Falling

CHAPTER TWO

Soft classical music is playing in my room and I am sitting near the window with my legs stretched out in front of me and a book in my hand. I look down and realize that a mug of hot chocolate is sitting beside me, long cold. I shake my head and shift my eyes back to the book I was reading.

After reading the first few lines I realize that for the past hour all I have done is read those same lines, over and over again.

I shake my head and groan before scrunching my eyes shut. “Who the f**k am I kidding?”

The image of her hands in his hair and his tongue down her throat plays in my head making me take my head in my hands as I clutch at the roots of my hair.

I should have known already. Of course, I hold no charm in front of the glorious Nathaniel Parker. Why would someone like Luna even consider me?

But I considered her. I remind myself before shaking my head.

I was stupid to think that Luna would ever show interest in me. I was just a summer fling, two girls fooling around – that’s what she said, at least. Why did I allow my emotions to get in the way?

Why did the idea of having her love me, the thought of being loved by the one person that the entire world loves, excite me?

I mean, everyone does love Luna as if she was the Goddess of the moon.

Even her name reminds them of the angels. That is the power she holds. That is the power she has over me.

Over these high school years, I have seen Luna treat everyone as if she owned them. But if there was someone who deserved her the least, it was Nathaniel.

He treated her in the worst manner possible and she simply allowed him to. I know she must have her reasons but it’s not fair how he gets to be with her when I can treat her so much better.

I shake my head again at myself and look down at the hot chocolate mug in distaste. I put my book on the cushion as I get up from the window and stand up to face my room.

Pale blue walls stare back at me with golden lights illuminating the room in certain places. My white framed bed is plush with a heavy mattress and white beddings but I groan seeing the clutter of scrunched up balls of paper which I had torn from my assignment notebook.

My laptop is open on my nightstand and an image catches my eye as I look closer and it was Luna, posting about her date night with Nathaniel at Mocha Beans…it was the café where we met for the first time.

I roll my eyes; Nathaniel is really getting to me today. I and Luna were never serious so why is it making me feel so terrible?

Okay, I need coffee. Like, right now.

I stomp to my nightstand and flap my laptop shut before grabbing my phone and pausing the music from my playlist as I leave my room and walk out, down the corridor until I come upon the balcony that overlooks the dining room of my house on one side and opens above the lounge area on the other. I look down and realize that my dad is in an important meeting with some of his friends from the hospital.

Well, going to the kitchen is out of the question, now. I have no intention of getting reeled into their tardy conversations.

I look to my right and realize where I needed to be as I keep walking ahead, ignoring the stairwell downstairs to my left that spirals down in our foyer.

Two glass doors stare at me from the end of the corridor and I breathe in a deep sigh before going forward to taking my oversized t-shirt off just as I reach them.

The door opens into a pool and a sitting area on the terrace as I breathe in the crisp air of the evening and jump inside for a dip.

As I swim, I feel all of the thoughts leaving my mind as I begin to move my hands in the slowest, gentlest of motions, just enough to stay afloat.

Behind my closed eyes, I can see her fiery red hair flowing in the carefree winds from when we visited the riverside. I can see her eyes glimmering with passion as she talked about her passion for painting and how she yearned to create a masterpiece that could leave the world in awe. I see her looking at me with emotion, which I had confused for love – what a fool was I? Her touch tingles on my body and her laughs echo in my ears.

Soon, the cold water is replaced by her winds, her skin, her joy, her pain –

I groan as I come upon the surface and realize that I swam all the way to the end of the pool that is all glass and in front of me is the breath-taking view of the hills that surround our town, below them are the thick Dread Grove – it is exactly as it sounds; run over by wild animals and unsafe.

My house is in the posh areas of the town where most of my classmates live. Below the pool is a vast garden that is usually maintained by our housekeeper, Dorothea, and a few steps away from the garden opens up our private lake, adjacent to which is our driveway, secured by a gigantic steel door and high-tech security, separating us from the rest of the world.

I was never one of those people who abused their privileges. No. I was raised to understand the reasons I had my privilege and to never use it to harm anyone or to take it for granted.

And I never have.

“Lia?” I hear a small voice call as I turn around and at the edge of the pool is my seven-year-old brother, Jacob, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

Dorothea comes rushing in through the doors, “Jake, I told you to not leave your room, you could have disturbed Mr. Branson!” She scolds him and he pouts, refusing to look at her.

I chuckle, “it’s alright, Thea, I’ll make sure he doesn’t interrupt in dad’s meeting.” I say before discreetly winking at my brother who grins immediately. Dorothea shakes her head and walks out of the room muttering something in Spanish.

I smile at Jacob and proceed to get out of the pool, feeling a lot better than when I got in. Wrapping myself in a fluffy towel gown, I walk over to him and kneel down to his height and place my hands on his shoulders.

“Hi, Lee-lee. I didn’t hear you come back from school today.” I chuckle and bop his nose with my index, “that’s because you were sleeping, honey.” I tell him and he rubs his nose but nods.

“You hungry?” He nods in reply and I pout. A grumble from my stomach sends him into fits of giggles, “so are you!” He reminds me. I chuckle and shake my head before taking his hand in mine and standing up, “come on, let’s get some food without getting in dad’s way.” He cheers in agreement as we make our way to my room.

I adore my brother. After my mom passed away when he was just a month old, it came to me to cater to him since our dad was always busy with his things.

After Jacob, Chloe is the one I’m closest to.

Chloe!

I am just realizing that she is supposed to pick me up for an evening out. Oh, bloody hell. I check the watch on my wrist and realize that I barely have time to get dressed before she will be here.

“Hey, Jake?” He looks up at me questioningly as we enter my room and I switch my eyes on and that distracts him from what I was saying as he starts to look around the room.

“You’re so messy, Lia!” He scolds me and I roll my eyes before I find that mug of hot chocolate on my nightstand beside my laptop. I smack my head on my forehead before ignoring it all completely.

“Do you want to join me and Chloe to get some coffee?” I ask him, knowing that he would feel good going out. His school doesn’t start for another week.

He looks at me thoughtfully, “will I get to have bear claws and donuts?” He asks excitedly.

“Only bear claws.” I tell him, hoping to negotiate when he nods, “okay.”

Smiling in victory, I turn around and step into my closet as he sits on my bed with a bored look on his baby face.

I run the towel through my voluminous locks and blow dry them quickly before throwing them up in a pony-tail with my bangs shadowing my forehead, reaching to my eyebrows.

Taking off my robe, I put on a black tank top with thin straps, hugging my chest closely as it reaches till just above my navel. I add my favorite dark denim jeans before buttoning them up and adding a chunky, beige colored cardigan on. I turn to apply some gloss on my lips and I am done with a hint of mascara and my usual gold bracelets and small stud earrings.

I look at my appearance and find my dull, brown eyes looking back at me. Tiny freckles sit on my cheeks as an almost faded scar is on the right side of my neck, the result of a childhood accident.

I turn off the lights of my closet and step out to find my brother right where I had left him, “shall we go?” I ask.

He nods before handing me my phone, “Chloe called, she said she is waiting for us downstairs.”

I nod and grab a small sling bag from my vanity table before we walk downstairs and dodging the eyes of my father, we step out of the house to find Chloe leaning against her jeep right outside my door.

“You forgot that we were supposed to go out, didn’t you?” She asks and I grin sheepishly making her shake her head as she bends down to greet my brother as I walk around her jeep and sit down on the passenger side whilst my brother climbs in after me and moves to the back.

“Where are we going?” I ask, checking my phone for any emails just as she drives the vehicle through our driveway and outside the main gates.

“Our usual.”

It takes me a moment to realize that our usual is Mocha Beans. No! I cannot go to that place. Not when Luna could still be there with her boyfriend.

“Uhm,” I scratch my neck before clearing my throat, “could we go somewhere else today?” I ask her, making sure to keep my voice straight. She turns to give me a look of disbelief.

“Mocha Beans is your favorite place on the planet.” Well, she’s not wrong and if we go there today, I will loathe that place forever. I mean, sure, if I told Chloe the real reason why I did not want to go, she would understand. But I am embarrassed enough thinking that Luna had feelings for me, that she would break up with Nathaniel, for me.

“Oh, I just wanted to try something new,” I tell her and it’s evident that she does not believe me for a second.

“But I want bear claws!” Jacob snaps from behind and I remember the reason why he agreed to come out with me.

I sigh silently, knowing that whatever I say could be used against me.

“Mocha Beans it is,” I mutter, looking out of the window. I can sense Chloe’s gaze turning to me from time to time but I ignore her, knowing that if she realized there was something wrong, she wouldn’t stop asking questions.

Jacob is the first one to jump out after Chloe parks the jeep in front of our favorite café. I can already see the hanging warm lights and the oakwood furniture creating a beautiful ambiance that smelled of coffee beans and old books that lined an entire wall inside.

“You guys go ahead; I’ll get our orders for us,” Chloe tells me and I nod, taking my brother’s hand in mine as I look for an empty table while he reminds Chloe about his bear claw.

I find a secluded booth near the shelves, aligned aside the window, and follow my brother to it since he too found the same table.

I can feel my nerves kicking in as I scratch my neck with uneasiness, almost wishing to not find Luna here, and also wishing to turn invisible to her eyes.

However, my luck doesn’t seem to be working because when I look to my side, my eyes are instantly aligned with a pair of enchanting forest green orbs, all the way across the floor.

I immediately look away and outside the window to my right. This is the last thing I needed.

I involuntarily turn towards her again when I feel her intense gaze burning into my skin and find her looking at me with an undecipherable expression.

Across from her, is an empty seat and that makes me furrow my brows and she catches my change of expression and looks down to her coffee mug with what looked to be embarrassment.

Looking closely, I realize that there are dried tears on her cheeks that she is trying to hide from the rest of the world.

Suddenly, it all adds up.

Nathaniel was here until a few moments ago. Now he isn’t and she is upset. He made her cry, ergo, he screwed up again.

What a jerk!

I look back again but this time my view is hidden because Chloe comes back with coffee for the both of us and the bear claw. I instantly look down at the table like a deer caught in the headlights.

Chloe places my cup in front of me and looks at me questioningly, “are you okay?” I nod at her, sipping on my drink.

She gives me a look that tells me that she barely believes me but somehow, she doesn’t try to nudge the topic further.

As Chloe continues chatting up my brother, I steal a glance at Luna and she is getting up, grabbing her coat and bag before she strides to the door and the bells chime above her head before she is out.

I want to go after her. I know I shouldn’t but I cannot sit here knowing that she is alone and upset out there.

As if on cue, my phone rings in my hand, it’s my dad. I look up at Jacob and Chloe and smile sheepishly, “I have to take this.” I say before I get up and walk out of the door, not leaving room for their questions. I let my phone take the call to voicemail as I look around and find Luna’s long red hair flowing in the wind as she briskly walks to her car that is parked near the thick treeline.

I am grateful for the location of her car since this way, Chloe or my brother won’t be able to catch me going after the girl I adored so much.

My heels clicking on the gravel alert her as she turns around and accidentally drops her keys. I sigh and reach down to pick them up for her and when I look up, I find her teary-eyed with her mascara running down her face and her lips quivering meekly.

At that moment, I literally feel my heartbreak inside my chest.

“Hey, what happened?” I ask her softly as I try to reach forward and take her face in my hands but she steps back and looks away, furiously wiping at her face.

“It’s nothing, I’m okay.” She croaks out through the lump in her throat.

My worry for her reaches its peak as I look at her with conflicted eyes.

“Luna? I’m here, tell me what’s wrong.” I urge her, reaching forward to touch the skin on the back of her hand.

She sniffles, her eyes are still on the road beneath our feet as she shakes her head, “it’s nothing, Aurelia. I’m alright.” Her voice is firmer this time.

And before I can speak again, she is walking away from me and entering the driver’s side of her car. Igniting her engine, she looks at me for one last time, “I am sorry, forgive me for what I did to you.” She whispers but there is something in the way that she is looking at me, something that is telling me that she isn’t apologizing for me. She is apologizing for herself.

I cannot help but allow the urge to help her, to overcome me. I walk to her car and dig out a handkerchief from my cardigan pocket before handing it to her, “I want you to know, that I am still here.” I whisper, handing her the lavender cloth.

A fresh stream of tears appears in her eyes as she takes the handkerchief from my hand. The small gold stag knitted to its corner gets stuck in a thread from my cardigan and that leads to both of us reaching for it at the same time as our fingers brush against each other and she gives me a pained expression that I will never be able to forget.

With slight hesitation, I reach forward and brush away a tear from her cheek and lean ahead to place my lips on her head. “You will be alright,” I whisper and as I pull back, the stag untangles and I step back from her car, leaving my handkerchief in her hand.

I smile encouragingly at her and then turn on my heels to walk back inside the café where my best friend and brother are waiting for me. I can still feel her gaze burning through my back as I couldn’t help the bitter smile on my lips.

She deserves better than pain. She might have an image of being a stone-cold b***h in school but I know her. I know how she is and she deserves happiness, joy, thrill, adventure, love, passion…but not pain.

My heart is beating furiously in my chest before I decide to turn around and find her sniffing my handkerchief before burying her face in it and bursting into tears just as she pulls her tinted windows up, hiding her face from my view.

With a heavy heart, I walk back inside.