’re not really on speaking terms after she ended my field hockey career.”

            “Orion, it wasn’t her fault,” Lauren said quietly, trying to reason with me.

            “You weren’t in the car,” I retorted, my voice growing angrier as I remembered that my cousin was being paroled in eight days for the second time in five years.