Falling - On the Banks of Lake Saint Clare (Falling - Book One) (36 page)

“Mom? What’s wrong?”

“Why aren’t you answering your phone!”
S
he yelled. “I was scared to death.”

“The battery died. It’s charging now. I am sorry.”

“I have been trying for an hour to call.”

“You weren’t so worried about me this afternoon to break away from your shindig with my old family to take me to the doctor, so don’t put me on a guilt trip.”

“I do not like your tone, Alex.”

“I’m sorry, Mom
,
but I really needed you.”

“I’m sorry, too. I should have dropped everything and taken you.” I couldn’t tell if she was being snide or sincere. “The reason I called is so you know that Dad’s team is playing at 6 on the 2
nd
ball field. If you disobeyed me and are there, you better head out long before then.”

“That’s the message that warranted 23 phone calls and a screaming text? Are you kidding me?”

“Alex, I promised your father that you would not be there.”

“Stop calling him my father. He is not my father.”

“Stop being dramatic, Alex,” she said.

“He needs to grow up and accept that I am still on this earth. I am pretty damn sure he wanted me to die in that alley so he wouldn’t have the burden of me anymore, but I survived and he needs to deal. Tell him to grow a pair of balls, suck it up, and be a man. I’m not leaving. I’m going to watch the entire tournament. And Mom, I know you are moving back in with him, so no need to sneak out while I’m asleep tonight.”

She was silent.

“I guess that it’s true what I had suspected. Am I supposed to go live with Brad and my real Mom now?”

I hung up the phone and leaned back in the car seat. I turned up the radio to get my mind off our conversation.

My phone rang and I picked it up.

“I am so tired of fighting with you. Please just stop calling me. I beg you,” I sighed.

“I told you earlier, I can call when I want. And I wasn’t aware we were fighting.”

I honked the horn so
Kaitlyn
would come over. I wanted proof that Brad was calling me.

She waved back.

“How was the doctor’s visit?” He asked. “I bet you laid there on the table and let him do whatever he wanted to do to you. Just like you did with me in the alley. Did you call the police on him? Did you tell everyone he touched you and violated you like you lied about me when you know damn well you wanted it?”

“How did you know I was at the doctor?”

“I know everything, Alex. You aren’t that complex. You are really simple minded. It’s a good thing you have a knock out body or you wouldn’t be worth anything, Why don’t you get out of Michael’s car so I can see it better?”

The cold feeling flooded my body and I looked around to see if I could see him. I honked the horn again and saw Derek walk back into the dugout and
Kaitlyn
finally make her way over to the car.

“Oh yeah, one more thing, no need to tell anyone I called. No one will believe you. They haven’t yet.”

Kaitlyn
climbed in the car right when he hung up.

“What is wrong? What did Michael say to you?”

“It wasn’t Michael,” I said. “It was Brad. He’s been calling me.”

“He’s not supposed to call you.”

“I know that,
Kaitlyn
! Everyone knows that but him! I don’t know what I am supposed to do. I just want to go watch the freaking game, but I don’t even know if that’s the wrong decision. Should I just sit here and hide or go out there and know Brad is watching me the entire time. I don’t know what to do.”

“Call your detective girl that is doing your case.”

“I don’t have the number. My mom said she will look for it, but her main importance in life is to protect me from Coach Dillard. Apparently, I’m a sabotaging conniving teen that has this vendetta to destroy the man.”

“That was a lot of big words,”
Kaitlyn
smiled. “I can tell when you’re mad because your words get bigger.”

I looked at her and sighed, “I’m not going to let him bother me. The only time he ever did anything was when I was alone. I will make sure that at no time am I alone. Then he won’t call. It wouldn’t be so hard if it wasn’t them against me. If I just had Brad to deal with that would be doable, but now I have a tag team and they are all warmed up and ready to attack.”

“You have your own team, Alex. Just tag us
,
”
s
he smiled.

“You are a great friend.”

I heard a loud knock on the window, “Hey!”

I jumped a foot. I looked around
.
“I have been looking all over for you,” Erica said, opening my door. “I didn’t know you’d be sitting like a queen in the AC. Come on. The game is about to start.”

I looked at
Kaitlyn
and whispered, “Please don’t say anything about what’s going on. I want to watch the game and not have to hear what I should do from her the entire time. Ok?”

“Of course,” she said
,
with the puppy dog eyes.

I hate that look!

I decided that I had to forget everything that was going on and be there to support Michael. I can’t worry about what everyone around me is doing and let it consume my life. I have to be careful to not be alone
,
not worry about
tomorrow
,
spend the day with my
friends,
and try to relax. I was so exhausted and I knew if I could I would have been able to sleep two or three days straight.

“I don’t have any money,” I said, looking through my purse. “Mom didn’t give me enough money. I spent it all at the doctors. Oh my God, I am not going to make it. I don’t know if I can get through this.” I held onto the fence trying to catch my breath. I was starting to get dizzy and I didn’t know why.

“It’s just money, Alex. For Christ sakes, I’ll give you some,” Erica said.

I grabbed onto the fence trying to stop everything from spinning. I put my head against it, looking down at the ground, trying to keep my head from spinning.

Michael walked up to the fence, “Hey, you okay?”

“Yeah,” I lied, grabbing onto the fence tighter.

I turned around and saw Michael’s parents walking up. I felt my legs go weaker, and I wondered if the concerned look was because I was a burden on their son. I rested my head on my hand against the fence and heard Michael talking to his parents. I felt really cold and started to sweat.

I heard the national anthem and opened my eyes and saw I was lying on the bleachers. I sat up and looked around, seeing that half the people in the stands were looking at me. “She’s ok,” I heard Michael’s dad. “Go play. We will take care of her.”

He stood there looking at me, “I don’t know Dad
.
I might sit this one out.”

“Michael, she’s fine. You need to play. Go,” he pointed to the field.

He touched my cheek. “Dad, I am warning you, you let anything happen to her and I am on your ass,” he smiled.

“What happened?” I asked, watching Michael walking away.

“You fainted,”
he
said, checking my pulse. “You feel better? We can run you to the hospital but I think you will be fine. Jaclyn is getting you something to eat and drink.”

“I feel fine.” I looked around and noticed that not as many people were interested in what I was doing.

“Here Alex,” Jaclyn said, handing me a Gatorade and an energy bar. “These might not be the best tasting things in the world but Michael swears by them when he gets tired.”

I smiled, taking a bite. “Thank you so much. Oh gross, this is nastiest thing I have ever eaten!”

“Alex is a picky eater, so everything is nasty to her,” Erica had to add.

I turned around and could tell
Kaitlyn
had been crying, no shock there and Erica started texting, another no shocker.

“This is Erica and
Kaitlyn
. They are my best friends.”

“Oh yeah,” Michael’s mom nodded, “We met them at the hospital. We got to spend quite a bit of time hearing about all your little adventures in your life. Erica is quite the entertainer.”

I felt sick to my stomach knowing that they had a party going on at the hospital while I was there.

“You were at the hospital? I don’t remember seeing you.”

“Michael was a mental mess,” his dad chuckled. “We had to watch that for our entertainment. Just joking,” he patted my back. “He was a mess, thou
gh
.”

“It’s weird to know that all this was going on and I have no recollection of any of it. It’s like a week of my life didn’t exist.” I felt jealous that my friends knew Michael’s parents better than I knew them. And I wondered why Michael hadn’t taken me back to their house to see them since I got out. I wondered if he was embarrassed of me or if his parent’s didn’t like me and didn’t want the drama girl in their house.

“What’s wrong?” Jack asked, patting my leg. “You look like you are deep in thought.”
             
“It
’
s nothing,” I shook my head trying to stop letting such little things get to me.

Erica started laughing, “Hey, you all remember that orderly that thought Jaclyn was Diana Ross? That was so funny!”

“I know!” Michael’s mom laughed. “She is almost 70 and he asked me for my autograph. I was shocked that Erica even knew who she was. I don’t look 70, do I?” They were both laughing. I wanted to laugh with his mom. I wanted to know her more than Erica. Why didn’t Michael have me go back to the house?

Erica touched her shoulder, “Oh and remember he even brought his mom up to see you. I about peed my pants watching him and her peeking into the room trying for us not to see them.”

They were laughing so hard reminiscing. I had never been so jealous and didn’t really know why.

“Oh,” she sighed. “Michael sure looks great out there. I have to admit, I missed my baby boy so much while we were gone.”

“You were gone?” I asked.

“Yes. We sold the house in
Texas
and had to go close and Jack had a few patients he had to see and sign off on. We were gone for a week. Michael didn’t sneak you in the house every night?”

I couldn’t tell if she was interrogating me or joking.

“I had no idea you were gone.”

I must be the worst girlfriend ever for him not to tell me. Or maybe he did and I didn’t listen. Why am I beating myself up over everything? I have enough to worry about with my family to second-guess if I am a good girlfriend. Then I felt relieved that they were just gone and that was why I hadn’t seen them.

“According to the bracket,” Michael’s Dad pointed at it sharing it with me, “If we win this game, we play the winner of this game tomorrow night.”

I looked over and saw it was the game my Dad was playing. Please lose, please lose. I have never wanted my Dad’s team to lose. I loved that team. I grew up with those guys in my house almost every day for 10 years. Stop feeling guilty about it. It’s just a game. They will win next year. Someone has to lose. It’s just your Dad’s life long dream to win the championship. The never-ending plots and strategies all year for that one big trophy. He won it one time and was unbearable to be around. He was mad that he only won by one point and the trophy wasn’t as big as the year before. He was a good coach, but not tough enough, I had overheard people say. Was more of a buddy to the guys than a leader or coach. A buddy? I can’t even comprehend thinking of him as a buddy.

Michael pitched the first two innings and it was obvious that this team was no match, so they pulled him to save his arm for the championship game.

“
Kaitlyn
, may I borrow a dollar so I can get a drink?”

“Sure,” she said, “but your mom is here. Her car is right over there,’ she pointed.

“I’ll pay you back,’ I said
,
not wanting to go into me not wanting my mom to see me.

“I need someone to go with me. Anyone?”

“I’ll go,” Erica said, standing up and stretching. “What ever happened to the 7 inning stretch,” she complained.

“
It’s only the second inning and they
only play nine, so it wouldn’t really be effective,” I explained.

“
Kaitlyn
?”

“I’m good,” she said, seeing Derek leaning against the dugout.

Erica and I
walked to the concession stand and saw Mom sitting with Rachel. “How sweet,” I sighed. I looked over and saw my dad’s team warming up. My team, I sighed again.
             
I watched Travis throw the ball to Brad. Brad threw it back and saw me looking at him. He
stopped throwing the ball and started watching me. I couldn’t stop star
ing at him. I had that cold scared feeling run through me. I could smell him. He was clear across the ball field
,
but I could still smell his
cigarette smoke, which was odd, since he never smoked.
He was a health freak jock
.
But
it
was like he was standing right behind me whispering, “
Scream Alex. I want to hear you scream.” I shuddered, wondering if I had done enough to fight him. Why didn’t I do more? Fight harder, anything but let him touch me. “I
hate him so much,” I said, watching him look at me. I didn’t want to be the first one to look away. For some stupid reason I wanted to look at him until he had to look away, but he wouldn’t stop.