By the time Willis got to the car, Leigh was nowhere to be found. For a second, he felt a cold reeling sensation lick at his gut. Had she left? She had been really willing to let him take her to that ice cream shop. Had she changed her mind and then decided to leave? He had not known her long enough to know if she would take spontaneous actions like that but he really hoped she hadn't. Maybe she had been tired of standing in the sun and had gone to find shade somewhere.
Yes, that had to be it he thought, going around the length of his Chevy with hopes that he might get a glimpse of wherever she went to.
"Looking for someone?"
Willis almost jumped at the sound of her voice. He had not heard her come up behind him.
She really had quiet feet he was thinking now as he turned to face her. She was standing with her back to the sun, her face cast in the late afternoon shadows. The wind had blown her hair out of its ponytail so that it was now dancing f
It was already dark by the time Willis parked his Chevy in the underground parking lot of his sister's apartment. Since he had a falling out with his parents, which had involved a lot of shouting, broken china and a furious storming out, he had taken to living with his sister Willa in her fancy apartment right at the edge of town. Like him, Willa had also been tired of their parents 'bullshit' as she liked to put it and had decided to live alone. Willa Reeler was a twenty-four year old certified lawyer who worked at a reputable law firm with the dream of one day owing hers. She was usually busy most of the time, had practically thrown herself into work when she had left their parent’s house and so gave Willis the space and freedom to do whatever he wanted whenever he wanted. Willa's only rules were one, no partying in her house and two, no touching of her beloved Ferrari. They were rules that Willis could live with, not that he did not want so badly to test his hand at the F
Willis had woken up that morning with mere minutes to prepare for school. Not that he cared about that though, his thoughts were filled with Leigh and how she would most definitely be sick. No one could eat that much ice cream and not be sick after. Then he had remembered his sister telling him the previous night to attend school. Well, it wasn’t like his grades all depended on this one day of school and Willa would never know he missed school. He would make sure of it. So he had proceeded to prepare his infamous hang over soup which he knew worked wonders for belly aches, and had decided to bring them to her. He had stood outside her home like a stalker for few minutes, contemplating which window was hers. He had then decided after he hearing the distinct sound of a shower running that the window with the purple blind was hers and hoping she was the only one home, he had dialed. "Hi Sunshine," her hair was still messy and she looked pale, Willis observ
By the time she came back down the stairs, skinny jeans had replaced ankle high socks, an oversized, "PLANET OVER PLASTICS' top had replaced the long sweater and boots adorned her small feet. "Has anyone ever told you, you look gorgeous?" Yes, multiple times, Leigh smirked inwardly but made a show of blushing for him. It was one of the things she had to learn when she had decided to take on the path of heart breaking. How to fake emotions. She was lucky to have been blessed with the kind of body she had, and the kind of personality that was never shy. It had helped her a lot. They walked quietly, side by side along the scenic street, basking in the morning sun and enjoying the husky scent that hung heavy on the air. Once in a while, cars swooshed by them, kicking up the fallen leaves of Oak trees to dance on the wind before settling back on the paved road. Most times, they saw a cyclist pedaling their bicycles up and down the road, one was even friendly enoug
"That's a wrap people." Mr Sinmipe, the science teacher said as the bell rang for change of periods. Leigh waited for the rush of students to thin out before heading out into the hallways. She had Literary methods next but since the teacher was fond of coming a few minutes late, she thought it gave her perfect time to visit the restroom. She’d been holding her full bladder for almost thirty minutes and she felt like she could burst open any minute. She dashed like a bullet through the thinning crowd in the hallways and into the nearest restroom. After finishing her business, she came out of the stalls to wash her hands and brush out her hair. She had just soaped her hands when the stall doors swung open and the girl that had been slicking up to Willis the previous week barged in, her face filled with inch thick make up. Leigh, sensing trouble brewing, rinsed her hands and made to leave quickly but her path was blocked by stiletto heels that led up into Jessica's very
Leigh felt her body heat up, starting from where his skin tightly clutched hers and worked hard to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat. They walked the rest of the way in silence, hands in each other's and eyes on the road. By the time they got to his car, the parking lot was nearly deserted. "Won't you change your clothes?" Leigh jerked her chin towards his play vest. "Nah," he shrugged, getting into the car. "You stink!" Leigh said dryly as she got into the car with him. "I refuse to have lunch with a stinking guy." Willis rolled his eyes, turning the key in ignition. "And here I was thinking my good looks and charm were enough to woo you," he replied cheerfully. "Nuh-uh," she shook her head, letting her hair fall all over her face. "You’ve got to do better than that Stink," she smirked and smoothed her hair out of her face. "Oh yeah?" his asked, intrigued. "I would absolutely love it if you could tell me more abou
Samantha had just put Tommy to sleep when she heard the front door slam shut. She moved to living room, intent on discovering what had kept her daughter out late on a school night. Again. The past few weeks had been hard on her, Sam knew, it had been hard on all of them. Geez even Leon. The happy go lucky dog felt it in her agile bones. But it would get better, it was supposed to. Only, it had not even show signs of improving but Samantha had hope yet, she was more worried about Leigh. It had however, been on her account that Leigh had transferred schools and still, months after the 'incident' her daughter refused to talk about it. She remembered the times when they had talked about everything and anything. The times when Leigh would return from school bubbling with excitement to recount her day. Only, then, it had been to Samantha and Jose, her father. Now, Sam was the only ear available to listen but the little kid did not come home anymore. In her place came a fast growin
Willis walked slowly along the boulevard of the busy street, enjoying the chilly air and buzz of Saturday morning activity. He had woken up early, not that he had gotten much sleep anyways and had been too restless to go back to sleep. He felt like something was missing, like the missing piece to a puzzle, he felt like a gaping hole was in his chest that needed to be filled. That same restlessness had driven him out of bed and into his car where he had driven around town in circles until his heart had led him to where he was.The Park.He had spent the first few minutes of his arrival in the car, contemplating whether it was a good idea to stay or just drive away, keep driving until he somehow manages to escape the surging feeling that was enveloping him. But even as he sat and considered it, he knew that it was not a feeling to be ignored or pushed till it somehow faded away into the throes of one's mind, however fiercely he wished it was. So he had gotten out of his
Leigh checked her phone for the thousandth time that day and it was not even mid-day yet. She had sent Willis a quick text before leaving her house for the subway that morning, the least he could do was acknowledge her text. At first thought it was because she had sent it early that morning, and he might not have woken up yet. Then later she had convinced herself that he was most probably busy with other things since everyone could not be like her who checked her phone for messages first thing in the morning. It was an old habit she hoped to break but then there was this saying about old habits and dying hard. Minutes later, she had checked her phone again to still find no reply for him, then her mind had gone as far as imagining what terrible fate might have befallen him that he could not reply her text. Maybe he had broken his hand playing basketball, or he had hit his head on the wall while sleep walking, or he had a very bad case of food poisoning. She had managed to sto