Collide

by J. C. Hannigan

  "I don't think so," Jake told me, turning his serious eyes to mine. "He tried to run you down in broad daylight."

  "How could I forget?" I looked down at my ankle pointedly. I knew they were right, but I didn't want to appear as scared as I felt inside.

  "I guess this is what they mean when they say don't cross the Coopers," Jake said, looking pensive and almost fearful for me.

  The whole situation unsettled me to no end. I was anxious, wound up tight and ready to fall apart at the same time. All I wanted was to escape in Iain's arms. I didn't have any classes with Iain all day, and I knew he was desperate to see me.

  I mulled over the entire situation all day long instead of paying attention in class. Several times, I was called on to answer a question in history class and couldn't even recall what the topic was that we were covering.

  By the end of the day, I'd gone over it enough. Jenna was waiting by my locker, ready to drive me home. I'd texted her telling her that we needed to talk.

  "So, what's up?" Jenna asked, eyeing me warily.

  "Well, hello to you, too," I smiled. "And plenty of things are up, obviously." I raised my eyebrows slightly, silently reminding her about all the things Andrew Cooper had done to the two of us.

  "And?" Jenna raised a dainty eyebrow, willing me to continue.

  "Are we going to just let him continue to try and run down your friends and other random town folk?" I asked, cutting to the chase.

  Jenna winced, then sighed. "No, we're not…" she looked around again, paranoid that someone was listening.

  "We can wait until we get in your car." I bit back my irritation. I was getting extremely impatient with the paranoia—mine even more so. I was now conscious of all the listening ears and watchful eyes around us. It did feel like people were staring at me more than usual.

  I hobbled down the hall beside Jenna toward the doors that led to the student parking lot. We passed Iain, who was talking to Mr. Bookings near his classroom. I met his gaze and held it momentarily, willing myself to communicate without words that I missed him and wanted to see him. The likelihood of that happening was slight, at least for the next little while. I couldn't very well have Jenna drop me off at his house, and walking wasn't really an option. I dropped my gaze as I hobbled passed him.

  Jenna held the door open for me and I awkwardly maneuvered my crutches through.

  "That's got to be…interesting," Jenna remarked, watching me struggle to keep my book bag from knocking the crutch on my left side from under my arm.

  "Hmmph," I muttered, taking care to not slip on the icy patches in the parking lot. Jenna pulled out her remote starter and unlocked the doors, then she held it open for me and took my crutches so I could crawl into the passenger side of her car. She opened the back door and put them gently across the back seat, then closed both the doors and made her way to the driver's side. I watched her, curious. She had a very slight pouch. It wasn't quite recognizable as a pregnancy belly yet, but it was getting there. She saw me staring and frowned, zipping up her coat.

  "It's alright, you don't have to do that," I rolled my eyes. "I kind of know."

  "It makes me uncomfortable to have people…look at it," Jenna answered, her voice small and vulnerable. I could imagine her exact feelings toward it, a constant reminder of that night. "Even you."

  "Sorry," I cringed. I hadn't realized how sensitive Jenna still was about it all. "Did your dad freak out?"

  "Kind of, but not in the way I thought he would," Jenna's voice was shaky. She took a steadying breath and put the key in the ignition, refusing to meet my gaze.

  "Well?" I looked at her, impatiently.

  "He is hiring a lawyer. Taylor Thompson. The best lawyer in Ontario, pretty much," Jenna answered. "Guess I'm pressing charges after all…"

  "That's great!" I said, struggling to hide my smile as she backed out of the parking spot.

  "No, not really," Jenna frowned at me, stopping the car. "Andrew nearly ran you over, and you've barely done anything. If I press charges…I can't even…" she shivered, still half pulled out of her spot. Some kids in an old Sunfire honked at her, irritated. She hopped back to attention and finished backing out, joining the line of students exiting the parking lot.

  "I think you're safe," I answered honestly. "I can't imagine them being stupid enough to try anything to harm you when you go to press charges. That would be a little obvious, don't you think?" I hoped my words were true. Andrew had done enough to Jenna.

  "Let's hope so." Jenna absently rested a hand on her stomach. I don't even think she was aware of the action.

  The remainder of the drive was relatively silent. Both Jenna and I were lost in our own thoughts. I was thinking about how we'd need to talk to Jake and track down other victims of Andrew's. Building a strong case was crucial. Not that I had to worry about that anymore. Jenna's lawyer would handle all of it. Hopefully, if he got names anyway.

  "Thanks for the ride," I said after she pulled into the driveway at Mom and Larry's. Jenna nodded, biting on her lip.

  "Um. Harlow? Could I…hang out with you for a bit?" Jenna asked, looking awkward. "I…I don't want to go back to my house right now. I don't want to have my parents looking at me the way they've been looking at me."

  "Ya, sure," I answered, truthfully…I was a little caught off guard. I had skipped several classes with her, hung out at her place to watch movies, accompanied her to her ultrasound appointment and had been with her when she told her mother she was pregnant, but she had yet to meet my mom and Larry. In fact, I'd told Mom and Larry very little about her. The details of my life were kept fairly silent, and I often didn't divulge information unless I absolutely had to. Like the whole Iain thing.

  Jenna tried to rush around to the other side of her car to help me out and get me my crutches, but I half beat her to it. I had hopped on my one foot and opened the door by the time she'd gotten over to my side of the car. She reached around me, grabbing the crutches, and handed them gently to me.

  "Thanks," I told her, feeling a little awkward. I wasn't really used to having someone help me. I made my way up the front steps and into the house. Mom and Larry were both still gone, so the house was empty. Mom's grey tabby cat, Felix, greeted us at the door, nearly tripping me as he weaved around my crutches.

  "Seriously?" I grumbled. "Damn cat never pays me any attention until I come home with these. Suddenly he's always under foot. I think he's trying to kill me." It was true, really. I rarely saw the damn thing, often forgot we even had a cat, and suddenly it tries to trip me up. Maybe it was in cahoots with the Coopers.

  I cringed at my own, inward joke. It really wasn't funny. At least I could be thankful that I hadn't blurted that aloud, with Jenna standing close to me.

  Jenna cooed at him, picking him up. It was evident by the look on her face that she loved cats. Felix purred loudly as she stroked behind his ears. I was more of a dog person.

  "He's so cute!" she told me, carrying him into the living room.

  "Oh ya, he's super cute…especially when he's puking all over my comforter," I yawned, feeling a little worn down. Walking around in crutches was hard work. "Do you want anything to drink or eat? Mom's kind of on a healthy food kick but the red pepper hummus is great with pita bread."

  "That sounds amazing," Jenna said, gently putting Felix down. "I can get it—just direct me, you sit down."

  "No really, I'm fine. I still have my foot—it's not cut off or anything," I argued, making my way into the kitchen. I opened the fridge and awkwardly leaned forward, grabbing the hummus. Then I used my armpit to move the one crutch as I held the tub of hummus in my hand and grabbed the bag of pita bread off the counter.

  "Okay, on second thought…maybe you could grab a couple bottles of water," I added. Jenna nodded, going back to the refrigerator and grabbing two bottles of water from the door shelf.

  We parked ourselves in front of the TV, changing the channel to MTV for some terrible reality TV shows to watch while we vegged out.


  It was weird…I hadn't done anything like that since before Lauren died. She used to come over to my place, or vice versa, nearly every day after school. We would pig out on junk food and watch crappy TV, talking nonstop about whatever topics came to mind.

  I felt a pang in my heart, a pang that I was almost accustomed to feeling. It was the sting of missing Lauren and remembering that she was gone. I swallowed hard, willing myself to come back, and muted the TV.

  "So, what do you think of Jake?" I asked, needing to distract myself before the grief overwhelmed me. Jenna's jaw dropped open in surprise.

  "What do you mean?" she asked, looking at me cautiously.

  "I mean…what do you think about him?" I didn't really know what I meant. I didn't know if I was asking her if she'd ever be into him, or if I was just looking for a gateway into broaching the topic of how we needed to ask him about possibly testifying. I figured lawyer speak would be too heavy, and although I wanted to talk about it. I knew the reason she didn't want to go home immediately was so that she could avoid lawyer discussion for a bit. "He's cute, right?"

  "Yeah…I guess so," Jenna shrugged, biting her lip. "I'm not really looking for a guy right now…you know," she glanced down at her stomach and swallowed hard. "I've got a lot on my plate."

  "I know," I said quickly, inwardly kicking myself. I really lacked tact. "It's just…I get the impression he's fond you." It was true. I did get that impression. I'd noticed the way he had started looking at her in the hallway.

  "He pities me, Harlow." Jenna rolled her eyes. "It's not the same thing. Besides, I really…couldn't."

  Before I could reply, I heard the front door close with a click and someone put their keys down on the little table in the foyer. Seconds later, Mom walked into the living room and leaned against the doorway. Guilt and shame welled up in the pit of my stomach. We still weren't exactly on speaking terms.

  "Hey Mom, this is Jenna," I said, trying to keep my voice even.

  "Oh, hi!" Mom said, the warmest tone she had used in days. "It's nice to finally meet you! Harlow's mentioned you before, but to be honest…I kind of thought she invented you."

  "No, I'm real," Jenna smiled, giggling. It was the same giggle I'd heard on the first day of school.

  "Well, that's great," Mom smiled, meeting my gaze. "We'll talk later, okay, Harlow?" she said pointedly. "Have fun you two," she added before walking off to do whatever it was that she did when she wasn't hovering around me.

  "Your mom seems nice," Jenna remarked, taking another pita and dipping it in the humus.

  "Hmmph." I nodded, my thoughts stuck on her pointed comment to me about talking later. I could only guess what she wanted to talk about…Iain.

  Almost unaware I was even moving, I grabbed my phone out of my pocket and checked my text messages. I'd had about six missed texts. A couple were from Jake, asking if it was cool that he pick me up in the morning, but the rest were from Iain. He'd texted that he missed me and couldn't wait to see me, and that if circumstances were different, he'd be visiting me and taking care of me. It warmed my heart and made me feel sad at the same time as I wished for the millionth time that I too wished circumstances were different.

  * * * *

  "Seriously, this is ridiculous. It's been two weeks—why can't you guys stop babysitting me?" I demanded as I flopped dramatically into Jenna's car after school two weeks later. My ankle was fit as a fiddle again, and I was tired of the chaperones. It made getting to see Iain incredibly difficult, especially with my mom keeping me on almost lockdown too. Every night when I worked, she'd show up to pick me up 30 minutes before my shift ended so I'd have no choice but to go straight home.

  My stress level was at an all time high. I hadn't physically been with Iain in far too long for my liking, and it was looking like another night would pass without seeing him. It was getting harder and harder to not jump him in the middle of English class. I knew he was feeling the tension too, and I knew that our steamy texts didn't help either of us. I hated that I was that dependent, but I had never felt that way before.

  "Better to be safe than sorry," Jenna said, shrugging. "Besides, I thought you liked hanging out with me?" she added, looking a little hurt.

  "I do," I sighed, feeling a little guilty that I'd upset her. It was getting easier to do, but I attributed that to the pregnancy hormones. "I just haven't seen…my boyfriend in a while."

  "You're still with him? Ben, right?" Jenna asked, surprised. "I kind of thought you weren't anymore, since you haven't mentioned him or anything…"

  "Yeah, I'm with him. He just can't come see me right now…so that sucks. I guess I'm moping," I answered, thankful she'd reminded me what name I'd given Iain.

  "Well, that's been obvious," Jenna remarked. "I thought it was just exam related."

  "No," I groaned, thinking about how they were supposed to start tomorrow. We would have two exams per day, all week long. Then it would be Christmas break. I was both looking forward to Christmas break and dreading it. I had no idea if my lockdown was going to lessen. Since Mom knew about Iain, it wasn't likely…but she was starting to give me a little more freedom, at least when it came to Jenna.

  "We'll study at your place if you want?" Jenna offered. "I spent all last night making cue cards."

  "You do that too?" I asked, surprised. I hadn't pegged Jenna as the cue card type.

  "Yeah," Jenna shrugged. "I always have. Bet you thought I 'studied' like Tara and Callie, huh."

  "The thought crossed my mind," I joked. I knew Jenna didn't talk to Tara or Callie anymore. After the heated exchange on the day I fractured my ankle, those friendships had gone up in smoke. Jenna didn't seem bothered by it at all. She was hanging out with me more and more, and I didn't mind it either…although I did really miss Iain. I frowned, thinking about him again.

  "What's wrong?" Jenna asked, catching my frown.

  "Ben…my Mom doesn't really like him," I answered, partly telling the truth. "She's forbidden me to continue seeing him, and has graciously offered to keep the information from Larry."

  Jenna nodded in sudden understanding. She'd met Larry a handful of times now, and he gave off the same stern, religious aura as per usual.

  "So what, he's like…a bad boy or something?"

  "He's just…not my type." I shrugged. "Or so they think."

  "Ah…it's a race thing," Jenna nodded wisely. I bit back my laughter, deciding to let her think what she wanted to think. There was a pause in our conversation, then Jenna looked at me. "You could always tell them you're spending time at my house, and go see him…if you want."

  "Oh Jenna, you've got enough to worry about, excluding my petty dramas," I quickly argued.

  She shrugged. "You've done a lot to help me, and you've been a really great friend so…I want to help. I don't mind covering for you."

  "Well, thanks," I said, chewing on my lip. "Do you mind…covering for me Friday, maybe?"

  "Sure," Jenna smiled. "Sleepover at my place?" she winked.

  That evening, we spent a couple of hours studying at the table until Mom and Larry came home from whatever church potluck function they'd attended. Mom carried her half-empty casserole dish to the counter and gave us a warm smile. She seemed to really like Jenna.

  "Hey Mom, Larry…could I spend Friday night at Jenna's?" I asked.

  "We're planning on having an 'end of term' girl's night," Jenna added easily. "Pedicures, manicures, facials and the latest Ryan Gosling movie."

  "Oh, well…alright," Mom said, looked back and forth between us. I knew she liked Jenna, but she still didn't trust me…although she couldn't exactly express that without giving away, well, everything.

  "Great," I grinned. "The new Ryan Gosling movie, eh? Is every girl obsessed with him?"

  "You would have to be dead not to be," Jenna rolled her eyes. "Not only is he incredibly hot, but he's a great actor!"

  "What's this movie about?" I asked, trying to appear serious.

  "Um…."

  "
All you're able to think about right now is Ryan Gosling's abs, am I right?" I laughed. Mom smiled, put at ease by our bantering, and followed Larry into the living room to watch TV.

  We continued to study for another hour before Jenna finally called it quits.

  "My brain feels like mush," Jenna said, yawning and shoving her books and notes back into her book bag. "I'm done. I'm going to go home and sleep for a thousand hours."

  "You'll miss the exam," I pointed out.

  "I know," she said, yawning again. "Obviously that's just wishful thinking. But I'm headed home anyway."

  "Alright. And don't worry about me in the morning—Jake's got it covered," I told her, rolling my eyes dramatically. She nodded, yawning again as she stood up.