Chapter 28

Chapter Twenty-Five
Our Spot
The next two days I stayed in my room avoiding everyone because I knew they were downstairs hoping I would come down.
Charlie and Ezra had come to my room multiple times to see if I needed anything but I knew they were just trying to find an excuse to talk to me.
I just... I felt so weird. My head was spinning; every time I would try to get my shit together and thoughts in order, I just couldn't stop flashbacks and things I did not want to think about from flooding my head.
I felt disgusting in my own skin. I was mad and sad and so many things all at once.
I just didn't want to talk to anyone because the pity and sorry and worried looks in all of their eyes made me want to squirm.
They really thought this was the worst I have been through?
Ha. That's funny.
I just wanted to put up my rough exterior and forget about feelings all at once. If hadn't let my guard down and let myself feel pathetic and bad for ruining their plans by saying no I didn't want to go to the party like I wanted to do, this wouldn't have happened.
It wasn't that I couldn't handle this and get through it because I could. I had been through a lot - this was barely a scratch on the surface.
It was more that I hated the looks everyone was giving me. Especially Noah who looked at me with his sad little eyes, concerned and guilty like it was his fault or something. I hated the looks. Everyone was looking at me like I was a ticking time bomb.
Monday I didn't go to school.
Not because I was avoiding everyone. The doctor told me to take a week or two off of school because of the concussion. After that, if I went to school and was feeling okay, I could stay unless it was straining me out too much.
I would've gone to school but had an excuse to not be forced into conversation with the others so I was going to take it.
Later that afternoon, I was out by the lake on the dock Noah showed me.
I left home before school ended. I was worried the guys would come over with Charlie after school and wasn't sure I wanted to face Luke and Ezra and their concerned questions about how I'm doing. The last thing I wanted was to talk about what happened on Friday night which I'm sure everyone else was waiting for.
Like usual, I was hiding from my problems.
I was at the dock for three hours, just sitting there staring at the water with my headphones in and stupid pop songs playing.
"Holy- Christ sake!" I screamed, yelping as I nearly fell right into the water but luckily I was in the middle of the dock, a few feet away from the edge.
"Tiffany," Noah was bent over, clutching his stomach as he laughed. "It's just me. Not here to kill you."
"You don't sneak up on someone like that!" I snapped, reaching over to smack him. he scared my soul out of me.
Noah chuckled as he calmed down and caught his breath before taking a seat on the dock beside me, "Didn't know you scared that easy, sunshine."
I rolled my eyes, looking away from Noah and back to the lake in front of me. It was easier for me to do that rather than look at him and see what he was thinking as he looked at me.
I pulled the headphones out of my ears and wrapped them around my phone, placing my phone down.
"Not even going to tell me to leave?" Noah asked, grinning, when I hadn't said anything. He was used to me not talking much but still surprised when I didn't at the least question why he was here.
"Okay." I muttered, dryly. "So, Ace, why are you here?"
"This may come as a surprise, sunshine, but I actually didn't know you'd be here." Noah was grinning lightly, filled with amusement as he spoke.
I thought for a moment and then groaned out loud, "I stole your spot."
Noah's eyebrows pulled together in confusion, "Uh... what?" He didn't understand what I meant.
I looked at him, a sheepish look on my face, "This," I nodded at the lake. "This was your spot... to come and think and, well- be alone, get away from people. Now I'm here. I stole your spot."
Noah looked at me for a moment before he started chuckling, shaking his head lightly.
"What?" I looked at him with wide eyes, confusion all over my face. "What's funny?"
Noah smiled softly, "Tiffany," he paused. "I shared this spot with you and only you because I'm okay with sharing it with you. It's our spot now; you aren't intruding by being here."
"But... you came here to clear your head and now I'm h-"
"And you came here to clear you head too." Noah cut me off, placing a hand over top of mine. He smiled softly, reassuringly, "We can just... sit here quietly and clear our heads together. Or talk if we want to. It doesn't matter to me, Tiffany."
"Sure?" I asked, frowning a bit.
Noah nodded, "Yes, I'm sure. And I'm glad... that I gave you a spot like you had back in Saratoga."
I chuckled, looking away, "I am too, Ace."
We sat in silence for a few minutes after that. Noah kept glancing at me and I could easily tell he wanted to say something or ask how I was but couldn't find the words.
Eventually, I grew tired of the anticipation both of us were feeling and turned to look at him. I gave him a flat look and sighed, "Go ahead. Ask what you want." It was weird that he hadn't asked anything yet since he always was asking me questions.
Noah gave me a surprised look but it was quickly exchanged with a small grin as he nodded his head, "If I do will you give me honest answers?"
I raised my eyebrows, grinning at his attempt to make me say I'll tell him the truth and nothing but. "I make no promises."
"Figures." He tilted his head as he looked at me with analyzing eyes. "How is your head? And..."
"The bruises?" I finished, seeing as he trailed off feeling like the topic was off limits. I didn't want to have this conversation but it was going to happen eventually so I may as well suck it up and get it over with without beating around the bush.
Noah gave me a sheepish look and nodded, "Yeah."
I looked at him for a brief moment before shrugging and looking out to the trees in front of us as I hugged my knees to my chest which hurt for a second because of the nasty bruise on m stomach. "They're... healing. Not the worst injuries I've seen so I'll be okay."
"The doctor..." Noah hesitated, his voice soft and quiet. "he mentioned that you had a previous concussion."
I looked at Noah and quirked an eyebrow, my face straight as I tried to not get fazed, "Yes, I did. What's the question?"
Noah cleared his throat, his cheeks tinging pink with sheepishness, "How'd you get it? I mean, if you want to tell me."
"Sports injury," I lied easily through my teeth, again looking away from Noah.
Noah nodded slowly. "Are you..."
I sighed loudly and turned so my whole body was facing Noah. I crossed my leg criss-cross in my lap and folded my hands in my lap as I looked at him with a tired expression. "What is it, Ace? We both know what happened that night so we don't have to act like the topic is some secret government file we can't talk about out loud. Just say what you want to say."
"Are you okay?" Noah finally asked, concern all over his face. Just the look I didn't want to have to see. "I mean really. Are you okay?"
I nodded my head firmly, "Yes, I am okay. You guys saved me before it could go far enough so let's stick with staying on the bright side."
Noah smiled softly, "I heard you did enough damage before we jumped in. Apparently you throw a killer punch."
I chuckled and shook my head, "Not really. I did what I could but clearly it wasn't enough for me to help myself." The smile dropped.
Noah frowned, "Hey, you did good. And... Taylor, well he got what he had coming. I am so, so sorry you had to deal with that prick."
"You know him?" I narrowed my eyes, eyebrows pulling together in confusion.
Noah clenched his jaw as he slowly nodded his head, "Unfortunately. He's on the Herbrooke soccer team. The rivalry with that team goes pretty deep. He wasn't even supposed to be at the party but let's just say this isn't the first time we've throw a punch his way."
I could tell simply from the look in Noah's eyes when he spoke about Taylor that he really hated the guy - and it went a lot further than just what happened at the party.
"If I hadn't gone to the stupid party none of this would've happened." I shook my head as I looked down at my hands. "You guys would've have had to fight him and the party wouldn't have gotten so out of hand."
"Hey, hey," Noah reached forward to lift my chin but I suddenly flinched. "Tiff... I'm- I'm sorry."
I shut my eyes tightly, jaw clenching. Why the hell did I have to reflex like that? I slowly exhaled and opened my eyes. I smiled softly, "Don't apologize. Guess I'm a little on edge from what happened but... yeah, forget that happened. Anyways, this rivalry goes deep, you said?" I tried to change the subject but the look of fret on Noah's face was hard for him to conceal.
"Him and a few of his friends from Herbrooke crashed the party. They were looking for someone to make their prey into and that happened to be you but none of what happened was your fault. You know that right?" Noah's voice was firm and eyes didn't leave mine for a second, making sure I was going to believe his words.
I sighed, "Okay. I just... never mind it."
Noah accepted that I had no words so thankfully he moved on, "The rivalry got a bit out of hand. They started crashing our parties and making it more personal. There's a lot of hatred which is why we need to make sure we beat them when we play against them."
I nodded slowly, making sense of what he was saying. "Is... is he uh, going to be at the game? You said he's on the soccer team." My voice was hesitant as I asked about Taylor. I was planning on going to the game so I wanted to make sure I knew what to expect. There was no way Taylor would see me and not threaten or mock me in some way.
"No. We reported him and there was also another witness who saw the end of what happened until Ezra and I pulled him off you. She just got to the party and hadn't drank yet so she was a solid witness. When you were asleep the cops came to ask questions and got pictures of your... injuries so as far as I know, he's on probation."
My eyes widened in surprise because I had no idea about all of that. I guess I would've known sooner if I had talked to anyone after that night. "Oh... that's..."
"That's good," Noah smiled lightly and reached for my hand but stopped mid-way and pulled his hand back, not thinking it was a good idea. "He won't be at the game or anywhere near you for that matter."
I nodded, looking down at my lap. I was a little overwhelmed but felt a lot better than I did all weekend. I guess it helped to talk to Noah.
"How did you... run into him? I mean - I uh... never mind." Noah shook his head, dismissing his question that he struggled to word properly.
I looked up and sighed, "You're wondering how I managed to get myself into that position with him trying to take advantage of me." My voice was dull, face straight.
Noah quickly shook his head, his eyes widening, "No, Tiffany. I didn't mean-"
"I get what you meant, Ace." I cut him off. "I would be confused and wondering too, it's not a big deal. I was leaving to go outside to get an Uber home when he started talking to me. He was... actually really nice and friendly," I bitterly laughed at how wrong I was about that. "I told him I needed to go a few times but he kept talking and eventually him stopping me to talk turned into him trying to get all over me and... well, you know the rest. Fought him off until I physically couldn't anymore."
Noah exhaled a shaky breath as he listened to me tell him what happened. "I'm... I'm so sorry, Tiff. I wish I was with you or around you or anything. I mean, if one of us had stuck by you this wou-"
"No, stop." I cut him off, my voice holding authority. I shook my head, "This isn't anyone's fault. Especially not yours because you and Ezra did end up saving me. I'm being serious, Ace, don't go start thinking you could have prevented this."
Noah sighed and nodded slowly, accepting my words. "I know, I just hate that this happened."
I gave him a small smile, "So do I but it's over now. No point dwelling on it, right?"
Noah returned a soft smile, "You're right. We're okay."
"So, did I miss much at school today?" I asked, changing the subject.
Noah grinned, "Aside from Luke constantly asking about you? Oh, and we got our math tests back. Guess who got an eighty percent?"
I rolled my eyes, "Gee, Ace. Way to rub it in someone's face. We all know you're good at math but unfortunately not all of us are blessed with those natural talents."
"Not me, idiot." He rolled his eyes, a smile on his face. "You did. Pfft, I got a ninety-eight percent."
I looked at him in disbelief, "Bullshit."
Noah feigned an offended look, "Ninety-eight is close to perfect, okay?"
"Not you, idiot!" I mocked his words, chuckling. "No way I got an eighty."
Noah nodded, "You did, actually. Wonder who we have to thank."
I reached forward and shoved his shoulder, "Don't take all the credit, now."
"I'm kidding," he laughed. "It's all you, sunshine."
I smiled, "Thank you... I mean, actually thank you, Noah. For the tutoring and for... saving me - at the party, I mean. And for sticking around at the hospital afterwards."
Noah smiled a smile that reached his eyes, "You're welcome. It's honestly my pleasure."
I gave him a goofy smile, "Mmhm."
"Hey," Noah cleared his throat, something clicking in his mind and wiping the smile off his face. He looked at me seriously, "Can I ask you something? I mean about the... party thing?"
I shrugged, my face going back to straight. "Sure."
"You said... the last thing you said was that bad luck catches up to you."
Noah paused so I took it as my chance to quickly add in, "I remember."
He frowned, "You don't really think... what happened has to do with your ridiculous belief about bad luck being your soulmate, do you?" He looked at me hesitantly, like he was worried what I would answer with.
I smiled lightly, "Ace, you might help me pass math but you will never be able to change my mind on this one. The fact proved itself to you while staring you right in the eye and you still don't believe it?" I scoffed, "Come on. I think I gave you front row seats on my bad luck."
Noah gave me a look of disbelief, "What happened was horrible and yes, considered bad luck but this doesn't mean-"
"Ace," I cut him off, giving him a dull look. "A four leaf clover wouldn't be able to change my mind."
Noah sighed, shaking his head lightly as he looked at me. "You're very stubborn."
I chuckled, "You still love me."
Noah smiled as he looked out to the water, for the first time taking his eyes off me, "Yeah, I guess I do."