Stumbling Through

A Shared Warmth

This chapter is dedicated to Princess_lola24 for her blog Bookish Confessions <3

This took slightly longer than anticipated <3 It was more difficult to write than I thought I would be :/

Thanks everyone who's reading this story - You're all amazing! There should only be five more chapters after this (though I might mix two together - if that is that case there will only be four chapters left ... and an epilogue)

ANYWAY as always PLEASE ENJOY:

Chapter Twenty-Five

 

Willow’s POV:

 

The next three days passed in a blur. A call from my parents yelling at my uncle. Hospital. School. Hospital.

I couldn’t rid myself of the sinking feeling I had in my stomach.

“Are you going to the hospital later again?” Chrissie asked me in as we exited our PE lesson – my last class of the day.

“Yes.” I answered, as I tightened my ponytail, following the crowd of girls towards to locker rooms, planning on changing as quickly as possible and driving down to the hospital straight after.

Chrissie frowned at me concernedly. “Is that a good idea?” She asked in a quiet voice. “That’s three nights in a row.”

“I’m going.” I told Chrissie firmly, my jaw set in determination.

I was going to be there for him if he needed me.

“Yeah. I know.” Chrissie said with a deep sigh. “I’m just worried about you. Especially since all the rumours going around and that you had a run in with Evan…”

I shook my head, my lips thinning into a straight line. It wasn’t me I was worried for right now. It was Derek. Ever since that phone call he’d gotten from his father he’d closed himself off with worry for his mother.

He hadn’t come to school at all.

“I’m fine.” I said with a small smile.

Chrissie didn’t look like she believed me, but she let it go. “You’re Uncle’s working late tonight, right?” She asked. “Do you want me to stop over later? I could bring Jenifer – we could make it a sleepover, we haven’t had one of those in an age.” She suggested.

I gave her a more genuine smile as I shook my head. “Nah, that’s okay.” I assured her, knowing this was her way of trying to ‘subtly’ keep an eye on me. “I really don’t feel like having a sleepover. Some other time though.” I promised.

Chrissie’s shoulders drooped slightly with understanding defeat. “I didn’t think you would.” She admitted.

I didn’t answer, losing myself in my own thought as we entered the changing rooms. As soon as we walked through the door, people’s head started turning in our direction, and I could hear people starting to whisper to one another.

Chrissie’s face turned instantly sour as she started giving a death glare to anyone looking in our direction.

But I already knew what they were saying.

People were spreading rumour about me having broken Derek’s heart by cheating on him with Spencer, and now he was too heartbroken to even come to school.

There were different variations to the rumour, but that was the focus of all of them.

I knew I’d probably be more hurt by what people were saying if it weren’t for the fact I was worried about the real reason Derek wasn’t coming to school. A few unsubtly coughed swear words from people as I was walking by, and false rumours didn’t seem like such a big deal in comparison.