Page 54 of Bring me Back

I lifted a shoulder and made a noise that wasn’t really a reply, so he bumped his shoulder into mine. More like his upper arm to my shoulder because of our height difference. “Cricket?”

“I never had friends,” I croaked out. “Probably I had friends when I was little, but I don’t remember them. Dad never had to deal with sleepovers and people around me.”

“I see.”

I licked my lips. “It was always me and Dad. He doesn’t even have close friends or anything. He’s nice to everyone but…”

“He keeps his distance.”

I nodded. Telling him this made me think how lonely Dad really was. I felt bad not to realize sooner, to push him to get out more and look for companionship.

“Do you think that’s the reason your dad was acting like that with me?”

I stopped my rapid thoughts, focusing on what he was saying. “I don’t think he knows what to do with people in my life. He never saw me loosen up and…”

“So this is you loosening up?” he teased.

“Oh, that’s me going crazy.”

“Hallie’s gone wild?” I heard the laugh in his voice.

“Of course.”

I glanced down just once and regretted it straight away. We weren’t all the way to the top yet, but it was still a long way down to the ground.

“How the hell did people miss out on you?”

Laughing, I rolled my eyes. But when I faced Daniel, I saw how serious he was.

“Don’t be silly.” I shook my head.

“I just don’t get it.” His intense gaze pinned me in place. “How stupid are they?”

I chuckled at him being goofy. There was nothing special about me, nothing bad, but it wasn’t like my friendship was a big deal. But before I could tell him so, he read my mind and was already shaking his head.

“It seems like I’m your only friend, so I’m telling you, Cricket, they are missing out.”

“Thank you,” I accepted and turned to look at the view because his intensity was raising goosebumps all over my skin. Bluehaven’s white sand was barely visible in the night. Still, I got a glimpse of the beach, the immense ocean, and the crashing waves.

“Can I get one truth?” He asked, making me look away from the view.

“I always tell you the truth.”

He smiled, satisfied by my reply. His eyes flickered from me to the ocean as he breathed in. “You’re like the sea. When the tide is far away and you barely can reach the waters.” His eyes focused on me again. “That’s how you usually are. And don’t get me wrong, I like that you are your own person. I love that you’re full of thorns, Hallie. But sometimes…” his mouth opened in a devastating smile.

Sometimes the tide rose. I understood him without the words. Sometimes I let him come close and those were the best moments.

“Are you asking for one of those rare moments?”

His eyes on me, he licked his bottom lip. I’d never been so aware of someone. His scent was strong and powerful, so Dan. His leg searing hot under the rough denim, scratching my naked legs. He was taller than me, stronger than me, older than me. And at times, it felt like we were one. Daniel read my mind flawlessly, always had. And suddenly, I wanted the tide to come in too. I wanted to give him everything. All the truths, all my fears, all my reasons and all my firsts. I wanted him to have me in the palm of his hand.

So I gave him the most vulnerable part of me.

“In my senior year, I started swimming. I know the swim team is a huge thing in Bluehaven, but definitely wasn’t for me. But I needed the credits…” And I loved swimming even though I wouldn’t dare to return to the beach. I always liked the water, and I thought, why not? It would help me.

“Ok…” he said, just to acknowledge what I was saying.

“There was this girl. She…” I wasn’t even sure how I could start to explain her. “She didn’t like me.” I chuckled miserably after the biggest euphemism of the century. “She picked on me a lot. I always avoided being around her, you know.” I felt my neck getting hot. I didn’t want Daniel to know I left extra curricular classes when she asked, that I made myself smaller than possible because I couldn’t deal with her cruel words. “But this time I needed to stay, and I thought I could handle it. I was so close to graduating; I was going to leave Bluehaven for good.”

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