Crave - Teresa Mummert Page 0,52

I stood up and walked after the Principal, hanging my head and avoiding eye contact. He sat behind his desk and leafed through a stack of files on his desk without saying a word. I sat across from him and silently said goodbye to my car. I knew my parents would take it away as soon as they found out I was smoking and had left school property. “So…what do you think?” he asked, raising his hands.

“What do you mean?” I asked cautiously.

“It’s tough being the new kid. I know. I’ve been there,” He replied. I sighed and rolled over the possible answers in my head.

“It’s not so bad,” I lied. The truth was I couldn’t wait for this day to end. I had already planned my stomach illness that would get me out of coming back for a few days. There was a knock on his door and a weathered old face peered through the sliver of a window. The principal gestured for the man to enter.

“Coach Jacobs, I need to speak with you about Grayson,” the principal said. The coach nodded and I saw Grayson standing a few feet behind him with a slight grin. “Grayson, show Eva to her next class while I have a word with the Coach.” I stood up slowly and walked toward Grayson. I followed him out of the office and into the empty hallway.

“Thanks,” I said shyly, glancing towards him. A grin spread across his face.

“No big deal. I have better things to do Friday than the game anyway,” He explained. I smiled back at him nervously. “Come on.” He gestured with his head to a side hall and I eyed him suspiciously but followed behind without protest.

“This is the senior hallway, isn’t it?” I asked, reading the numbers on the doors. He put his finger to his lips to motion for me to be quiet. I smiled and didn’t say a word as we snaked our way through the halls and into a set of big double doors. The room was pitch black.

“Where are we?” I whispered as I ran into the back of him. He slid his hand down my arm and grabbed my hand, pulling me behind him. He pushed through another door and flipped on a light switch. The room was full of old sporting equipment and game tables.

“Wanna play?” he asked with a smile that gave me chills. I let go of his hand and ran my fingers through my hair.

“What is this place?” I asked, walking around and taking in all of the games.

“Our school has carnivals and things like that to raise money throughout the year. This is where they keep all of the donated items.” He plugged in an old air hockey table. It lit up and the fans buzzed. As the beeping from the table grew louder with every score, I was suddenly brought back to reality.

***

I sat up quickly and scanned my surroundings. I was completely alone in the woods as the sound of car horn blared off in the distance. My body was stiff but my fever had broken. I rubbed my eyes and smiled to myself at the happy memories I had pushed so deeply into my subconscious.

Chapter twenty-three

Over Easy

For the first time in a very long time, I was missing Grayson. I glanced around in the daylight and struggled to figure out how I would get myself back home. I pushed up off the log and immediately fell back on my makeshift bed. “Ouch!” I grabbed my feet and inspected my wounds. They were crusted with dried blood and dirt. I looked like a vagrant, but my appearance was the last thing on my mind.

I searched around at the sound of a small stream and decided to hobble my way toward the water to clean my wounds. The last thing I needed was an infection that landed me back in a hospital where Reid could find me. My mind drifted to Elijah as I gently washed away the mud from my feet. He had lied and tricked me and now I was even further from helping Grayson. I knew he had done it to save me, but I didn’t care. I could feel the heat burning under my skin as my anger toward him rose. I shook the excess water from my hands and hobbled through the brush to the sidewalk. In the daylight, the town seemed as peaceful and calm as any other. I was thankful Elijah had