Time-Lapse by J.B. Heller

Chapter Seven

I waiteduntil I was sure Dad had passed out last night before I left my room to get a bag of frozen peas for my face. Putting the cold compress on my already swollen jaw stung like a motherfucker, but I knew it would reduce the bruise and hopefully make the swelling go down by morning.

And it did. A little.

But not enough for it to go unnoticed. I don’t need anyone asking questions, especially Eliza. Goddamn it, Eliza. I’m supposed to talk to her this morning, and I can’t even face her. This is just another reason I need to keep her at a distance. I can’t tell her about him. About me.

I glance at the clock. Dad should have left for work by now. Opening my door, I listen for any sign of him. Luckily, I’m met with complete and utter silence. I duck into the bathroom and take a quick piss then grab another bag of peas for my face.

My cell pings with an incoming text as I return to my room, and I know it’s her.

PRINCESS: Where are you?

I sigh and tap out a quick response.

HUX: Not feeling well. Staying home today.

Before I’ve even put my phone down, it pings again.

PRINCESS: What number is your house?

Hell no. She can’t come here. I haven’t cleaned up his mess yet, and I definitely can’t let her see me.

HUX: Doesn’t matter. You can’t come here. Go to school, El.

She types much faster than I do. Sure enough, a response comes through in seconds.

PRINCESS: Tell me or I’ll knock on all the doors on the left-hand side of the street until I find you.

Jesus, she doesn’t let up. But there’s no way she’s seeing the house like this—or my face.

HUX: No, El, I don’t want to make you sick.

When she doesn’t reply immediately, I think I’ve won. But that was foolish.

PRINCESS: I think you’re trying to get out of our conversation. If you’re going to tell me that you don’t want me, just say it already. Don’t give me hope if there is none, Hux.

My fist shoots into the wall, and the plaster cracks, giving me a fraction of satisfaction.

HUX: I do want you, dammit. I know I told you we’d talk, but I can’t right now. I’m sorry. Just go to school, princess. We’ll talk later. I promise.

This time, she doesn’t reply.

* * *

I walkinto the living area to survey the damage. It’s not as bad as I was expecting. Finally hitting me must have released his frustrations enough that he didn’t have to keep taking it out on the house.

An hour passes on straightening the living room, then I move on to the kitchen. Of course, his precious beer—what’s left of it—is still in its place in the fridge, but he’s pulled the cutlery drawer out and smashed a few plates. Nothing I can’t handle.

I set to cleaning the broken glass then the cutlery. By the time I’m done, it’s mid-morning, and my face is throbbing, so I grab a few Tylenols and get the peas out again.

When I get back to my room, I see a text from Eliza waiting for me.

PRINCESS: Meet me at the stream this afternoon at five.

I rub my temples as I think it over. The swelling has gone down considerably, but it still hurts like a bitch. And the whole right side of my face is covered in a mottled black-and-purple bruise, not to mention my neck.

But I could just keep my hoodie on. Yeah, that could work. So, I text her back.

HUX: I’ll be there.

Then, I shoot a text to Johnno and let him know I won’t make it today. I’ve only skipped out on him twice before. This will be my third in nearly five years. And both those other times, I’d literally been so sick I couldn’t get out of bed.

Johnno doesn’t question why I’m not coming, and I’m grateful. I don’t want to lie to him. That man is more a father to me than my own, and being untruthful with him doesn’t sit right with me.

That afternoon, I throw a hoodie on over a pair of jeans and walk to the stream in the forest ten minutes from my house. I arrive just before five, and she’s already there, waiting for me.

She’s sitting on a boulder in the middle of the calf-deep, crystalline water. Her arms are wrapped around her bent knees where she rests her cheek and stares off into the distance.

I take her in: the curve of her spine, the line of her slender neck, her chocolate waves cascading over one of her smooth shoulders. She’s too perfect for words.

I wish I’d brought my camera with me.

As I walk into the clearing, she looks over at me, and the sadness in her eyes eats at what’s left of my heart.

“I didn’t think you’d come,” she says softly.

I kick off my shoes, roll up my jeans, and step in the cold water. I walk over to her, stopping a foot away from the boulder she’s perched on.

“I’m sorry about this morning.”

Her hazel eyes narrow. “Why are you wearing a hoodie?”

Swallowing, I look down at my clothes then hers. She’s wearing a pair of light-blue denim shorts and a flowy white tank. “Uh, I told you, I’m not feeling well. I was cold when I left home.”

She sits up slowly, her eyes conveying her doubt. “Well, you’re not cold now. You’re sweating.”

I wipe the fine sheen from my forehead. Shit, this was a bad idea. I turn my face away from her and look into the water.

“Hux.” Her voice is soft and gentle.

I glance at her from the corner of my eye as she slides off the boulder. I take a quick step back as she approaches me. “What are you doing?”

“Why are you wearing the hoodie, Hux?” she asks as she reaches for me. Her hands stretch up and carefully slide the hood off my head.

I turn my face away, but she catches my jaw in her palm, guiding it back toward her. The contact makes me flinch. I take her wrist and lower her hand from my throbbing cheek. “It’s nothing,” I say as I register the horror in her eyes.

“What happened?” she whispers.

“Nothing. It doesn’t matter, princess.”

Her expression becomes enraged. “Like hell! That is not nothing, Hux. Who did that to you?”

I grit my teeth and regret the move immediately as pain radiates through my entire skull. “It doesn’t matter. Just drop it,” I grit.

Her hands clasp her tiny hips. “Fuck that. Who hurt you?”

I shouldn’t have come. I knew I shouldn’t have, but I wanted to see her. I wanted to look at her for just a moment. But now I want to get the hell out of here and away from her questions. “I gotta go,” I say and begin backing away.

“No,” she says, lunging for me. She wraps herself around my body, resting her cheek against my heart. I automatically embrace her and release a deep breath. It feels so good having her in my arms.

“I’m sorry. I’ll stop talking. I’m sorry,” she says as she squeezes me tighter.

I can’t help myself. I drop a kiss on the top of her head and breathe in her scent. It instantly calms me. Even if it is just for a moment, I’ll take it.

She lifts her face, glancing up at me, and I’m caught in her gorgeous eyes. Her hands slide up my arms to my shoulders as she pushes to her tiptoes and kisses me softly.

“I’m sorry,” she whispers against my lips, then her fingers move up behind my neck and into the hair at the base of my scalp. She grips it gently in her little fists. “Kiss me,” she breathes against my cheek.

I’m helpless to her command. I can’t say no. With one hand on her waist, I move the other to the back of her head and glide my fingers through the strands of her hair. I clench my fist and tug her head back farther. Then, I close the distance between our mouths and seal mine over hers.

She clings to me as we stand almost knee-deep in the middle of the stream. My tongue moves against hers the way my body wants to. But it can’t. This will have to do, so I make the most of this stolen moment together.