by Jordan Lynde
He didn’t seem satisfied, but let it go. “I just told them about the one who shot me.”
“Good. I hope they throw his ass in jail for life for what he did to you.”
Lance nodded solemnly. “Me too . . . but at least I’ll have some cool scars and a wicked story to tell everyone.”
I frowned at him. “Don’t make light of this, Lance . . . I nearly had a heart attack when I found out you were shot.”
“Good to know you care,” he responded with a wink.
“You’re my best friend. Of course I care!”
He sighed lightly. “Holly, don’t you think this situation is getting too dangerous for us?”
I looked at him, a frown on my face. “It’s been too dangerous from the beginning.”
“Then why are you still involved?”
“As of now, there is no way I can get out of this,” I told him, leaning back in my seat. “I’ve sort of dug my own grave . . .”
“You may have dug your own grave, but the one who gave you the shovel to do so is Heywood,” he pointed out, a scowl appearing on his face.
“And the one who chose to stay in it is me,” I returned.
“What if you end up in deep trouble? Or dead? You need some space between yourself and Heywood.”
I immediately shook my head. “No, it’s too late for that. They already know who I am, it’s not like not interacting with Mr. Heywood would change anything now.”
“Then don’t get any closer.”
Well, too late for that. He basically said he had feelings that he shouldn’t have for a student. And then made the point even clearer tonight. It seemed too impossible, but there was nothing else he could have meant. I felt my face flush.
Lance narrowed his eyes at me suspiciously. “Holly . . . did something happen between you and Heywood?”
“W-what? No!” I responded quickly, waving my hands in front of me. “Ha, are you kidding? No way.”
Lance rolled his eyes. “Holly, don’t lie. You’re an open book, I can see right through you.”
“It doesn’t matter, because he thinks I think he’s gay, probably.”
“ . . . I don’t think I want to know now. But Holly, if those guys think he has feelings for you, it would make this whole situation worse.”
“What? Why would you think . . . oh . . .”
“Holly?”
I stared at Lance, a look of alarm on my face. Shawn wanted Mr. Heywood dead partly because Mr. Heywood stole his girlfriend back then . . . so what if for revenge he wanted to take me from Mr. Heywood because he thought Mr. Heywood cared about me? But where would Shawn even get the idea Mr. Heywood cared for me? I’d been with Jeremy the first time we met . . .
“Hello, Holly?”
I snapped out of my thoughts, trying to school my features into something nonchalant. “Sorry, just thinking.”
“I understand how you feel about him,” Lance said. “And it’s not like I’m going to stop you two from being together, but I’m more worried over our safety than your love life.”
“It’s unbelievable, huh,” I said, now grinning at Lance. “Mr. Heywood of all people . . .”
He grimaced. “Can you worry about this situation for at least a second?”
I gasped, remembering earlier. “Crap! He still thinks I think he’s gay! But Lance, I didn’t know what to say! It was so embarrassing when I figured it out, all I could think then was that I needed to get out of the car because I didn’t know what to say, so I just blurted out he was jealous because he wanted Jeremy and—”
“Holly! Stop being such a girl!” Lance interrupted, making a face. “I don’t want to hear about your damn proscriptive relationship .”
“Oh? Who knew you knew such big words!”
“Holly.”
“Okay, okay. I just feel happy. You’re alive.” I laughed, waving him off. “I kinda got a confession: it’s just nice to get some good in all this crap.”
His expression softened. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. But don’t get used to it . . . this is only the beginning.”
I sobered up and nodded. It would be a long time until everything was okay—and safe—again.
LESSON twenty-five
“What are you doing?”
My eyes flew open in shock and I took a sharp inhale, turning around to see James grinning at me. Immediately, I relaxed, letting go of my breath.
“Why are you waiting outside the biology room?” James asked, raising his eyebrows. “Can’t handle the smell?”
“Uh, sure,” I responded, directing my gaze to my feet.
“Wimp,” he joked with a small laugh.
A small forced laugh left my lips as well. I couldn’t tell James the reason I didn’t want to go in there was because of the teacher. After last night, my palms were sweating at just the idea of talking to him. It was going to be so awkward! I chewed on my lip, reaching for the door handle, and then pulling my hand away at the last second.
C’mon, Holly. Man up!
Taking a deep breath, I grabbed the doorknob with a shaky hand. Why was I so nervous? It’s not like we could talk about what happened during class; there were too many students around. But it was still going to be awkward. I sighed. I’d have to face him sooner or later.
Without further hesitation, I quickly pulled the door open. To my surprise, an old man was sitting at the teacher’s desk. He had a face full of white hair and a small tuft of it on top of his head. I frowned, surveying the man with my eyes. I’d never seen him before.
“Um, where’s Mr. Heywood?” I asked, looking around the room quickly.
“What?”
“Where’s Mr. Heywood?” I repeated, louder this time.
“Come closer, I can’t hear you.”
Fighting the urge to roll my eyes, I walked up to the teacher’s desk and leaned over it, speaking loudly and clearly. “Where is Mr. Heywood?”
“What?”
Was he kidding? I stared at him incredulously. The old man cocked his head to the side, and then realization flashed across his face. “Hold on, I think my hearing aid is off.”
This time I did roll my eyes, but a grin also made its way onto my face. The old man fiddled with the hearing aid on his ear, and then looked up at me expectantly.
“Is Mr. Heywood here today?” I asked once more.
“Oh, no. He’s absent today. I’m his substitute.”
For some reason, I felt disappointed. Mr. Heywood had taken the day off? Did something happen? Was he sick? Disappointment was quickly replaced with worry. I cleared my throat. “Is he okay?”
“No, no, he’s fine!” the old man responded, speaking too loudly. “From what I hear it’s just a personal day off.”
I relaxed, nodding my head. “Okay. Thanks.”
“It’s nice to know young people these days still care about their teachers,” the old man commented, smiling at me.
I escaped to my seat and a frown appeared on my face. It was funny how much my mood dropped after finding out Mr. Heywood wasn’t in school today. It was just a small thing, but it was weird, because he was always in school. With a shock, I realized what the reason could be: he was avoiding me. Probably because I basically said I thought he way gay! I slumped lower in my seat, holding in a groan. Me and my stupid, big, lying mouth.
The rest of the day passed quickly and before I knew it the final bell rang. I was planning on visiting Lance, so I headed home straight away. As I came to my driveway, I noticed my mother’s car in the driveway.
“Mom?” I called as I opened the door to my house, dropping my backpack and kicking off my shoes. “You here?”
“Bedroom!” a muffled voice responded from the upstairs.
Following the sound of her voice, I found her in her bedroom, putting clothing into a suitcase. She gave me a quick smile when I entered, but returned her attention to folding the clothing in front of her.
I narrowed my eyes in confusion. “Why are you packing? And home early?”
<
br /> “Night duty,” my mom responded. “I’m staying at my coworker’s place because she has night duty too and she lives closer.”
“Gee mom, thanks for warning me in advance,” I responded, shaking my head. “I didn’t ask Casey if I could stay the night.”
“Honey, I’m going to be gone all weekend. I thought I told you. Guess I forgot.”
“How could you forget to tell me something like that?” I demanded, looking at her in shock. “I’ve never stayed home alone for more than a night!”
“Don’t worry,” my mom responded, waving her hand. “I wasn’t going to leave you by yourself. I arranged a place for you to stay already.”
“But Lance is still in the hospital,” I pointed out. “I’d feel like a moocher at the Greysons’.”
My mom shook her head. “No, you won’t be staying at their house.”
“Then whose?”
“Your handsome teacher’s place.”
My mouth went dry and I stared at my mom like she had three heads. Well, she might as well have three heads since she was thinking like an alien. I small laugh escaped my lips.
“That’s funny mom.”
“Is there something wrong?” my mom responded, furrowing her brow in confusion. “I thought you two got along.”
I blushed slightly. “We do, but . . . mom, he’s my teacher. I can’t stay at his house. He’d get in trouble and so would I! Surely that’s against school rules.”
“No, it’s not, since I’m the one who asked him to look after you while I’m gone. It’s a teacher’s duty to watch over a student. And he seemed more than willing to help out.”
I stared at my mom in disbelief. When was she going to deliver the punch line? I couldn’t spend the weekend at Mr. Heywood’s after what happened! It was embarrassing enough just to think about coming face to face with him after last night, let alone to stay over at his house! Was my mom crazy?
“Are you really serious?”
“Yes,” my mom responded, sighing. “Even though you’re almost eighteen, it’s still dangerous to spend the whole weekend alone. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
“No, I understand. It’s fine. I’m just a little surprised. When are you leaving?”
“In a few hours. I still have to go get some groceries for the trip. I hate paying for hotel food.”
“When am I going to Mr. Heywood’s?”
“You’re supposed to call, um, Henry?”
I raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know any Henry . . .”
“Hold on,” my mom said, holding up her finger. “That’s not his name. Gerry? No, that’s not it either. Jared?”
“Jeremy?” I guessed.
“That’s it! You’re supposed to call him for a ride whenever you’re ready,” my mom told me. “Mr. Heywood has something to do today until around seven.”
I frowned slightly. That “something” was probably going to visit Haley. A little jealousy arrived in me, but I quickly threw it away. She was in the past. Mr. Heywood loved me now, not Haley. But I wanted to know why he always seemed to be visiting her these days.
“Speaking of which, who is Jeremy?”
“He’s Mr. Heywood’s friend, and mine too.”
“How old is he?” my mom asked suspiciously.
“Twenty.”
“You trust this guy enough to drive you places?” my mom prodded, watching me intently. “Is he trustworthy?”
I laughed, rolling my eyes. “He’s very trustworthy mom. Don’t worry about it, Jeremy is a good guy.”
“Okay,” my mom responded, but still didn’t sound convinced. “If you need anything, just call me.”
“Actually, after you go grocery shopping will you give me a ride to the hospital? I want to visit Lance. I can ask Jeremy to pick me up from there.”
My mom nodded. “Sure, but it won’t be for another few hours. Why don’t you do your homework in the meantime?”
Homework. Ew.
I made a face, but did as my mom suggested and went to my room to get started. By the time I finished, she was ready to leave. I slammed my biology book closed and rushed to my closet to get some clothing. The first thing I found was a pair of washed blue jeans, so I grabbed those and a plain black long-sleeved shirt and stuffed them in my side bag.
“Holly? You coming?”
“Hold on!” I responded, grabbing my hairbrush and toothbrush from the bathroom.
“Bring an umbrella!” my mom shouted up the stairs. “It looks like it’s going to rain!”
Sighing, I grabbed the umbrella from my room before I descended the stairs. My mom was waiting by the door, car keys in hand. She smiled, turning and opening the front door. I followed her out, shutting and locking the door behind me.
“Am I seriously going to Mr. Heywood’s? Or did you actually make plans for me to go to Casey’s house instead?”
“You’re going to Mr. Heywood’s,” my mom responded, raising an eyebrow. “Is it really that big of a deal?”
“No!” I responded quickly so she wouldn’t get suspicious. “It’s just a little weird.”
“Okay . . .”
The drive to the hospital didn’t take long. When we arrived, I quickly unbuckled, grabbing my bag from the car floor. My mom leaned over and kissed me on the cheek.
“Be careful! And be safe! And make sure you eat properly,” my mom said, frowning at me. “Make sure this Jeremy guy remembers to pick you up! I have Mr. Heywood’s cell phone number, so I’ll check in with him around eight to see if you’re back.”
“Mom, don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”
“Alright, see you Sunday night.”
“Bye, mom,” I responded, getting out of the car, and shutting the door behind me.
Lance looked up at me eagerly as I entered his hospital room. I deposited my belongings by the door and pulled up a chair next to his bed, flopping down on it. Lance raised an eyebrow.
“What’s up?”
“My mom is making me stay at Mr. Heywood’s for the weekend.”
“Making you?” Lance repeated sounding skeptical. “Don’t you want to?”
I blushed slightly, averting my gaze. “Um, at a different time, I would, but right now, no, because it’s going to be really awkward. I lucked out because Mr. Heywood wasn’t at school today, but I’m supposed to go to his house after I leave here.”
“Well, then, now’s a good time to make your move.”
I raised an eyebrow, eyeing Lance suspiciously. “What do you mean?”
“You know, make more progress in your relationship,” he responded with a shrug.
“Aren’t you all anti-Heywood?”
“I want to see how this plays out,” Lance responded, a smirk appearing on his face. “I want to see how long you guys can last.”
“It’s not a game, Lance,” I responded with a sigh.
“To me it is,” he responded with a grin.
“How are you feeling?” I asked, deciding to change the subject. “Any different from yesterday?”
“Well I can sit up without it hurting as much, but that might be due to the medicine I’ve been taking.”
“Do you still have to stay a while?”
“The doctors are saying I can leave November 17,” Lance told me, frowning. “That’s a day after your birthday, so I was hoping we could celebrate it when I get out. With Casey and everyone else, too.”
“Sure,” I responded, smiling. “Though you might want to take it easy.”
“I’ll be fine by then! Well, okay, I won’t be fine, but I’ll be much better,” Lance responded, grinning. “Being shot won’t stop me.”
The smile automatically dropped from my face as guilt set in again. I couldn’t help but feel this accident was somehow my fault. Of course there was no way I could have known Lance would be attacked that night, but it was my fault he was involved with the whole gang thing in the first place.
“Holly, stop feeling guilty.”
I looked at Lance in surpr
ise. “How’d you know what I was feeling?”
“I’m not stupid.”
“But I can’t help it,” I complained, crossing my arms. “It’s only natural.”
“I don’t care, it’s not your fault,” Lance responded, frowning at me. “If you want to place the blame on someone, put it on Heywood.”
“It isn’t his fault they attacked you!”
“There you go. Nor is it mine, nor yours. So stop wallowing.”
“I’m not wallowing,” I muttered, my face heating up. “I’m just feeling, like, survivor’s guilt or something.”
“But I’m alive,” Lance pointed out, a small laugh erupting from him.
“I said ‘or something like that!’”
“I know what you said.”
I rolled my eyes. “Stop talking, Lance.”
“I have a question. Does everyone at school know what happened?” Lance inquired, pursing his lips. “I hope not. Only you, Heywood, Casey, and this Jeremy guy knows I’m in here and I’d like to keep it that way.”
“Why?” I responded in surprise.
“I don’t need unnecessary attention,” Lance responded, shrugging. “I’d prefer to keep this a secret.”
“Then I won’t tell anyone,” I promised. “But what do you want me to say when they notice you’re not in school? Two and a half weeks is a long time.”
“Just say I have some strange sickness.”
I laughed. “Okay, I’ll look up a good one.”
“And tell me what I’ve been missing in school. I don’t want to get too far behind.”
For the next hour or so I told Lance about everything we were learning and about how I have to dissect a rat by myself and about the old man who was the substitute today since Mr. Heywood was out.
“I was looking forward to dissecting the rat,” Lance commented when I was done.
“I was looking forward to you looking forward to that, so I didn’t have to do anything,” I responded with a sigh. “Mr. Heywood makes me do most of the dissection.”
Lance glanced at the clock that was on his night table. He leaned over and grabbed a piece of paper off of it and a pen, bringing it to his lap. I watched as he proceeded to scribble something down on it, and then he handed it to me. I took it and looked at it in confusion.