GRAVEYARD | Topper Thornton

EVERYTHING

I stormed my way through the crowd of kooks as I saw Topper. I stopped dead in my tracks as I saw him approaching Sarah, he didn't look happy, to say the least. I could see the intensity of their conversation but be pulled away when an arm draped itself around my shoulders.

"So you finally decided to come back to where you belong," Rafe Cameron said as I pushed his blue suit jacket covered arm off of me.

"Not now, Cameron," I seethed to him. I attempted to pull myself out of his grip but the towering boy was stronger than I.

"No, now Harper," He said, his harsh grip tightening, "tell me why you're back. Are you here to fuck everyone up again and ditch? What's your deal?"

"What's my deal? What's your deal Rafe," I pulled myself as hard as I could out of the boys' grip, "get your head out of my ass and my business."

I stormed away from the boy before he could rebut my claim. By the time I had done so, Sarah had left Topper for the dance floor, the boy now alone giving me the perfect opportunity to speak my mind.

Topper heard my heels clicking down the patio as I beelined for him, grabbing him by the tie. I pulled him away from the rest of the party down a quiet hallway. I bit my lip to prevent myself from yelling in front of people. Finally, far enough from the party, I turned to the taller boy. My mouth opened and closed like a fish out of the water as I tried to process what I was thinking.

"Did you really do it," I finally asked him. He stared at me dumbfounded.

"What are you talking about," Topper said, an uncomfortability to his demeanor.

"Pope, did you really hurt him and JJ," I asked, trying to find a sense of truth in the blue eyes in front of me.

The boy in front of me sighed, running a hand through his combed hair. I knew immediately that he'd done it, he always did this when nervous or stressed. I grabbed his hand before he could further mess it up. I pulled the boy down to the floor with me, completely disregarding our fancy attire.

"I was supposed to walk in with Sarah," Topper admitted to me, "but it didn't feel right."

"What didn't feel right," I asked the boy sitting next to me, grabbing his hand again playing with the boy's fingers.

"All of it," he confessed, "since you've been back you're all I can think about."

Over the course of a year, we'd both changed drastically over the course. Last year, we'd walked into midsummers together, basically announcing our relationship, and here the boy was blowing off a different girl who he was supposed to walk in with. I didn't really know how to feel about the situation.

"I don't know what to say, Top," I admitted to him, gripping his hand tight, "but I do know I haven't stopped thinking about you since I left." I leaned my head onto his shoulder after my admission, not really wanting a response.

"I'm sorry," he whispered to me, "for everything," he squeezed my hand. I pulled my head off the boys' shoulders to look into his eyes. Once again seeing the boy I loved. His clear eyes met mine and for a moment I knew, we'd be okay. I leaned up, catching his lips against mine in a short kiss.

"It's gonna be okay," I told the boy, moving my head back to his shoulder.