Page 5 of Fallen Angel

“I’m sorry,” she said, clearing her throat. “I think I just need some air.” Hannah rushed through the party to the door while tapping her thumb to her fingertips in her left hand. When she got outside, the cold air brushed against her hot skin, and her heartbeat slowed.

She walked to the center of the courtyard that graced the entrance of Fisher Hall, quickly turning away when she noticed a couple kissing on one of the nearby benches. No longer able to hear the music from inside, she focused on the soothing sound of the ocean in the distance.

“That guy was just wasted,” Landon said, following behind. “He won’t bother you again.”

Hannah crossed her arms to keep warm and tried to keep her face stern. “I know. It’s not that.” She thought of what to say next, but came up empty. She didn’t want to dive into a discussion about her anxiety and PTSD. That would only lead to a conversation about her parents and how they were gone while she was still here. She looked down at her palm and rubbed it over and over.

“Just a bit of static shock,” Landon said. Hannah had heard this before. She nodded at him, placating his attempt to make her feel better. They stood awkwardly a few feet from each other. Landon swayed from side to side, his hands in his pockets. “I’ve been meaning to go down to the beach,” he said, breaking the silence. “Want to come with me?”

“Now?” Though Hannah could hear the waves lull in the background, it was on the other side of campus, closer to her dorm building.

“Yeah, why not?” He fidgeted in place.

Hannah shrugged. “I guess honing my partying skills will have to wait for another time,” she joked.

“You made a strong first effort.” There was something about Landon’s voice and calm demeanor that was appealing to Hannah. He didn’t look at her like she was wounded or damaged. He made her feel normal.

“Okay. Let’s go.”

Waves crashedagainst the sand beneath the moonlight. The sea foam fizzled and shushed before the next wave methodically arrived, keeping to the ocean’s soothing rhythm. The beach was pretty much empty other than a couple of other students surrounding a bonfire a few yards ahead of Hannah and Landon. It was quiet and removed, stretching along the base of the tall cliffs where the campus sat above. Hannah held her boots in her hand and let her toes squish into the soft sand. The crackling of the fire against the hushed ocean sent a shiver up her spine.

“Do you want my jacket?” Landon asked.

Hannah’s initial reaction was to decline the offer, but she realized that that was old Hannah’s thinking. Old Hannah never accepted help from anyone. While her therapist claimed that it was a natural instinct to isolate herself, Hannah thought she simply didn’t deserve any help after the accident. But this was just a jacket. “You sure?”

Landon didn’t even bother to answer before shaking off his jacket and draping it over her shoulders. Hannah fit her arms into the large sleeves and allowed the warmth to envelop her.

As they moved further up the beach, the white noise of campus-life faded away. They were alone now and seemed small against the looming overhangs. Hannah looked ahead and noticed a small opening at the base of the jagged cliff.

“So, Hannah of Sonoma, what brought you all the way to Bellcliff University?” Landon tucked his hands into his pockets.

Hannah’s uncle had given her applications for colleges all over California—USC, UCLA, Stanford, Pepperdine, San Francisco, San Diego. He didn’t think it was a good idea to stray too far from home while she was still recovering. But how long was Hannah supposed to recover? It was something that she would carry with her for the rest of her life, and a fresh start on the other side of the country could be just what the doctor ordered.

“Honestly? It was one of the only East Coast schools that had a later application deadline. And it was prestigious enough to appease my uncle. He especially liked the part of the University’s mission statement that read,A secluded campus promotes focus, education, and engagement in one’s collegiate community.”

“What, is he paying your tuition or something?”

“Uh, no. I mean, he’ll help, but he was who I lived with after my parents…” Hannah’s voice trailed off, and she cleared her throat as she searched for a way to change the subject.

“Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to pry…”

“You weren’t prying.” She swallowed and kicked a shell in the sand. “It’s weird starting at a new place.” She forced a smile. “Can’t just assume that everyone knows everything about me.”

Landon frowned. “What happened to them, if you don’t mind me asking?”

Hannah’s lips pursed and her smile disappeared. “Now you’re prying,” she said through nervous laughter, trying to make it seem like she was joking, but Landon’s expression squirmed with discomfort.

Even though Hannah really didn’t want to talk about it, she didn’t want Landon to feel uncomfortable either. He was just trying to get to know her better, and Hannah should have been making the same effort. “My parents died a long time ago. Paul, my uncle, basically raised me,” she said. Hannah knew this was a lie—it had been less than two years since her parents died—however, making it sound like it happened when she was little typically garnered less sympathy.

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” Landon said—the safe and standard response.

Hannah nodded, like she had done so many times before, but was desperate to change the subject. “How about you? Why Bellcliff?”

“The pre-med program here is good. That, and they gave me a pretty sweet scholarship. I want to be a pediatrician.”

“Ah, nice,” she said, but she couldn’t tear her eyes away from the opening at the base of the cliff. “Does that look like a cave to you?” Hannah pointed to the ragged rocks up ahead.

“I’m pulling out all the big guns, Hannah,” Landon laughed and gave her an incredulous smile. “Most girls would swoon when I tell them that I’m going to be a doctor—a children’s doctor, no less—and you’re more interested in rocks?”

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