Page 17 of In the Danger Zone
Finally getting outside, I spotted Daisy moving up the pathway. She was short but she was making quick strides. I didn’t blame her for wanting to get away from Asher and everyone else. Me included. No wonder she thought athletes were all assholes.
“Daisy!” I called out, moving up the pathway.
She looked over her shoulder at the sound of her name being called out, locking eyes with me for a second. Then she went right back to speed walking away from the house.
“Daisy, hey! Wait up!” Just because she was a fast walker didn’t mean I couldn’t keep up with her. It took me just seconds to be by her side, and I noticed the tears in her eyes instantly. Those big, brown eyes. She didn’t deserve to look like that.
“Look, I didn’t know they were gonna do that.” I pointed back at the house. “I’m sorry. I swear. I didn’t—”
“P-Please just leave m-me alone.” Daisy wrapped her arms around herself. Her voice was so soft and my heart ached knowing she had just been humiliated in front of dozens of people. “Why do you h-have to keep running after m-me?”
“Daisy, please,” I sighed. “Let me apologize for what they did to you. I’m sorry.”
“L-Like you care.”
“I do.”
“You’re a liar. Did you come out here to say something else to me?” she asked, her voice shaky. “All everyone does is m-make m-me feel b-bad. You know, I never did anything to A-Asher, b-but all he’s ever done is m-make m-me hate m-myself…”
I let out a long breath as Daisy kept moving. Asher had been the one to tell me that Daisy was the problem. I never really believed that. Even though I had known Asher for a good decade, I had a hunch that he wasn’t telling me the whole truth.
“Daisy, just… Just wait.” I stepped in front of Daisy, my hands landing on her shoulders.
But she flinched and took a rushed step away from me. Then another one. Then one more. Thathurt. No one had ever flinched when I touched them. Maybe some guys on the ice. That didn’t really count. But girls? Never.
Instead I held my hands out in front of me, trying to prove to her that I didn’t mean any harm. “Please just let me talk to you.”
“I h-have a stutter and I’m a loser and I have n-no friends and n-nobody likes m-me,” Daisy said with some bitterness in her voice. “I’ve heard it all b-before. You don’t have to waste your t-time.”
I winced. “That’s not what I was gonna say. And I would never make fun of your stutter. Or anyone’s stutter.”
“Oh, please. Y-You’re all the s-same.”
“I’m not like… I didn’t even know Asher was like that!” I let out.
“Youknowh-him and you don’t know what he’s like? How he treats people? H-How… How he treats m-me?”
“We play hockey together,” I said lowly. “We met at camp when we were kids. I don’t… Look, he’s one of my best friends, but I’ve never done anything to hurt anyone…”
“B-But you’re still friends with him. And that tells m-me everything that I need to know a-about you.” Daisy’s voice sounded so sure when she said that.
She didn’t know me. We had barely interacted, but fucking Asher had treated her like she was a joke back at the house. I was guilty by association.
“I’m sorry he said that stuff to you,” I told her. “He shouldn’t have done that. Look, don’t pay any attention to shit like that. Don’t let people like that put you down.” Me venting had suddenly turned into a little pep talk, but I didn’t want Daisy to go back to her dorm feeling bad about herself. “You shouldn’t let anyone disrespect you like that. Ever.”
“T-That includes you too. People like you can’t b-be trusted.”
“People like me? What, hockey players?”
Daisy shook her head. “P-People who are friends with A-Asher. And that B-Brie girl.”
“I’m not friends with Brie,” I chuckled. “I don’t like her. Hell, I don’t even think Asher likes her.”
“Either way, I just want to b-be left alone.Please.”
“Daisy, are you okay?” I heard a rattled voice say behind me. Looking over my shoulder, I saw Daisy’s friend rushing out. She walked right by me, sending me a glare. “I’m sorry. I was in there yelling at Asher. I got a little carried away…”
“It’s fine, Leena.” Daisy shook her head. “I just wanna go b-back to m-my room. I appreciate you screaming at him, though.”
