Joshua to talk and getting Emily to stop hating me and running dad’s bar and trying desperately to make things work.”
Heather’s mouth opens and then closes, like a fish out of water, while her brows furrow in confusion. “Joshua stopped talking?”
I sigh and run my hands over my face. “Look, it doesn’t matter. I saw you sitting here and I thought- I don’t know what I thought. But it’s okay. It really is. You didn’t have to stick around, cause I’m sure it was fucking depressing as hell. I don’t blame you.” I shake my head and stand. “Anyway, it was good to see you. I’m glad you’re happy.”
“Nathan, wait.” She stops me with a hand on my arm. “I feel like there’s so much I want to talk about.”
I can’t help but glance at her ring again. It’s like a big warning sign to stay away. Like caution tape in the form of platinum and diamonds. A big fuck you from God, and I can take a hint. I open my mouth to respond at the exact moment a voice calls my name. Well, one of my names.
“Jackson?” Clem says from behind me. Holding my breath, I watch as Heather first looks behind her, and then at Clem, and then at me, her eyes filled with confusion. I shake my head ever so slightly, hoping she understands the gesture. She drops my arm quickly and then turns her attention to Clementine.
I turn my back on Heather and smile at Clem. “Hey, sorry. I was just saying hi to an old friend.”
“Are you ready to go?” she asks quickly.
“Yeah. We were just saying bye.” I turn back to Heather and swallow down the wave of anxiety pushing up. “It was good to see you.”
She cocks her head to the side, a snide smile on her face. “You too, Jackson .” She probably thinks I’m lying to her for the fun of it, or that I make up a different name with every girl. Either way, it’s better than the truth. We hold each other’s gazes for a few more seconds before I turn and place my arm around Clem’s shoulders. She falls into step beside me. I can feel Heather’s eyes on my back, judging and jumping to conclusions. It’s all I can do to keep walking instead of turning around and setting the record straight, but I know that I got lucky this time; I can’t afford to make another mistake.
~~
When I reach the gazebo that the Chief and I agreed was far enough away from the house, I send the text and lean against the salt-weathered wood railing. The party noises can still be heard, and if I stare long enough and hard enough, I can make out the faces of the people hanging out on the deck. Clem’s one of them, waiting there for me to return.
Within three minutes, the noises from the party have changed from shrieks of laughter to screams of panic. People pour onto the previously somewhat empty deck, some of them taking the ten foot drop into the sand but most of them barreling through the crowded stairs. I lose track of Clementine and feel my heart begin to beat wildly against my chest. What if she gets hurt? What if she gets away? I’m conflicted again, despite my attempts to remain unaffected. Part of me wishes for her to escape while the other part wants nothing more than approval from my squad and Chief. Before I’m forced to make a decision, like going and finding her myself, a few of the SWAT guys run out onto the deck, take the ten foot drop like it’s nothing, and start running after someone very specific. They tackle Clem to the ground, roughly pulling her hands behind her back and securing her wrists with a zip tie. I shove a fist in my mouth and bite down to keep from screaming. I have to physically will myself to stay in this gazebo.
It’s worse than watching them do it to Hannah. At least in the end she was able to find out that I was nothing but a liar and a fake. Clem’s head whips back and forth, as if she’s looking for someone, probably her brother and most likely for me, too. She’ll always wonder what happened to me; if I ditched when the cops came or before. She’ll
Heather’s mouth opens and then closes, like a fish out of water, while her brows furrow in confusion. “Joshua stopped talking?”
I sigh and run my hands over my face. “Look, it doesn’t matter. I saw you sitting here and I thought- I don’t know what I thought. But it’s okay. It really is. You didn’t have to stick around, cause I’m sure it was fucking depressing as hell. I don’t blame you.” I shake my head and stand. “Anyway, it was good to see you. I’m glad you’re happy.”
“Nathan, wait.” She stops me with a hand on my arm. “I feel like there’s so much I want to talk about.”
I can’t help but glance at her ring again. It’s like a big warning sign to stay away. Like caution tape in the form of platinum and diamonds. A big fuck you from God, and I can take a hint. I open my mouth to respond at the exact moment a voice calls my name. Well, one of my names.
“Jackson?” Clem says from behind me. Holding my breath, I watch as Heather first looks behind her, and then at Clem, and then at me, her eyes filled with confusion. I shake my head ever so slightly, hoping she understands the gesture. She drops my arm quickly and then turns her attention to Clementine.
I turn my back on Heather and smile at Clem. “Hey, sorry. I was just saying hi to an old friend.”
“Are you ready to go?” she asks quickly.
“Yeah. We were just saying bye.” I turn back to Heather and swallow down the wave of anxiety pushing up. “It was good to see you.”
She cocks her head to the side, a snide smile on her face. “You too, Jackson .” She probably thinks I’m lying to her for the fun of it, or that I make up a different name with every girl. Either way, it’s better than the truth. We hold each other’s gazes for a few more seconds before I turn and place my arm around Clem’s shoulders. She falls into step beside me. I can feel Heather’s eyes on my back, judging and jumping to conclusions. It’s all I can do to keep walking instead of turning around and setting the record straight, but I know that I got lucky this time; I can’t afford to make another mistake.
~~
When I reach the gazebo that the Chief and I agreed was far enough away from the house, I send the text and lean against the salt-weathered wood railing. The party noises can still be heard, and if I stare long enough and hard enough, I can make out the faces of the people hanging out on the deck. Clem’s one of them, waiting there for me to return.
Within three minutes, the noises from the party have changed from shrieks of laughter to screams of panic. People pour onto the previously somewhat empty deck, some of them taking the ten foot drop into the sand but most of them barreling through the crowded stairs. I lose track of Clementine and feel my heart begin to beat wildly against my chest. What if she gets hurt? What if she gets away? I’m conflicted again, despite my attempts to remain unaffected. Part of me wishes for her to escape while the other part wants nothing more than approval from my squad and Chief. Before I’m forced to make a decision, like going and finding her myself, a few of the SWAT guys run out onto the deck, take the ten foot drop like it’s nothing, and start running after someone very specific. They tackle Clem to the ground, roughly pulling her hands behind her back and securing her wrists with a zip tie. I shove a fist in my mouth and bite down to keep from screaming. I have to physically will myself to stay in this gazebo.
It’s worse than watching them do it to Hannah. At least in the end she was able to find out that I was nothing but a liar and a fake. Clem’s head whips back and forth, as if she’s looking for someone, probably her brother and most likely for me, too. She’ll always wonder what happened to me; if I ditched when the cops came or before. She’ll
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