Page 4 of I Knew You
I took a deep breath and returned my attention to the phone in my hand. “I have to call.”
Her face morphed from shock to anger.
“Then leave,” she spat. “Go. Whit left me at the party. You gave me your truck. I lost control. Easy as that.”
I shook my head. “That’s not a solution,” I replied. “How will you explain being out on this road in the middle of nowhere?”
“Leave that to me,” she insisted. “I’ll call 911. Call someone to get you, someone too stupid to ask questions. If it comes out, I’ll say I made you drive and made you leave me.”
I shook my head and flipped open my phone again.
“I’ll never speak to you again,” she seethed as my fingers hovered over the keys. “I’ll hate you for the rest of my life if you do this to me, if you risk everything. It doesn’t have to be this way.”
“Julianna—”
“No! If you care for me, then go. Please go.”
We stared at each other in the darkness. The only sounds were the forest rustles and our heavy breaths. Fear had a hold on my mind. Could I leave her? If I did as she said, I might have a chance to walk away unscathed.
“You have too much to lose, and I have nothing to gain. This way, we’ll both be closer to winning,” she said coaxingly, when she sensed I was internally debating.
I scoffed. “None of this is winning for me.” A war played out in my mind, but I knew time was of the essence. Julianna needed help. She was still standing, but slightly slumped. I watched her grit her teeth in pain.
I dialed and handed the phone to her. Her voice sounded garbled in my ears as she talked to the operator. When help was dispatched and locations were given, the operator asked her not to hang up, but she did anyway. She handed the phone back to me.
“It’s done. You don’t have long.” She signaled with her head for me to leave. I closed my eyes.
“I can’t do this, Julianna. I can’t leave you.” It went against every instinct I had. I would face the music. Maybe my Dad would have a way to cover it all up.
“You can and you will.”
“Whit will know I left you.”
“Whit will know what I tell him,” she said plainly.
I ran my hands through my hair, over and over, the tension so tight between us I thought it might snap. Without a word, I collided with her again, my mouth covering hers, my hand splaying across her back gently, holding her up. I funneled my frustration and grief into our kiss, a complex and passionate thing. She acquiesced, but just for a moment, before she pushed away from me.
“No, you need to go. You don’t have long. Please.”
“I can’t.” I reached for her again. “I’m crazy about you. And?—”
She pushed me, her palms against my hard chest. “We’ll talk about it later. Go!”
I knew we wouldn’t talk about it later.
“Good girls like you don’t end up with assholes like me,” I scoffed, the other part of my thoughts unsaid.
Her eyes met mine. I couldn’t stand the tears that began to fall down her cheeks. Shame poured over me like scalding water.
I turned into the night and ran down the dark highway. I did not stop or look back.
The putrid smellof weed and sweat permeated my senses as I shoved my shivering body into the front seat of the tiny brown Cavalier.
“Shit, man.” Billy looked at me from the driver’s seat with his glassy eyes and snarling lip. “Looks like someone busted you up bad.”
Billy wasn’t a close friend. He was a groundskeeper at my parents’ estate, someone I would sometimes shoot hoops with when I was home. He didn’t ask questions when I asked him to come pick me up on the side of the road. He took my directions and found me.
My chest was tight from the running and the cold. I bet Julianna was more injured than she’d let on. The adrenaline had kept us at a peak, but mine was wearing off. I looked down at my lap, unable to unclench my fists.
