instant. I’m not sure how Dad would react. I can tell he doesn’t share her views, but that still doesn’t mean he’d be all for it. It’s scary, really, because they’re my parents, they’re supposed to love me unconditionally, and maybe they still would… but they wouldn’t have to love Skylar. She’s right to be scared of their reaction; she’s lost too much already.
And then there is this strange and sudden attraction I’m now experiencing toward a guy. After all of this time never really feeling any type of sexual attraction toward the opposite sex, Evan Daniels comes into my life and I can’t stop blushing. I just can’t stop thinking about him, and it unnerves me to no end. I’ve never once referred to myself as a lesbian because I never thought a title was necessary to describe who I love emotionally and physically. But now, with all of this lusty attraction toward Evan stirring in my body, I’m suddenly trying to decide what to call myself. I have no clue what I am, and for the first time ever that bothers me.
We approach the school and as we do so, Skylar notices a couple of kids sitting on the front steps outside, she lets go of my hand.
“It’s Parker,” Skylar says, stopping dead in her tracks.
I look to the small crowd of druggie dirtbags off to the side of us and see Parker Michelson in the middle of the group telling some kind of asinine story. I watch him give his living shadow, Tris Gallagher, a fist bump before taking a long drag of his cigarette. I move to the other side of Skylar so that I am now in the way of her view of him. “He won’t say anything,” I say to her reassuringly. “You’re with me.”
She nods, regaining her composure. She knows I’m right.
More often than not, Parker will look passed Skylar when he is walking through the halls as though she doesn’t exist. Even when Tris makes rude remarks about her in front of Parker, he usually pretends he doesn’t hear him and keeps on walking by. But every now and then, when I’m not around mostly, he approaches her and brings up that night. When this happens the world around her seems to disintegrate. She becomes defenseless and her confidence disappears. He makes her as helpless as a child with one simple remark and I know he takes pleasure in it!
As I continue to watch him tell his story to his friends, he glances over and his eye momentarily catches mine. I stick up my middle finger and he promptly moves his eyes back to his loyal followers. “I hate him,” I hiss venomously.
“Yeah,” Skylar barely whispers.
I take her hand into mine. It’s time for us to do this. She needs me right now.
Skylar
I can’t stop my heart from wanting to beat out of my chest the moment that Bree takes my hand into hers. “Are you sure?” I ask.
She nods.
I notice Parker looking at us. He’s curious about what he’s seeing and it makes me nervous. The way he is constantly watching me makes me sick to my stomach now. There is a part of me that wants to scream at him, saying everything I’ve ever wanted to say to him since what happened. But there is an even greater part of me that is petrified of him, of what he’s capable of. Seeing him now freezes me in place and sends the deepest chill down my spine. Since that night, he’s only ever tried to approach me four times but I catch him watching me always. I can’t stand it. I wish he’d just fuck off. I didn’t tell anyone. I didn’t tell Bree. I didn’t even really tell Spencer. Isn’t that enough for him? He got off easy with me, so he should just take that as a blessing and keep the hell out of my life!
My body begins to tremble, but I can’t be sure if it’s out of fear or out of anger. I grasp Bree’s hand even more tightly as we make our way through the doors of the school.
As soon as we enter the doors, however, Bree lets go of my hand. The abruptness of this throws me off for a second, and I actually look at her hand in confusion before I