Page 110 of My Fault

When I got to the school, I could sense something was up. I don’t know if it was instinct or the little voice in my head, but I got out and walked straight for the fences. There were lots of kids standing around outside the fitness complex, so I headed in that direction. People’s eyes were wide as they saw me show up. Some people were elbowing each other and pointing. Jenna and Lion were walking down the stands around the track headed toward the pool.

“What are you doing here?” Lion asked me.

“Have you seen Noah?” I asked. I had a bad feeling.

Jenna shrugged.

“I left her inside fifteen minutes ago.”

I turned around and walked off with the two of them close behind.

Despite the surprise of those who saw me inside, the only things that penetrated my awareness were the screams coming from the back of the room. They were bloodcurdling. I was so terrified, I lost control of myself.

“Where is she?” I shouted, following her voice to the door ofa closet. She was inside. They’d locked her in, and she was crying and pounding on the door trying to get out.

“Let me out of here!”

Trying to keep calm, I pulled on the door, but it wouldn’t give, and I turned around, angrier than I’d ever been in my life.

“Who the fuck has the fucking key?”

Everyone around me looked clueless as Noah went on shrieking.

Terrified, Cassie suddenly showed up and reached her hand out with the key. I snatched it away so quickly, it almost cut her fingers.

“It was just a—”

“Shut up,” I said, unlocking the door.

I only managed to see Noah for a second before she threw her arms around me and buried her face in my collarbone, sobbing and twitching from terror.

Noah was crying…crying.Since I met her, I’d never seen her shed a single tear, not when her boyfriend had cheated on her, not when we’d fought in the Bahamas, not when she’d gotten angry at her mother, not even when I had left her on the side of the road. I’d never seen her cry for real, but now she was completely broken down.

The circle of people standing around us had fallen silent.

“Go away!” Noah shouted at them. But no one moved. “I said go away!”

Those fucking brats had locked her up in a closet in total darkness.

“Nick, I…” Jenna said, looking at Noah with worry.

“Go, I’ll take care of her,” I said, holding Noah tightly.

When the room had cleared out, I sat on a riser with Noah on my lap. She was pale and couldn’t stop moaning. This wasn’t the Noah I knew. This Noah was completely destroyed.

“Nick…” she bawled.

“Shh…relax,” I said, hugging her. I was terrified, too. All my fears had come true, and I could hardly keep a grip on myself. I just wanted to hold her, to keep her there in my arms so I’d know she was safe. I’d been so scared when I had gotten her message. I’d even thought Ronnie might have found her and was hurting her or worse.

“Make them go away,” she said, shaking like a leaf.

“Who, babe?” I asked, stroking her hair.

“The nightmares,” she said.

“Noah, you’re awake,” I said, wiping away her tears.

“No.” She shook her head. “I need to forget… I need to forget what happened… Make me forget, Nick, make…” Then she leaned into me and kissed me. Her lips were damp from the tears and twitching from sorrow and terror.